Some local products

Before I left the US, I went to Target and stocked up on all sorts of toiletries and other things I thought would be difficult to find here.  Some things I was right about, some wrong, and some things I just plain forgot to get!  I decided today was a good day to showcase some local products (by local I mean I bought them here - they may not be made here, but they are locally available).

(1) Shoes.  I love them, Sadie loves them, even Steve loves them.  The quality I have heard isn't as great, and they are just as expensive as in the US.  While I was smart enough to bring a size larger for Sadie (her feet decided to grow overnight), I only brought one pair of shoes that now fit her.  So, being the cautious person I am, I decided to get her a back up pair.  I searched the mall, and there are many "local" brands of shoes.  No pedipeds, which are my favorite :( but I decided to buy her a pair of shoes from Bata (if you have ever traveled in Europe you might have run across a Bata).  They were about $20, and seem like a pair you might find at a Target.  Note the awesome brand name.  Also, if you are ever trying to buy baby shoes in Chile, make sure to try them on your kid first.  The sizing is quite different.

(2) Yogurt. Sadie and I are huge yogurt eaters, and we were definitely spoiled with the richness and creaminess of that found in the US.  After trying many brands here, I finally found one that wasn't basically flavored milk (don't even get me started on my incredible sadness for losing fresh milk).  If you ever need a good yogurt fix in Chile, I recommend the below.  It's very tasty, and while it's not as thick as the Greek yogurt you would get in the states, it is the same thickness as you would find in a regular Dannon or Yoplait yogurt, which is good enough for me!  Important: note that strawberries are not "fresas", they are called "frutillas" in Chile.

(3) Books. The books here are expensive (what else is new?).  But, I found a good one to read for fun, and a good one that will hopefully help us with our Chilean (I'm not even going to call it Spanish anymore...)  Let's hope Jared knows what he's talking about...

(4) Face soap.  This is one of those Target items I forgot to get.  Now, I'm not one of those people that needs to buy fancy face soap, but I do like to use a special soap designed for my face on my face (as opposed to bar soap).  So, naturally, I went to the Jumbo to get some.  They sold no face soap.  Plenty of bar, hand, body soaps, but no face soap.  I went up and down the aisles a bunch of times feeling like a moron because clearly they had to sell it.  Nope.  I had to go to the farmacia to find anything related to the face, and then it was behind locked glass doors.  I felt silly asking to have it unlocked for me so I could buy it.  The cheapest I found was $8.  I will let you know if it's worth it.  I may be switching to bar soap...

I imagine in the next few weeks, months, and even years, I will be kicking myself for my purchases now.  I'll have to revisit this post after awhile to see if things changed over time.