Terremoto

So of course:
Out of all the countries I've decided to study in (though Chile is very earthquake prone..) and the year I study there, the 5th largest earthquake ever recorded occurs (So i hear..).

It was not as terrifying as it might sound, but I was also very far from the epicenter. The magnitude here in Santiago was about 7.5 I believe? Santiago is more or less in good condition. Unfortunately, Southern Chile has faced tragedy and thousands if not millions are homeless.


My experience:
I woke up to the sound of my building rattling. I stayed laying in bed thinking of what it could be: a truck is driving by?? A train? Meanwhile the rattling is getting louder and louder. So I shoot out of bed look out my window. The word earthquake crosses my mind, but I think, no it couldn't be. A plane?? A truck?? The rattling gets louder and all of a sudden the ground begins shaking beneath me. At this point, I could no longer deny that this was an earthquake.

So I hear my host-mom in the hallway calling my name. Meanwhile, the shaking is getting stronger and stronger. I meet my host-mom in the hallway and we link arms feeling and attempt to feel our way towards the door. Meanwhile the shaking continues to get even stronger.

Finally, it is somewhat of a struggle to stand up. We got to the door and I was frantically trying to unlock it. We have to turn the key about five times. I've never been so frantic in my life! Finally I manage to unlock the door, and I open it to the sound of screams coming from the above floors. One lady was going crazy. I thought that chileans would maybe be familiar with earthquakes, so the screams really scared me. The buidling was rattling so loudly I thought it was going to collapse, so I tried running down the stairs to evacuate the buildling but my host-mom told me to stay in the doorway of our apartment, so I did. We stood there hugging as the ground was shaking and the building rattling, amongst all the screams. I've never felt so helpless!

However, the shaking eventually began to get lighter and finally stopped. Biggest relief of my life! And then we turned around to a very messy apartment. One of the ceiling lamps shattered all over the table, my shower is broken, and we have cracks in our walls (only the outer layer, which is very thin). The walls are still very sturdy.

On a lighter note, school begins soon. I will try and post more often and add more pics!