This month I got settled into Concepción and at the university. I worked a lot with the lab manager of Leo Castro’s lab to learn different methods I will be using, including fish gut dissection, taking muscle samples for stable isotope analysis, encapsulating isotope samples, removing and preserving gill rakers. The people in the lab are super nice and have been really helpful in getting me settled. I also found an apartment (just moved in last weekend).

During the last week of March I took a boat safety and survival course so that I can go on cruises. The practical part included jumping into the water wearing lifejacket, clothes, and shoes and swimming to a life raft. That was a first for me. But I passed the course and so hopefully I won’t have to do it again.

This boat safety course I did in Talcahuano. We had to swim maybe 50 meters away to the life raft but it took us over 20 minutes to swim there. We had to swim in a snake formation, doing backstroke, and it was slow going with the waves and the cold. We then had to get into the life raft which was no easy feat either. It was a very interesting experience and I feel like I better understand why so few people survive shipwrecks. It’s hard!!