Alpacas Socks, Alpaca Sweaters, and Alpaca Hats (Oh My!)

This week I have learned something very important; products made of alpaca wool are my new obsession. Before I came to Chile, I knew I wanted a pair of Alpaca socks because I had a friend who got a pair from Peru and I was hoping to find a pair here. Little did I know that socks were only the beginning. I bought one pair of socks at the beginning of the week. Later, Missi and I found an artisan market and here was where the madness truly began. Originally, I was thinking of buying a few pairs of socks for gifts. Then, I discovered this beautiful sweater that fit me perfectly. After a very long time exploring the stand and the different products and colors that were available, I left with almost everything that could possibly be made of Alpaca wool. I got one pull over sweater, one zip up sweater, five pairs of socks, and two hats (one for my brother and one for my boyfriend). For all of this, I spent less that 40 USD! One sweater in the US is usually about this much. I am so happy and cozy with all my super soft alpaca goods. I can't wait to show the gifts I bought to all my friends and family. It was super interesting to see how cheap goods can be when you don't have to pay for them to be imported. This is something I also noticed in regards to the jewelry. Gem stones and handmade jewelry can be very expensive in the U.S. but since they are mined here, they are much cheaper. Although I may be loving Chile, my wallet definitely isn't!