Ding Ding Ding Round 1 is Complete

(Bzzzz...  Bzzzz.... Bzzzzz.....) - Nothing happens.
(Bzzzz...  Bzzzz.... Bzzzz....) - Nothing happens.

It was 8:00 and Frank wasn't moving.  Big Boi was obviously getting annoyed by the situation of the alarm clock providing absolutely no use to the situation makes the all important decision to wake Frank up.  Frank's body moved much like two 2x4s attached at a pivot. No bending. No turning.  Just simple forward movements were all that could be accomplished.  Frank did not say a single word and walked straight into the bathroom to get a quick shower.  Once out of the shower Frank grabbed "breakfast"  out of the fridge and the cabinet and proceeded down stairs to board the bus.  One problem; RZA was no where to be seen.  All of this can be explained by what occurred the night before.

As Playback Studios was winding down after Frank provided a horrid rendition of "Take Me Home Tonight" our adventurers decided to head back to the Penthouse.  Earlier in the night Frank met RZA of B.O.B.B.Y. Digital fame.  Frank in awe of the fact he was in the presence of one of his favorite rappers did what every awestruck fan would do.  Invite him up to the rooftop of the Penthouse to shoot some tequila, drink cold beer, and flow to some of the illest tracks that have ever been laid.

The two equipped with a computer full of tracks, bottle of tequila, and swimsuits with the beer in pockets headed to the rooftop pool.  They were met by one of the servants in the hotel who politely told them that breakfast would not be served for another couple of hours.  (This is at least what Frank and RZA assumed, for neither one of them spoke a lick of Spanish.)  Never fear this isn't why they were here.

After finding out the pool was also closed, the two were determined to not let this bump in the road ruin their first night in epic Santiago, Chile.  They posted up in the swim chairs on the roof and the ragefest continued.  After an hour or two of listening to track like "Pillage", "Liquid Swords", "Beneath the Surface", "Uncontrolled Substance", and of course "B.O.B.B.Y." and countless tequila shots they decided to call it a night.

But RZA had posted up in a solo room because he decided long before arrival in Chile because cash ruled everything around him.  Therefore he had no one to wake him up in the morning.  Yet, the precedent had been set in place now that Round 1 was complete.  RZA, Big Boi, Frank, Manu, and El Hefe were building one of the coldest teams that South America was ever going to see.

The World is Ours

As we stumbled back into room 1511 overlooking the Santiago skyline it became apparent that we were literally on top of the world.  We had just completed a happy hour at a rooftop bar where the DJ was booming hits such as "Up in Here" and "E.I." I knew South America was going to be the place for me.  As a group of business school students, you would have assumed us to have been tucked away in our beds for the past 5 hours preparing the site visit for the company in charge with bringing foreign business into Chile.  That was the opposite of what we were doing.  The evening of well crafted cocktails (in a very inefficient bar system) and a long night of networking had gotten our minds right.  I was taking multiple shots in room 1511 with the enigma known as "El Hefe". "El Hefe" was not like me or you.  He measured in at 6'7".  A former basketball player at Jaunita College in Pennsylvania, all Chilean locals looked up at him as if he was the white man that Cortes promised would come back after conquering South America.  Then he hit me with the bomb.  He like to sing karaoke.

"El Hefe" was blessed with not only talent on a basketball court, but blessed with the baritone voice of an angel.  With booming renditions of "Ice Ice Baby", "Hey Ya", and "I Think We're Alone Now" he had the entire audience mesmerized.  When in the States he works for the government, in Chile he was a rock star.  I knew that his friendship would be the key to the success of the trip.  The tandem we were about to create would become the greatest duo in the history of show business.  This was just night one of our trip throughout South America.  When I laid my head down on my pillow I knew the next 7 days were going to be the best week of my life.  Little did I know, this was the most sane night of the entire week...