Chile
by Jackie Allenberg
“In the beginning of time, God created the wonders of the world. When he had finished however, he saw that he had many leftover pieces. He had parts of rivers and valleys, of oceans and lakes, of glaciers and deserts, of mountains and forests, and of meadows and hills. Rather than to let such beauty go to waste, God put them all together and cast them to the most remote corner of the earth. This is how Chile was born.” (4gringos.com)
I couldn’t have phrased that better myself! I spent 4 months living in Chile, and it was amazing. Chile has many climatic zones, but I primarily stayed in the middle of this long and narrow country where the climate was Mediterranean. And that probably explains why 80% of the population lives in Santiago, the capital of Chile. The winters are short with temperatures averaging about 57ºF.
My mother is from Chile. She moved here at the young age of 18. She came to this “land of opportunity” with her older brother, Luis and sister, Elena. However, after visiting Chile, I can hardly understand why she left! My 84-year-old grandmother still lives in the beautiful Andes Mountains. The fruit is absolutely delicious and so cheap! Not to mention the fresh seafood…and the wine! If you ever go to Chile, definitely be sure to go on a wine tasting tour. The wine is amazing and very inexpensive.
I lived in the tourist capital of Chile, Viña del Mar (“Vineyard of the Sea”), which I fell in love with on my first trip to Chile nearly 3 years ago. After visiting family for the first 2 months, I went to Viña to live for the remaining 2 months. While there, I studied Spanish and did an internship in Marketing/PR. I had a beautiful apartment just two blocks from the Pacific Ocean. I met a lot of wonderful people along the way. Many of them were also Americans studying abroad. The program we went through was called Adelante (adelanteabroad.com). Transportation was easily accessible. There were many buses, trains, subways and taxis. In Viña, walking was also an option.
Chileans are very friendly people. At a party, they will all approach you upon arrival and kiss you on the cheek. This was their formal greeting. I made many Chilean friends that were more than willing to take me around and be my own personal tour guide, which was great! If it weren’t for them, I would have missed out on so much. I especially enjoyed horseback riding on the beach and watching the sunset. I know many people would take a weekend trip over to Mendoza, Argentina, which was a very inexpensive trip.
The nightlife was intense! Chileans don’t usually begin their night out until about 1am, and party until 5 or sometimes even 6 in the morning! I could hardly keep up. The common drink in Chile is “Pisco”, which Chileans consider to be their national drink. It is a liquor distilled from grapes. Often times, it is mixed with Coca-Cola and referred to as “Piscola”. I went to a “discotheque” called Huevo in Valparaiso, next to Viña. It is a 5 story historical building turned into a club. Each floor was complete with a bar and music to match a theme. One floor had hip-hop & reggaeton music, while the theme on the roof was salsa. It was nice to go up there and get some fresh air!
Valparaiso, often referred to as “Valpo”, was an old port town right next to Viña. It is a heavily populated town where you will find many dogs and cats in the streets. Although many people in Viña refer to this town as being “ghetto”, I found it to be rather charming. Artwork covered the walls, which you can see in many of my pictures. Many talented individuals reside here, and love to express themselves through their art.
In Chile, you have the best of both worlds. You have the Andes Mountains bordering Argentina to the east, and the Pacific Ocean on the west coast. All of which is within a few hours driving distance. I have no regrets other than the fact that I did not get to visit Easter Island. I didn’t realize that this tiny little island sits 2,400 miles off the coast of Chile! But I definitely plan to return someday to do just that. And see my family again, of course.
