Mark's Minutes: The City of the Island Hills

Five hundred meters above sea level, we arrived by bus in Santiago, Chile's semi-arid capital, which was the biggest city thus far on our travels. One could immediately feel the busy hustle and bustle of a city of over five million people. That was quite a change for us after coming from those sleepy little towns further south. We knew that it would be a welcome change of pace as we dove into the fast flowing pedestrian traffic. Our first attempt to get to Andes Hostel via subway failed due to the long ticket line in the stuffy underground metro terminal and under the weight of our backpacks. Taking a taxi seemed like a convenient alternative. When we arrived at the hostel in the vibrant Bellas Artes district, we thought that it seemed oddly deserted. Consequently, we had a six-bed dormitory to ourselves. The only explanation may have been temporada baja, the low season. Since it was already late we decided to stay in the hostel, play guitar, talk to the few other guests, update the blog, eat salad and ice cream from the restaurants down the street, and go to bed.

The next day we embarked on a rather lengthy exploration around town. While it was cold in the morning, I increasingly grew frustrated over my choice to wear jeans in the hot afternoon sun. The weather reminded us of Colorado, with its significant day and evening temperature shifts. Despite the small clothing hiccup, I was excited to explore the city that I had learned so much about in my international affairs classes in college. But since we had our usual late start into the day, we started out with a quick sit-down lunch at Mercado Central, the city's fish market. Suzy had the typical Chilean crab stew dish (pastel de jaiba). 

Mercado Central (central fish market)

After lunch we continued our stroll around town. We saw many statues that appeared to communicate three common themes: war and independence from Spain, respect for the native culture and immigrants, and anti-fascism. The image of the late Salvador Allende, Chile's first Marxist president, appeared frequently. When the U.S. backed general Augusto Pinochet staged a coup d'etat, in 1973, Allende took his own life after giving an emotional radio speech to his people. Pinochet would continue his authoritarian rule for 17 years until 1990. 

Palacio de la Moneda

Statue of Salvador Allende

The main shopping street just like the rest of the city reminded us of any other southern European capital. Chile's wealth compared to other South American countries is apparent in all things. And like any big city they like their graffiti.

Near a high school we observed a donation drive for the regions hit in the north by devastating floods. The signs indicate that donations containing food and blankets, except clothing, are welcome.

Flood relief donation drive

Signs of immigration are all over the city. We walked through Santiago's English and French quarters and saw the Italian Plaza. The old architecture in these quarters lend an otherwise modern city a nice touch.

Santiago's nickname is The City of the Island Hills. It was labled that for it's many steep and beautiful island looking hills, like the Cerro Santa Lucia. A short climb up the Cerro gave us a good view over the city.  

After the short climb up and down the hill Suzy enjoyed her first ever pisco sour, Chile's national drink, which is brandy distilled from grapes. Pisco hadn't been very kind to me in the past so that I was glad that I could watch Suzy drink her maracuya pisco sour from afar.

Another picturesque neighborhood is Lastarria, which is tranquil during the day, but lively with its many restaurants at night.

We ended the day exhausted, but satisfied from all that walking and sightseeing. Every morning we were greeted by the two murals just outside our hostel. The imagery of the two native looking characters holding a lamb, an ammunition belt, working tools, and a heart seemed unmistakably political like so many things in this city. It appeared as if Chile's history of dictatorship and hardship had molded a population of political activists. 

During the scorching afternoon heat we walked through the touristy Bellavista neighborhood, up the Cerro Blanco via the funicular from where we got our first glimpse of the tallest building in South America, the Cementerio General (main cemetery), and the snow covered Andes mountains. At the top we were greeted by a statue of Mary. There was some smog, but still less than in some U.S. cities.

That visit as well as a trip to Pablo Neruda's house took us all afternoon. We spent the evening with my old college friend Priscila and her boyfriend at a restaurant at Lastarria. Priscila is originally from Brazil and it was interesting to learn that many Brazilians live in Santiago. Most for economic opportunities, just like a Venezuelan couple who stayed with us at the hostel and who had just escaped from their homes to seek a better future in Chile. Our dinner with Priscila and Christian went well into the late evening. We would only have one more full day available to explore the city.

The next day we spent the greater part of the morning trying to navigate Chile's postal service in order to ship a few items home. Sending a bottle of wine home however proved to be almost impossible. I finally gave up when I was told about a wooden shipping box that needed to be purchased at a specialty store. The woman at the post office was very patient with us. Some items made the trek, but the wine would be consumed that evening.

We figured that it would be best to visit the Memory and Human Rights Museum during the hot afternoon. The museum illustrated the suffering Chileans endured under Pinochet's dictatorship. But we concluded that we did not learn anything new beyond what you would naturally associate with a brutal and oppressive regime. My biggest criticism would be that the museum did not illustrate the motivation for the coup, besides the military's dislike for the Marxist government. Also missing was the context under which the Allende government came to power. Jumping immediately to the coup seemed to me like a Holocaust museum that would begin with the invasion of Poland.

Human Rights Museum

In the late afternoon we visited the massive Cementerio General where most of Chile's great personalities are buried. The tombs were elaborate and imposing. We couldn't help but think: "Whatever happened to the idea of ashes to ashes?" What's the point of being stored in a giant concrete casket? We visited Allende's tomb who had only received a dignified burial 17 years after his death under newly, democratically elected president Aylwin and interestingly with general Pinochet alive and still acting as the chief of Chile's armed forces.

After three full days we left Santiago for Valparaiso. I wouldn't say that Santiago is a touristic highlight, but it appears to be a very nice city to live and work in, especially with the mountains and outdoor activities at its doorstep. Everyone in Santiago is extremely courteous. If you pet a street dog, you will be accompanied all the way home, like a good friend, and maybe to make sure that you get there safely.