Pasándolo Chancho

The one where Chile and I reconciled ...

2010-10-04T03:04:00.000-04:00

So Santiago querido and I had our ups and downs.

But now sitting in a far-away country (in fact, about as far away as you can get), and looking back on the place like past relationship, I'm feeling a little sorry that I harped on about its bad points, badmouthing it to all and sundry. Because just like a past relationship, once you get some distance (about 10,000 km seems to do the trick), you can actually revisit those good moments and see them for what they were - unique and intense and character building.

And in actual fact, I think I realised this while I was still there, it just took a minor breakdown and escape from the city for me to do so.

It came after nearly six months of ~~wedded bliss~~ putting up with each other, by which stage it was apparent that Santiago and I had some serious differences of opinion on all the things that I thought mattered - personal space, openness, tolerance, and appropriate waiting times in a bank. And as our anniversary approached and it became clear that neither of us were going to change our minds on these matters, our options seemed to be either going straight into couples counselling or taking some time apart.

I opted for the latter. Which you could envisage as a-slinking-away-tail-between-legs departure, but which I prefer to consider a braveheart style run-for-the-hills with our Mel in a skirt screaming freedom beside me.

Now every Chilean I've ever met has told me that if there's one place guaranteed to (re-)kindle your love affair with Chile, its the South. Apparently the South is where people are the most friendly, the scenery is the most magnificent, the food most delicious.
So, ever determined to do the opposite, I headed north.

I went as far north as you can without actually leaving Chile - to the Parque Nacional Lauca in the top right hand corner of the country, jammed up against the borders of Peru and Bolivia, and very very high. It is Chile at its most extreme - highest, driest, furtherest away. It was brilliant.

For a place that seems completely off the radar its surprisingly accessible. We actually arrived via La Paz - I had met up with a friend there and we had plans to travel in the area immediately bordering Chile on the Bolivian side as well as in Lauca, a sort of borderlands expedition. Even from La Paz getting to Lauca is easy - the park has the dubious distinction of having a long distance truck route cutting straight through the middle (you know, the one that gives Bolivia its access to a sea port, ahem) and the road is built to Chilean standards - making it the smoothest road in the whole of Bolivia. All buses between Arica and La Paz pass right through so there's plenty of transport, although they don't make a scheduled stop, so its up to you to tell your driver where you want to get off, and of course, pay the full fare all the way between Arica and La Paz.

Aside from its ease of access, however, Lauca is an isolated place. The bus set us down at a refugio on the shore of Lago Chungara - over 4500 meters above sea level and one of the world's highest lakes. Other than the refugio and its caretaker, there is nothing there. You, the lake, the volcanoes, the road, and the occasional semi-trailer barreling past in the thin air. Its a strange kind of isolation.

View from the refugio over Lago Chungara and Volcan Parinacota.

The caretaker of the refugio was kind of surprised to see us turning up on his door but let us stay the night in the bunkroom. I was glad not to be there on my own, as the refugio is also where he lives, so there was a slightly awkward vibe of crashing someone's house.

We sat out on the porch watching the sunset over the lake. And of course even out there, Chile is Chile: every 5 minutes a truck would cut through the picture, reminding us that even this amazing landscape was a place for progress of the industrial kind. They had built a wonderful road, but the refugio's caretaker appeared to have no food to eat other than a (seen better days) joint of meat and tea made from a garden herb.
A strange kind of isolation - perhaps that's my motto for Chile.

The next day we walked through the foothills looking for a village that never materialised, drank all our water, tried to hitchhike back to the refugio, discovered that Chileans do not like to pick up hitch-hikers, got altitude sickness/dehydration, slept it off in the tiny bunkroom in the freezing night, tried again to hitch-hike back to the border, remembered previous day's experience and cursed Chilean cautiousness, and finally persuaded the driver of a tour bus from Arica to take us up the road to the border, which he very kindly agreed to do even though it wasn't where he was headed.

We even saw what's got to be one of the world's stranger animals - the viscacha. Looks like a rabbit, but with a long curly tail. Apparently they make good eating.. or so our friend the caretaker said.

So what's my point with this rambling and almost forgotten relationship analogy? I guess it is seeing the bigger picture. Overlooking the club foot for the whole package. Santiago and I still don't see eye to eye and may never do so, but Chile and I are back on track. Thanks North.

Kicking goals in slovakian.. and other useful world cup languages

2010-06-09T20:32:00.000-04:00

Useful futbol phrases for all those overseas right now!

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disLocation in Portugal

2010-06-09T01:03:00.000-04:00

Quick update - disLocation to screen at FEST in Portugal at the end of this month... now, any donations so I can accompany it?

Blast from the past..

2010-06-07T02:21:00.001-04:00

I should be working but I'm not because I feel guilty about neglecting this blog for so long. And there is nothing like a dose of melancholy to fuel your procrastination.
I've had this video sitting here for so long that I can't remember where I found it. Suffice to say it's full of incredible archival footage that anyone interested in Santiago should watch, if only for a glimpse of what the city was like before it got 80s-ified! Behold the heyday, 1937, of the endearingly titled land of charm!

Internet Enemies

2010-03-15T00:16:00.000-03:00

It's just been the World Day Against Cyber Censorship. Rather appropriately, I'm celebrating this fact by blogging about it, glad to live in parts of the planet where this act is unlikely to land me in prison. Go the free world.

In Chile, I'm always a little surprised by how far integrated new media is with everyday life and, especially, business interactions. If I'm booking a hotel or organising a trip, I don't pick up the phone, I simply jump on MSN and chat with the receptionist. For news and activism, Twitter and Facebook have been among the main ways in which news of the earthquake and reconstruction efforts has been spread in recent weeks, and in the south of Chile Mapuche (one of the country's indigenous groups) commentators are using Twitter to voice their concerns about how they feel the earthquake has deepened their disenfranchisement, a fact that's made the international news. I read about the guy in Santiago who was trapped in the rubble of his house after the quake, and who tweeted (successfully) for a rescue. Later this year Santiago will play host to the international conference Global Voices Online Citizen Media Summit on May 6-7 (sign up here). Social and citizen media is everywhere.

Its a little different in Australia. Sure, we all walk around with the latest iPhones and Blackberries glued to our hands, but what are we doing with them? Mostly watching crazy soviet era videos we've dredged up on YouTube, it seems. We consume, rather than produce. Perhaps we've got nothing to say.

To celebrate the World Day Against Cyber Censorship, Reporters Without Borders ~~handed out prizes~~ named and shamed 2010's biggest infringers of internet freedom. Inside the envelope were: Saudi Arabia, Burma, China, North Korea, Cuba, Egypt, Iran, Uzbekistan, Syria, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, and Vietnam. Just like the Academy Awards, not a whole lot of surprises there.
Its when you got down to the forgotten-about categories, which I like to think of as the 'Best Short Film' of the censorship world, that things started to get interesting. In this category for the wannabe Big Brothers, which RSF calls 'Under Surveillance', we find: Turkey, Russia, South Korea... and Australia. Yep. My own hometown.
Clearly I've been away too long, and in my absence K-Rudd has been very busy hammering out an iron curtain and buying up time-share with Turkmenistan and Iran at the International Pariahs' Retirement Resort.

Shocking? Perhaps. But judging from the amount of people talking about this over the weekend (precisely zero), I'd have to say that no-one really cares.

Why I think I may need to go live in Russia...

2010-03-09T02:23:00.001-03:00

One reason: this video. Possibly the funniest thing I have ever seen. Ever.

Sweet Lord! What the hell is going on here? And more to the point, what the hell was going on in the brainstorming session where those musical geniuses cooked the whole thing up? I'm both seduced by this craziness and utterly utterly confused.. So. Many. Questions...
What drugs has that man taken?
Was it drugs that caused him to lose his eyebrows?
Why is he walking in such a jaunty fashion? (Again.. drugs?)
Is that his real hair? (I say improbable, given already discussed lack of eyebrows)
When was an all-brown colour scheme considered a good look for TV?
Is that an oversized coat rack in the background?
And I know I don't speak Russian.. but it seems pretty apparent even to me that this song contains no actual words... which may make it unique in the history of music videos.
I really cannot describe how this clip makes me feel. A little scared, admittedly, but also intrigued, very intrigued..

Como ayudar?

2010-03-01T22:39:00.000-03:00

Text below from facebook event 'Donde dejar tu ayuda en Santiago' - join here for updates.

ÚLTIMA ACTUALIZACIÓN
Lunes 01 a las 19:27

Revisa constantemente el evento!
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CHILE PAÍS SOLIDARIO!

Las donaciones PRIORITARIAS son: Carpas, Toldos, Art de Aseo y DINERO, AGUA, pañales y comida.

1.- REENVIAR A SUS CONTACTOS, IMPORTANTE LA DIFUSIÓN
2.- SI TIENES ALGUNA OTRA INFORMACIÓN MAIL A dondeayudar@gmail.com
3.- LEER GUÍA ONEMI SOLIDARIA http://www.onemi.cl/images/onemi/archivos/cadenaayudasolidaria.pdf
4.- JUNTAR DONACIONES, INTENTAR CLASIFICAR Y LLEVARLA PRONTO

OJO: TODO LO POSTEADO ES UNA RECOPILACIÓN DE INFORMACIÓN RECOGIDA EN DIFERENTES REDES SOCIALES DE INTERNET, SI TIENEN INFORMACION PARA COMPLETAR LO QUE ESTA PUBLICADO, DEJENLA EN EL MURO

NO SOMOS LOS QUE ORGANIZAMOS LAS DISTINTAS ACTIVIDADES
SOLO UN MEDIO DE INFORMACIÓN, POR LO TANTO ALGUNAS DE SUS DUDAS NO SE PUEDEN RESPONDER, INTENTAR COMUNICARSE DIRECTAMENTE CON CADA INSTITUCIÓN

LA INFORMACIÓN ES ACTUALIZADA CONSTANTEMENTE

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►►AYUDA EN DINERO
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Cuentas Corrientes habilitadas:
En Chile:

Banco Estado
Cuenta corriente Nº 362883
Cruz Roja Chilena
Rut: 70.512.100-1
e-mail: finanzas@cruzroja.cl

Extranjero:
Citibank
Cuenta corriente Nº 9941973331
Código ABA:021000089

Dirección: 153 east 53 Rd. Street 4th floor. New York, Ny 10022
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Rol de Caritas Chile
Caritas Chile pone su cuenta corriente a disposición de la ciudadanía para recibir aportes que permitan paliar el dolor de las víctimas del terremoto sufrido en la madrugada del 27 de febrero de 2010.

Titular : Caritas Chile
Banco Santander
Cuenta Nº 0-082-18-00080-1
R.U.T. de CARITAS CHILE es 70.020.800-1
Email: culloa@caritaschile.org
Más Info: http://www.caritaschile.org
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U.S.A: Donaciones por mensaje de texto. Por favor difundir! Enviar un SMS con texto “CHILE” al 20222 o al 25383 para donar US 10 a Habitat for Humanity o a World Vision.
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UN TECHO PARA CHILE
1) Donaciones por transferencia electrónica:
Cuenta 399409-0 del Banco Santander a nombre de
Fundación Un Techo para Chile, Rut: 65.533.130-1
(2) Donaciones por teléfono:
Llamando al 188 600 600 2010
(3) Donaciones en la cuenta 2010 del Banco Santander

EXTRANJERO
Para Donaciones en Dólares:
FUNDACION UN TECHO PARA CHILE
Cuenta 0-051-000-8500-5
Banco Santander Chile
RUT: 65.533.130-1
SWIFT: BSCHCLRM
Dirección: Bandera 140
Santiago, Chile

Información Banco Intermediario
Cuenta: 2000192290409
WACHOVIA BANK N.A. (N. YORK)
SWIFT: PNBPUS3NNYC
ABA: 026005092

Para transferencias desde Europa:
Banco Intermediario
Banco Santander Central Hispano S.A. (MADRID)
SWIFT: BSCHESMM
IBAN: ES 4200 495494852910148818
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►► DONACIONES Y VOLUNTARIADO
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UN TECHO PARA CHILE

MAÑANA MARTES
Solo los contactados van a las construcciones de Melipilla; al resto los esperamos en el Colegio San Ignacio de Alonso Ovalle, Santiago 8:00 am. Excelente trabajo el de hoy, Chile lo agradece todo tipo de ayuda es útil, se armaran cuadrillas para pedir donaciones en distintos puntos de la capital.
llegar lo mas temprano posible, recoger escombros, etc.

INSCRIPCIONES VOLUNTARIOS
http://www.untechoparachile.cl/

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CRUZ ROJA
Donaciones de alimentos, ropa y frazadas
Pueden ir a dejar donaciones a Calle Seminario 973 o en Independencia 339, Cruz Roja Chilena Lo que más se necesita son agua, pañales y comida.

PRONTO
La cruz roja está próximamente estará necesitando VOLUNTARIOS, para ir a distintas zonas del país. Para los menores de 26 años enviar un correo a juventud@cruzroja.cl Para los mayores de 26 a desarrollo@cruzroja.cl -Indicar nombre, teléfono de contacto, mail, ocupación y SECTOR DONDE PUEDEN AYUDAR (en RM o en otro sector de Chile).

SOLO ENVIAR INFORMACIÓN NO ESTÁN PIDIENDO A LOS VOLUNTARIOS PARA EL DÍA LUNES
http://twitter.com/CruzRojainforma
http://www.cruzroja.cl/
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HOGAR DE CRISTO

HOGAR DE CRISTO Y ONEMI INICIAN RECOLECCIÓN DE AYUDAS: Desde mañana lunes 1º a las 12:00 hrs., se reciben frazadas, pañales, leche en polvo y alimentos no perecibles para ayudar a las víctimas del terremoto. Puntos de recolección: todas las sedes del Hogar de Cristo a lo largo del país, y en Santiago el Colegio San Ignacio El Bosque (Pocuro 2801, Providencia) y el Hogar de Cristo ubicado en Gral. Velásquez.
http://www.jesuitas.cl/paginas/noticias/noticias.php

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UC

PUC está recolectando víveres y diferentes especias en campus San joaquín y Lo Contador, desde hoy a las 20:00hrs. Ayudemos a Chile!

La Federación de Estudiantes de la PUC recibirá alimentos no perecibles, productos de higiene y pañales, ropa, y agua potable envasada en sus campus de San Joaquín y Lo Contador desde el 1 de Marzo a las 9 am. También la Cruz Roja recibe alimentos no perecibles, agua, pañales y ropa en su bodega en Seminario 973, Ñuñoa.

La oficina del CEPS (en san joaquin) estará disponible para recibir todas sus donaciones en los siguientes horarios:

domingo 28 de febrero de 19:00 a 22:00
de lunes 1 a viernes 5 de marzo: de 10:00 a 17:00

Lo que necesitamos es lo siguiente:
Alimentos :
- Arroz
- Tallarines
- Aceite
- Café
- Azúcar
- Leche en polvo
- Te
- Legumbres
Higiene
- Pañales
- Toallas higiénicas
- Jabón
- Pasta de dientes
- Cepillos de dientes
Ropa
- Ropa interior todas las edades (nueva)
- Ropa de abrigo
- Ropa todas las edades en buen estado
Urgente
- Agua potable embasada
Otros
- Frazadas
- Sacos de dormir

Campus San Joaquin y Lo Contador
Camino la fuente 1627, Las Condes (99916640)
Francisco Bulnes Correa 1781, Las Condes (84184505)
Jorge VI 266, Las Condes (95516666)
Isabel la Catolica 5435, Las Condes (99596677)
Torres del Paine 7233, Las Condes (92384572)
Camino Las Pircas 4299, Peñalolen (81593205)
El Relámpago 13907, Lo Barnechea
Luis Batlle 2421, Vitacura (81297157)
San Pablo 5619 block 48 dpto A32, Lo Prado
Ramon Subercaseaux 1549 Depto. B, San Miguel (77587668)
Americo Vespucio 7550 (Bar 89), La Florida
Camino el Cerro 1973, Providencia (90894525)
Juan XXIII 3931, Macul (76184741)
Victor Tevah 3642, Puente Alto
Pasaje Pajaritos 32B (Pajaritos con las Torres), Maipu (92645818)
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UCHILE

La sede FECh ubicada en Periodista José Carrasco Tapia N°9 (Vicuña Mackenna, pasos de Plaza Italia) está recepcionando ayudas para los damnificados por el terremoto. La lista de elementos que estamos recibiendo es: Alimentos, Vestuario personal, Calzado de invierno, Artículos de aseo, Ropa de Cama: Colchones.

Cualquier consulta llamar a 9770911 9770910.

Alimentos: Leche en polvo, colados para guaguas, conservas, legumbres, azúcar, té , café, harina, pastas, arroz, aceite y sal.
Vestuario: (En lo posible nueva y sobre todo limpia y clasificada por cantidad, sexo y edad) Calzado de invierno, Parkas, chalecos y pantalones de invierno, Ropa interior y calcetas

Artículos de aseo: Jabón, toalla, pasta dental, cepillo dental, shampoo (Normal y Antipediculosis), peineta, cloro, papel higienico y pañales desechables.
Ropa de Cama: Colchones, frazadas, sábanas y sacos de dormir

Materiales de reconstrucción de viviendas:
Zinc, Plástico reforzado.
Listones: 2×2
Tablas: Timglado y piso
Canaletas, Planchas Aislantes (Poliestireno expandido)
Clavos, Alambres, Tornillos
Herramientas: Martillos, Destornilladores, Serruchos, Palas y Chuzos
Calefacción: Estufas (a gas y parafina), Parafina y Bidones (10 o 20 Lts) Cilindros de gas licuado (11 o 15 Kg)

Otros:
CAJAS PARA TRANSPORTAR LOS ALIMENTOS, VESTUARIO Y MATERIALES, Bidones para agua.

http://webfech.blogspot.com/
inscripciones http://spreadsheets.google.com/embeddedform?formkey=dENlYmhvVlkyLUxrTFVuemoteHFRNFE6MA
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UDD

Colecta de ropa, frazadas, calzado y comida no perecibles en la UNIVERSIDAD DEL DESARROLLO de San Carlos de Apoquindo ubicado en Avenida La Plaza 680, Las Condes., desde las 10 am hasta las 8 pm, hasta el 5 de marzo. Traten de juntar lo mas posible y llevarlo. Todo sirve. Toda ayuda voluntaria se acepta.

En la sede de Las Condes de la UDD tambien se estan recibiendo donaciones en especial pañales, agua y leche para llevar a localidades cercanas a Curico. Claramente cualquier otra donacion de ropa o alimentos es bienvenida.
La direccion es Av. Las Condes 12438, Lo Barnechea.
Se recibiran cosas hasta el Viernes en principio y desde las 10 am a las 6 pm.

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UDP

Centros de Recolección UNIVERSIDAD DIEGO PORTALES
- A partir de las 9.00 de mañana Lunes 1 de marzo.
Manuel Rodríguez 343, Santiago Centro

La lista de las cosas que se puede llevar son:
Alimentos: Arroz, Tallarines, Aceite, Café, Azúcar, Leche en Polvo, Té, Legumbres
Higiene: Pañales, Toallas Higiénicas, Jabón, Cepillo y Pasta de Dientes.
Ropa: Ropa Interior para todas las edades (nueva), Ropa de Abrigo, Ropa de todas las edades en buen estado.
URGENTE! Agua potable envasada
Otros Frazadas y Saco de dormir.
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UNIVERSIDAD FINIS TERRAE

LA UNIVERSIDAD FINIS TERRAE TAMBIEN ESTA PIRMITIENDO DONACIONES
SE RECIBE COMIDA, ROPA Y FRASADAS!

ASUFINIS es el programa de accion social de la Universidad Finis Terrae, en la cual canalizamos todos los esfuerzos y los diferentes proyectos sociales de la universidad, en esta oportunidad prestar ayuda a los afectados por el terremoto que sufrió nuestro país.

LUGARES DONDE PUEDEN DEJAR LAS DONACIONES:

Providencia:
1509 Pedro de Valdivia (Universidad Finis Terrae)

Las Condes:
7342 Garcia Pica (Casa Seba Barros 9-5399764)

Quinchamali:
13762 Avenida el Monte Sur (Casa Tomás y Javi Barros 9-4513001)

San Carlos de Apoquindo:
Cerro Abanico 12276 (Casa Pancho Zalaquett 9-9782968)

Huechuraba:
Avenida Rinconada el salto 955 (Casa Jose Castellon 9-5520816)

Lo Barnechea:
El Huinganal 3578 El Mañio 101 (Casa Cristobal Lutz 9-2336722)

Mails de contacto: tomas.barros@uft.edu, asufinis@gmail.com
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UNIVERSIDAD DE LOS ANDES

VOLUNTARIOS:
El martes 2 de marzo invitamos a los alumnos de la UNIVERSIDAD DE LOS ANDES a reunirse en el Faro del Apumanque a las 9.00 hrs para dirigirse a la comuna de Cerro Navia con el fin de ayudar a los damnificados.
PD: Deben venir con POLERA ROJA para facilitar la organización.

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UNIVERSIDAD CENTRAL

A raíz de los terribles acontecimientos ocurridos en nuestro país el pasado viernes, tenemos el deber de comunicarles a todos los estudiantes de la Universidad Central y otras universidades del país. La federación de estudiantes Ucen hacen un llamado público a todos los alumnos a que NOS REUNAMOS A LAS 13:00 DEL MARTES 02 DE MARZO EN EL AULA A DE LA ESCUELA DE DERECHO DE LA UNIVERSIDAD CENTRAL, ubicada en Lord Cochrane #417.
La convocatoria también se extiende a traer alimentos no perecibles y ropa que sera destinada a los damnificados y afectados por el terremoto .

TE ESPERAMOS MAÑANA, SE RUEGA ASISTENCIA Y PUNTUALIDAD.

ESTE PAIS ES CONSTRUIDO POR NOSOTROS, ES RESPONSABILIDAD DE NOSOTROS LEVANTARLO.

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USACH

USACH
Recepcion de alimentos, ropa y frasadas en la feusach para enviarlas a la 7º y 8º region.
Patio de los naranjos, EAO
Ecuador Nº 3412
Estacion Central

FUNDACION GESTA
Recepcion de alimentos, ropa y frasadas en la feusach. Coordinacion de voluntarios para la entrega de ayuda.Mandar mail a gestaenterremoto2010@gmail.com con sus datos persolanes (nombre, mail, telefono,etc..)
Grajales 2176, metro republica

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UNIVERSIDAD MAYOR

http://www.diariomayor.cl/v2/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=841 declaracion oficial de la universidad mayor con la campaña La Mayor ayuda a Chile

Los Campus de Recolección por Facultades son los siguientes:

Campus Manuel Montt:
Edificio Nuevo Sala 1-1, 1-2 y 2-1: Facultades de de Medicina y Ciencias Silvoagropecuarias, Instituto de Biotecnología, Instituto de Comunicaciones y Nuevas Tecnologías, Instituto de Arte y Tecnología Audiovisual y Centro Mayor de Diseño E Innovación.
Edificio Antiguo Salas 1-6, 1-7, 1-10: Facultades de Educación, Ingeniería y Ciencias Económicas y Empresariales

Campus Del Claustro: Facultad de Arquitectura

Campus Vespucio: Alumnos de Intercambio

Campus Alameda: Facultad de Odontología

Campus Santo Domingo: Facultad de Arte

Chile de Pie, ayudar es emprender” que será destinada a la localidad de Llico, Comuna de Vichuquén, VII Región. ahi esta la informacion oficial para los de UMAYOR!!!!!!
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VOLUNTARIADO MINISTERIO DE SALUD

INSCRIBETE ACA PARA SER VOLUNTARIO DEL MINISTERIO DE SALUD (SOLO PROFESIONALES Y TECNICOS DE SALUD)
INGRESA TUS DATOS PARA SER CONTACTADO CUANDO APENAS ESTEN DISPONIBLES LAS CONDICIONES PARA VIAJAR A LAS ZONAS AFECTADAS SERAS CONTACTADO.
http://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform?formkey=dE0xY096ZnhUaGtTM3RFTG5VMDR1b0E6MA
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SAGRADOS CORAZONES DE ALAMEDA

Lugares de recepción de ayuda estarán abiertos a partir de este lunes 1 de marzo a las 12:00 horas. - Gimnasio Colegio Sagrados Corazones de Alameda, Alameda Bernardo O'Higgins 2062, Santiago. Sólo se recibirán los siguientes alimentos no perecibles: arroz, leche en polvo,fideos y aceite. No se recibirá vestuario, medicamentos y alimentos perecibles.
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COLEGIO SEMINARIO PONTIFICIO

desde lunes 1, en el colegio seminario pontificio menor ubicado en padre errazuriz 7001, las condes, se recibira comida no perecible en favor de la víctimas del terremoto. Por favor publica este aviso en el muro para darlo a conocer a todos! Por tu colaboración muchas gracias!
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COLEGIO ISABEL LA CATOLICA

A partir de mañana en el Colegio Isabel la Católica (Ricardo Lyon Nº 2855) se recibe arroz, leche en polvo,fideos y aceite, desde las 9:00 am
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SAN JUAN EVANGELISTA

Se estara recibiendo ayuda hasta el día Martes 2 de Marzo en el colegio San Juan Evangelista ubicado en Martin de Zamora 6395, Las Condes. Esta ayuda será recibida por el conserje y organizada y derivada por el grupo scout del colegio a la bodega de la Cruz Roja.

Las necesidades más importantes son:
- Frazadas
- Colchones y Colchonetas
- Ropa de abrigo
- Alimentos no perecibles
- Agua embotellada
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SAINT GEORGE

COLEGIO SAINT GEORGE , RECIBE ROPA , COMIDA NO PERECIBLE Y FRAZADAS , CARPAS , ETCC.. DESDE LAS 8 DE LA MAÑANA , TODO ESO IRÁ A CONCEPCION PORFAVOR LOS QUE PUEDAN AYUDEN!
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COLEGIO SAN AGUSTIN

ATENCIÓN GENTE DE SANTIAGO DE CHILE: A todos aquellos que puedan cooperar con pañales, frazadas y útiles de aseo, por favor hacerlas llegar al Colegio San Agustin de Santiago. Dublé Almeyda 4950, Ñuñoa, Santiago y se está solicitando la ayuda en el LIDER de EDUARDO CASTILLO VELASCO
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LUGARES DONDE SE RECIBE AYUDA

http://maps.google.cl/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=es&t=h&msa=0&msid=103299390633192373139.000480b13b34617d3d1dc&ll=-37.055177,-70.97168&spn=19.218665,39.506836&z=5
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AYUDA DE ARRIBA CHILE!!!

Partimos a Curicó a ayudar a los damnificados con alimentos, agua, construcción, limpieza de escombros y otros, por favor unirse quienes realmente van a ir para poder organizar bien al grupo

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=355053078071&index=1
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MUNICIPALIDAD DE VITACURA

¡Atención Vitacura! Municipalidad está recibiendo aportes. Av. Bicentenario 3800
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DOMICILIOS PARTICULARES

Recuerden que estamos reuniendo elementos de primera necesidad para las familias de la región del maule que lo han perdido todo, les coloco un listado de las cosas que nos pueden traer y que ellos necesitan:

ALIMENTOS: Arroz, Tallarines, Aceite, Café, Azúcar, Leche en polvo, Te, Legumbres
HIGIENE: Pañales, Toallas higiénicas, Jabón, Pasta de dientes, Cepillos de dientes
ROPA: Ropa interior todas las edades (nueva), Ropa de abrigo, Ropa todas las edades en buen estado
URGENTE: Agua potable envasada
OTROS: Frazadas, Sacos de dormir

Viajamos al miércoles, y para facilitar la entrega de sus donaciones, tenemos los siguientes puntos de acopio en diversas comunas:

Quepe 397, Campanario con Paul Harris. Las Condes (97696874 David)
Manuel Montt 2699, dpto. 703 . Ñuñoa (81389131 Jorge)
pasaje las nieves poniente 2629 Condominio el Olmo. Peñalolen (88388485 Ma. José)
Primera Avenida 1127, Departamental con gran avenida. San Miguel (68363427 Carla)
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PARROQUIAS DE BARRIOS

en Mega señalaron recolección coordinada de productos a saber entregada en:

TODAS LAS IGLESIAS: Alimentos no perecibles, SOLO: arroz, azúcar, aceite, fideos y leche en polvo.

EN CRUZ ROJA: Sólo ARTÍCULOS DE HIGIENE ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬

►► DONACIÓN DE SANGRE
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El lunes a partir de las 9 y hasta las 17 hrs. estarán habilitados el Ex Hospital Militar ( Av. Vitacura a dos cuadras del metro Tobalaba)y la Posta Central (Portugal #125, metro católica) para la recolección de sangre.

Si tienes dudas sobre poder donar sangre puedes revisar la siguiente página: http://www.bsburgos.org/donacion_de_sangre.htm
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El ministerio de Salud (Minsal) ha realizado un llamado a las personas que puedan donar sangre, para hacer frente a la gran cantidad de personas heridas.
-Valparaíso: Centro de Sangre de Valparaíso
-San Fernando: Banco de Sangre Hospital de San Fernando, en Negrete 1401
-Talca: Centro de Diagnóstico Terapéutico, ubicado al Costado del hospital Regional de Talca
-Puerto Montt: Escuela Nº 6 de Puerto Montt
-Región Metropolitana, Centro de Sangre Metropolitano, Avda. Vitacura (Ex Hospital Militar) y en la Posta Central
Para quienes quieran donar sangre estos puntos atenderán de 09:00 a 17:00 Hrs. En otras ciudades del país se puede donar el los bancos de sangre de los hospitales.
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ARRIBA CHILE 2010

toda la información en www.arribachile2010.tk
Como respuesta al terremoto que afectó a nuestro país el pasado sábado, un grupo de jóvenes ha formado un equipo de trabajo llamado Arriba Chile, el cual busca entregar ayuda en forma directa a los más damnificados del terremoto.
Por el momento, la agrupación se ha enfocado en la recolección de alimentos, ropa y medicamentos, los cuales serán llevados a sectores necesitados. La idea es coordinar con los canales oficiales y desarrollar un proyecto a largo plazo.
¿Cómo Ayudar?
En este momento la mejor manera de ayudar es llevar alimentos no perecibles, ropa, pañales y medicamentos a las siguientes sedes:
1. Campanario 341, Las Condes (Casa tres campanas).
2. Colegio Monte Tabor. Paseo Pie Andino5894, Lo Barnechea
Los horarios de recepción son de 9:00 a 20:00 hrs a partir del martes 2 de Marzo
Contactos
Sede campanario: 2475846 - 09-0897297 (casa tres campanas)
Sede Monte Tabor: 08-2885266 - 7500900
arribachile2010@gmail.com
Grupos que participan hasta el momento
- Universitarios de Schoenstatt
- Ex alumnos colegio Monte Tabor y Nazaret
- Pioneros de Schoenstatt
- Alumnos colegio Monte Tabor y Nazaret
- FM Box
- Independientes varios
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►► OTROS
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SMS GRATIS

Sin duda la falta de comunicación con los seres queridos es uno de los problemas principales. Por medio de http://evaphone.com/ se pueden hacer dos llamadas vía IP gratis para todo Chile. Otro dato es http://www.smsflick.com/ en donde se pueden mandar mensajes a celulares de manera gratuita.
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ABRIR REDES WIFI

la conectividad en estos momentos es indispensable, ABRAN sus redes hasta que todo vuelva a la normalidad
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BUSCADOR DE PERSONAS GOOGLE

ingresa si sabes algo de alguien, o si buscas a alguien
IDEAL seria que alguien de los sectores afectados se acerque a los albergues, se hagan listas de la gente e ingresarlas al sitio
http://chilepersonfinder.appspot.com/
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CORTES DE CARRETERAS

http://maps.google.cl/maps/ms?hl=es&gl=cl&ie=UTF8&oe=UTF8&msa=0&msid=101583086025908752159.000480adeb622070a2cd4
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►► SITIOS DE INTERES
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http://chilepersonfinder.appspot.com/ BUSCADOR DE PERSONAS
http://w2.chileayuda.com/
http://www.onemi.cl/
http://www.cruzroja.cl/
http://www.untechoparachile.cl/
http://www.minsal.cl/
http://www.defensa.cl/
http://www.fayerwayer.com/2010/03/resumen-como-ayudar-comunicarse-e-informarse-del-terremoto/
http://todosporunmundomejor.wordpress.com/2010/03/01/terremoto-en-chile-aprende-como-puedes-ayudar-tu/

The not-knowing...

2010-03-01T00:21:00.000-03:00

Being away from people you care about when something like this happens is awful. And yes, I know that in a situation like this there exist many varieties and degrees of awful, from losing your life to losing people to losing your home; this is just one type of awful amongst many.

I wrote yesterday that in some ways I'd prefer to have been there. Santiago friends told me I was well out of it.. They are right and of course you shouldn't wish yourself into misfortune. But O was there.

The news here is painting a very bleak picture. Looting and frustration in Concepcion (and Santiago?); the death toll poised to rise and rise; no light or water or food in many parts of the country including the capital. That's what the news says anyway.

I have no real idea what people there are going through. Even those in Santiago.

I hope that, for the people I know, the situation is closer to that described here by another Chile blogger. Life going on, not as usual by any means, but as best it can.

So this is what happens when I take my eye off you Chile..

2010-02-27T23:23:00.004-03:00

Too soon? Perhaps.

I hate earthquakes. Just like I don't like swimming in really deep ocean (ergh.. dangling with all that space underneath you...) I don't like it when the ground moves. I'm not afraid to admit that I act like a wuss when it happens, although to my blessed relief I've slept through or been otherwise unaware of all the temblors I've been told we've had since I arrived in Chile (with the exception of the one about a month ago when I woke up and demanded to know why O was moving the bed in the middle of the night).

Nonetheless, since I've been in Chile people have been telling me that the 'big one' is overdue and I have subsequently been crapping myself that it will happen while I'm there. Turns out that in the end it waited till I was just out of the country..

In the end I'm not sure if I would have preferred to have been there in the terrifying midst of it or here not knowing what had happened - I spent hours trying to get through to O on non-existent phone lines, skype, checking Chilean news sites to see if they were working (they weren't) and reading twitter to try and get news. Eventually I found a webcam broadcasting from Providencia which showed my apartment building, so at least I knew it was still standing. Now I've spoken to O and seen more pictures, so I know that the damage in my part of the city was minimal.

Some might say that I spend a fair bit of time on the blog ~~bitching about~~ constructively criticizing aspects of Santiago city design. So I'd like to take this opportunity to officially eat my own whiny words - Santiago, you mostly didn't fall down, and I applaud that. You may not have worked out how to get customers in and out of a bank in under two hours, but at least we can be safe in the knowledge that the bank will not collapse on our heads while we're waiting in line.

Sadly this wasn't the case everywhere - people elsewhere in the city and country did suffer damage and tragically there have been a number of lives lost. (EDIT: this number has taken a huge jump on day two after the quake as they reach the more isolated areas - it now looks like while Santiago had a lucky escape this is not reflective of the rest of the country.)
But a huge shout out to Chile in general for being as prepared for this as a country can be, for having good anti-seismic structures and action plans that will help to prevent a greater loss of life, and most of all to the people, who've taken this all in an unbelievably calm manner. Hell, O was even joking as he described how our 15th floor apartment was, and I quote, 'rocking like jelly'. Ugh. My hat sincerely off to you all.

Thanks to everyone who emailed to check if everyone we know is safe and well - they are.

Following Margaret from Cachando Chile's lead, there is a series of photos of the quake here which show some of the devastation around the country.

EDIT: buscador de desaparecidos aqui. favor difundir.

the dark side of llamas

2010-02-11T18:01:00.000-03:00

Today, in lieu of anything more comprehensive I hereby bring to you the scariest llama related animation ever made. Had I seen this before my trip I might never have gone. Enjoy.

Voted off the island..

2010-02-10T17:21:00.000-03:00

... fortunately, there's plenty of places to escape to in these parts.

Funnily enough, amongst the llamas and alpaca herders, internet wasn't a priority here. So I haven't been ignoring you all, I've just been ... away.
More soon when I've washed the travel out of my hair, burned my clothes and regained my breath.

I like big b***s and I cannot lie...

2010-01-29T13:24:00.002-03:00

What on earth are they advertising in this photo? No, not giant Italian asses (sadly for those who arrived at this site because they googled that particular phrase). In fact, these are sandwiches. Which may of course give you a giant ass if you eat enough of them, although I doubt they'll be able to turn your tush Italian.

Things Chileans Like 2: Bad Customer Service

2010-01-28T22:37:00.000-03:00

Actually, that's a little unfair. I don't know if Chileans actually like bad customer service, but its certainly a possibility given its prevalence here.

Lets take the dinner I had last night as an example.

We're in a nice restaurant in Bellavista that serves the most awesome sandwiches which, amazingly, are not of the completo style, but rather of the pan-American gourmet style - think sandwich of aji de gallina with salad or lomo saltado complete with tiny potato crispies. Ok, it might sound a little weird but take it from me, these sandwiches are the real deal. As in, delicious, and not at all like a completo.

We sit down (after being told that the table we wanted was for six people and us only being four made us ineligible for it..). So we sit down at a crappier table, for four people. Menus arrive. There are lots of drinks in a big long list headed 'tragos', which oddly enough, means 'drinks'.
O turns to waitress and points to one of the drinks.
O: 'Que es esto?' (what's this one?)
Waitress: "Uh.. Son tragos.' Waitress turns, and walks off.
In case you didn't get that, her response to his question was "They are drinks". That was it. Then she left.
Well, thank you for that. I think that counts as Strike One.

Food arrives. O wants another drink. He asks the price of the beer.
Waitress: 'I don't know'.
Long pause. Waitress stands there.
O: "you don't know the prices?'
Waitress: 'Well, they've just changed them.'
Another long silence. O eventually asks for the menu. Strike Two.

Finally, I order a beer from the tap. It arrives two thirds full.
Me: 'Sorry, but this beer isn't full.'
Waitress: 'Well that's because the foam has gone down.'
Me: 'Erm... well can I have a full one then?'
Waitress makes face and tomps off with the beer. It comes back full. Probably with saliva.
Definitely Strike Three for Chilean Customer Service.

And you know, that interaction wasn't even that unusual.

Oh, and the table we originally wanted and weren't allowed to sit at because we didn't have six people? Yeah, it ended up hosting an enormous party of ... two.

and THIS, my friends, is how you celebrate winning an election...

2010-01-21T19:30:00.000-03:00

That's right. Difference between winning an election and winning a football match? Absolutely none.

New Year in Santiago...

2010-01-10T15:12:00.001-03:00

... this year alternatively known as Fuegos Artificiales vs Fuegos de Verdad.

It is a truth universally acknowledged that New Years celebrations always bite. So why every year am I surprised?
Call me an eternal optimist, but I'm always ready to have the time of my life on New Year's Eve. And with a few notable exceptions (I'm looking at you Edinburgh and you Buenos Aires) my New Year's have been emotionally traumatic let-downs that I may never get over. In fact, in my experience, New Year's can reliably be expected to involve at least one of the following: fights with one's significant other; excessive amounts of tequila; remaining depressingly sober even after excessive amounts of tequila, tears; getting pulled over by the police; getting lectured by police because while you are depressingly sober the amount of heinously drunk people you have in your car is alarming; overcrowded beach bars; bogans; Melbourne's fireworks getting canceled due to strong winds/thunder/heat/Robert Doyle/bogans; and things never, never, never going the way they were planned.

So no surprises then, that O and my plans to get away from Santiago for the weekend were considered by the gods of New Year to be rather ambitious. Which was disappointing, but really, I guess I should have expected it.

In preparation for the weekend away I had in fact spent the morning body slamming Chilean nannas in the supermarket in the insanity that is trying to buy provisions on New Years Eve. If you're ever in the position where you are considering visiting a Chilean supermarket on New Years', I heartily do not recommend it. Not if you like your sanity. Or full limb functionality, those nannas can be vicious.

Of course, even at the best of times (and for those who don't know, the best of times is precisely 10-10.15am on a Tuesday), Chilean supermarkets appear to have been created by some shady secret service to elicit confessions to international hate crimes. Or perhaps to provoke the same (see Gauntanamo). They only thing they're missing is a bit of waterboarding in the cold storage room. I'm sure one of the seven levels of hell is a Chilean supermarket. They're crowded, which would be ok except that the aisles are tiny, shelf stackers ~~lounge around~~ stack shelves at the most inappropriate times, and people seem to sprout blinkers from their temples upon entering them and thus have no qualms about parking their trolley/fat ass precisely in the middle of the aisle while all the other timid Chileans wait patiently behind for them to move. As people here have precisely zero awareness of anyone else, this can take a while. Doing a lap of the supermarket requires about 40 minutes of your precious life that, let me be clear, you will never get back.
Now take this usual shopping experience and multiply it by a hell-factor of, say.. a billion, and you'll get supermarkets on NYE. The whole experience consisted largely of an hour or so of me vaulting over dithering groups of nannas while screaming 'permiso' and lunging blindly at various shelves in order to grab whatever my hand happened to land on. Close enough is good enough, I say. I also say 'never again ask me to do this if you value my presence in your life.'

Naturally, after this I was more than regularly keen to get the bejeebus out of Santiago. And while everyone in the fifth region was planning on heading to Valpo/Vina where they claim the display is the 'third biggest in the world' (which, call me a horrible cynic, I have to say I'm slightly dubious about), we decided to go somewhere a bit more .. peaceful. Also, the normal 2 hour drive to Valpo is said to take upwards of 5hours on NYE, leaving a lot of people to bring in the new year in their car, in the middle of a traffic jam. Which doesn't sound terribly appealing.

So bags packed and barbecue foods at the ready, I was waiting for O to make it home. Which he did .. eventually. Or at least his body made an appearance, his mind, unfortunately, remained at work. Given that the place he works is about to inaugurate a rather important state cultural project that will be the legacy of the Bachillet government, and given that said project is in an entirely predictable state of disarray that, unfortunately, seems to have been predicted only by me, he was rather stressed out. So when I asked him whether we should take the expensive bottle of red that we have in the ~~wine cellar~~ cupboard or the one he got given as a Kris Kringle and his eyes nearly bulged out of his head at the prospect of making yet another decision, I sadly realised that we weren't going anywhere...

Vengeful Gods of New Years 1: Katy 0

So ever adaptable, and not really keen to insist O get behind the wheel of a car, we cracked open the supplies I'd fought so hard for earlier and saw in 2010 from the roof of our apartment building. Which fortunately has a wonderful view of the city at night:

We parked ourselves at the front, looking towards the Entel tower (approximately where the brightest lights are in this pic) and settled in to enjoy the view.
Of course, this being Chile, about 15 seconds before midnight the Sheraton across the river decided that to hell with the countdown and started its own display. Cheaters. (Although nice advertising technique - everyone in Santiago was looking their way for a good ten seconds, that's got to be worth something doesn't it.). I suspect this is the first and only time I'll ever see something begin not just on time, but actually early, in Chile so I savoured the moment.

Then, after much hugging ...

.
..clouds of billowing smoke.

That's right. The fuegos artificiales ('artificial fires' i.e fireworks) had been superseeded by fair dinkum, real, lots of smoke style fuegos. Artificial fires are so 2009. Apparently.

So again,

Vengeful Gods of New Years - 5 billion and 1 : everyone else - 0

Did I mention that New Years always bites?

**Article about the fire here. It doesn't seem that anyone was hurt.

disLocation to go to Oslo...

2010-01-05T13:18:00.000-03:00

... as part of the official selection for the Oslo Screen Festival 2010

Goodbye Noughties, and Good Riddance

2009-12-31T12:37:00.001-03:00

There's something about the end of the year that makes people all nostalgic. Like, life will never get any better than it was in 2009. Pity its over.

Its also the time of the year to pass judgment. From our wise old perches at the end of December we can decide what we liked and didn't like about the year, with all the wisdom of .. well I guess a one year old. Because of course it's not acquired wisdom, for after all this reflecting and soul searching the very next thing we do is go and drink ourselves into a stupor on New Years Eve, thus forgetting everything we learned and ensuring that we start the next year with a blank slate. It's a good system.

Well, as we're not yet quite at the stage where I down another piscola and let off some illegal fireworks right here in the street, before falling into the gutter and ending up like this guy:

I'm going to give you some reflection and some judgment written here into internet eternity so that I'll have something to remember when I wake up from my piscola/pollo induced coma:

(WARNING: ANNUAL NYE INDUCED SELF-PITYING RANT FOLLOWS)

My judgment on 2009 is that it sucked. And, honestly, if 2010 doesn't pull its pants up and start to try harder something's going to crack. Which may or may not be my mental health or my relationship, or both. Sure, some 2009 things were awesome, like working on my first real job in TV. And getting engaged. And not breaking my spine when I fell into the bathtub that time (although the broken rib part definitely goes into the sucky category).But overall, 2009 has been akin to one long visa process, at the point where you've handed in your paperwork and you're just waiting for that magic approved stamp so you can just get on with your life. And you've been waiting so long that you're starting to wonder what the reasons were that you ever wanted the god damned visa in the first place.
That's been this year. And I'm pretty happy to say adios to it.

Oh, and it was the worst named decade in history. Noughties? Give me a break.

Ok someone gimme a piscola and slap me in the face. I'm ready for 2010.

I know its meant to be all about Christmas..

2009-12-24T15:58:00.001-03:00

... but first, I feel I really have to draw your attention to the air quality today:

I took these photos this morning from the roof of our apartment building, bringing to mind two questions:
Firstly ... what in the name of the sweet lord am I breathing here?
And secondly.. will I ever be able to have children after this?

Now I know I could have left it there and continued my life in somewhat outraged ignorance, but in the spirit of Christmas and because we live in the age of the internets where no question is merely rhetorical, I asked Professor Google.
Which makes me either a canny internet researcher or a massive geek. Either way, I'm now an expert on air particles.**

Firstly, according to the ever so helpful air quality map provided by Chile's National Commission on the Environment, today's air contamination levels are considered to be 'good.'
Ok, ok ok, hold on people. Do you see the smog out there? Do you see the Andes? No! That's right, you don't. Because the biggest mountain chain in the Americas is currently obscured by a layer of brown smudge. Jeepers if this is considered 'good' I'd like to know what bad looks like. Actually, it probably looks something like a John Carpenter horror film from the 80s.

Perhaps this 'good' classification is not that surprising, because after more reading, I have to tell you (and I'm trying to be as nice as possible, it is Christmas after all) that Chile's classifications do seem a little, shall we say, relaxed. And by relaxed I mean insane.
According to Chile's National Environment Commission, levels of PM-10 (particles in the air less than 10 microns in size i.e. small enough to burrow into your throat, lungs and other organs and leave you with nasty cancers) can reach 100 micrograms per cubic meter and air quality will still be considered 'good.' What does that mean? Well, for some perspective, the limit set in the EU is 50. Yes, that's right, half. Here the Commission's little map tells me I don't need to be 'on alert' until we get to 200ug/cubic meter, and emergency levels are considered 500 or above! Well yes. If 500 micro-whatsits of cancer causing particles are swirling around every cubic meter of air around my head, then I do rather think that is an emergency thank you very much. John Carpenter, you'd be proud.

All I can say is I hope Santa's reindeers have been fitted with gas masks when they do their rounds tonight.

Righ, now I gotta to go see someone about my emphysema. Merry Christmas all.

** Disclaimer: I am in no way an expert on anything. Except perhaps Alaskan brown bears. And how to Google things. Not on air particles. Sorry I claimed I was.

For those eager beavers who want more comprehensive and intelligent commentary on this issue, some recent articles can be found here:
El Ciudadano "El aire que viene para Santiago" (Spanish)
El Ciudadano "De qué se compone y qué daños causa el aire que se respira en Santiago?" (Spanish)
El Mostrador "Contaminacion del aire en Santiago se escapo de las manos"(Spanish)
Blog from 2008: chileno "air quality" (English)
New Zealand's PM10 levels

Cheers to That - Things Chileans Like No. 1: Speeches

2009-12-21T17:58:00.000-03:00

I don't know whether this is an Australian thing, but there are very few occasions in my life where I have felt the need to impart my wisdom to a random group of people.**

Those in Australia who do feel that need I invite to proceed directly to the Speakers Corner at the State Library where they will be able to stand comfortably on their soapbox and spout off about anything they like (anything they like within the limits set by anti-terrorism legislation of course) and everyone will duly ignore them.

In Chile I don't know if the Speakers' Corner thing is a tradition. What I do know, however, is that there is in actual fact no need for a Speakers' Corner here, because that role has already been filled more than comfortably by a fundamental part of any Chilean social gathering - 'the brindis'.
Yes, its time to put your soapboxes away and sit down people, for its much more comfortable to give a speech from right here at the dinner table.
A long speech. Very long. And ponderous.

Brindis means toast, which to me is something that happens at a 21st birthday party when either your dad or your best friend uses their consumption of the entire contents of the open bar as inspiration for a series of hilarious anecdotes featuring you. I understand the same thing happens at 30th birthday parties, although with less cask wine and more brand-name alcohol. Either way, toasts as I know them are generally funny, irreverent, and most importantly not too long as even the toast maker wants to get to the end part where we all raise our glasses and get back to the real reason that we are there. That is, drinking. We are Australian, after all.

The Chilean brindis seems to be an entirely different beast. For starters, it's not confined to rare and important occasions such as big-number birthdays or weddings. Nope, all it takes to make an appropriate moment for you to start dinging your cutlery against your glass is a simple table-full of people, preferably the instant they have just been served the hot portion of their meal, which of course they will now have no chance of consuming as in Chile it is considered rude to eat while someone is toast making.
With regards to the length of your toast, short and sweet is definitely out - think quantity over quality. The longer, the better.
Furthermore, for prime toast giving, make sure you are middle aged and a man, as the Chilean brindis seems to be almost exclusively the territory of the Chilean Dad. I have NEVER seen a Chilean Mum initiating nor giving a brindis. Actually, I've never seen anyone other than the said Chilean Dads doing so (cue discussion on machismo and/or paternal societies). But any reluctance on the part of everyone else to participate in the toast giving is more than made up for by said Chilean Dads, as they are quite happy to make multiple toasts. Get two Chilean Dads together at a table and they will take it in turns to pontificate to the captive crowd, repeatedly, at length, one after the other. I kid you not.
Finally, in the Chilean brindis, while it is customary to dedicate your toast to the person in question, you are under absolutely no obligation to confine the contents of your speech to that person and his/her achievements. Actually, the wider the range of topics that you can incorporate, the better. Rhetorical questions are also good, as are philosophical ones. I was at a birthday celebration the other night where an all time classic brindis was given that started off with Happy Birthday and ended up with the speech giver's thoughts on evolution, with a detour to consider the question of love somewhere in the middle. Bejeezus. If we didn't all need a drink before that, we certainly did afterwards.

So with the silly season and no doubt multiple toast giving opportunities nearly upon us, I would like to take a moment now to dedicate a toast to the Chilean Dads, for only they know how lonely it is to be always giving the speeches, and never receiving them.
Dear Chilean Dads, during the course of many meals, and thus many of your fine discourses on life, the universe and all that, I feel that I've learned a great deal. What have I learned? Good question. I've learned to listen out for the melodic tinkle of your fork against your glass and to take it as a cue to immediately eat as much as possible while my dinner is still hot. I've learned that surreptitiously drinking while you are making your toast is a good idea and that if people think I'm a crazy foreigner with no manners, that this is at least preferable to being sober. I've learned that I understand your speeches better if I am not sober. And I've learned that it certainly ain't over till the fat lady sings, or till your wife tells you that enough is enough and takes away your glass.
And so I sincerely thank you for taking the time out of your busy social schedule to educate, nay, to enlighten me on these and any number of other topics. I for one am certainly more informed about love and evolution now, and for that I say cheers!
Salud!

**Except of course, on this blog.

Photo by Sebduggan on Flickr (note, person depicted probably not a Chilean)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/joseywales/ / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

All I want for Christmas is..

2009-12-21T15:34:00.000-03:00

... one of these awesome rigs for my camera. Sigh. Santa?

Cerro Manquehue, or how we almost died of exposure just ten minutes from the city

2009-12-12T00:33:00.000-03:00

Photo from Flickr by Rodrigo Martens

http://www.flickr.com/photos/rodtype/ / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

Ask a Santiaguino about what they like best about living in their city, and chances are they won't mention anything about good public transport, friendly customer service or having clean lungs - and rightly so because these things are scarce on the ground here, if not actually mythical. Instead, chances are they will mention being able to leave your house and within a couple of hours drive be either skiing in the Andes in a fluoro 80s ski-suit or, if you drove in the other direction, be indecently exposing large amounts of buttock at a sea-side resort.
Yep, it appears that the best thing about living in Santiago is being able to get out of it.

With this in mind, on the recent long weekend O and I begged a car from his parents (as without one you are pretty well screwed here, or at the very least condemned to spending large amounts of time on rattle-trap buses / with your face jammed uncomfortably close to someone's armpit on the metro) and set out to enjoy what the city has to offer. i.e, we left it. For the mountains.

In a city surrounded by mountains, its funny that they are not a constant presence in people's minds, in fact, people kind of forget that they are there. (For a very funny example of this, see Sara's post on giving directions in Santiago). One reason for this forgetfulness might be the obvious: obscured by the thick smog you could argue that quite often the mountains aren't there.

Peanut seller on Cerro San Cristobal; note obscured / non-existent Andes in background

Yet on the weekend, all kitted up with our wheels and ganas de salir, we discovered perhaps another reason that Santiago's mountains are not on the radar here - its damn hard to get onto them.

Chileans love a gated community, and with the city in a constant state of expansion, it is gated communities all the way to the foothills of the Andes. And by gated I mean you may not under any circumstances enter. And by community I mean a group of houses with a big-ass fence all the way around them cutting off public access to anything in the zone plus anything on the other side ie the god damned hills.

Now, there's a lot to be said about this, about a culture of fear, the media, the aspirational middle classes and the fact that I damn well hate fences. Unfortunately for those who like the sound of a bit of semi-political ranting, all that will have to go into another blog post. Once I've slept off my hypertensive migraine.
In the end our first attempt to get out onto Santiago's mountains was, if not actually thwarted by the condos, technically it was trespassing. We spent a while driving around some of Santiago's wealthier suburbs, looking for the public park or hiking trail that I insisted must be there, and found only fences, private land and security guards. On our way up one of the subidas we gave a lift to a skater, who pointed us in the direction of a broken bit of fence through which we could squeeze, proving true the old adage that if you want to do something illegal, your best source of info is a teenager with a skateboard. Squeeze we did and our picnic was fine, the bad feeling in my stomach coming not from the food, but from the fact that we had to force our way into an area that should, in my not-so-humble-because-its-my-blog opinion, be available for everyone to enjoy, not just those willing to break property laws.

Not to be defeated, and slightly delirious after an all-night film shoot so randomly hilarious that it will get its very own blog post in the coming days, the next day we decided to climb Cerro Manquehue. As a disclaimer, and before you read the rest of this post, this undertaking was described to me, by Chileans, as 'a walk up a hill, although perhaps you shouldn't wear those sandals.'

Cerro Manquehue is the big volcano looking thing just outside Las Condes. You can see it from the city. Perhaps the fact that it looked like a volcano should have tipped me off that what we were about to do was not, essentially, the smartest decision. Yet strangely it did not. Thus I can now report that despite all appearances Cerro Manquehue is a) not a volcano and b) not a bloody hill. It is a mountain.

Its also the exact place we had been looking for the day before - I'm not sure what the legal status of the land is but I can say that there are no fences and a lot of paths, so I'm guessing that its either public access or that no-one cares much. Regardless, its a wonderful escape from the city, just a short drive from downtown. A walk in the park you might say. So did I. Incorrectly as it turns out.

At a certain stage (ie several hours after setting out and half way up what can only be described as a sheer cliff face) I wondered if we should not, perhaps, be using ropes. Or a helmet. Or at the very least have on us a larger supply of water that two 500ml bottles. I also wondered where the path was. This was a question that we were all contemplating. There was no way to find out, because there was also no cell phone coverage.

Now I've seen Alive, and therefore I know what happens when you get lost in the Andes. So as the prospect of us finding the path faded with every passing moment, I started eying up my companions as potential meals. O, ever the gentleman, assured me that if a reenactment of Alive was going to unfold here on the hillside with Santiago in full view, that at least I would not be first on the menu. Realising that I was not only more succulent but also somehow cleaner than everyone else, and that O was perhaps intending to lull me into a false sense of security before braining me with a boulder ready for first course, I promptly face-planted into a pile of dust and prickles. In fact, I'm fairly sure that Manquehue is Mapuche for Prickle Mountain, such is the prevalence and persistence of the flora. There were thistles god damn it. I thought those things only grew in Scotland.

Having given away somewhat the punchline, that we survived Manquehue and that no-one got eaten, by the fact that I'm still here to write this blog, all that remains to be said is that we scaled that god damned mountain in a way that no-one has before and no doubt no-one ever will again.
The true thorn in my side is that after staggering down the other side, three and a half hours later, filthy and dehydrated, in the carpark we bumped into the two friends who'd we'd been aiming to meet up with on the hill. They were fresh. They were clean. They had water left. They had spent the afternoon drinking beers and enjoying the view.

Oh, and they told us that the reason there were no other people on the hill was because the night before the news had reported of a masked mugger who roamed the trails and relieved hikers of their cameras and wallets.
Somehow, I don't think he would have chosen the path we were on. Small mercies, anyone?

Random Piñera Spotting in Puerto Varas

2009-11-30T18:06:00.002-03:00

When I decided that I wanted to work in TV, I had several friends who went into being 'real' journalists. A couple are now political reporters, and at least one spent the last Australian election 'on the campaign trail' following in the steps of some god-awful politician as he toured around the country kissing babies and doling out soup to the homeless.

For a while, as I sat at my desk surrounded by people playing guitars and pondering the tough decisions such as whether to send our next shoot to Morocco or Madagascar, I wondered whether I was missing out. Last weekend in Puerto Varas, I discovered the answer to that question.

Puerto Varas is a small town on the edge of a lake in the getting-towards-being-in-the-South-but-not-quite-there-yet region of Chile. We were there more or less by accident - after a super early flight to Puerto Montt, our planned bus to Bariloche never showed up, and after several hours waiting in the always-entertaining Puerto Montt bus station (nice to see you Ruth and Charles!), we decided to blow that particular popsicle stand and head to Puerto Varas for the night. We´d heard it was nice, and that you could see volcanoes, which is all I really need to be happy.

Because we are focused on our stomachs precisely 100 percent of the time, and because we had got up early and LAN´s idea of breakfast is three chocolate biscuits, we dumped our bags and headed straight for the nearest German cafe, of which there are about a gazillion in Puerto Varas. After rendering my I-don´t-eat-sweet-things rule a lie (although I still maintain that delicious küchen is not in any way in the same category of sweet things as say.. manjar, which is the work of the devil), we discovered that this same cafe also did what looked like a roaring business in empanadas, judging from the industrial-sized parcels of the things that locals kept staggering out the door with.

We purchased two of these delicious Chilean 'snacks' (read: Chileans consider them a snack, pronounced 'esnack', but anyone in the rest of the world might more accurately suggest that they are more akin to a complete meal) and headed off to the pier to take in the view of the lake and volcanoes.

Unfortunately, Chile lived up to its shitty weather reputation, and there were no volcanoes to be seen. Fortunately, the lack of volcanoes was more than compensated for by the announcement over a loudspeaker that shortly Presidential candidate Sebastian Piñera would be gracing the town with both his presence and the whitest pair of chops that have been seen in provincial Chile for a long time.

Pause for a bit of (I dare say ill informed) info: for those not in the know, Chile's about to have an election. Its a big deal here, and although a fair percentage of the young people that I know haven't actually enrolled to vote, there's still a lot more round-the-dinner-table debate than I'm used to seeing in Australia. There are two 'main' candidates (of course there are more running but from what I can tell most people expect the election to go to one of these two men): Frei and Piñera. Frei is from the Party currently in power (centre-left coalition), and Piñera from a centre-right alliance. Despite Chile´s historic problem regarding right wing governments I´m told that many will this time vote for Piñera because they are sick of having the same party make government every time - with all the corruption, crony-ism and old-boys-club thinking that that implies. That may be, all I can say is that they´re not exactly spoilt for choice here. Frei´s about a zillion years old and he´s already been President once (and he didn´t do a very good job the first time round) and Piñera looks like he´d sell his own grandmother to make a buck. Chile needs a change but I don´t think its coming in this election. Ominami?

So, enough of that. Back to the campaign trail.

Not wanting to pass up an opportunity, we stuffed our half-eaten empanadas still oozing their meaty goodness into my backpack (a decision for which I´m still suffering the consequences) and headed off to meet the man himself.

Now, I´ve not seen many Presidents in my time, or even Presidential candidates, but there were several things about the whole Piñera show that struck me as a bit odd. See if you can pick which ones:

First, on arrival, he was literally mobbed by the crowd. There was hair-pulling and clothing grabbing on a scale not seen outside a Bolivian prison. Not something that I can really see happening to Obama. Admittedly, this wasn´t terribly odd, just one of those details you wouldn´t see at home.

Secondly, while on stage Piñera has a mariachi standing behind him... a new kind of secret service perhaps?

Thirdly, and most bizzarly, at certain points in the rally, Piñera breaks into song. Its like a Presidential campaign come open air karaoke session. The crowd love it. He also makes his son sing, and the deputy for the district sing. Out of the three, we decide that Piñera is the best singer. His teeth are also the whitest.

So on reflection, I'm happy to work in TV, because if it were my job to make this kind of che make sense, I might be donning a mariachi costume and grabbing a mic myself.

Plan your Escape this Summer..

2009-11-16T17:40:00.004-03:00

Because.. Snake is back!

Yes, I'm right this second watching one of what must surely be the greatest films of all time. Of all time. Yo, Kanye would back me up.

Of course, instead of marvelling at Kurt Russell's mesmerising snakeskin leggings, the like of which we're all bound to be sporting in 2013 (I've got mine already), I should be booking tickets to Argentina. Yep, its that time again - the visa run, also known as the sanity-preserving Escape From Chi-Lay.

Ok so I'm not carrying a time-bomb virus in my body with which the authorities are blackmailing me into finding the President's daughter, nor am I trying to save the world from imminent destruction at the hands of Cuervo Jones, who to my mind sounds more like a mixed drink than a threatening villain, but other than that, I see many similarities between myself and Mr Plisskin.

For one, Santiago and the LA prison hell from which Snake has to escape are not dissimilar. Certainly the fashion seems to be from around the same era. I'm pretty sure I saw several pairs of snakeskin and other assortedly patterned leggings today. Also, Snake's mullet seems to be trendy here, although the eye-patch is yet to catch on. Plus this visa run will this time be to Bariloche rather than Mendoza, which means passing through the Lakes District, and if Chile's geological instability lives up to its reputation, leaves the door open for a reenactment of Snake's biggest achievement - surfing a giant tsunami with Peter Fonda whilst racing a car containing Steve Buscemi, including a jump from the surfboard to the back of the moving car.

Now... imma let Snake finish..

Caminos menos transitados

2009-11-13T17:19:00.000-03:00

ahora en español..

For the Aussies out there, make sure to tune in to Nat Geo Adventure Mondays at 8.30pm (repeats on Saturdays and Sundays at 7.30pm and 6.30pm respectively).

For those of us here in Chile, it doesn't seem like the series is screening just yet.

A Valparaiso

2009-11-13T17:13:00.000-03:00

No, this isn't about going to Valpo, rather a fabulous documentary from the 60s that I saw the other day at a Chilean film retrospective. Chris Marker wrote it, can't you tell?

FNM: why men in slacks can still rock

2009-11-05T20:54:00.000-03:00

They rocked, despite:
1. Massive overbooking of the venue whereby it was so crowded that there were people hanging off the balconies and I spent the entire show picturing an imminent Republica Cromañón style fire disaster.
2. Me gullibly believing the lady from the venue who told us on the phone that it was numbered seating and there was no need to turn up early (yeah I know.. never again will I make this mistake).

3. Being therefore stuck standing on the stairs in a human sandwich, or this being Chile, a human completo, which is even more disgusting than the regular completo if you can possibly imagine it.
4. My posse on the stairs being behind a surprisingly tall Chilean and thus with a view of nothing except the back of his head apart from the moments (approximately 50% of the time) in which he was occupied by making out with his girlfriend to which I had an uncomfortably intimate perspective.
4. The band getting spat on by the crowd in a marathon of flying saliva - apparently a sign of affection and homage for FNM fans.

Despite all this, and more importantly despite the pitter-patter of lightly falling spit globules onto the body of Mike Patton and every other member of the band, Faith No More were amazing. What makes this more of an achievement was that they were wearing slacks. No need here for ripped jeans, or all-over vinyl bodystockings, or goth make-up, or rat eating antics. No siree, these guys could have stepped off a golf course. Or out of a retirement home in Miami, so clean and neatly pressed were their beige pantalones. And yet they rocked on a monumental scale, making me for a short time forget about Cromañón fires, completos, and exchange of bodily fluids both near and far. And that right there is the greatness of Faith No More.

Roads Less Travelled

2009-10-30T21:53:00.000-03:00

Shameless self promotion it may be, but I'd like to invite you to check out this awesome travel series! Blood, sweat and tears, literally!

Farellones... or Kevin Bacon's Gonna Dance All Over You

2009-10-28T18:27:00.001-03:00

OK so everyone knows that Santiago's not going to win any beauty contests, and I can't say I've noticed any personality features that would redeem her either. In fact, I think its safe to say that Santiago and I, were we both people and both at school, we would not be friends. Not at all. But that doesn't meant that I wouldn't on occasion go over to play at her house. Santiago might be ugly and unpleasant, but she has a pretty sweet backyard.

Ironically, its Santiago's spectacular natural setting that is the root of all her cosmetic problems in the first place. The soup of brown smog that hovers above the city and causes her red eyes, respiratory problems and prematurely aged skin is only there because being smack up against the Andes mean that the toxic haze doesn't have anywhere to go. Unfortunate.

So when O's parents suggested we take a family trip into the mountains for the weekend, the prospect of fresh air had me excited. Little did I know, even though this would have had me far more excited, that it would also entail a weird worm-hole like experience and time travel back to 1983.

We went to a place called Farellones, which is the closest ski resort to Santiago and is only about an hour and a half out of the city. Which given that I am used to driving at least 5 hours to ski (making a day trip something of an odyssey) I think is quite awesome, and I can tell you that if I had another winter and access to a car I would spend every single weekend there without question.

On the way to Farellones, we drove up a winding road through pea-soup fog. Actually I think we were just making our way out of the Santiago smog. Whatever it was, once the (toxic) cloud had cleared, it was obvious that the very fabric of space and time itself had been altered and that the mountain exists not in 2009, but in 1983. How do I know this? Look below..

Yep, fashion on the slopes was without exception in the Princess-Diana-circa-1983-fluoro-onepiece school of ski attire.
Also, everyone was Brazilian. Correlation? Maybe.
And no, while the first two pictures in this post are mine, I did not actually see Princess Diana at Farellones as depicted in the third shot, which is a shame, but not entirely unexpected.

To top off the weekend, O and I celebrated our three year anniversary by going to Santiago's one and only revolving restaurant. If it wasn't 80's enough that it merely revolved, it also sported a mirrored ceiling, and had automatic shoe-shining machines in the men's toilet.

And just because we're talking about style icons of the 80s, and not at all because I watched a movie featuring him last night (Frost vs Nixon: see it!), I'm going to treat you to a picture of the man himself, in pants that can only be described as glorious, but not quite as glorious as they would be if seen via a mirrored ceiling:

Ram-Raiding and Other Activities.. or, Just Another Night in Santiago de Chile

2009-10-21T12:38:00.001-03:00

The show never stops in Santiago. Just the other day, in actual fact in the last day of the old apartment, I saw two guys crash their ute into a tree directly outside my window*. It was like the apartment's final parting gift to me, complete with Crocodile Dundee delivering the line 'That's not noise.. THIS is noise' and a jump-cut to squealing tires and vision of truck careering off the road into said tree.
So I was pretty pleased to be moving.
Until Tuesday night, in which after a lovely dinner in lovely new apartment, a couple of glasses of wine and a viewing of 'The Curious Case of Benjamin Button' (which by the way I found somewhat enraging, given that it seems to suggest that the best way for a man to demonstrate love and commitment is to bugger off, and the best way for a woman to demonstrate it is to sit around literally wiping their husband's arse), we retired to bed, reveling in the lovely peace and quiet of the lovely new apartment.
Until.. CRASH.... (followed by several more similar crashes).
In my groggy half-sleep, my first thought was that someone's balcony had detached from the building and the noise I could hear was of it plunging to the ground. O later told me he had thought it was a crane falling off the top of a building.
We jumped out of bed, and went out onto the balcony to investigate, admittedly a strange choice given my prior concerns about its sturdiness, but by that stage I'd already kind of worked out that that couldn't be it.
No signs of fallen balconies nor cranes below.... but what we did see was a gang with two cars (red and white -see I'm observant!) - looting the fancy clothing and jewellery shop in the bottom of our very building! The crashes we'd heard were the shattering of the window, and as we stood there we watched them running in and out of the store, stolen goods in hand, transferring the stuff from the shop to their cars. It all lasted about thirty seconds, then everyone jumped into the two cars and sped off, the wrong way, up La Concepcion.
About a minute later, the crack emergency response looked like this:

Plus three police cars (these in the pic are in fact not police but private guards from the security firm) that arrived a few minutes later. All the security guards and cops stood around for a bit, presumably investigating the crime though I saw very little evidence of that, then everyone went home.

After all this excitement, we went back to bed. Yesterday I saw on the news that the same gang had hit four different shops around the city in some kind of ram-raiding spree.

The weirdest thing is that the shop they chose to rob was selling some of the ugliest stuff that I've ever seen - the jewelery was all costume jewelery, the type with lots of sparkly and fake looking gems. And the clothes were kind of floaty hippy cheese-cloth numbers which haven't been fashionable since .. well ever. The piece d'resistance of this particular store (and this will give you an idea of the general aesthetic approach) are a life-sized pair of large Doberman dogs made entirely of purple plastic, which sit on either side of the door during the day like some kitsch re-invention of the guard dog of Hades.

Somewhat unfortunately, even the thieves didn't see fit to steal these.

So the moral of the story? Even the most blatantly taste-challenged stores are not safe from the aesthetically blind thieves of Santiago, but even they will draw the line somewhere.

* If you're concerned - both the tree and the guys survived. The car? Not so much.

New Horizons

2009-10-16T19:49:00.001-03:00

View from the new apartment - linda!

Life has all of a sudden got waaaaay more relaxing... Work is over (for the moment), on Wednesday Chile qualified for the World Cup (not that this was something I worried about but I sure didn't want to see the consequences of them not qualifying..), and yesterday we changed apartments. Rejoice. The days of bitching about noise are over; firstly because this new apartment is an oasis of peace, and secondly because I suspect O might be finding that hearing my complaints is not quite as cathartic as I find giving them.

There are lots of ways to rent in Santiago, so here's a few random things I discovered and wish I'd known earlier. If you're out there looking for an apartment in Santiago, I hope this helps:

1) The best site we found for advertising rentals was Portal Inmobiliario where you can search for furnished / unfurnished apartments by district, plus places for sale.

2) Craigslist is good for short term rentals (from days to months) but the prices are generally a bit higher.

3) If you rent directly from the owner you will avoid real estate commissions which are quite high (like half a month's rent). As a lot of owners advertise directly there is no need to go through an agent.

4) Neither of our rental contracts contained a clause about breaking the lease as they do in Australia. Plus the landlord keeps your bond (equivalent to one month's rent) directly, so beware of signing a longer lease if you think you might need to break it. Landlords are not supposed to keep the bond in that kind of situation, but I don't know how you would enforce it.

5) If you live in an apartment (and that's pretty much your only choice in a lot of Santiago), then you'll have to pay condo fees (gastos comunes) which seem to range from around 30,000-70,000 a month, so factor that into your budget. This is in addition to your rent unless you have an all-inclusive deal with your landlord.

5) Santiago is noisy - look for an apartment high up / facing away from the main street.

6) If your apartment faces the street, look at the condition of the road directly outside - if there is a speed bump or the road is particularly uneven, it will be more noisy, especially given that speed bumps are rare and therefore unexpected for the Santiago motorist.

7) Don't live on a road that buses go along unless you like the sound of ancient diesel motors at 2am!

Now for a wine on the balcony.. bliss!

One Dolor

2009-10-14T17:20:00.001-03:00

In downtown Providencia:

Long live long weekends

2009-10-13T18:17:00.003-03:00

End of a week / end of an era?
Last week I finished up at work. Crazy doesn't begin to describe it.. just trying to get everything finished on time took about every bit of endurance I had, to which the bags under my eyes can probably attest. If you'd asked me Wednesday if I'd be able to make it.. well, I'd have said 'yes' because I'm yet to learn the fine art of saying no to work-related things, but what you wouldn't have known was that deep down I was quaking in my boots.
Last week was script-annotating week, which is a unforgivably tedious task, and really brings home the unfairness of life when you're told Wikipedia is not considered a 'reliable source.' At least I didn't have to cope with trying to annotate the statement 'Jesus walked on water' to broadcasting's exacting standards as happened in a prior episode in this series... Nope, no messiahs in Alaska, just lots of stuff about grizzly bears - about which I'm now something of an expert thanks to the very informative people at the Alaskan Fish and Game Department. Two facts for you - one - did you know that hunting grizzlies is allowed? I'm quite appalled. And two - if a grizzly is attacking you, you should under no circumstances make 'a high pitched squealing noise' as apparently it enrages them.

So despite the rare opportunity to learn lots about bears and call it work, last week was crazy, and to top it all off, we'd decided to get out of the city on the weekend to regain some much-needed sanity, it being a long weekend and all here. Working from Chile has been great money-wise, but trying to coordinate with three different time-zones is not easy - as a result of which I'm often up at 3am responding to questions from Australia, then up again at 9am to deal with the US. Ok, I'm saying 'often' but actually I mean 'sometimes.' But Friday was one of those times - come 9pm Friday night I was still sending stuff through to Aus, even though we were meant to have left for the beach hours previously.
I must have wowed them all with my bear-facts though, because just when I though we'd have to call off the trip so I could stay here and finish the script, I got the all-clear. Ta-DA.
So, here's where we went to celebrate:

Where we found this:

And lots of this:

It was wonderful. There was guitar-playing and barbecue-making, and even sleeping in. Bliss. Long live the long weekend.

Now, anyone need someone to work on their next show?

Melrose Living

2009-10-08T08:42:00.000-04:00

So it might be mundane to say it, and small comfort if you're actually in need of the advice, but things really do have a way of working themselves out.
As ranting and raving in the 'all talk no action' approach to the noisy-apartment situation didn't seem to be making a great deal of difference to our quality of life, we decided to take my Mum's sage advice and do something about it.
So we're moving, and I LOVE our new place. Its on the 15th floor, the windows look straight out to Cerro Santa Lucia and it has an AMAZING pool on the roof, plus a sweat room, jacuzzi and gym. Its like something from the TV.
Its a far cry from the type of place I'd favour in Melbourne (terrace in Fitzroy.. or warehouse in Collingwood, those were the days!) but I think its just perfect for here. Firstly, because its high up and on an interior street so the noise is not (so much of) an issue, and secondly, because here, there it seems that the philosophy to the residential/business division of housing is exactly opposite to that which you get in Australia.
In Melbourne, high rises are for offices. Mostly they are in the central business district and don't make an appearance in the residential suburbs. And I'll say it again. They have offices in them.
Outside the CBD, which means about 15 minutes walk, are the residential suburbs, filled with gorgeous old Victorian terraces. People built them to live in. And excepting the main shopping/cafe strip that runs through each suburb, people still live in them.
They're wonderful - beautiful old houses with wrought iron balconies, with (if you're a student) an ancient sofa, or (if you've past that) some other kind of comfy seating on which to place yourself on a warm evening with a glass of wine, or a morning coffee; a yard or a paved courtyard to get some sun in. The last one I lived in even had a palm tree in the garden. The house looked just like this:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/patrob/ / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

In Santiago, it seems like the reverse philosophy is in place - gorgeous old buildings (of which there are plenty) are reserved for small businesses, and the people in the city live in apartment blocks. Its such a shame because the old houses here really are lovely but without people they are totally lifeless, and the apartment blocks are ugly 70s and 80s constructions. Because the apartments are built around the older streets, they generally front onto main roads with the aforementioned cacophony of noise.
I was walking through a district called Barrio Italia the other night and came to a beautiful square with old houses all around and a small park in the middle. There was no traffic. It reminded me a lot of East Melbourne.
Not one of the houses was being used as a residence. They were all shut up for the night, empty and dead.
A few blocks further on we came to the main transit road, with buses blaring past at 2am. Lined with apartments of course.

Chilean Cowboys

2009-09-28T17:10:00.000-04:00

I've been wanting to write about the national celebrations in Chile for a week now, to explain what they were to me as an outsider, and what they seemed to be to the people here, to say something about patriotism and small beauties but far from insight and revelation all I've got right now is rage. Howling, screaming, weeping rage at everything Chilean.
Our apartment looks onto the riverfront in Santiago. 'Nice,' you might think, for surely in any city in the world the riverfront is a prime location. Not so here, for Santiago's city planners in all their wisdom have decided that the river shall be host not to peacefull parks or to lively waterside cafes, but instead to not one, not even two, but to three of the city's largest and busiest roads. From my bedroom, I look onto fifteen lanes of traffic. And our apartment is on the second floor.
The noise level is literally making me weep. It never stops, not at midnight, not at two in the morning. I'm sleeping with earplugs in and they don't seem to make a blind bit of difference. And they hurt my ears. The only way to deal with the noise of the traffic is to make sure I've got the TV or stereo on even louder in a tangle of competing noises.
It's driving me insane.
I'm furious at everyone and everything. Chilean cowboys, driving their dirty trucks, horns blasting at the first hint of having to step on the brake for any reason. The antisocial and completely insane belief that riding motorbikes designed for motocross or trail biking through the city is and should be acceptable. The use of horns as part of the arsenal of the Chilean motorist. The lack of renovation in this city, which means that old suburbs are simply left to get increasingly decrepit while the city planners and builders simply move their projects to untouched ground, leaving the city constantly expanding and meaning that its impossible to get around without a vehicle. The complete lack of aesthetic sensibility in any element of Chilean life from the dumpy businesswomen in ill fitting brown trouser suits to the monstrous 70s high rises that define the city's architecture.
I'm pissed off.

On September 11 and Being Complicated in Chile, past perspectives

2009-09-24T11:27:00.002-04:00

Here is an article I wrote in 2007 about September 11 and Chile's history:

The Other September 11
On Tuesday 11 September all eyes turned to America as that nation looked back to a different Tuesday in a different September, and mourned its loss.
Far away in the ‘other’ America, that which exists south of the Mexican border, Chile too remembered a day when planes flew low over a nation’s largest city, of buildings in flames and the deaths of civilians. But it was not thinking of New York. Long before Islamic terrorists made their bid for immortality at the helm of hijacked passenger jets, Chile experienced its own ‘Black Tuesday’ when extremism confronted democracy and won. Yet in this case the extremists piloting the low-flying jets were members of the country’s own air-force, the building in flames was the besieged Presidential Palace from which the President never emerged alive, and the operation was encouraged and supported by the United States.
The September 11, 1973 coup that deposed the democratically elected President Salvador Allende and replaced him with General Augusto Pinochet left the country in the grip of South America’s most enduring military regime. During Pinochet’s 17 year dictatorship over three thousand people were killed or ‘disappeared’. One million Chileans fled the country. These are the official numbers, unofficially, the toll is said to be higher.
During the dictatorship years the coup anniversary was celebrated as the ‘Aniversario del Pronunciamiento Militar’, or Military Declaration Day, and marked by parades and speeches. Even after the dictatorship ended the day continued to be commemorated as a national holiday for another ten years. As recently as two years ago the Chilean army was continuing to salute General Pinochet with a parade outside his home.
Today there is no national holiday yet the 11th of September continues to be a day of declaration. It is a day when protests rage across the Chilean capital. Last year over 79 arrests were made in the capital for riots and violence including a fire bomb attack on the government house. In the poorer districts of Santiago barricades go up early and citizens and police ready themselves for trouble. Those who are not gearing up for confrontation stay indoors.
The feeling of unfinished business is palpable, and hardly surprising. There has been a Truth and Reconciliation Commission, but the justice process has been slow and ineffective. Few of those indicted on charges of human rights abuses have seen days in court. Pinochet died last year without ever facing trial. Just last month the man convicted of the 1974 car-bombing murders of Chilean former army chief General Carlos Prats and his wife was released, just seven years after being sentenced to life in prison.
Yet it is an issue as thorny as it is troubling. Unlike other dictators, Pinochet was never forced out, he stepped down after a vote, and continued for many years to perform political duties as a Senator and head of the army. During and after his rule Pinochet enjoyed widespread support from the wealthier sector of society who profited from his free market economic policies. He is praised for saving the Chilean economy and rescuing the country from the grip of Communism. Margaret Thatcher famously thanked him for ‘bringing democracy to Chile.’ At his funeral last year thousands queued for hours in the blazing sun to pay their last respects. One man, the son of the murdered General Prats, spat on the coffin and was nearly lynched by the crowd.
It is this aspect of Chilean society that I find hardest to grapple with. The fact that despite the hard evidence of massive human rights abuses, of institutionalised murder and torture, many people in Chile today look back fondly on the Pinochet era. ‘There was no crime’ I am told, ‘it was safe to walk the streets.’
There is a phrase in Spanish, complicarse, that translates as ‘to be complicated’ about something. It is a clumsy phrase in English, but in Spanish it is an apt description of the relationship between Chile and its recent past. Chileans are proud of their country’s economy and its status as the most ‘developed’ of the Latin American nations, changes that came about under Pinochet. While there are extreme viewpoints at either end of the political spectrum, those occupying the middle ground radiate uncertainty, an inability to look the past squarely in the eye and reject it. It is a feeling of being incredibly compromised, the niggling suggestion that the end somehow justifies the means, that going through hardship and extremity now can be endured if it is for the good of the future. As ideals, they would be at home in the rhetoric of any idealistic leader: Mao, Lenin, even Allende himself.
I spoke to a former member of the Chilean armed forces who served under Pinochet and who as a young officer witnessed the execution of fifteen men. Today he works for the army in a civilian capacity and suffers from depression. I asked him about how he feels about what happened under Pinochet: ‘Very proud’ he answered, ‘I’m very proud of what we achieved.’

Suitcase Traveller

2009-09-22T17:16:00.001-04:00

Recently, for the second time in my life, I used a suitcase.
The first time was when I was about nine years old, going for a sleepover at a friend's house. My parents had this dinky little blue and white 60s era overnight-case, just the perfect size for a kid. I considered it the height of cool: with the case, I was cosmopolitan, even at nine.
I packed it up with all the essentials a nine year old needs for a sleepover, insisting to my Mum that taking the case for a one night stay at the house round the corner was absolutely appropriate. Actually, I don't know if she asked.
It went perfectly until my friend came around to pick me up, driven by her older brother. Perhaps it was part crush, part awe (he was the only older sibling of any of my friends who was even approaching adulthood), but I was determined to impress this guy. The suitcase, with all its blue and white boxy glory, was my secret weapon.
I imagined how it would go: he'd see me standing there, suitcase in hand, and realise that I was not a child, but a traveller, a sophisticate, confident, a person who knows precisely how much or little they need in life, and has it all on hand, folded neatly. After all, isn't this what your luggage says about you?
And even though all that happened was that he looked at me, looked at my suitcase, and, very kindly, offered to carry it; with that gesture I knew suddenly that I'd gotten it horribly wrong, that I should have worn my grungiest clothes and packed a ninja turtles backpack like everyone else. I was just a kid playing at being a grown up.
Perhaps this early experience had something to do with it but for the next twenty years I haven't gone near a suitcase. Travel has meant backpacks, kitted out with pockets in concealed locations, straps for who-knows-what, top-loading, side zippered contraptions that weight in at close to what I do. My backpacks have gone places that a suitcase would never make it, hauled up the dirtiest tracks, flung onto the roofs of chicken filled buses, stowed in the holds of the most unseaworthy looking ferries. They've been a part of the way I've travelled.
But coming to Chile, this time around I packed a suitcase.
I told myself it was because while I didn't need portability, I did need space. Especially for the 600g jar of Vegemite that was first into the bag. There was no way I was leaving that behind.
Walking through the gates at Santiago airport, bleary eyed from 14 hours on the plane and wondering through the sleepless haze whether O and I would still look the same to each other, I remembered that other time, waiting to be picked up, suitcase in hand.
Who says people change - I'm still humming the same tune.