Well, this blog seems like a bit of a fraud now because Gilly is no longer in Chile! I’ve swapped the sub-zero (occasionally) Santiago nights for an uncharacteristically warm Glasgow and I have to say that it feels like I’ve never been away. I’ve been really busy looking for a job, but I’m back to update you on my last couple of months in Chile.
Autumn came and went in a flash and my last few weeks were pure winter. What seemed like only a short while of cold nights accompanied by hot, sunny days was quickly replaced by a permanent state of bitter cold. The lack of central heating indoors made it very hard to ever fully warm up, and getting out of the shower in the morning was an absolute task. (That being said, the Santiago cold can’t even slightly compare to the Bolivian cold, which is coming soon in a post of its own.)
In my last few months, I did some touristing (mostly indoors, to keep warm!). Here are some of the highlights:
1. Embalse el Yeso
I finally made it to the gorgeous dam and reservoir which is home to the majority of the city’s drinking water. We took a tour with Ecotrip Chile which was only $11,000CLP (about £13) and was definitely worth it. The reservoir is difficult to reach without a car, and really the only option is hitchhiking from nearby San José de Maipo. I imagine those mountains would look totally different in the winter!
2. Museos Solidaridad Salvador Allende and Londres 38
Museo Solidaridad Salvador Allende is a contemporary art museum which was the brain-child of the late President, and works were sent from every corner of the globe in support of the democratically-elected socialist project being pursued in Chile. The collection was set up before his untimely demise, but unsurprisingly was forbidden to continue throughout the dictatorship of the 1970s and 80s, and was re-established in its current form in 1991, after the restoration of democracy.
Londres 38 (named so after its address in Barrio París-Londres) is a harrowing exhibition in one of Augusto Pinochet’s former torture chambers. The space has largely been left untouched, save for a few signs and a projector displaying testaments from those who spent time there, and this lends itself to a very emotional experience.
3. Tour of Palacio de la Moneda and Centro Cultural
Myself and a few friends took the official tour of Palacio de la Moneda, which was really interesting. We learned that oranges (and all citrus fruits) are grown in winter (soz if everyone apart from me already knew this), among other historical and political nuggets of wisdom.
We also had a look at the Palace’s cultural centre, where there was a temporary exhibition showing work by Latin America’s best artists.
4. New street art in Bellas Artes
Chile’s answer to Banksy, Inti, was busy recently, replacing his previous work (which I had wrongly believed to be a Santiago staple, rather than a temporary exhibition).
5. ‘Decades’ fancy dress party
My friend Hattie had a house party and the theme was ‘decades’… obviously, me and Polly allocated ourselves 90s and went as the girls from Friends, along with our friend Alice. I was the least convincing Rachel Green you will ever see, Pol was the best Phoebe, and Alice already looks bloody like Monica, so overall I think we did pretty well.
6. Pichilemu (again!)
For our last hurrah weekend, my British Council group and I rented a huuuuge beach house in Pichilemu and chilled for a few days. It poured down the whole time, but we were all happy as Larry with our mulled wine and one anothers’ company. We even had an awards ceremony, speeches, and a quiz about all our antics over the past year. I already miss them loads. #soppy
It’s really weird being home, but also great. Hopefully I won’t forget about this blog and will keep anyone who’s interested updated on anywhere I go in the future!
Hasta la próxima,
Gillian x
Gilly in Chile 