1) Slang - Chile is world famous for being a country that uses a hell of a lot of slang. When I was looking into year abroad destinations, I wanted to pick one that would really challenge my Spanish skills. Once you get over the different accent and the fact that all Chileans speak incredibly fast, you get the chance to try and figure out what on earth the words they use actually mean! Chileans will often form entire sentences using only slang and idioms without using even one word of standard Spanish. This has been great for me because I've had fun learning all the slang. At first I really tried hard not to use any of it, I was trying to keep my Spanish as 'clean' as possible, but about 2 months into my trip I found myself accidentally using all these slang words. I suppose when you live with young Chileans, work with Chileans and socialise with Chileans that all use those words it was bound to happen. 4 months in, I now have no problems understanding what the slang means and am always being ridiculed for using it too.
2) Transport (sometimes) - I say sometimes here because traffic in Concepción can sometimes get bad, particularly around 6-8pm, and the buses can be quite erratic with their schedule. However on the whole, the transport system here in Chile is pretty awesome. Since the country is so long and thin, it only really needs one main motorway going right the way down. You'd think that with one main route for travelling up and down the country there would be lots of congestion, but actually I've never been delayed travelling around from city to city. The best way to get around is by coach (confusingly called "buses" in Chilean Spanish...), they're really quick and efficient, leave regularly and at all hours and very comfortable. The main differences with the UK coaches being that the seats recline into half-beds or full-beds and are really comfy, and that they are insanely cheap compared to the UK (think going the equivalent of London to Newcastle for a fiver, but in a seat that turns into a bed!).
3) Food and drink (with exceptions...) - Again, there are definitely exceptions to this rule (ones to include in the second part to this post), but in general the food in Chile is great. Chile is pretty well-known for having really good seafood, meat and wine, all of which I can confirm to be completely true. Chile also has a spirit which you're very unlikely to find in Europe, it's called "pisco". Pisco is a type of brandy that's used to make some popular cocktails and other drinks, but never ask a Chilean person where pisco comes from... The home of pisco is fiercely contested between Peru and Chile and each will tell you that their country is the home of pisco, to be honest it doesn't matter that much, but if you do come out here it'll save you getting into the middle of a spirit war. Another good thing about Chilean food is the traditional side of things, traditional Chilean food is great!Worth mentioning though that the average student diet is just as bad as in the UK.
4) Nature - This was bound to come up. Chile extends from the driest desert in the world up in the North, to glaciers in the South whilst passing through more temperate and jungle zones in the centre. The country is full of the most beautiful lakes, mountains, volcanoes and glaciers. Volcanoes are not something that I'm that used to as an Englishman. Two special experiences stand out in my mind to do with volcanoes. The first is when I went to Villarica in the south to spend the weekend there, I slept in the house of a friend of a friend who has an insane view of the volcano there (which erupted last year). At night I went out onto the decking to see the volcano in the pitch black and saw the glowing red haze above it, it only happens with some very active volcanoes and it was breathtaking. The other experience is less to do with volcanoes, but it did take place on a volcano. I was learning to ski on the Antuco volcano, I spent the night sleeping on the back of a pickup truck parked on the side of the volcano and I can say that I've never seen so many stars before, the sky was amazing. I was also told that since I'm in the Southern Hemisphere, they're not the same stars that any of you readers from the Northern Hemisphere will be seeing. I've only explored a small part of the country so far, and intend to take full advantage of the amazing place I'm in over the next 7 months.
5) Outdoor sports - You've already heard a lot from me about kayaking, and I've also mentioned time I've spent skiing, hiking, swimming and climbing. However, these aren't the only sports that Chile has to offer. Some would say that Chile is the best country in the world for outdoor sports enthusiasts. You've got skiing about two-thirds of the year, all year round surfing, world-class rivers, very technical glaciers, big big climbing routes, the list goes on. More so than in England, getting out in the fresh air and enjoying the outdoors seems to be a thing that families, couples and friends love to do together.
6) People - Ending on a bit of a soppy note here. Chilean people (apart from some pretty unfriendly commuters in Santiago) are extremely friendly and welcoming. You'll always be invited to go out and do things, to peoples houses, to go drinking or partying, to cook together, all sorts. A lot of English people have a kind of built-in suspicion of anybody who tries to do something nice for them, especially Londoners, but here in Chile it's completely normal. The main thing I would say with regards to thing is that you have to be a 'yes man' to make the most of this. I think that's probably just general year abroad advice really, you have to say yes to as much as you can, and you'll find yourself with loads of new mates and things to do right away.
So that's it, 6 things that Chile does really well. Wednesday I'll be moving South and hope to write another post on the weekend to let you all know how I'm settling into Pucón!
No comments:
Post a Comment