Nonsense policies in Chile, get-a-wife, Salutation to YouTube audience, reflection on beauty of Chile, sign off from John and Joe (Chile.EscapeArtist.com).
I have written before, over five years ago, about the things that Americans (and Canadian, Australians, Europeans, among others) will hate about Chile. The core of that list has not changed much, but there are a number of other things to add that I have noticed as others come down to Chile, which ... Read More
Viña del Mar has a lot going for it but there is probably nothing better than its beach areas. The boardwalks shoreline parks have all been nicely redone recently. Reñaca beach, sector of town on the north end of Viña del Mar, is case in point. And there is no better month of ... Read More
One of the few government enterprises that works fairly well in Chile is the Metro (subway) system, which is used by millions of people every day. There are presently five Metro lines in Santiago, with two others being built, one line from Valparaíso through Viña del Mar and inland to Limache, and the ... Read More
By “law” (so they say), Chilean notaries are generally not permitted to notarize any document that is written in a language other than Spanish, unless there is a Spanish translation interspersed between the lines (or attached in some other way specified by the notary). For a foreigner, this fact can become frustrating and ... Read More
Having grown up on the Southern California coast (Santa Monica, Seal Beach and Huntington Beach), I got used to the frequent “marine layer” of clouds and sometimes fog that crept onshore most days. The marine layer hardly ever extended past 5 miles inland, and served to keep the coastal communities far cooler than ... Read More
Too many expats think that they’ll get the red carpet treatment just for arriving in Chile. Showing up with nothing and no ability with Spanish is a recipe for disaster. This is made even worse if you’re not willing to just hunker down and do whatever it takes. Pioneers rarely have it easy. And an ... Read More
In general, Chileans are very fond of North Americans and Europeans, not to mention folks from Australia and New Zealand. That fact has been widely acclaimed both on my blog and elsewhere on the internet. But just what do Chileans think of other Spanish speakers? Obviously, they have a fraternal connection with Spain, ... Read More
In a recent exchange, I exposed Douglas Tompkins’ practice of billing himself as an ecologist, when his practices amount to nothing more than gaining power, profits and status at the expense of those without the means to defend themselves. This leftist succeeds in preserving nature, but poor people get hurt in the process as he ... Read More
