Chile
Travel article for Chile
From:
Ростов-на-Дону
Age:
46-50
Travel time:
in November 09
THE“COQUETTE” ON THE WORLD’S END.
THE“COQUETTE” ON THE WORLD’S END.
An introduction.
I prepare thoroughly for each my journey abroad. It means that I go on foot a lot, swim and run to get used. I also begin looking for some information about the country, which I’m going to visit. For that time it was Chile. And imagine how surprised was I when I didn’t find any information about that country! It was then, when I promised after my coming back to write a big article about Chile in order the future tourist to possess some information.
To tell you the truth I’m impatient to share my beautiful impressions with you on my journey through the surprisingly hospitable country, where tourist feels in safety, comfort, where your soul fills with coziness and warm while communicating with the people as warm as we are.
Going to Chile I knew only what I had studied at the University, but I had no a slightest idea that Chile would so astound me!!
So, be ready to read a story about the history of Chile and my own impressions, be with me on the “world’s end”, feel the same, enjoy the wonderful scenery, the lakes of emerald colours, admire the industry of the Chilean people, take pleasure in their hospitality, drink tasty wine, try their national cuisine, plunge into the ancient history and, at last, have a rest, grow young again, bathing in Puyehue thermal waters and taking Cleopatra baths!
Feliz viaje!
CHILE! How few letters are in this word, but how many contains it, the country, situated on the very edge of the South America continent and stretched out as a serpent along the Pacific Ocean coast up to the Antarctic.
Chile is a country which has struck me. There is a great difference between my imagination and what I’ve seen there. Nobody and nothing won’t be able to reproduce the beauty and fascination of all its regions. You have to be in Chile by yourself; Chile needs to be “felt”, Chile needs to be “touched”; you should “taste” all its charm, also the charm and fascination of all unique in its beauty, direct, kind, naïve, trustful, cheerful, sociable, open-hearted, good-natured Chileans (they call themselves “chileno” and “chilena”). You need to live for a while in Chile, walk slowly along the crowded streets, plunge into the ingenuous atmosphere to realize, that Chile is something like a “coquette”, which tempts you, which allures you. Chile like a Cinderella has changed unwittingly into a real beauty!
I knew about Chile almost everything, but I didn’t expect to see it such perfectly pretty. I couldn’t help admiring the stunning scenery, the lakes of the turquoise colours and smooth surfaces, geysers and volcanoes, waterfalls, mountains, glaciers, thermal hot springs, national parks and, of course, history… You can’t put dot on this enumeration; it can be continued for ever and ever…
Chile is as mysterious as a woman and as sweet as sin…
So, why so far away Chile, which takes you nearly one-day flight to get there?
For the first time I saw the booklets with the views of Santiago at the hotel in the Bolivian capital – La Paz. Santiago looked so beautiful! It seemed that the Andes split off specially to allow to build at their foots a city –nowadays a big megalopolis, the majestic Santiago! It seems that the Andes like its creation so much that stand on its guard and “embrace” it with a great love from below. And it was then, when I knew that Chile would be the next country to visit.
So, why Chile?
Chile is the longest and narrowest country in the world. It extends from the latitude 18 degrees S up to the Strait of Magellan for 4329 km. The maximum width is 200 km, the minimum – 80 km. The tail is the archipelago Tierra del Fuego and the Chilean part of Antarctica (this is the southernmost country in the world).
The most arid desert, Atacama, is in Chile.
In Chile there is also the most Alpine lake – Chungara, situated at an altitude of 4517 m above sea level.
Not Ushuaia, but the Chilean Puerto Williams is the southernmost city on the planet.
80% of the territory of Chile is mountainous with 36 volcanoes, the highest of which is Ochos-del-Salado (6893m).
Chilean Patagonia is ecologically the purest place in the world.
Portillo is considered to be the best mountain-skiing resort due to the qualityof snow and also the duration of resort season.
The only mountain-skiing resort in the world, situated ashore the Ocean, is in El Mirador, 8 km from Punta Arenas, 13 Region.
The most enigmatic, faraway, isolated and inhabited island in the world – Easter Island – belongs to Chile.
It’s the only country where aren’t venomous snakes.
In Chile is the lowest rate of crime and corruption among all other South America countries.
… The tourist agency, to which I appealed, couldn’t gather a group of tourists for going to Chile. I have been dreaming of my journey so much time, that it looked like an obsession, so I decided to go there alone. But there was no one ticket, I thought my journey would fail, but the Lord helped me and I managed to buy the ticket just before my departure. I had only four hours at my disposal, so we with my brother were not driving to the “Sheremetyevo-2”, we were “flying” there: there was a jam in the traffic; it was Friday, Moscow, the Leningradskaya Avenue, the weather was sunny and all the Muscovites were going to their dachas…
… Iremember clearly that I was filling in the declaration with a trembling hand –I couldn’t believe, that soon I would be in the plane which was going to get me into my dreamland! And even the flight didn’t seem so long tome…
THE CITY OF SAINT YAGO – SANTIAGO.
At last, after going through many trials I turned out at the international airport “A. Merino Benitez”. It were the police dogs who met me the first: they were looking for some prohibited goods. Then every passenger passes through the sanitary inspection: they are looking for some prohibited food. Chile is a country without infections and is proud of it. I personally consider such demands as a care of the government for the nation. But never nobody and checks me, because they can read in my face that I’m a tourist to the core; so, having passed quickly the passport control, I found myself in a long-awaited capital – Santiago!
How many times I saw it in the pictures, how many times I tried to imagine this city. But I didn’t recognize a “real beauty”, looking at me from the booklets; no, it turned out to be more beautiful!! Pedro de Valdivia wouldn’t know the city which he founded. When he with a little group of people went to the South from Cusco (Peru), after going through many trials he turned himself in a hill, which he named after Santa Lucia.
From there a beautiful view opened before him: the high peaks of the Andes range, covered with snow, and the white clouds, swimming above them: they merged all together, creating unimaginable beauty, also rivers, streamed down to the Pacific Ocean. He thought that this place would be ideal for founding a settling. It was on February 12, 1541.
Having laid the first stone he named the future city after Saint Yago – the protector of Spain, - Santiago de Nueva Extremadura. (Extremadura – is the province, where Pedro de Valdivia was born).
Today’s Santiago is a big megalopolis with a population of 5 mln inhabitants (1/3 of all population of Chile), where perfectly combine the modern and colonial styles, where you can see sky-scrapers and small cozy houses with front gardens. It is situated at a height of 543 m above sea level and is 120 km far from the Pacific Ocean coast.
Just as many Latin America capitals the centre of Santiago is built like chess-board. The heart of the capital is Plaza de Armas with the monument to the founder of the city. Opposite the monument is the Cathedral, founded by Pedro de Valdivia and first belonged to him, but after earthquake it was rebuilt by the Italian architect Toesca in Roman style. Next to it are: General Post-Office, Palacio de La Moneda in the neoclassic style – the seat of the President, the National History Museum, founded in 1911 in honour of 400 anniversary of the Independence of Chile from the Spaniards. In 15 rooms of the museum are represented more than 70000 samples of historical value which tell us about history of the development of Chile, beginning with the first settlers. They are: historical documents, furniture, firearms, handicrafts, musical instruments, paintings. There is also a special area with a perfect collection of coins.
Santiago is a fascinating city: narrow cobble-stoned streets, pavements with white tiles and planted with trees and flowers; also grand buildings with the plate-grass windows, where in the afternoon reflect the opposite constructions, also the clouds swimming above the city, also sunrise and sunset, during of which the sky turns pink and gold; and in the evenings reflect spherical sky with myriads of stars. The magnificent backdrops of the Andes range with snowed peaks, sparkled in the sun and redden at sunset, add the extra beauty to the city.
From Plaza de Armas move off pedestrian streets, where are many shops, banks, restaurants, modern blocks Bellavista, Providencia, Las Condes and Vitacura. Through Santiago flows the Mapocho river.
The city lives, respires, rejoices… Everywhere you can meet the idler latinos, who simply enjoy their lives. It seems that they have no problems, no cares, no troubles – they live for the day. At every step you can meet shoeblacks,businessmen, tourists, cleaners of the streets, vendors, money-changers, idlers… In a Metropolitano park, on San Cristobal hill you may climb the funicular and then a spectacular view to the city opens…
Santiago, you are beautiful!
An introduction.
I prepare thoroughly for each my journey abroad. It means that I go on foot a lot, swim and run to get used. I also begin looking for some information about the country, which I’m going to visit. For that time it was Chile. And imagine how surprised was I when I didn’t find any information about that country! It was then, when I promised after my coming back to write a big article about Chile in order the future tourist to possess some information.
To tell you the truth I’m impatient to share my beautiful impressions with you on my journey through the surprisingly hospitable country, where tourist feels in safety, comfort, where your soul fills with coziness and warm while communicating with the people as warm as we are.
Going to Chile I knew only what I had studied at the University, but I had no a slightest idea that Chile would so astound me!!
So, be ready to read a story about the history of Chile and my own impressions, be with me on the “world’s end”, feel the same, enjoy the wonderful scenery, the lakes of emerald colours, admire the industry of the Chilean people, take pleasure in their hospitality, drink tasty wine, try their national cuisine, plunge into the ancient history and, at last, have a rest, grow young again, bathing in Puyehue thermal waters and taking Cleopatra baths!
Feliz viaje!
CHILE! How few letters are in this word, but how many contains it, the country, situated on the very edge of the South America continent and stretched out as a serpent along the Pacific Ocean coast up to the Antarctic.
Chile is a country which has struck me. There is a great difference between my imagination and what I’ve seen there. Nobody and nothing won’t be able to reproduce the beauty and fascination of all its regions. You have to be in Chile by yourself; Chile needs to be “felt”, Chile needs to be “touched”; you should “taste” all its charm, also the charm and fascination of all unique in its beauty, direct, kind, naïve, trustful, cheerful, sociable, open-hearted, good-natured Chileans (they call themselves “chileno” and “chilena”). You need to live for a while in Chile, walk slowly along the crowded streets, plunge into the ingenuous atmosphere to realize, that Chile is something like a “coquette”, which tempts you, which allures you. Chile like a Cinderella has changed unwittingly into a real beauty!
I knew about Chile almost everything, but I didn’t expect to see it such perfectly pretty. I couldn’t help admiring the stunning scenery, the lakes of the turquoise colours and smooth surfaces, geysers and volcanoes, waterfalls, mountains, glaciers, thermal hot springs, national parks and, of course, history… You can’t put dot on this enumeration; it can be continued for ever and ever…
Chile is as mysterious as a woman and as sweet as sin…
So, why so far away Chile, which takes you nearly one-day flight to get there?
For the first time I saw the booklets with the views of Santiago at the hotel in the Bolivian capital – La Paz. Santiago looked so beautiful! It seemed that the Andes split off specially to allow to build at their foots a city –nowadays a big megalopolis, the majestic Santiago! It seems that the Andes like its creation so much that stand on its guard and “embrace” it with a great love from below. And it was then, when I knew that Chile would be the next country to visit.
So, why Chile?
Chile is the longest and narrowest country in the world. It extends from the latitude 18 degrees S up to the Strait of Magellan for 4329 km. The maximum width is 200 km, the minimum – 80 km. The tail is the archipelago Tierra del Fuego and the Chilean part of Antarctica (this is the southernmost country in the world).
The most arid desert, Atacama, is in Chile.
In Chile there is also the most Alpine lake – Chungara, situated at an altitude of 4517 m above sea level.
Not Ushuaia, but the Chilean Puerto Williams is the southernmost city on the planet.
80% of the territory of Chile is mountainous with 36 volcanoes, the highest of which is Ochos-del-Salado (6893m).
Chilean Patagonia is ecologically the purest place in the world.
Portillo is considered to be the best mountain-skiing resort due to the qualityof snow and also the duration of resort season.
The only mountain-skiing resort in the world, situated ashore the Ocean, is in El Mirador, 8 km from Punta Arenas, 13 Region.
The most enigmatic, faraway, isolated and inhabited island in the world – Easter Island – belongs to Chile.
It’s the only country where aren’t venomous snakes.
In Chile is the lowest rate of crime and corruption among all other South America countries.
… The tourist agency, to which I appealed, couldn’t gather a group of tourists for going to Chile. I have been dreaming of my journey so much time, that it looked like an obsession, so I decided to go there alone. But there was no one ticket, I thought my journey would fail, but the Lord helped me and I managed to buy the ticket just before my departure. I had only four hours at my disposal, so we with my brother were not driving to the “Sheremetyevo-2”, we were “flying” there: there was a jam in the traffic; it was Friday, Moscow, the Leningradskaya Avenue, the weather was sunny and all the Muscovites were going to their dachas…
… Iremember clearly that I was filling in the declaration with a trembling hand –I couldn’t believe, that soon I would be in the plane which was going to get me into my dreamland! And even the flight didn’t seem so long tome…
THE CITY OF SAINT YAGO – SANTIAGO.
At last, after going through many trials I turned out at the international airport “A. Merino Benitez”. It were the police dogs who met me the first: they were looking for some prohibited goods. Then every passenger passes through the sanitary inspection: they are looking for some prohibited food. Chile is a country without infections and is proud of it. I personally consider such demands as a care of the government for the nation. But never nobody and checks me, because they can read in my face that I’m a tourist to the core; so, having passed quickly the passport control, I found myself in a long-awaited capital – Santiago!
How many times I saw it in the pictures, how many times I tried to imagine this city. But I didn’t recognize a “real beauty”, looking at me from the booklets; no, it turned out to be more beautiful!! Pedro de Valdivia wouldn’t know the city which he founded. When he with a little group of people went to the South from Cusco (Peru), after going through many trials he turned himself in a hill, which he named after Santa Lucia.
From there a beautiful view opened before him: the high peaks of the Andes range, covered with snow, and the white clouds, swimming above them: they merged all together, creating unimaginable beauty, also rivers, streamed down to the Pacific Ocean. He thought that this place would be ideal for founding a settling. It was on February 12, 1541.
Having laid the first stone he named the future city after Saint Yago – the protector of Spain, - Santiago de Nueva Extremadura. (Extremadura – is the province, where Pedro de Valdivia was born).
Today’s Santiago is a big megalopolis with a population of 5 mln inhabitants (1/3 of all population of Chile), where perfectly combine the modern and colonial styles, where you can see sky-scrapers and small cozy houses with front gardens. It is situated at a height of 543 m above sea level and is 120 km far from the Pacific Ocean coast.
Just as many Latin America capitals the centre of Santiago is built like chess-board. The heart of the capital is Plaza de Armas with the monument to the founder of the city. Opposite the monument is the Cathedral, founded by Pedro de Valdivia and first belonged to him, but after earthquake it was rebuilt by the Italian architect Toesca in Roman style. Next to it are: General Post-Office, Palacio de La Moneda in the neoclassic style – the seat of the President, the National History Museum, founded in 1911 in honour of 400 anniversary of the Independence of Chile from the Spaniards. In 15 rooms of the museum are represented more than 70000 samples of historical value which tell us about history of the development of Chile, beginning with the first settlers. They are: historical documents, furniture, firearms, handicrafts, musical instruments, paintings. There is also a special area with a perfect collection of coins.
Santiago is a fascinating city: narrow cobble-stoned streets, pavements with white tiles and planted with trees and flowers; also grand buildings with the plate-grass windows, where in the afternoon reflect the opposite constructions, also the clouds swimming above the city, also sunrise and sunset, during of which the sky turns pink and gold; and in the evenings reflect spherical sky with myriads of stars. The magnificent backdrops of the Andes range with snowed peaks, sparkled in the sun and redden at sunset, add the extra beauty to the city.
From Plaza de Armas move off pedestrian streets, where are many shops, banks, restaurants, modern blocks Bellavista, Providencia, Las Condes and Vitacura. Through Santiago flows the Mapocho river.
The city lives, respires, rejoices… Everywhere you can meet the idler latinos, who simply enjoy their lives. It seems that they have no problems, no cares, no troubles – they live for the day. At every step you can meet shoeblacks,businessmen, tourists, cleaners of the streets, vendors, money-changers, idlers… In a Metropolitano park, on San Cristobal hill you may climb the funicular and then a spectacular view to the city opens…
Santiago, you are beautiful!
