Everywhere I Roam: September 2010

Saturday, September 25, 2010

¿España Gano?

Saturday was horse fonda day!! We went to a big park on the edge of the city in one of the wealthiest parts of Santiago for the fonda La Semana de la Chileanidad. There was a big area of make-shift restaurants, mostly grills for chorripan (a chorizo type sausage in a frech roll), anticucho (steak, chicken, and chorizo kababs), and empanadas baked or fried. Typical drinks include the ever popular terremoto, which means earthquake, probably for the way it makes your stomach feel after a few too many (not that we have any experience in that department…) It consists of white wine, pisco which is the local version of a brandy, and pineapple ice cream. The other popular offering is chicha, a thick pink drink that is apparently wine that hasn’t been fermenting for very long and is unfiltered. What it lacks in alcohol it makes up for in sugar content.

There was also a stage for the various bands that played, and 2 dance floors for plenty of cueca action!

In the main arena we thought we were going to see some Chilean rodeo, but the schedule online seemed to be incorrect... Instead we saw some cool skydiving and parachuting skills, followed by a lengthy battle re-enactment, presumably between Spain and the soon-to-be independent Chile. It was put on by some military group and was complete with period uniforms, guns, canons, and a plywood set of a village. Before the show started the roof fell off the church, which was pretty entertaining.

It was hard to understand the commentary because the speaker system was a little garbled, so Tina and I made up our own, very historically accurate, version of what was going on. At one point it seemed like Spain had killed everyone on the other side and taken over all the territory. I turned to Tina and asked- “did Spain just win??” which she repeated “España gano?” which the woman in front of us thought was hilarious. Luckily for Chile, Mother Russia (or France, I can never remember which flag is which) came to the rescue, and after another 10 minutes of pretend fighting, the presumably Chilean side was victorious and the Virgin Mary was paraded out… or something like that.

After checking out some of the tents set up in the park, mostly of the military craft nature, crawling through an old tank and being helped down by some very cute men in uniform, we went to watch the horse show!

(I was taking a picture of this crazy meat being grilled, and the man working the station thought it would be a great idea to take pictures of ME with the meat. So he put his apron on me, had someone hand me a giant knife, and took my camera!)

It was a fantastic mix of beautiful horses, outstanding riding, and some interesting dancing combos. There were Paso Finos from Peru, Chilean cowboy ponies, and some great bareback trick riding. Tina, Monica and I loved it and thought all in all, it was a pretty perfect day.

A beautiful setting right under the Andes!

La Bandera Gigante

Awoken to the sounds of bugles, Friday morning we ran downstairs to find the best parade waiting in our street- the horseback marching band! Who knew?! The bandera gigante (giant flag) was getting raised that morning, and true to form the parade started on our street. Naturally, we followed them down to La Moneda and got pretty prime spots (standing on benches so we could see over heads) to watch the mornings’ festivities.

The flag really is gigantic- the size of a basketball court! They hoisted it up and had the military planes at the ready to fly over. We watched Presidente Piñera make a speech- about 40ft away!! It was pretty cool to be that close to the president of, well, anything really! He’s a controversial figure in Chile- a conservative millionaire who generally seems to be a little out of touch with reality. The giant flag seems to be somewhat typical of his style- very showy, expensive, and kind of pointless. And, to add insult to injury, the flag was made in the USA! That seemed to be a little offensive for a symbol of national identity.

I, however, claim to be no expert in Chilean politics and don’t have strong feelings for or against Piñera, the government, or the military here, so I thought it was pretty cool to see the president and a crazy big flag- and of course a military band on horseback

In the afternoon Tina, Monica and I went to a fonda- an outdoor party/BBQ that is typical here. This one was hosted by our favorite bar, The Clinic, at the castle on the hill right in the center of the city, Santa Lucía. There were entertainers that did skits, walked on stilts, juggled, and put on a slightly macabre puppet show for the kids. There was a band and people dance the cueca. And of course there was BBQ and jugs of wine-fruit-ice cream drinks. The weather was gorgeous, and it was a perfect way to spend a spring afternoon!

Walking home by Plaza de Armas

Sunday, September 19, 2010

Happy Birthday Chile!!

Thursday September 16

Chile celebrates Independence Day on September 18^th, and this year marks the 200^th anniversary of independence from Spain. I’ve been told by a number of sources that this date is somewhat incorrect, as September 18^th is the day that the first declaration was signed that started the move towards independence, which didn’t actually take place for many more months, but… hey, any reason to celebrate is good enough for me, and in Chile they seriously celebrate!!

Living 2 blocks from La Moneda, the presidential palace, is like living 2 blocks from the White House in DC. Especially for this national holiday, we found ourselves in the middle of things. To start the (4 day!!) weekend off, we went to a light show at La Moneda with Raúl and Diana. We had seen them setting up for a week and practicing the last few nights, so we knew it was going to be very cool. They projected different moving images and scenes onto the building itself, and created a big misty fountain on the front lawn that they projected photos or videos of dances and all sorts of other cool things onto. Additionally there were videos, strobe lights, and fireworks! Who wouldn’t want to see that?

Every one did, apparently, because the first night we were caught up in the crowd of between 20-60,000 eager Chileans. We were somewhere in the first third of the crowd, but I could just barely see the top of the building. The people in the back of the crowd must have gotten nothing but the fireworks. It ended up being a bit overwhelming, so we beat the crowds out of there and went back to our apartment to watch the last few minutes on our very fuzzy TV. At least we had the wine…

A quick sample of what we got to see here

The full version for anyone who has an hour to spare here

We went back on Monday night and braved the somewhat-less-massive crowds (and staked out spots over an hour before it started) and actually got to see about 85% of things! The show was absolutely amazing- hands down the best public celebration I’ve seen!

September 11ths

September 11th is a day of remembrance in Chile. Their September 11th involved planes and bombs, nationally recognized buildings, lives lost for ideologies, terror and confusion, and a turning point in the country's history, both internally and internationally. Their September 11th occurred 28 years before the attacks on the World Trade Centers in New York City, but is still a date that resonates with every Chilean.

On September 11, 1973 a military coup d'état overthrew the democratically elected, but socialist, President Salvador Allende. The heads of Chilean Air Force, Army, and Navy worked together to take the port city of Valparaíso and cut lines of communication with Santiago. President Allende remained in La Moneda, the presidential palace, where he learned the full extent of the resistance. He refused to resign and hand control of the country to the military, and made a final farewell speech broadcast on the radio, which he ended by saying "These are my last words, and I am certain that my sacrifice will not be in vain, I am certain that, at the very least, it will be a moral lesson that will punish felony, cowardice, and treason". La Moneda was bombed (marks of which are still visible on its North face) and the President died inside, officially labeled a "suicide".

The man who led the coup and subsequently ruled the military dictatorship, Army General Augusto Pinochet, remained in power until 1990. During this time some 1,500 political opponents were murdered or "disappeared" and tens of thousands were imprisoned and tortured- 40,000 in the first month alone. There are few families in Chile who were not affected by the brutal rule. Former President Michelle Bachelet was imprisoned and tortured in a detention center along with her mother in 1974. Her father was tortured and died in a detention center the year before.

President Allende had not had a smooth presidency. There were serious economic problems, a divided constituency, and foreign relations were challenging during Cold War times when socialism was viewed as enemy #1. In documents that were declassified on September 11, 1998, 25 years after the coup, it came to light the US President Nixon had ordered his CIA director, Richard Helmes, to foster a coup and force an economic crisis that would make Chileans want to overthrow their government. The United States also financially backed the military junta during their first few years of rule... the same years 40,000 political opponents were detained, tortured, or murdered.

This September 11th, my thoughts will not only be with the families who lost loved ones in the attacks on the World Trade Centers, or in the subsequent wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. My thoughts will also be with the Chilean families who suffered through 17 years of a brutal military dictatorship that my country, a country founded on the beliefs of equality and justice for all, helped to establish because a man came into power who believed in equality and justice for all- but he didn't believe in free market economics.

It is impossible to know what would have happened in Chile if the US did not have any interests in overthrowing Allende. But it is known that the US would rather support a military junta, at least for a few years, than a democratically elected socialist president. And as an American, I can't say that is something I am proud of.

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

Around Santiago

Inspired by my recent travels to Argentina- and the beautiful weather! Spring is here!- I've spent more time wandering around Santiago, and have been really delighted with what I have found!

On Saturday I finally made it across the river to La Vega Central, the big vegetable market. Chile grows some amazing produce (the geography and climate are a lot like California, and like our Central Valley there is a huge agricultural region down the middle of Chile). Unfortunately, I think they export most of their good stuff, because the fruit and vegetables you can get at the supermarkets here are... less than inspiring. But like any city, the market is the place to really go.

Obviously a very local outing, a lot of people were doing their weekend shopping and the place was really in full swing. With every color imaginable and a plethora of produce, it was heaven for me. I'm particularly a sucker for nicely arranged food- green lettuce, zucchini, broccoli, brussel sprouts, GIANT celery, red peppers and strawberries, pink potatoes, purple beets, yellow lemons, all in their neat pyramids, piles, or baskets. Then there were bags of dried fruits, buckets of homemade pickles, and no vegetable market would be complete without a case of chicken feet right?

I bought basil, cilantro, clementines, strawberries, zucchini, broccoli, eggplant, peppers, and some palta (avocados) for less than US$8!! I love vegetables!!!

My excitement carried on as I walked back home through Plaza de Armas, the main square that the Spanish colonizers built when they first arrived and set up Santiago as a city (I've been going on great walking tours of the city through my Spanish language school here and have been learning so much about the history of Chile and Santiago!). But because Independence Day is coming up here September 18, and this year marks the 200 year anniversary of independence, the city is really starting to buzz with excitement. The patriotism is actually really nice to see- there are flags everywhere, including on many taxis and buses. Even our lobby is decked out with red, white, and blue crepe paper! But anyways... back to Plaza de Armas. They happened to be having a competition for the cueca, the national dance. Tina, Morgan and I first learned about cueca in watching Martín Rivas, our favorite telanovela that takes place in the 1800's... but that's another story! It was fun to see a lot of the traditional outfits, and people of all ages were dancing.

After dropping off my groceries and recovering from all the excitement, I really couldn't waste the rest of my day inside and decided to go get some ice cream. This was clearly the best decision because a) the gelato like ice cream here is fantastic (raspberry mint with dark chocolate peppercorn? YUM) and b) on my way over, I saw a man with his llama in the street!! He was going into a convenience store on the corner, and decided to tie his llama to a tree. In downtown Santiago. My favorite part is imagining where they came from and how they got here... it wouldn't be out of the question that they walked along the side of the highway. Near our field station there are a lot of small farms, and people still plow their land with horses, and have horse carts to transport their produce. It blows my mind.

Sometimes I get caught up in the mundane details of life- reading papers, staring at spreadsheets, sending emails- that I forget to look around. And when I do, I'm constantly amazed.