Chile Forum

by **helibel** on Sun Sep 14, 2008 2:18 pm

I think another factor is even being fairly fluent in a second language as I am, I can read contracts(real estate ones very well )and newspapers and get most of it , but really can't enjoy a novel in Spanish or completely understand a movie or TV show, they move to fast. So there are times you just want to have relaxing conversation where you you are not struggling to catch it all.
BTW I think the scenery in the Alti Plano from Arica inland and crossing through the high desert to Colchane and then San Pedro de Atacama is second to none. I couldn't live at such a high altitude in total comfort with the exception of San Pedro, which would be a tempting local if I were looking to start a guesthouse or some other tourist oriented business, it is so so beautiful!

by **ak405** on Wed Sep 17, 2008 2:29 pm

admin wrote:Something I have noticed about the type of expat Chile attracts is that they are for the most part past that kind of security blanket of needing a connection to the motherland. This is very much a generalization, but people are looking to get away from their culture.

I think you hit the nail right on the head. I am soooooo ready to leave a lot of the BS here in the states behind. Granted there are things that I will miss: family, friends, certain types of food.

I really just want to get away from all of the fat idiots driving minivans full of children watching TV with their left blinker on going 10mph under the speed limit in the passing lane! That about sums up the culture I'm looking to get away from.

by **Gloria** on Wed Sep 17, 2008 5:01 pm

ak405 wrote:
I really just want to get away from all of the fat idiots driving minivans full of children watching TV with their left blinker on going 10mph under the speed limit in the passing lane! That about sums up the culture I'm looking to get away from.

Granted, but here you'll find idiots that don't have any driving manners, don't know what blinkers are, they cut you off making the back of you hair stand up, drive their kids w/o any restrain whatsoever, stepping on their brakes all of the sudden giving you a massive whiplash and because they have no idea what the divider lines on the roads are for, they make you feel they are true owners of the land.......and you thought it was bad there??? and by the way....collision insurance is OPTIONAL!!...therefore a great deal of chileans DO NOT HAVE IT.

by **mlightheart** on Wed Sep 17, 2008 5:28 pm

Gloria, isn't that the truth! It is far more dangerous and exciting on the roads in Chile. The lane marker seems to be optional because more often than not, people are driving in the middle of the road downtown. They will dart in front of you in a heartbeat if there is space. Plus watch out for the Micros. Also the majority of people are driving a stick shift with one hand on the wheel and one on the shifter at all times. Ak405 might wish for the days of having those idiots in the passing lane going 10 mph below the limit.

The predictable vs the unpredictable.

by **helibel** on Wed Sep 17, 2008 5:35 pm

Yeh!!! AK405
I had to roll my eyes at your post.
Its only paradise because you won't be aware of what is going on.

My cousins like to call the crazies "First generation drivers", and then there are the oxen, though maybe not so much in Antofagasta,(they are in the south) they really go slow.

by **Gloria** on Wed Sep 17, 2008 6:04 pm

mlightheart wrote:Gloria, isn't that the truth! It is far more dangerous and exciting on the roads in Chile. The lane marker seems to be optional because more often than not, people are driving in the middle of the road downtown. They will dart in front of you in a heartbeat if there is space. Plus watch out for the Micros. Also the majority of people are driving a stick shift with one hand on the wheel and one on the shifter at all times. Ak405 might wish for the days of having those idiots in the passing lane going 10 mph below the limit. The predictable vs the unpredictable.

Amen Mlightheart!...didn't someone say...the grass is always greener on the other side??? :lol:

by **Gloria** on Wed Sep 17, 2008 6:12 pm

helibel wrote:Yeh!!! AK405
and then there are the oxen, though maybe not so much in Antofagasta,(they are in the south) they really go slow.

That's probably in a very remote area in the south Helibel, I cannot imagine an oxen in downtown Valdivia with a trail of desperated honking chilean drivers behind it.....the poor thing would be ready for BBQ the next day for sure!! :lol:

jajajaja.....just picture it please!!!

by **ak405** on Wed Sep 17, 2008 6:57 pm

I think you may have missed the part where I said "that sums up the culture I'm looking to get away from." I was using that as symbolism for what I want to leave behind (materialism, general stupidity, etc). I know it may exist in a different form in Chile, but at least it will be DIFFERENT.

I also do not plan to be "unaware" - I am not running away from anything. The grass is not greener for me it will be different and I welcome the challenge. I never said it would be paradise either.

I've noticed that some people are quick to respond to posts in this forum with a seemingly condescending attitude...I suggest that these types remember when they were new to something in the past... I also need to point out that there are many on this forum who are compassionate, extremely helpful and understanding. People will be themselves...

Bring on the crazy drivers!!!

by **helibel** on Wed Sep 17, 2008 7:06 pm

Yeah Gloria they keep them on the east side of route 5

I actually get a big kick out of folks launching their fancy boats (and hauling them down the road)in the lake district, with the Oxen. Most of my adventures keep me to the east of that road, so I see them daily when I'm there.
BTW traveling mid October, Yippee!!!
AK I'm just having fun, sorry if it seems condecending. Once again Yippee!! I'll be there soon.

by **Gloria** on Wed Sep 17, 2008 10:50 pm

ak405 wrote:
I've noticed that some people are quick to respond to posts in this forum with a seemingly condescending attitude...I suggest that these types remember when they were new to something in the past... I also need to point out that there are many on this forum who are compassionate, extremely helpful and understanding. People will be themselves...

Bring on the crazy drivers!!!

Don't sweat the small stuff, save your energy and...what do I always say Mlightheart?...learn spanish.

by **mlightheart** on Thu Sep 18, 2008 12:15 am

And maybe those special words (Spanish & Chileno) for the times when someone cuts you off while driving.

by **ak405** on Thu Sep 18, 2008 10:44 am

No worries all.
Gloria, I've got the Spanish part covered, as well as the "special words" in Spanish (but not palabras Chilenas, I look forward to learning those :twisted:

). In any event I don't plan on driving much as I will only have limited use of a company truck, but who knows what will happen!

by **el puelche** on Tue Sep 30, 2008 2:36 am

reading through this topic....

the northern chilean and the southern chilean..they are a desert apart....in the south I don't think there is much the need to seek expats, there is alot to do, people are friendlier(friendlier in a diffferent way)...the community operates differently...I guess you caould say there is always a criss-cross of people doing things and going places that if you want to do something you can...also the forest and green closes in on you....you can only see so far...you are surrounded...its not bad its just a differnt way of thinking...

...in the north....chileans don't have to say much and they don't...an expat has a drier experience and so the need to search out other expats is stronger...the expanse of ocean and desert or tundra is so great that its almost too much too take in, day after day. The expat community in the north is very strong, I think also there is a greater mix of other expats there from latin countries and so expats group up more(in the south its CHilean and german) in the north there are italians, brits and yugoslavs plus a good amount of arabs and then the americans and euros from the observatories and mines...

I have gotten the feeling that in the south, some of the chileans I have known are almost mythical but they are always there or their type is always there they float in and out and when you need them they appear some how, you always know where tey have gone, you know someone who knows of them...in the north they are like ghosts...you might only see them once and they are gone...you could see them for 10 years and then not again, they are gone and no one knows...the northern chilean forgets, the southern chilean does not...in the north you don't find them..they find you...

p out.

expats in the north need expat connection I think...maybe not from the same country but they need the connection...

.

.

by **Chuck J 3.0** on Tue Sep 30, 2008 9:51 pm

el puelche wrote:r

........in the north they are like ghosts...you might only see them once and they are gone...you could see them for 10 years and then not again, they are gone and no one knows...the northern chilean forgets, the southern chilean does not...in the north you don't find them..they find you...

That's pretty insightful, P. I used to see some rustico characters in the Sunday market in Arica. I remember this one old guy selling handmade jewelry, he looked like he wandered in from the desert or something, looked like he'd been out there too long. I half expected to see a burro nearby. I bought some earings for my niece from him, the next week I looked for him but he wasn't there. Never saw him again.

That's one of the things I love about Chile if you keep your eyes open you'll see amazing/unexpected/strange things once in awhile, when you least expect it.

.

by **ColoradoGuy5** on Tue Oct 07, 2008 8:38 pm

Hi, I just moved to Chile two months ago. First I lived in Copiapo and about a week ago I moved into my 1 bedroom apartment in La Serena by the beach. I finished college 2 years ago and my company sent me down here for a year long assignment where I have to learn spanish and work at one of the company's mine. My wife will be here shortly. I hope. Meanwhile I am trying to make my apartment a better place to live as for now I don't have much in there. Life has been OK I was attacked by a pack of dogs lost my atm card (my lifeline). Unfortunately in two months my spanish did not really improve. I had two months of spanish back home. Yeah me and my wife would like to meet some people too.

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Need Help In Chile? Spencer Global Consulting Chile, South America Legal, Investment, Real Estate, Relocation, and all your needs in Chile, South America Call Us:

In the U.S.A. and From Outside Chile Dial: 1-702-990-1762

Need Help In Chile?

Spencer Global Consulting Chile, South America
Legal, Investment, Real Estate,
Relocation,
and all your needs in Chile, South America
Call Us:

In the U.S.A. and From Outside Chile Dial:
1-702-990-1762