Chile Forum

Awhile back I asked about Arica on the Yahoo Chile Gringos group. Several days ago a woman who's a member of a Yahoo Ecuador group I used to be a member of emailed me asking if I still planned to move to Arica. She told me she had visited Arica recently and it was full of drug addicts from Bolivia. Said it was the only place she had visited on her trip that she truly felt unsafe. I know her as being very pro-Ecuador so maybe take what she says with a grain of salt. But I got to thinking about Arica's somewhat weak economy with not enough to do for kids. Maybe she's right? As far as Bolivians go, the indigenous aren't always the most attractive looking people and they do chew coca leaves. Maybe it was more than she could handle. Anyways I told her that I've heard it was safe from several sources and she stopped emailing me. I rejoined the Ecuador group and sure enough she told them I was moving to Arica, a dangerous place full of drug addicts. So what's up with Arica?

Well, I live in Arica since 1974 and I am certain that is one of tehe safest places in Chile, less drug addicts than Iquique, Santiago or Viña for sure. Arica economy is depressed since long time so there are no money for drugs and almost not crime, not much to steal here

tombrad2 wrote:Well, I live in Arica since 1974 and I am certain that is one of tehe safest places in Chile, less drug addicts than Iquique, Santiago or Viña for sure. Arica economy is depressed since long time so there are no money for drugs and almost not crime, not much to steal here

Thanks Tomas, I'll take your 35 years over her few hours every time!

She obviously has never spent much time in Bolivia or Peru. You know where most countries have corn fields or coffee fields along the side of the road, they have coca fields. Even fine restaurants server things like coca leaf deserts.

So Ecuador does not have any drug addicts?

admin wrote:She obviously has never spent much time in Bolivia or Peru. You know where most countries have corn fields or coffee fields along the side of the road, they have coca fields. Even fine restaurants server things like coca leaf deserts.

So Ecuador does not have any drug addicts?

She got really agitated when I told her I had gotten discouraged about all the reports of violent crime. Said she was tired of all the exaggerations about crime. In all honesty crime is much worse on Ecuador's coast and lowlands than in the Sierra. Cuenca is a terrific city that's attracting alot of expats. But I'd feel safer travelling in Chile, Argentina, or Uruguay than I ever would in Ecuador just based on what I've read from numerous sources. But then I'd take Ecuador over most of Central America. There are great places in many countries, but if everyone warns you to not travel highways at night, or walk around outside at night, or go hiking in rural areas, I'd just as soon pay more to live in a safe country.

Vanman, not to pry, but how much actual time, (not virtual) on the ground have you spent in South America?
It appears that your over reliance on forums is becoming an obstacle to actual movement.

MikieO wrote:Vanman, not to pry, but how much actual time, (not virtual) on the ground have you spent in South America?
It appears that your over reliance on forums is becoming an obstacle to actual movement.

Nah, just researching for now. I'm about 5 years from moving south. Not just dreaming, have lived all over the U.S. including 3 locations on Mexican border. Absolutely no problem moving out of the U.S. as it's the only way I'll have a decent retirement. And I love to travel and experience new cultures. I greatly enjoy reading experiences here and in other forums. If you weed out the partisanship you can get a pretty good idea if a place is right for you. Constant msgs about violent crime, petty theft, corrupt cops and bureaucrats, hurricanes, high humidity, earthquakes, lousy food, venomous critters, xenophobic locals, power outages, high costs, "gringo tax", etc can influence your thinking. No place is perfect, but Chile seems close to ideal. But it's too expensive for me, except Arica, until I get Social Security. It's either Cuenca, Ecuador or Arequipa, Peru most likely. And I will start exploratory trips next summer.

You live in the United States, violence everywhere else is fairly relative after that. I still have never been to any country as dangerous as the United States, and I have lived in Mexico (many years ago) and more recently Guatemala for two and half years (really dangerous). I have seen people run down the street in broad daylight shooting at cars and stumbled across fresh multiple homicides in the U.S. just walking down the street minding my own buisness. Never run in to that problem in other countries.

Chile is hurting, but not like the rest of Latin America. Most countries in Latin America had big parts of the society that was in trouble before the economic crisis.

There is a serious uptick in crime around Chile, but still not even close to what is so common everyday in the rest of Latin America that it hardly makes the news anymore. If Chile is experiencing an increase, those other countries are going to be experiencing it ten fold or more. They have a desperate third-world poverty that Chile does not have.

Temuco for instance has one of the highest official unemployment rates now in the country, but I am still having problems getting anyone to cut my grass on a regular basis. I even offered more money, and to let them cut it more often (even though it did not need it). A couple of months ago while interviewing candidates for a secretarial position, I offered the job to three people and none of them showed for the first day of work. Not even to be reimbursed for the official documents they had to pay out of pocket to apply. Unemployment is not that bad. It has not reached the point like in the States where one position draws hundreds of people in a line.

The big wild card for Chile is how long does it take before the neighbors economic problems result in massive influxes of people seeking jobs in Chile because Chile is still holding it together. We already are seeing a big influx of Argentinians, besides what has always been a steady stream of Peruvians and Bolivians.

Here is irony for you.

I just got done writing that last post, and opened an email from a client. I had told him that there was some delays at the Miami consulate this week because of the Chilean students that where murdered by some right wing christian wako on a random rampage. He had not seen a single thing in the news, and was completely unaware of it. In Chile it was front page national news for like a week. That a significant number of the Chileans murdered this year happened in the U.S., says a lot about the safety differences. Yes, people are murdered in Chile. We still have not had any reports (knock on wood) of a single foreigner being murdered in Chile. I am not sure there is any country in the Americas that can say the same thing.

vanman wrote:I'm about 5 years from moving south.

a lot can happen in 5 years

admin wrote:You live in the United States, violence everywhere else is fairly relative after that. . . .

Much depends upon one's own experience. I've lived most of my life in the U.S. but largely grew up abroad and have lived abroad as an adult, too: all told, about twenty years outside the country. Only England, France, and Germany feel as safe to me as the United States, though areas in each of the four certainly can feel as dangerous as Latin America or Africa (my experience in Asia is only as a visitor, so can't comment on that continent).

Actual figures? Among my lost "bookmarks" was one to United Nations' figures that indicated that Chile as a whole has more nonviolent crime than the United States taken together -- much more burglary and other theft -- and about the same proportion of violent crime (more wife-beating, less murder).

admin wrote:...I had told him that there was some delays at the Miami consulate this week because of the Chilean students that where murdered by some right wing christian wako on a random rampage. He had not seen a single thing in the news, and was completely unaware of it. In Chile it was front page national news for like a week....

Charles,

Still being in the USA but having great interest in things Chilean, I normally would see news about Chile that other gringos here would overlook... but I had heard nothing about the Chilean deaths in Florida until Ximena asked me about it the other night and I did a search online.

John

RWS wrote:

admin wrote:You live in the United States, violence everywhere else is fairly relative after that. . . .

Much depends upon one's own experience. I've lived most of my life in the U.S. but largely grew up abroad and have lived abroad as an adult, too: all told, about twenty years outside the country.

Yea, just to add on RWS, probably the difference between city and rural life. Where there are more people, there are more problems, which may help explain why you aren´t tripping over dead bodies in comparatively tiny Temuco. My family kept our front door unlocked for 20 years up until our first robbery last year, which likely only happened due to the suburbs finally reaching us in the last 5 to 8. If I just crack the front door here in Santiago, waiting for a friend, my roommates and even the concierge let me know how unsafe I was being.

The first time I was ever robbed (petty) was during a weeklong vacation in BA, the second and third time have been in Santiago. That does not mean my conclusion is that BA is a safer city, I just haven´t spent enough comparative time there yet. Although I cant wait too.

Vanman - I spent a few weeks in Quito with my girlfriend of the time and her family, her father happened to be as they would say here in Chile, a patron. (not sure if that is local Chilean or universal) So the neighborhood I was visiting should have been one of the nicer in town. This was about 4 years ago, and in my opinion, it is a lot safer and nicer here in Santiago. No security guards with shotguns at the supermarkets or guarding the gated communities in Santiago, although occasionally in the supermarkets there is a friendly face offering one wine samples. yum.

isleroyale wrote:

RWS wrote:.... No security guards with shotguns at the supermarkets or guarding the gated communities in Santiago, although occasionally in the supermarkets there is a friendly face offering one wine samples. yum.

Quito sounds like Mexico. They have bank guards with automatic rifles,(M-16s), motorcycle cops with shotguns strapped across theirs backs, takes a little getting used too. And just generally about 57 different varieties of cop who all wear different uniforms.


I never felt unsafe in Stgo. But then again I didn't wander around bad 'hoods at night either. Mostly petty theft I think, seems to be rampant. Violent crime occurs but from what I've seen from my time living in Chile, comparatively speaking Stgo. is a lot safer than any large North American city with the same population.

Arica is one of the safest cities in Chile. I lived there. I'm sure 'things happen' from time to time but about the worst incident I remember is the old guy who took too much Viagra when visiting his mistress, he had a heart attack and croaked.

Thanks, too many good posts to respond to! It's surprising to me that more people don't find their way to Chile but then I stumbled on this forum by accident. All I've ever read about Chile before this forum was it's nice but very expensive and of course Pinochet and the coup. I've read a number of travel guides since then and think it's kind of an affordable combination of Europe, California, and British Columbia. 5 years isn't so bad to wait when I've already spent the last 10 years researching. And based on this thread I think Chile offers what most people really want, great weather, great scenery, modern infrastructure, and to be able to enjoy it without living in fear.