Chile Forum

Tombi wrote:What are flaites?

rats...
http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=flaite

Tombi wrote:What are flaites?

Wankers, douches or idiots.

I'm pale and freckled so I seriously stand out. Added to the fact that I'm young (only 22) and I cop it from the flaites every day. Luckily I had decided to change from a redhead to a brunette before I arrived her otherwise I think I would have copped it even more.

It's all harmless; they just beep their horns, flash their lights, wolf whistle or call out in English, but it does get quite irritating very quickly. I walk to work each day and for the two days this week I had business meetings. I was dress nicer than usual and so all the flaites I passed that day had something to say. I even had the bonus of an old guy mumble something in my ear as he walked past in the opposite direction.

How do people deal with flaites? I'm trying to be the bigger person and ignore them but every so often I want to knock the more vocal or vulgar ones down a peg or two. Any ideas?

thingit wrote:

Tombi wrote:What are flaites?

How do people deal with flaites? I'm trying to be the bigger person and ignore them but every so often I want to knock the more vocal or vulgar ones down a peg or two. Any ideas?

Sure, give 'em a blast of this
http://www.defensedevices.com/bearpepspray.html
I keep one by the front door for Mormons, Jehovas bearing Watchtowers etc
(just kidding)

I am purple, with green and yellow dots.. and a pointy forehead... will I stand out? .. in Los Condes?

MikieO wrote:

thingit wrote:

Tombi wrote:What are flaites?

How do people deal with flaites? I'm trying to be the bigger person and ignore them but every so often I want to knock the more vocal or vulgar ones down a peg or two. Any ideas?

Sure, give 'em a blast of this
http://www.defensedevices.com/bearpepspray.html
I keep one by the front door for Mormons, Jehovas bearing Watchtowers etc
(just kidding)

It's perfect. I'm ordering it tomorrow

MikieO wrote:Sure, give 'em a blast of this
http://www.defensedevices.com/bearpepspray.html

My bear avoidance safety technique consists of not going to Alaska. I can report a 100% success rate so far.

bob. chile is not like mexico, same language and some cultural things, but there are very different countries. southern mexico reminds me peru a lot

WARNING... I LOVE THIS COUNTRY...I AM BIASED...THE FOLLOWING POSTING REFLECTS THIS... YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED...HATERS BEWARE...

I must be living in a different Chile then some people here. I am 6' and 250lbs, bald, black and from New York, and oh yeah I stole the name Gringo for my middle name. Hi all I am Dan 'The Gringo' Brewington.

My wife who is Chilean has beautiful olive skin and my 3 kids all born here are different shades of golden brown. They seem to be the most popular kids in school. Though we now live in Pirque we have have lived in Viticura, Las Condes and La Reina and I will say this of all my neighbors, fantastic, helpful, nice and more interested in learning about me and my family and where we were from and how we like Chile.

It is so much better being a black man with a mixed family here in Chile than in my home country, Chileans to me are much more accepting of me and my family then many parts of the USA, and I fought in 2 wars for my country. I am judged more in the USA for my skin color than I am in Chile.

Sure Chile has a problem with class issues, but white and black I cant see as an issue. I actually feel sorry for the Peruvians, now they get treated like black people back home when I was growing up. Even Argentinians get treated poorly here. I was at a major supermarket here in La Reina with a friend who was from Argentina and when we got to the cashier and my friend spoke to her, the cashier got up and walked away and said she would not serve an Argentinian, me being me and dealing with that crap in the USA, I of course made a scene that came straight from a Chris Rock movie and the management got involved quickly to fix the problem.

But again that wasn't a black white issue or a class issue, my friend was the wife of the Marketing Manager of P&G and later Ripley, they had serious status, but they were Argentinian.

So my 2 cents, because thats all this is my point of view, is that Chile is an awesome country for me and being different works more to my advantage and for the advantage of my family. My kids work twice as hard as any other kid in school not because they have to , but because Dad is a basturd, and this makes them popular. My kids accept everyone from every back ground, color and nationality, not because they have to, but because they do not know any better.

I Love Chile, I love the people, the differences, the good and the bad, the best and worst parts. To the original poster of this thread, don't sweat the differences in you and your family, because it is probably going to be you who notices it the most. The people in your community will probably accept you more and faster because you are a gringo and speak English.

Sit back and enjoy the ride here in Chile

Peace

It is so much better being a black man with a mixed family here in Chile than in my home country, Chileans to me are much more accepting of me and my family then many parts of the USA, and I fought in 2 wars for my country.

i am sad that what you say is true. It does get better all the time but we still aren't as far out of our diapers as Canada, for example.

As a veteran myself, thank you for your service.

I am glad you have found a good place to be.

G.S.

bobmarker wrote:...I know we would blend in in Buenos Aires, but how is it in Chile? We'd rather not stand out. Are the people dark, light, mix? Are there areas that are darker/lighter than others? We would like to live somewhere where we aren't labeled tourists because of our skin color for the rest of our lives.

Well, let me rephrase this. Are there lighter and darker areas in Chile? For example, Mexico (generally speaking) is darker in the south and lighter in the north. Does something like this exist in Chile?

Anywhere you choose to live for the rest of your lives, you will, in time, cease being mistakenly regarded as "tourists." This will have nothing to do with the color of your skin, eyes or hair. It will have more to do with your comfort in that skin.

We all know people who never lost their accent or sound like native speakers. Yet, they have easily been our neighbors, townfolk, our countrymen...and we know they are not tourists.

My advice? Don't try to hide your newness. Embrace the adventure it brings to your lives and relish the experience of making new friends and acquaintences who I am sure will enjoy helping you learn your way around town, and around the culture. With a spirit of adventure, you will endear yourself to the locals.

When you are packing to move, don't pack the camouflage.

Pat

My advice? Don't try to hide your newness. Embrace the adventure it brings to your lives and relish the experience of making new friends and acquaintences who I am sure will enjoy helping you learn your way around town, and around the culture. With a spirit of adventure, you will endear yourself to the locals.

When you are packing to move, don't pack the camouflage.

But DO bring plenty of cash for the gringo tax.

MikieO wrote:

My advice? Don't try to hide your newness. Embrace the adventure it brings to your lives and relish the experience of making new friends and acquaintences who I am sure will enjoy helping you learn your way around town, and around the culture. With a spirit of adventure, you will endear yourself to the locals.

When you are packing to move, don't pack the camouflage.

But DO bring plenty of cash for the gringo tax.

Yes, muy importante! But as you know, with patience and practice you can haggle them back down to reality.