Now, I want to write up some of my thoughts that have been coalescing in my brain since returning. I feel like it would be weird to post a day to day trip journal as I had done for Japan. Perhaps I will write about a few particularly interesting or entertaining stories; however, I want to proceed by focusing on particular themes and topics related to thoughts I currently have about my time in Chile.
Now that structure has been taken care of... Onto the show.
Something I was thinking about a few nights ago was just the stupendous number of ironies I've noticed about Chile since returning. That doesn't mean that all countries don't have their fair share of oxymoronic behaviors, ideals, origins, and notions. Undoubtedly, all countries have their own idiosyncrasies that make them unique (perhaps except... well, I was going to make a joke, but it's probably best I refrain here). The point is that I was there in Chile... really truly there. It was not a scheduled tourist filled extravaganza. Though I love to travel and see as much as I can, I decided to do things differently. Because of that, I spent a month and a half becoming Chilean in a way, and through my immersion in the people and the culture, I experienced such quirks first hand. I really think that's the only way to experience such things. I actually believe that it was a more powerful experience than going abroad... But that's a different thought for a different day.
Here's what I noticed:
1. Conservative Catholics... with legs!
Historically Catholic countries tend to have a much more conservative outlook on, well, everything. Think Poland, Italy, Spain, Chile... etc. Though Europe has its fair share of intellectual liberalism that comes with free and open minds and even freer nipples, the Catholicism that spread to certain countries has lent itself to the development of particularly conservative cultures. Many feel that such was the case with Chile. Thinking about it, it is not a totally inaccurate statements. Compared to Brazil, Colombia, and Argentina where T&A are regular features on prime time television, Chile is a pretty conservative country.
However, despite the reputation, you'll notice a conspicuous number of coffee shops in Santiago, the cultural, economic, and governmental capital. At first, you don't think about it at all. Then, when you stop for a coffee, you notice a couple of things:
- The bar is raised up about a foot... Hmm, odd.
- Apparently Chileans take the word barista literally... No male employees.
- Clientele seems to be suspiciously all of one gender as well.
- Holy shit that is a short dress she's wearing up on that raised up platform where they're making this horrible tasting coffee.
This is what's known as coffee with legs (café con piernas). What I just described was a very typical café con piernas in Santiago, the driest of them all. The general rule of thumb: the more tinted the windows, the less the clothes, the shittier the coffee. This ranges from short black dresses with decent coffee to g-string thongs and nipple pasties with... wait, what did I come here for?
2. There are no jobs! ...That offer me the six hour days with a two hour lunch that starts at nine and ends at five, oh did I mention I want a siesta too?... And fuck those Peruvian guys working fucking eight hours a day!
Unlike their football rivals to the north and east, Chile had cemented its role as the epitome of South American political and economic stability over the last twenty years. With corruption almost always destabilizing Brazil's government and Argentina having declared bankruptcy again in the not so distant past, Chile has earned its reputation through profound growth and stability. I learned within a couple weeks that this reputation does not quite fit the current situation. While not horrible by any means, the economic situation continues to get more and more difficult.
Since the recession and lower copper demand worldwide (looking at you, China), the Chilean economy has slumped big time. Copper is really the only thing of value that they export in massive quantities, and the price has dropped around 300-400% over the last few years...
Despite the ever tightening belt, the fact remains that most Chileans still want their typical South American/European style work days... Let me break it down as my host-father told me:
- Arrive to work at 8am. (Hmm... seems reasonable).
- Spend one hour changing and getting ready for work... Start at 9am. (Wtf?)
- Take lunch at noon.
- Get back to work at 2pm...ish. (Who knows when they actually start work again though...)
- Leave at 5pm.
Obviously many Chileans are not like that. After all, we all have to do what we can to adjust to the times. However, there are enough of them where this shit gets noticeable. Audibly hearing complaints and news reports about the difficult job market... Subsequently followed by complaints about what would be considered a short to normal work day in the States.
And that's not even the kicker... The punchline is that the same people who want the "Chilean" work day can be so unbelievably racist against Peruvians and other immigrants. Like some of the nastiness against Mexican and Central American immigrant workers in the US, many Chileans harbor a lot of resentment against the Peruvians. In fact, you hear a lot of familiar stories that you would in the US of 10-12 immigrants living in a one room apartment in Santiago and all working longer shifts every day for a fraction of the cost.
So, while the job market is really not very good there... I heard enough about the "Chilean" work day schedule to make my eyes roll.
Just for reference, this is not meant to be offensive in any way. I feel a part of my Chilean family that, as they say, adopted me... I will go back to see them one day (hopefully soon). I know that much about my future. However, I am just telling these generalities like I interpret/see it so it may sound a little harsh. I will note that my host-father thought that anyone wanting a "Chilean" work day was full of shit and shouldn't be complaining.
3 (aka 2a). Despite the way I work, I'll go way out of my way to protest and show up on time!
Humorously, for a country with a reputation for the above work ethic as well as extreme tardiness, there appears to be an almost absurd number of protests and strikes in Chile. Though many of them are for legitimate reasons such as the privatized pension system and ever rising cost of education (even state-sponsored schools), it is pretty amusing how so many Chileans jump at the chance to protest.
4. I've honestly never met such accepting people... Eh Chino?
This was a sort of weird situation for me, taking me aback in an amusing and somewhat infuriating fashion. Sincerely, I don't think that I have ever encountered people that have shown me love so quickly and genuinely. By the end of a month, they honestly looked upon me as family... (Ha! Even more irony that I should find that in a totally different country where I knew nobody). However, there were these oh-so-not-subtle, but too-subtle-for-seemingly-everyone-except-one-Chilean-person-I-met racist comments. I get that it's a totally different country and culture with different thoughts and feelings concerning sexuality and race etc. However, I have to say that the US gets way more flack concerning racism than all these other countries that are equally or even more racist. And it was blatantly apparent in Chile, especially against anyone who had darker skin or looked more native-Indian.
While my Chilean family was not... well... Most of them did not seem to harbor any prejudice based on race etc, but there were some instances and comments (that I don't want to write out since this is a public blog and despite some dumb comments, I do love these people) where I was like... "What the fuck? Did he/she just say that?" Like some really inappropriate things.
In terms of me, for example, there's a district called Estación Central, which is where a lot of the Chinese immigrants own businesses that sell imported Chinese goods (mostly cheap imitation goods). We were all headed out over there to get some random stuff, and the someone says, "Hey Spencer, we're gonna go see your uncles and aunts!" Obviously, I was not happy about that, but I just shut up and let it go because these people are being super generous to me. It was, however, an odd mix of feelings.
5. What do you mean the tour bus doesn't take us up to the torres del Paine (Paine's towers)?!
When you talk to Chileans, they take immense pride in the diversity of terrain and the variety their land offers. From the wondrous icy Patagonia mountain ranges to the beautiful deserts of Atacama, it's truly a spectacular country. When I met new Chileans, I would ask them about their travels in the country, and many would talk boastfully about seeing all of their country from the south of the south to the north of the north.
Fast forward to when my dad and I were in Patagonia... We had an awesome and hilarious guide. He was also the only Chilean person I met that had any idea what I was referring to when I spoke about subtle racism. Anyways, he told me that Chileans love traveling to Torres del Paine national park. But (and this is a fucking massive but)... he reports that a lot of them do not expect that you have to do any serious walking/trekking/climbing to see anything glorious and come completely unprepared. In fact, some of them ask if the bus will stop at Paine's towers for example (which took the three of us seven hours to trek in total). Upon returning to Santiago, my host family said... Yeah fuck that. We just go to the beach.
No comments:
Post a Comment