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1001 Santiago Tips. 1665 Santiago Photos. 0 Santiago Videos. Santiago Pages by kiwigal_1
| Page Views: 1,961 Last Visit to Santiago: January, 2007 I Live Here | Working in Santiago by kiwigal_1 - last update: Jan 28, 2008 |
Santiago | The Virgin on Cerro San Cristobal |
I am a New Zealander who arrived in Santiago on 3 June 2006.
Initially I thought that I would be staying in Chile for only 6 months as that was the duration of my work contract. That has now turned into an indefinite stay as my contract got extended and then on the 5th January 2008 I got married to Christian Montoya, a Chilean!
I have travelled a fair bit and stayed in a few cities around the world but I have to say that right from the first day I felt really comfortable living in Santiago. The city does have pollution problems in the winter months and has public transportation issues (what big city doesn't!?) but has a whole lot going for it too.
If you are passing through Santiago or want some advice then please drop me a line. |
|  | Observations after 1 month: * A winter that didn't really start until the end of July with a huge snowfall on the mountains and rainfall in the city. Mostly the days are sunny though which I like. * The drivers here are crazy!! Noone sticks to lanes or seem to use indicators and they drive very fast! It is a wonder I haven't seen a crash yet. * The infrastructure here is really good. Good roads, excellent metro, a bus system (which is improving), construction everywhere. * The architecture is pretty modern up my end of town * The people take a little longer to get to know than the other latin americans I have met in the past. I wouldn't call them cold exactly but they are definately more conservative. * This is a comfortable place for an expat to call home. |
Observations after 9 Months: Santiago is a pretty big city but I spend most of my time probably within 20% of it. I live in an area called Las Condes and I walk to the barrio El Golf to work. There are lots of people around at all times of the day and everyone is always rushing it seems.
Las Condes is a very modern area. Most of my friends who have visited have been surprised at this and I guess I was also when I first arrived. Santiago changed its public transportation system this month and now we have the era of "TransSantiago". People complain there aren't enough buses and the metro is always full but I think that it is a safer more complete system than before that is just having teething troubles. People will soon forget what it was like when the horrible yellow micro buses used to reign the streets of Santiago!
I have a Chilean boyfriend now and a small network of friends. Work is busy and life is settling into a routine that I am comfortable with. I play touch rugby with a local team, eat out and dance the night away in Bella Vista or sit on my balcony with a nice glass of Chilean Carmenere wine and watch the world go by :) |  | |
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| Pros: | "mountains and ocean close by, good standard of living" | | Cons: | "Crazy drivers, smog" | | In A Nutshell: | "A conservative but comfortable city to live in" |
kiwigal_1's Santiago Travel Tips
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Comments for kiwigal_1 about Santiago | | | | |
bijo69 Sun Jun 1, 2008 23:37 UTC Great tips! I'm planning to visit Chile next year! | kiwigal78 Sat Mar 29, 2008 12:30 UTC This is great advice! I am flying into Santiago with a 7 hour layover until I fly on to Peru. Do you know if you can leave the airport during that time? and if it is worth doing so? What are your suggestions for "things to do" with such limited time? | axelfromchile Tue Oct 23, 2007 01:01 UTC I went to this same restaurant bit a tuna bone which made my palette bleed to the astonishing non response of restaurant and owner wrote it up in my blog | angiebabe Fri Jun 15, 2007 09:54 UTC What a life the intrepid kiwis have to endure! Gallavanting and all sorts of excitement in all sorts of interesting places around the world!Ive enjoyed visiting your pages. All the best for your time in Chile. |
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