I do not know Santiago, Chile. I spend two and a half days here, and spent most of my time hanging out in parks, walking the streets of the center, and going to museums. I did not stay here long enough to adopt any local routine, to explore places outside the center, or to unveil the intricacies that really make Santiago tick. I could have allocated more time and energy here, but that is not why I am here in South America and quite frankly I am starting to realize that I just don`t like cities very much. But, after these two and a half days I do have some opinions on the center of Santiago. And while they aren`t deeply rooted in days of observations, hours of experiences, or a variety of places, the count for something. First impressions are valid, as is my all-too-critical-eye. So here it goes.
Santiago is a city of history. It was founded in 1541 by Valdivia when he placed the Spanish flag on top of a hill, now Cerro Santa Lucia. You can still visit the hill, which is right in the middle of this booming city. It is now a public park and a great place to view the physical and spacial changes that have occurred over time. Forts, churches, government building, indian monument. The park has it all. And from the top of the hill, you can look out on an international city scattered with a mixture of neoclassic architecture and huge skyscrapers. If you want to understand Santiago from a historical perspective, all you need to do is walk the city parks and plazas, all of which are lined with murals and sculptures of important people through Chile´s history. Or just go to one of the many museums like El Museo de La Historia de Santiago or El Museo de La Historia de Chile (which oddly enough does not include anything on Pinochet or the military dictatorship...how`s that forre-writing history?). And if history doesn`t strike your interest, don`t worry because...
Santiago is a city of culture. Art museums--many of which are free on Sunday--range from precolombian art (meaning pillaged artifacts) to modern art. There is also a range of new cultural spaces, the most intriguing of which was recently constructed below the front yard of the presidential palace. Plays, theater, music. Public parks, concert halls, universities. All I know are the museums and galleries located in central Santiago and surrounding neighborhoods like Bellas Artes. And although public transportation is expensive, these resources are still relatively accesable for the majority of people in Santiago. From my experience with cities, a city that has a variety of artistic offerings downtown usually has a strong city government, a wealthy working class, and a large youth population. Which brings me to my next point...
Santiago is a city of students. There are so many universities here (although it is no Boston). University of Chile. University of Santiago. Catholic University. And a number of smaller institutions offering degrees in medicine, law, nursing, and fashion. And where there are students, there are cafes, nightlife, cultural events, music, demonstrations, and political activity. But not everyone can afford to attend university. Like the United States, and unlike Chile´s eastern neighbor, universities here are very expensive. And I wouldn`t be surprised if the majority of students chose to study something like finance and investment banking in the hopes that they can strike it rich and pay off loans. They wouldn`t have to go far becase...
Santiago is a city of commerce. At the highest level, there are banks. And their presense is overwhelming. Banks and ATMs on every corner. Offices and HQs tower over the other buildings and occupy any panoramic view. How much power do these international banks have? Well let`s just say that the government palace and government square are surrounded on all sides by financial institutions. Corprotocracy strikes again. At the lowest level, there are the street vendors and kiosk owners. They buy their products--ranging from candies to yogurts, from fruits to nuts, from toys to socks--at Mercado Vega, a gigantic market space taking up blocks of city space on the other side of the river. In the morning it is filled with restaurant owners and street vendors buying up their daily goods. In the afternoon and evening, it is filled with families picking up weekly provisions and homeless people hoping for scraps. And in the middle of these two extremes, there are the artesans and shop owners. With the second largest gini coefficient in South America, Chile`s middle class is not exactly prominent. But it is present and supposedly growing. I have the feeling, mostly because of the governmental department called ´Economy and Tourism`, that this growth is due largely in part to Chile`s booming tourist industry. But there are definitely other factors, too. But for now, the middle class remains scarce and what remains is the fact that...
Santiago is a city of division. The class difference is amplified by the fact that Santiago is a city of neighborhoods. This is always true for all cities. In fact, I would argue that a city needs to be divided into neighborhoods; people need small communities in order to be happy and really in order to survive. Without small neighborhoods, people get lost. But the thing with Santiago is that there seems to be very little movement between these neighborhoods. They are divided by rivers and large abandoned buildings. You are either on the good side--where police roam the streets to keep you safe, where trash is collected in bins, where buildings are beautifully cared for--or you are very clearly on the bad side--where sidewalks are in disaray, where walls are falling apart, and where people carry themselves differently. It`s these neighborhoods where teen pregnancy is high, where drug lords rule the streets with pitbulls and gangs, and where anyone foreign sticks out like a sorely unwanted thumb. But maybe these social and economic gaps won`t be that way forever. After all...
Santiago is a city of urban development. As always, thanks to IHP, I tend to view cities from an urban development perspective. With Santiago, this tendence is greated because my Urban Development professor at BU worked in Santiago and spoke of it constantly. Regardless, the city clearly places development high on its list of prioritees. In the past 10 years, they have revamped the transportation system. And while it has gotten negative reviews and essentially cost the last president her reelection, TranSantiago has its positives. It is quick: trains come frequently and buses travel on their own lanes. It is integrated: people can change between buses and trains with only one swipe of the BIP card. And it is damn pretty: the stations are beautifully decorated to match the appropriate location, they serve as underground malls with a variety of stores, businesses, and restaurants, and they attend to the comfort of the riders with soothing music, TV sets, and misting fans. Apart from the public transportation, the city is peppered with public spaces. Public parks line the river front and open squares are scattered throughout the city center. And these spaces are well maintained and well used by a range of people--BMX riders, homeless, exercisers, runners, picnicing families, businessmen on lunchbreaks, informal meetings, canoodling couples. Every space is different but they all have their purposes and their draw. Essentially, you can ride the public transportation or walk the streets between public spaces and spend your day in Santiago for nearly no money at all. Which is what I did.
And for that, I really did like Santiago.
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