Venues

JANUARY 2003 FROM SANTIAGO DE CHILE
Photo Galleries of: Patagonia & Chile

Dear Friends,

Happy New Year from Patagonia! I spent the festivities in bed, after having gone from Calafate to the Perito Moreno Glacier at 4:30 AM. What an impressive spectacle of nature it is to see a glacier calving every 30 or so minutes, nothing I saw in Antarctica compared to it, as the glacier is surrounded by a beautiful forest. The Argentineans were as wonderful as ever, with that warmth which characterizes them so much, in spite of the economic crisis which has hit them very hard.

I crossed into Chile on New Years Day from Calafate to Puerto Natales from which I went to the Torres del Paine National Park. The park is probably one of the most magnificent landscapes on the planet, I took approximately 20 rolls of film, need I say more. What makes Patagonia so particularly enjoyable this time around is the vegetation. After spending nearly a month in Antarctica it is so nice to see trees again. After the park I went to Punta Arenas, had a look at this unremarkable city and flew to Santiago, after a 20 year absence.

I had lived in this city for about 16 years and found it interesting to see the tricks memory plays on us. Santiago's downtown is much much smaller than I remembered. At the core not much has changed in the city, aside from a few new buildings. The streets look neater, but the rich/poor divide is still there with vendors lining the street, with their merchandise displayed on large plastic sheets, ready to run when they see the police approaching. Many attitudes of the people here remain identical in that Victorian sense of class. Many times I look at Chile as a Charles Dickens novel set in the XXI century.

The reception I received there was overwhelming, mi best friend from university came to pick me up at the airport and gave me a hug which lasted at least 5 minutes. Basically we spent the weekend together sharing old memories and catching up and hang out with the family. It was lovely to say the least. I also spent some time on the phone with old acquaintances and friends and managed to see about 6 of them so far. I also managed to get to Temuco to see our former maid. She looked excellent and we had an incredible conversation, in addition to the very warm hug, kisses and sentiments. I was quite surprised by the warmth and affection bestowed on me by people I long felt absent from.

I also managed to get to Valparaiso, Chile' s most important industrial-heritage site with 24 elevators (funiculars) that constitute the defining characteristic of the city. Nowhere else in the world do elevators exist in such concentration or with as broad a cultural and historical significance. The elevators symbolize Valparaiso’s preeminence as a maritime center, a position that disappeared after the opening of the Panama Canal in 1914. Because they are still used to facilitate pedestrian traffic, they foster social interaction among the inhabitants. Many elevators could be lost forever due to their advanced state of deterioration.

I had lived in Valparaiso from 1964 to 1966 and it was amazing to see the city mostly unchanged. The only addition is a horribly ugly Congress Building buit in the 1980s that sticks out like a sore thumb. This eyesore completely destroys the urban harmony around it and reminds me of what the Cultural Centre did for Kowloon in Hong Kong; where the best view is from it, because you don't have to see it.

The day I spent running around the hills of Valparaiso was simply the best. I always loved the incredibly igenious architecture of the housses built on the hills. The people of Valparaiso posess a great sense of humour and this is also reflected in the whimsical approach to architecture, with many cute human touches, cleraly in opposition to the more functional Lego-like structures of what passes as architecture today.