Santiago de Chile, a big misunderstood mess

Well, if I’m going to talk about the city I lived for nearly 11 years, then I’m going to be as honest as possible. So be prepared for a long rant of criticism the same way that I’m going to be prepared for the negative feedback. Oh boy, here we go.

Yes, we're living in a big hole in the ground

Santiago besides of being the capital of my “beloved” country, it’s also one of the most centralized cities in Latin America. In other words our capital it’s the fifth most populated city in the continent.

That shouldn’t be a problem for us, but the fact that our city was founded in a Valley becomes a real problem in terms of environment. Why? Because between the public transport, the smoke from the cars and all the air pollution creates this big black cloud of CO2 that surrounds the entire city and suffocates the population. And if you’re wondering… No, the vehicular restriction will not fix the problem at all.

Now that’s the physical description, it’s time to talk about the places and stuff. And Santiago, being the capital of Chile, has a lot of history behind that it’s worth to check it out.

For Example, we have “Casa Central” that is the head office of the University of Chile, that keeps a neoclassical architecture that still remains the times when we were colony of Spain, and has a Statue of Andres Bello inside. The government palace called “La Moneda” that had a lot of repairs after being attacked by the military in 1973, but the memory is still there. The Costanera Center Mall in Providencia where people go to shop and eat, and looks like a giant corn.

The National Stadium where people become over zealot for the freakin’ football (like I care) , the San Cristobal hill where people can ride the cable railway and see the city from above, Fantasilandia, an amusement park, the interactive Museum (MIM) in “La granja” and so on. Okay, I’ll admit that Santiago has practically everything in terms of culture and history. But that doesn’t mean that represents Chile as a whole.

Being a big city, there are a lot of places to work like hospitals, schools, malls, drugstores and public transport. One good thing about living in a place like this is that there always work to do, something to repair, something to take care or something to clean. Except when you’re a politician, in that case can do absolutely nothing and still keep winning money.

And now I’m going to talk about the problems with Santiago. Mmmm let’s see…  The crime on the streets, the incompetence of the authorities, the contamination of the Mapocho River, the unevenness of the social classes, the laughable health program, the corruption in the legal system, etc. The only way to repair this bloody mess, it’s choosing a candidate who is neither liberal nor conservative because the bipartisanship it’s the worst way to make politics.

And that was Santiago, the capital of Chile. Polluted, corrupted, with a lot of problems, but also full of history and culture that makes it shine in their own way. It’s the worst city of the world? No. But it could be way better than now. Just give it some time.