The Kelefors

by Jeannette LaFors

We’ve been in Santiago for just over three weeks, and lots of things have helped me to get oriented in our new environment. But thus far two anchoring experiences have shed light on profound influences on the Chilean psyche for me.

The Andes: The Andes mountain range – La Cordillera – is a stunning topographical feature of the Chilean landscape, and no one in Chile lives very far from from it. There are over 35 peaks above 6000 meters (~19,700 feet) in Chile, and there have been more than ten eruptions in the past 20 years among the 123 active volcanoes. You can’t escape the fact that Chile holds a significant share of real estate on the Ring of Fire.

The four of us ventured 70km out of the city on our second weekend in Santiago to enjoy the fresh air of the mountains. We headed southeast toward San Jose de Maipo and the valley where the River Maipo flows through, and drove up a super curvy road to Lagunillas, a modest ski center with a rustic feel.

Adela and I returned to the Cajón de Maipo area with a guide a week later to further explore the mountains for a two-day trekking/snow-shoeing trip. We stayed one night at the welcoming Refugio Lo Valdez, built in 1932 by the Club Alemán Andino. On our first day of hiking we approached Cerro San Jose – a volcano 5856 meters above sea level and dormant since 1960. The sky was a brilliant and blazing blue, and our only company was a little bird who ecstatically joined us for lunch.

On our second day we trekked in the Chilean national park known as Monumento Natural El Morado where we enjoyed more spectacular views featuring El Morado (4647 meters) and the San Francisco glacier. Our fabulous guide, Miguel Infante Garcia, pointed out the amazing geographic features, helped us learn to read snow patterns, shared his maté with us, and even accompanied Adela on his small electric piano while she sang Adele’s “Someone Like You.”

So many themes emerged from this experience. One, it underscored how much many Chileans take pride in their county’s natural beauty and strive to preserve it. At the same time, they are working at odds with others who are not reliable stewards of the land. I couldn’t help feeling so infinitesimally small when I looked out among the majestic peaks; but I also considered what an enormous impact we humans have had on the land as I observed truckload after truckload leave the area with mined resources.

La Memoria: This week we went as a family to the Museo de La Memoria y Los Derechos Humanos, the national museum dedicated to documenting the systematic human rights violations in Chile between 1973 and 1990 and to preventing future violations. When Matt and I visited Santiago 15 years ago, we visited Villa Grimandi, a property taken over by Pinochet’s secret police to become a detention center where nearly 5,000 political prisoners (including Chile’s current president Michelle Bachelet) were tortured and over 200 were killed. It is now a peace park and memorial.

The museum brings to light a terrifying time in Chile’s history. And as much as it is about the darkness of those times, it is also about the people who stood up to the injustices and eventually returned Chile to democratic rule. To Matt’s and my surprise, however, the museum was virtually silent on the U.S. role in supporting the coup. Despite that critique, it was, as expected, an unforgettable experience – una experiencia inolvidable – and a critical reminder that most Chileans we meet have been directly impacted by these historical events in one way or another.

The juxtaposition of these two experiences causes me reflect that though our time on this earth is but a blip; it is a blip where we humans wield both massive destructive and (re)constructive power. It is clear that we must instill in present and future generations a compelling and enduring value of protecting the dignity and rights of our fellow human beings while we also safeguard the earth from damaging and unsustainable practices. And while I feel I have gained some insights into the Chilean national experience by meditating on lessons learned from both the Andes and La Memoria, I know that I have much to learn.

Matt’s thoughts on understanding Chile: I think a lot about dualities here. Tradition and modernity. Pride and modesty. Haves and have-nots. Choking smog and stunning natural beauty. A president who was a prisoner.

Adela’s thoughts on understanding Chile: One thing I noticed about Chile is how many abused and stray dogs there are. I always feel sorry for them and wonder if they will ever find a home. I am glad I see so many people that have donated doggie vests and doggie sweaters. I just hope one day they will find a home.

Dylan’s thoughts on understanding Chile: Chileans are very passionate people. And after I went to a soccer game, it really sank in. The fans cheered on their team even when they were losing. It was like the fans’ chanting picked the players up and gave them energy.

 

by Adela Kelemen

Santiago has many neighborhoods. It has neighborhoods like Providencia, Bellavista, Recoleta, Ñuñoa, and many more.

My neighborhood is Providencia. I live in a small, two-bedroom apartment, three bathrooms, small kitchen and living room and a deck. In our neighborhood, we have a metro station, we have the Centro Costanera (which includes Gran Torre Santiago, the tallest building in Santiago), and stores selling anything from food to lapis lazuli jewelry. Another cool thing about Providencia is that they close some of the roads to cars on Sundays and people bike, roller skate, run, walk and skateboard all day long (from 9 to 2) – just like Sunday Streets in San Francisco.

Bellavista has my favorite place in Santiago yet. Bellavista is the neighborhood with the zoo. The zoo has been my favorite place in Santiago because I adore animals. The zoo is on a hill, which means, for some of the animals, you can look down into their enclosures. Most of all, the zoo has my favorite animal, the red panda. I also like Bellavista because it has lots of stores selling lapis lazuli jewelry and other gemstones. Lapis lazuli is a beautiful blue stone that lots of people put in jewelry. For example, if you have ever heard of lapis blue, that’s about the color of it. Lapis is mined in the Andes mountains in northern Chile.

Recoleta is the neighborhood with one of the biggest farmers markets in all of Chile. One thing you can’t help noticing about La Vega is its noise. Venders yelling out foods, friends talking, carts and boxes being pushed along the floor, and most of all, people walking, taking, laughing and yelling. La Vega is packed with people buying, selling and trading food, treats, toys and clothing. To be truthful, you can find almost anything there! Another thing I noticed about Vega was how it is so rich in culture. They have fruits you can only find in South America, Chilean flags all over the place and in the vendors’ little area, knick knacks of all sorts, books, food and drinks. I just can’t help wondering, “Is this how I would want to live my life, working on a farm and bringing my food and drinks and treats to La Vega? Do I think the vendors enjoy it?”

Ñuñoa is the neighborhood next to Providencia. It is the neighborhood where we are looking at a school to attend. It has a delicious açaí store. If you don’t know what açaí is, it’s like ice cream but made from fruit and covered with toppings like bananas, strawberries, honey, granola and so on (it’s actually from Brazil, but we found it here). One of the funny things about Ñuñoa is we came across a street called Calle Jorge Washington. We cracked up when we first saw the street name. I’m looking forward to exploring Ñuñoa and the rest of the neighborhoods of Santiago.

Dylan’s thoughts on the neighborhoods: Visiting the neighborhoods has been so fun and exciting because we get to learn about different parts of a great city and new cultures that we’ve never heard about ever before. My favorite neighborhood is Las Condes because it has a nice parks and it is very modern.

Matt’s thoughts on the neighborhoods: We’re on the eighth floor of our temporary place, which is the highest I’ve ever lived. Have to say, little things take getting used to, like having a doorman/doorwoman and taking an elevator to get home. It’s also been a trip to take the kids to visit apartments where we might live. You learn a lot about each other’s tastes when you do that job together.

Jeannette’s thoughts on the neighborhoods: Today we took advantage of the CicloRecreoVía that Adela mentioned above to get from our current neighborhood in Providencia all the way to La Plaza de Armas which is the main square of Santiago. From there I turned back and challenged myself to climb up Cerro San Cristóbal — also known as Parque Metropolitano and “the city’s green lung”. It’s the second highest peak in the city at 880 meters. Normally you can see sweeping views of the city, but the drizzle and rain limited my visibility. I didn’t mind though —  it was great being among the city dwellers out to get some exercise without the choking company of cars and buses.

 

by Dylan Kelemen

It was June 3 when we arrived in this beautiful smog-filled city with many adventures to be had and shared. First, we saw the Andes, like guardians watching over the city. Then, we saw the smog. It was like San Francisco fog, but it was brown and looming over the city like a gigantic blanket. And this was only from the airplane.

Once out of the airport, with our 18 bags and boxes, we split up to get everything into two taxis and get to our rented apartment. My dad and I were in a cab together, and soon enough, with the driver involved reluctantly, (saying “the 3 things a cab driver can’t talk about in the taxi are religion, politics and soccer because everyone has very strong opinions about each of those things”) the conversation turned to soccer. With the final of the Copa America coming fast, EVERYONE was excited. We saw too many flags to count on our drive from the airport to the apartment.

The first day was pretty uneventful, but on July 4th, we went to the zoo (more on that later from Adela) and got ready to for “La Final” as the excitement level grew from big to enormous in the whole city (and the whole country). As we came out of the metro from the zoo, we passed the Escuela Militar and headed to an apartment of one of my dad’s friends to watch the game with his family and other friends.

The Game. La Final. Those are the only four words that I will say.

Our friend Gonzalo, who’s flat is above one of the most busy streets in the city, looked over his balcony once the game had started and told us that the streets where EMPTY. We watched the game anxiously cheering for all of Chile’s chances, and cringing when Argentina had the ball anywhere close to Chile’s goal. After an uneventful 90 minutes, the chances started to come, both teams pressing hard for the winning goal that never came. Then came the penalties. We waited as Chile started off the penalty shootout with an unstoppable shot to the top left corner of the goal. Then Messi, the best player in the world, put his penalty in the back of the net. Once that penalty was taken, it was all Chile. They made their next three shots while Argentina missed all of theirs, making Chile the champion of the Copa América.

First impression from Matt: As the Chileans say, “es complejo.” Whether it’s finding just the right school or keeping up with political developments, things are fluid, uncertain, complex. Apparently, that’s the Chilean way.

First impression from Jeannette: I’ve been delighted to rediscover what I loved about Chile fifteen years ago when Matt and I were here on our honeymoon and grateful to be connecting with wonderful people and opportunities in education where so much upheaval is underway.

First impression from Adela: It still hasn’t dawned on me that we’ve moved. To me, it still feels like a vacation. I’m taking lots of pictures and we are visiting monuments just tourists would do. I think as I start school, I’ll start to realize, “Oh, we’re staying here.”