Kyle Hepp

37 Comments

1. 

   I love that there is a large enough community of women considering moving to Chile to be with their partners that you get emails ONCE A WEEK! You’re more Internet famous than I realized.

   Comment by Jonathon Morgan — May 2, 2008 @ 4:12 pm

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2. 

   Haha, Jonathon I’m not internet famous at all…I think I just get a lot of emails because there is such a small community of gringa bloggers so if they want information I’m like one of out of 4 people they could email. The odds are with me

   Comment by Mamacita Chilena — May 2, 2008 @ 4:19 pm

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3. 

   I think that if you can live with yourself…you can live anywhere!
   It will be interesting and informative to get a non-sugar coated guide to living in Chile.
   I will look forward to the next installment.

   Comment by Rachel — May 2, 2008 @ 6:13 pm

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4. 

   Well Kylie, as chilean citizen I could give you just the opossite opinion about gringos(as) finding a job in a very racist country like this.
   You may be well informed about all that comes in here from abroad becomes very apreciated. If there´s a job vacancy you may be certain that a gringo will be considerated at once by racist chilean managers, always looking for caucasian people in order to fulfill what they call the “perfil de la empresa” (company profile)

   By the way, the average salary is not US$250, that´s minimun one.

   Comment by Anonymous — May 3, 2008 @ 7:30 am

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5. 

   Mmmmm, you make me ask myself: what is it??? What is that, that make us feel good or bad in a new country?
   Is it the country itself??? Or your internal wishes?? Or your personality??

   Because, it doesnt only happen to people moving froma modern country to a less modern one…
   I’ve got a latin friend living since years in Germany, who feels most of the time unhappy and sees all the little bad things that the german culture has…
   Why? Because she never really wanted to leave her country, and she misses so much her culture, friends and family.
   I think thats the point, most of the time.

   I think there’re people who can easily feel at home anywhere they go (se adaptan facilmente, no se decir eso en ingles!) XD
   Others need time, and others will never be able to do it, basically because they dont want to, they were not and are not interested in living in a new country.

   But if you have the desire, and you are very flexible, you can do it… it costs time, of course… anywhere you go, you have to begin all over again, make new friends, find a house, a job, knew the streets, las costumbres, everything…
   I think the best is to never compare too much… You will always realized the diferences, but making a serious comparison can drive you crazy! XD

   And yes, 250 dollars is the minimum, absolute not unfair and vergonzoso salary. Average salary would be around 1000 dollars, still not high but better than the minimum one. :-/

   Comment by Irantzu — May 3, 2008 @ 9:42 am

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6. 

   ehmmm… solo para suscribirme y seguir los comentarios, siempre olvido hacerlo en el primer comentario q hago… sorry

   Comment by Irantzu — May 3, 2008 @ 9:44 am

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7. 

   Yep Rachel, you hit the nail on the head…non-sugar coated is what this is. I’m taking off the rose colored glasses. No, not really. But in all seriousness, you know me….I try to stay positive on this blog because that’s what I do in real life too, try to keep things around me positive. But I do feel that if people email me wanting the truth on what living here is really like, I should probably give it to them.

   Anonymous, my name is Kyle, not Kylie, and of course you could give me the same opinion about gringos, but that’s not what this blog is about. People didn’t email me asking for my criticisms on the U.S.

   Irantzu, I think I am what you would consider a person who adapts easily (Yep, pretty much the same in English, hahaha) to changes, and I didn’t come here not wanting to be here. I wanted to be here with every bone in my body, I wanted very badly to make it work and make a life here…and so I have, it’s just taken me a LONG time. Which will be part of the next post, on how I finally feel “at home” here after 3 years of trying to make it work. But, I think you’re right, if you are truly invested in moving to a new place, you will make it work. That doesn’t mean it will be easy even if you are a person who adapts easily.

   http://teletrece.canal13.cl/t13/html/Pda/Itplqtele13_pda_ficha_tplAfichaqSSeccionesSReporterosS307300.html
   I got my information about the sueldo promedio from the above link. As of last year it was $213,000 CHP, so I just estimated it to be $250, but looking back I see I didn’t clarify it to be CHP, it looks like dollars, so I will update that.

   Comment by Mamacita Chilena — May 3, 2008 @ 11:15 am

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8. 

   you can count me among those gringas with plans to move to Chile to be with their Chileno i definitely know it’s not easy, but like you, i want to be there with every bone in my body, so… i’m going to make it work. anyway, i found your blog and have enjoyed reading it – keep up the good work Kyle!

   Comment by Jessica — May 3, 2008 @ 8:14 pm

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9. 

   It is sooo easy to fantasise about your new and exciting life in an exotic country a million miles from what is currently your “mundane” life at home…I know because I was there and it wasn’t even that long ago. As much as I loathe to be realistic, when thinking of moving abroad, you just have to remove those cute rose tinted glasses. Of course you need to combine that with being positive; but you do need to really think about what you’ll be going through when you move abroad. The good, the bad and the downright ugly. But when you do decide to take the leap…just enjoy the ride! Thanks Kyle! Great post. (miss you btw)

   Comment by Tamsin — May 4, 2008 @ 4:08 pm

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10. 

    That is so funny! You have found your niche.

    Comment by Maurey — May 5, 2008 @ 7:51 am

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11. 

    Nice post, Kyle. That’s hilarious that girls who are considering moving here have contacted you so much. I seem to be one of the few of us girls who moved here for reasons other than a significant other.

    And this might sound funny given most people’s situation here, but I specifically decided not to have a boyfriend my first year here. When my gringo ex-boyfriend broke up with me in the States several years back, I found I’d left most of my friendships aside and I only had one friend who I still hung out with, so poor Rachel took the grunt of my break-up with Josh. I imagined how much worse that same situation would be in Chile and that’s why I decided to make friends first and maybe date later if I had enough time. (The University here has been quite demanding for varied reasons and I wasn’t sure I’d have enough time to date, but we worked it out.) I think the “antidote” to falling in the black absym of melancholy loneliness is making friends, both gringa/o friends and chilean friends. And obviously spending time with friends is such a pleasure.

    I had a hard time making (Chilean) friends at first here because there were like 3 other people in my master’s program and they were working and studying and there wasn’t a ton of “onda” with us, though I really liked them all. But I started playing capoeira and met people through that and I picked my housing situation because there were tons of chill/cool Chilean students living in my house (renovated into lofts) and the one next to it. So most of my good Chilean friends are either linked to capoeira or to the house I lived in in Valpo.

    I had a hard time retaining gringa friends here since I only ever met exchange students (who leave after 6 months) until I found Kyle’s blog. God Bless you Kyle.

    Although I adore my Chilean friends more than words can express, I felt like I recovered a part of my identity when I met Kyle and Amanda. And that said, I’m excited for the next get together!!

    Comment by Maeskizzle — May 5, 2008 @ 4:21 pm

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12. 

    Hy Kyle I think there are many personality, cultural and material factors than can help or not to make someone feel at home in a new country. But I think the most important thing to do is ask yourself if you are really willing to take the risk and follow the advice of your heart. I know someone who many years ago meet an american guy (this was in Chile in the sixties) he did everything to convince her to follow him. But she was scare and she never did. Forty years later she was sitting in a psychotherapist room asking herself what would have been IF she had gone to USA. She would never know and she really regrets it. Claudia

    Comment by Anonymous — May 5, 2008 @ 4:27 pm

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13. 

    I love visiting other places! But I do agree about the whole it is nice and you can manage, while visiting. It is completely different having to live in a new place, and be completely depended on one person!

    Comment by TD — May 6, 2008 @ 5:08 am

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14. 

    I’m agree with Kylie, but let me give my own opinion about it. I’m chilean, and i live in Chile, but i lived in other country too (in Europe exactly). If you are a foreigner, a “gringo” or “gringa”, you must think it a lot about your next decision. My advice: don’t come here. This a bored, poor and expensive country (and plenty of ugly people, me included). I know, i know, maybe you are thinking i’m crazy, or overstated person, but no, i’m totally conscious about my statements. Let me explain, many chileans (i want to say “good chileans”, but i think is difficult because it would be a totalitarian statement) live a very restricted life: they walk around inside the boundaries of their communities, they buy thing only in specific markets and share just with specific people, in some sense they live a life apart of the rest. People here have a distrustful behavior, they hold a very closed circle of friends, they perceive chilean society like a dangerous thing: high ratio of criminal activity, corporative abuse against persons, bad government, and so on. If you think the world is unjust, well, Chile is the most unjust place in the world. It’s hard for me to recognize it, but it is the awful true. Forget tourism campaign, never say the true, please, read chilean newspaper: that’s reality.

    Maybe you think, “well, and why do you live there”… the answer is simultaneously simple and complex: because i’m chilean, i have my life here, i know cultural signals and i can understand the cultural world surrounding me now. Sometimes i think “Chile just for chileans”, i’m not racist (well, indeed we can’t racist, it’s a silly thing), i mean just chileans can understand Chile, this is a bad, poor, unjust and maybe one of the worst places to live (culturally speaking). But look, i live in Spain, a first world country, but i couldn’t hold living there, because i felt i needed my cultural space (even though this a bad place), so i returned here.

    In addition, many “gringos” and “gringas” think about Chile (and Southamerica) like an exotic place, a strange mix between “mariachis”, “pina colada”, “sun, beach and palm trees” and “indians everywhere”. Unfortunately that’s not true, specially about Chile. Chile is a very cold place (feelings included), sometimes i think is like Rumany or Bulgary, but without clear identity (maybe that places have a lot more identity than Chile).

    Of course, there are many good things in Chile and you will enjoy.. just if you have a lot of money… if you don’t have money, forget it. Besides, many english speakers think people want to talk in english everywhere, and anyone wants to speak in english… big mistake, if you don’t have a good level of spanish you will suffer a lot here, really.

    Please, believe me, people here is sad, maybe Kylie can remember when she was in a pub or restaurant, people just talk about serious things, never smile (or rarely).

    So listen to me: don’t come here. Please, forgive me if i’m a little bit overstated, but i think i’m saying only the “awful true”. In spite of my advice you wish come here, please don’t blame me, and don’t blame Chile or chileans, it would be a big mistake, i’m saying the true… take it or leave it.

    Comment by Psicometodos — May 6, 2008 @ 9:35 pm

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15. 

    You already know I love this post and can’t wait to read the rest of it.

    Piscometodos, I think you have a pretty negative outlook on your country! A lot of what you said is true, that things are expensive, it’s hard to make friends, people are stressed, Chile isn’t a tropical paradise…but there are a lot of good things here too. It’s not for everyone, but I also wouldn’t throw out a blanket “don’t move here” statement.

    Anonymous, what you’ve said about it being easy for gringos to find jobs is something everyone said to me when I moved back here: “Oh, you speak really good Spanish, perfect English and are from the US, you’ll get a job so easily because we think gringos are better!” In my experience, that wasn’t actually true, although for some reason the average Chilean still thinks it is. I think it hurt me – and a lot of others – that in the US our undergrad degrees aren’t as specific and often we want to work in a field we didn’t study! That’s basically unheard of here, so I ran into moments of “hmm, you’re interesting, but you don’t already know how to do this job, and we’re not used to training people.” If you want to work in business in Chile, you study Ingeneria Comercial, not Political Science!

    Moving to Chile can, for the right person, be a great experience, but it’s not easy for anyone.

    Comment by Emily — May 7, 2008 @ 12:17 pm

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16. 

    Great, honest information! Having the will and desire to move to a new country is completely different than actually doing it. I was open and willing to leave the US. While Brazil wasn’t my first choice I accepted it and was determined to make the best of it.

    I’ve finally accepted the fact that I don’t have to like. Life is about more than liking where you are living and there are other many positives with my life at this point.

    That being said, I will never, ever regret the experience of leaving the US. Nothing can compare to getting out of my comfort zone and throwing myself into the unkown. It was what I needed to grow as a person.

    By the way, there is a graph that depicts the emotional changes one goes through when becoming an expat. It includes stages like dissatisfaction, hate, acceptance and finally enjoying where you are. My husband learned about it through his MBA classes. I need to find the actual graph with the scientific support and share it with you.

    I would also extend your advice about dependence to women who move with their husbands for work. That is the position I am in. I work from home and my husband works outside the home here. Our experiences are completely different and I am much more dependant on him than I was while were were in the States.

    Looking forward to your next post!

    Comment by Lori - Blondie in Brazil — May 7, 2008 @ 12:41 pm

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17. 

    Santiago is certainly not Baghdad. But for a few years it may be enjoyable. It’s an isolated place so people are insular, although they think of themselves as nice and friendly. That can be quite odd.

    Chileans need to be in touch and engage with other cultures, so I’m actually encouraging people to move to Chile, but because I think it’s good for the country. In Chile, you can have a priest preaching during the main news programme and people don’t complain about it: they actually think it’s a great thing.

    For people in engineering or commerce, it’s good, think of Chile as a developing nation and those skills are in high demand. For the rest, you should be prepared to be worse off than in North America or Europe. For students it may be defintely good, as in fun and parties.

    Things like a dishwasher or central heating are still regarded as a luxury. That gives you a glimpse of what to expect.

    I have lived in big cities with so many foreigners that in the end nobody could care less where I came from. But in Chile you will always be singled out as the foreigner, and being Chile so homogeneous, you may be feel you just don’t belong. Chileans speak Spanish with their own tilt and flavour, and it’s a sort of bizarre dialect, so if your Spanish is ‘good’, it’ll take you a while to get used to it.

    My girlfriend is French and she didn’t like the country, and I fear ‘didn’t like it’ is a bit of an understatement.

    All in all, Chile is OK but for a couple of years only.

    Good post Kyle, as usual.

    Comment by Carlos — May 7, 2008 @ 2:52 pm

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18. 

    I never actually thought about how hard it was going to be knowing that I was going to be here for 11 months, I had alot of fun the last time I came here when I knew I was going to be here just 3 months. But now, I am for sure going through an I HATE THIS COUNTRY stage!! Luckily my boyfriend lets it go and when I go on and on about how hard it is to live here. I am very lucky to be working where I am, as they were hiring a native English speaker for very non racial reasons, I only had 2 others fighting for the job that I got. I am so glad that I didn’t end up in a classroom teaching English! I am also glad that the job I have doesn’t pay the minimum and also glad that they are giving me a 10 day vacation to Minnesota in July. I could have it so much worse!! PS if you’re cravin anything from the US let me know I can pick it up for you!! Thanks for all the posts too btw they have been very helpful, I’m glad I found them when I did!

    Comment by Shannon — May 7, 2008 @ 2:55 pm

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19. 

    I think that most of all it has been written above may be said about many of all countrys in the face of the earth.

    Countrys are just like people, they have different personalities, some of them mey have rigid social structures, like England, I lived there, and in this sense it is worst than Chile. Other places may be very risky for women, like Madrid or Paris. There are countrys where there is no law at all, like Mexico, and so.

    I really think that Chile is a good place for young foreigners, they can make a life here, specially when economy is going well (not now, must be said). Most of it´s cities are very safe ones, people are friendly, except in Santiago, just like most capital citys around the world and finally landscapes are so beautiful.

    It´s a matter of fact that Chile has built it´s modern economy and social model imitating the US, and that may be the most powerful reason to make Chile atractive for gringos, I mean US american citizens.

    Comment by Anonymous — May 7, 2008 @ 5:27 pm

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20. 

    Oh thank you, the correct statement is “DON’T MOVE HERE” and i want to repeat it: “don’t move here”, “don’t-move-here”… please. This is not a country for “gringos” and “gringas” looking for adventures, good jobs, good friends or beautiful boy/girlfriends. Definitively this is not that place.

    In my last comment i forgot to say i realized those foreigners can’t speak in spanish generally exhibits strong feelings against Chile, more than those foreigners can speak in spanish. I believe to know the reason: they get access to the cultural meanings about chilean social structure, traditional values and chilean beliefs. You know, your language is the representation of your mind, if you think like local people, you have a lot of opportunities to create a “link” with them, but if you are thinking like “gringa”, hoping people will understand your needs, you’re lost, period.

    Let me give another advice: if your are looking for latin beauty or good food, or a hot experience, maybe Argentina is a better election, if you are looking for adventures, tropical countries maybe become a best election.

    AND SORRY for my bad english…

    Comment by Psicometodos — May 7, 2008 @ 8:13 pm

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21. 

    I don’t know about that…I mean, I speak fluent Spanish, people always are amazed that I speak like a Chilean. I can’t say I feel it’s really helped change people outlook towards me being a foreigner.

    I’m always treated like a tourist, no matter what, doesn’t matter how long I’ve lived here.

    Comment by Mamacita Chilena — May 7, 2008 @ 8:49 pm

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22. 

    Kylie, when i read your comments always i think there is justice in your words, you have a right image about Chile, i think.

    And i believe you have this kind of image because you can speak fluent spanish. For example, i read other blog “Chile Tale”, the girl, the owner of that blog really hate Chile and chileans, but she doesn’t know to speak in spanish and indeed she never wanted to learn spanish, she has many wrong images about Chile, because she doesn’t understand… she never understood Chilean culture. You understand it.

    Let me ask a question, do you have a chilean friend?, a real chilean friend?, because if your contacts are limited to set interaction with unknown persons, then it is very difficult make a link with them. But, if you get a real friend, a very good friend (a girl for example), you will see how the doors of our culture will open in front you, i’m sure. But, on the other hand, if you are interacting just with english persons, well, then you know the answer…

    Look, i think many “gringos” and “gringas” think -when they arrive to Chile the first time- “well, i’m american (i’m english, i’m canadian, and so on) so, looking me!!!” “i’m here”, “i’m blonde”, “i’m more tall than you”, “i came from a developed country”, “i’m different than you”… “so… do you want talk with me?” “so… do you want to be my friend?…

    No way…

    Educated chileans are not interested about foreigners, only not educated people are interested about foreigners, because currently they haven’t any opportunity to connect with them. I can see it in the university, sometimes i feel sadness, groups of “gringos”, they get only foreigners friends, i think they are waiting for chileans looking for foreigners, sorry, but they have their own lifes, they are not looking for “gringos”, not intentionally.

    You are lived bad experiences, these kind of experiences are related with vulgar chilean people, for them, a “gringo” or “gringa” is an unknown thing, they don’t understand the difference, but educated people can understand this kind of difference, so they see it like a normal thing.

    For vulgar people a blonde is a status symbol, like a ticket to the paradise. For educated people a blonde is just another person.

    Well, it is just my beliefs, maybe i’m wrong, i don’t know.

    Comment by Psicometodos — May 7, 2008 @ 10:15 pm

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23. 

    Oh my english is horrible, i read and i read again my comments and everytime i find a lot of grammatical errors, sorry

    Comment by Psicometodos — May 7, 2008 @ 10:20 pm

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24. 

    I think you could apply this just about anywhere. A romantic idea of reuniting with the love of your life across the world is just that — an idea. It´s air. Low wages, lack of opportunity, cultural differences combined with missing home is more than that. Great post and great advice.

    Comment by Bluestreak — May 8, 2008 @ 7:15 am

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25. 

    Hi I just wanted to chime in and say that I totally agree with everything in your post! I actually moved from the US to Australia to be with a guy, and it put a huge strain on our relationship. (in fact so huge that it didn’t end up working out). Australia is very similar to the US in some ways, of course the language is the same, but there are still major cultural differences – for me the biggest problem was that the men and women have a more old-fashioned mentality. Probably not as much macho stuff as in Chile, but basically men do their thing, women do their thing, and in my opinion the men are sometimes less respectful of women than they are in the US.

    I’m sure Chile is much harder to deal with than Australia, but the bottom line is that your significant other becomes way too big a part of your life, and you’re sort of cut off from your usual life-lines, due to time differences and expense of calling overseas.

    Looking back, I just didn’t know my boyfriend well enough – if our relationship had been more solid everything would have worked out OK. But it’s hard to get to know someone that well if they live halfway around the world from you! That being said I don’t regret a single thing so I would encourage any of the girls wanting to move to Chile to do it!

    Comment by Amy — May 8, 2008 @ 11:10 am

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26. 

    Kyle, I can’t believe all the injuries you’ve written. Santiago has several nice and contemporary bars and restaurants, and I’ve never seen mullets nor cameltoes nor MC Hammer pants…. where do you live ? Santiago or Miami? And your comment about the clothe is so funny… Aren’t your aware that Santiago is plenty of stores like Boss, Armani, Laura Ashley, Gucci, Loden, Hermes, Louis Vouitton, Ralph Lauren, Burberrys, Salvatore Ferragamo……..? blah blah blah

    And your haircut post it’s pathetic, because there are many natural blondes in Chile (like me) so it’s quite strange that your stylist had felt so moved because you are blonde… from Canada to Chile all we descend from European invaders and all of us are, somehow, half-blood. And for your information Argentina and Chile are mostly caucasian-look countries because indigenes of these lands never accepted the Spanish invasion and fight to die, so… blondes? off course there are Chilean blondes.

    I hate the catcalls too but it’s a costume of construction workers (!) and it’s up to you to ignore them.
    Also the machismo costumes in the families exist but most of them are inoffensive just like the dessert example and, again, it’s up to you to accept them or not. Ohhh the advice you received from Chilean women “if he cheats, take him back and forget about it, any bad behavior blame is excusable because he’s a man” ….again…. I’m confused, where did you hear that piece of advice?? In a middle east country? This is an occidental and American country!!, and you would never hear something like this here!

    Girl… the salary you mentioned is the minimum, and even in a developed country it’s difficult to live with the minimum salary, I can’t even imagine what are your professional qualifications but if you don’t have studies you will only find a job for sales at a department store or a cashier in the supermarket. For a skilled professional the average salary starts in 4.000 USD (after taxes) and it allows you to live very well in this country… with 4.000 USD you can afford a good beauty saloon, go to nice bars and buy nice clothe
    Certainly Chile still needs 10 years more to become a full developed country and Santiago is a polluted city however this is a nice place to live if you are smart… Santiago is not a paradise but certainly isn’t the awful place you describe, at all.

    At last (but not least)… I’ve just came back from my holidays in Canada and there I went to a bar where the DJ was playing Boney-M… woooowwww!!!

    Cheers, Lorena

    Comment by Anonymous — May 8, 2008 @ 3:07 pm

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27. 

    Lorena, sure Santiago has plenty of nice stores, but what percentage of the population can afford to shop in them? 1%.

    You have a different perspective on things because you’re Chilena. You’re automatically accepted in this society. As gringas, we are not, which is what makes this hard. As you can probably see, this blog post was written specifically for my target audience, gringas moving to Chile, NOT Chilenas living in Chile. For you Chile might be peaches and cream, but for expats like myself, it’s not. Browse through any of the blogs I’ve linked to in this post and you’ll see that MANY gringas feel the same way. I’m by no means alone in my assertions that Santiago is a REALLY HARD place to live for foreigners. Guess what. You’re not a foreigner so you don’t know!

    As for the salary I mentioned, it’s NOT the minimum. Scroll up in the comments, according to Teletrece that I linked to, it’s the average.

    Your perspective of people making USD $4,000 is obviously a little different from the reality of most of your country people.

    As for the incident at the salon being “pathetic,” call it whatever you want, but it happened. Chile is not a mostly caucasian country. Have you ever even been below Escuela Militar? Go take a look at Estacion Central and tell me how many natural blonds you find? Good luck with that one.

    Comment by Mamacita Chilena — May 8, 2008 @ 3:36 pm

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28. 

    Santiago may be this or it may be that but at the end of the day it’s your and ONLY your attitude that will affect the expereince…focus on all the shitty things, then things will be undoubtedly shitty. Focus on the positive, be grateful for what we have, see eveything as an evolving experience, learn from it and accept things as they are then I believe you simply attract positivity back to you. Every single country has its drawbacks….the grass is forever green right? So, enjoy the here, the now..wherever you are!!! Life is too short man! Santiago pisses me off at times but then so did Madrid when I lived there and so did Oxford and London…so I simply focus on being..living…experiencing…enjoying!!!!

    Comment by Girl.Meets.Chile — May 8, 2008 @ 4:25 pm

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29. 

    Anonymous, you said:

    “I hate the catcalls too but it’s a costume of construction workers (!) and it’s up to you to ignore them.
    Also the machismo costumes in the families exist but most of them are inoffensive just like the dessert example and, again, it’s up to you to accept them or not.”

    ahhhhh… Where to start? What a completely ridiculous notion, that just because these are their “customs”, we should just stand back and accept them. NO. I will not. That’s such a slippery slope argument, where does it stop? It’s not “up to me” to ignore them, I have ZERO responsibility to do anything in this. What i DO have (or at least, SHOULD have) is the right to walk down the street without getting whistled at and having vulgar comments spewed at me. Look, I don’t want to come off as a jerk, but I just find the idea that I should “just accept” these so-called customs ludicrous.

    Comment by Jessica — May 8, 2008 @ 5:09 pm

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30. 

    Kyle, believe it or not I’m not automatically accepted in this society just because I’m Chilean. I studied a 6-year very difficult career at the University in a field of study where most of attendants were men and I was certainly a minority. I’ve had to work hard to demonstrate my skills in my field and just as I was a minority at University I’m a minority in my current work. But this is because I chose a very special career, if I was a doctor or lawyer or architect I wouldn’t have been a minority.
    However, life here for women isn’t strawberries and cream, you have to make an effort for studying and working hard. None gives you anything for nothing. Yes, my perspective might be different because I live in beautiful place and I can afford a good lifestyle but the gain hasn’t been exempt of efforts (who said that life was easy?).
    Regarding the salaries, I wouldn’t say that Teletrece is a reliable source for salary statistics, mind you that bus drivers make 500.000 CHP a month and they barely finished high school, I guess that the average salary for workers, secretaries, waitress etc is about 350.000 CHP.
    I have gone below plaza Italia and I haven’t found many natural blondes there… but I have also gone to popular neighbourhoods in some cities in US and I haven’t natural found blondes either….
    I know several foreigners living here (men and women) having good jobs who complaint that this country isn’t much secure (true!) and sometimes cold and boring (true!) but none says that living here it’s such a heavy burden ….

    Jessica: when I say that it’s up to you to ignore catcalls I mean it’s up to you do not say anything and continue walking or face them and tell them they are extremely vulgar and rude (that’s what I do when someone makes me a catcall!) because I do believe that every human being (not only women eh eh eh) has the right to walk on the street in the world without being harassed. When I say it’s up to you to accept the machismo such as calling your son or your husband “the king of the house”… well… I grew up in a family were none men were “kings” , I wouldn’t have a relationship with a man who would want me to treat him as a “king” and certainly I wouldn’t treat my son as a “king”. I dislike women treating men as if they were superior (fortunately not many women do that and most of them are old women) but I cannot force them to reverse their thinking. But I behave in order to make a more fair society, this is my responsibility.

    Cheers

    Comment by Anonymous — May 9, 2008 @ 8:01 am

    Reply
31. 

    I have to agree, the job finding here is hard… especially if you have major debt in the US. Yes, it is possible to live here on it, but living here and paying off US college loans is rough.

    Comment by Clare — May 9, 2008 @ 9:15 am

    Reply
32. 

    Let’s not forget that Chile is led by a natural blonde. So there are some, but not many. Lorena’s assertion Argentina and Chile are mostly caucasian-look countries is an exaggeration.

    Comment by Chile Liberal — May 10, 2008 @ 10:50 am

    Reply
33. 

    This is a response to Lorena, I totally agree with Kyle. Fashion in chile sucks, we are stuck in the 80´s. (we´ve been wearing leegings since the 80´) And i can´t believe you want to ignore the maschismo that exists here. you must be from another planet. Its better to recognize the problem so that we can do something about it. I´ve heard many, many women say that its ok to take a man back after cheating. I think your in denial or just VERY lucky that you haven´t seen these things (which i think is impossible).
    Manuela

    Comment by Anonymous — June 15, 2008 @ 2:35 pm

    Reply
34. 

    In Aug 2005 my wife got an embassy position in Santiago, Chile and we were very excited to go. I quit my job with the U.S. Government and N.A.T.O. to be with my family thinking that with my vast experience in IT and Telecom field (over 24 years) I would have no problem finding work anywhere in the world. I am experienced in everything from telephones to VSAT and I have several IT certificates. Long story short, I found out just how racist the Chileans are (because I am a Black American) and after 2 1/2 years of trying I finally abandonned my search for a job in Chile and headed back to the states. We felt it was better for me to just go because I was very close to killing every little racist bastard I met on the streets. I am 6′, 220 lbs., and I am built like a MAC truck but these people were still stupid enough to try MY patience. I am now working as a Network Engineer for a very prominent company in Texas and I guess it’s the Chileans loss. Guys like myself could really help that country out but they won’t except our help or knowledge.

    Comment by mufassa63 — July 28, 2008 @ 4:36 am

    Reply
35. 

    Mamacita, where in Santiago do you live? In the slumps? Are you the kind of American that actually enjoy going to the west side so they get noticed?

    Comment by Anonymous — March 26, 2009 @ 6:48 am

    Reply
36. 

    Oh people for God's sake, stop going on and on about what the absolute and universal reality of living in Chile is really like.

    All any of us can ever say about life in Chile is obviously derived from our own personal experience. But let us not assume that our own experience is universal. Just cos it happened to me, then that's the way it is kind of thing. That would be overly simplistic and foolish.

    If I were to believe all of the things that have been written in these pages I'd have to conclude that Chile is a horrible, racist, macho/chauvinistic, prejudiced, backwards place full of ugly people who don't earn enough money.

    My 'reality' hasn't been that at all. I've been a frequent visitor to the country but I feel that as a Chilean who left as a boy, grew up in Australia but has been living in Europe for a while, I've been able to see it from both, an insider's and an outsider's perspective.

    I can also tell you that just like everywhere else, Chile has plenty of drawbacks, no question. But just like everywhere else it also has plenty of great qualities. Needless to say, everyone's experience in Chile will not be the same for reasons to numerous and complex to even tackle.

    In short, you make your own luck.

    I feel truly sorry for the gentleman who ended up having to leave Chile for reasons to do with his race but I suspect (hope) that cases like this would not be so numerous as to constitute a big problem.

    Still, if you move to Chile (or anywhere for that matter) with a bit of an open mind (and if you have loads of perseverance and a bit of luck) I'm sure you'll have a pretty pleasant stay… Just remember, moving countries is hard, period.

    By the way, I'm a professional musician and I've been lucky enough to have travelled the world. I've also lived in many different places. I'm currently living in Zurich, and even though it is always at the top or near the top of the world's most live-able cities rankings, not to mention that it's also a gorgeous place, I still had a really shitty time in the beginning (the first year and a half or so). Mm, I must say that the chocolate and the cheese helped a little, as well as having a Swiss wife with a great family as support but it was still hard.

    P.S. Sorry about the long post.

    Comment by musicapulenta — November 3, 2009 @ 11:35 am

    Reply
37. 

    Oh people for God's sake, stop going on and on about what the absolute and universal reality of living in Chile is really like.

    All any of us can ever say about life in Chile is obviously derived from our own personal experience. But let us not assume that our own experience is universal. Just cos it happened to me, then that's the way it is kind of thing. That would be overly simplistic and foolish.

    If I were to believe all of the things that have been written in these pages I'd have to conclude that Chile is a horrible, racist, macho/chauvinistic, prejudiced, backwards place full of ugly people who don't earn enough money.

    My 'reality' hasn't been that at all. I've been a frequent visitor to the country but I feel that as a Chilean who left as a boy, grew up in Australia but has been living in Europe for a while, I've been able to see it from both, an insider's and an outsider's perspective.

    I can also tell you that just like everywhere else, Chile has plenty of drawbacks, no question. But just like everywhere else it also has plenty of great qualities. Needless to say, everyone's experience in Chile will not be the same for reasons to numerous and complex to even tackle.

    In short, you make your own luck.

    I feel truly sorry for the gentleman who ended up having to leave Chile for reasons to do with his race but I suspect (hope) that cases like this would not be so numerous as to constitute a big problem.

    Still, if you move to Chile (or anywhere for that matter) with a bit of an open mind (and if you have loads of perseverance and a bit of luck) I'm sure you'll have a pretty pleasant stay… Just remember, moving countries is hard, period.

    By the way, I'm a professional musician and I've been lucky enough to have travelled the world. I've also lived in many different places. I'm currently living in Zurich, and even though it is always at the top or near the top of the world's most live-able cities rankings, not to mention that it's also a gorgeous place, I still had a really shitty time in the beginning (the first year and a half or so). Mm, I must say that the chocolate and the cheese helped a little, as well as having a Swiss wife with a great family as support but it was still hard.

    P.S. Sorry about the long post.

    Comment by musicapulenta — November 3, 2009 @ 7:35 pm

    Reply