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Chile Is…

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January 1, 2009

Chile is

Hurried people and happy mutts on the streets.

The smell of burnt asado and sound of reggaeton.

Where I fell in love…with a country and a person.

And where I fell out of love…with a country.

Chile is

My life, my home, my friends, my family.

But Chile is not mine.

Chile is

Sweat and heat in the metro.

Handsome huasos on tall horses.

Irresistible men.

Chile is

A beautiful language.

Sometimes mangled, but still beautiful.

Chile is

An idea in a tourist’s head.

Landscapes with sharp mountains and soft sea. Dessert and ice. Palm trees and snow.

Dirty streets, rustic. Kids playing soccer.

Stars in the sky.

Just not over Santiago.

Chile is

Pinochet.

Tatita culiado.

Small men who want big power.

Still the same.

Safe corruption. Turning a blind eye.

The rich get richer.

And the poor…

Chile is

My story.

Right now.

11 Comments

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11 Comments »

  1. What an awesome post! Love it. Love you.

    Comment by Rita — January 1, 2009 @ 9:58 pm

  2. I like the imagery and the emotions the poem evokes. Thanks for sharing it!

    Comment by Ordinary Girl — January 2, 2009 @ 1:37 am

  3. Beautiful. You’ve captured it all.

    Comment by Anonymous — January 2, 2009 @ 4:41 pm

  4. Great one Mamacita!

    It’s the dream of every expat to decipher their host country… you may have done it already without even knowing it!

    Fned.

    Comment by Fned — January 3, 2009 @ 3:43 am

  5. Love it ! Hope you had an awesome xmas and new year! xxxx

    Comment by Girl.Meets.Chile — January 4, 2009 @ 1:45 pm

  6. You make me want to get on a plane right now. I love how you describe such a beautiful place.

    Comment by kirida — January 4, 2009 @ 4:20 pm

  7. This is so great! I love poetry I can relate too. It looks like you had a good time in the States. Hope your mom is doing better.

    Happy New Year and best wishes for reaching your goals! I’m looking foward to an exciting and eventful year. :)

    Comment by Lori - Blondie in Brazil — January 5, 2009 @ 8:21 pm

  8. chile is a lot of good things and a place i should go visit.

    Comment by Nomadic Matt — January 5, 2009 @ 11:57 pm

  9. You said it so simple, and that’s true. In my case, Chile is my story too (because I’m chilean, period – I can’t resort to my “european family culture” like do it many chileans). I don’t like Chile, but as you said, it is my story,… and you cannot flee away from your story. Well, you can do it, because you has made two different stories of your life

    Comment by Psicometodos — January 10, 2009 @ 8:41 am

  10. Been a gringo in Chile and i can support your observations

    Comment by Anonymous — January 11, 2009 @ 2:38 pm

  11. Wow.
    I loved your posting a lot.it´s a delight to read it. it´s really hard to find extranjeros who talk about Chile like you did.

    keep up the good work

    Juan B.

    Comment by Juan — February 25, 2009 @ 10:04 am

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