Best products from r/chile

	

	

	

> # Biking to the (Valley of the) Moon: Atacama Desert, Chile
>
>
>
> ## San Pedro de Atacama, Chile
>
> San Pedro de Atacama, a small desert town, was my entry point into Chile after crossing the border from Bolivia. Big blue skies and dry desert air characterize the Atacama Desert – the world’s driest, non-polar desert that covers the northern tip of Chile. Though I was recovering from a three-day Jeep trip in the Bolivian Salt Flats, I wanted to make the most of my (limited) time in the Atacama Desert. There are several tours you can book in San Pedro de Atacama, including star gazing, horseback riding, and ATV tours. I decided to forgo the organized tours and opted for a more economical and independent option – renting a bicycle and riding out to the Valley of the Moon.
>
> Imagen
>
> You won’t have any problem renting a bicycle at the many tour agencies lining the scenic streets of San Pedro de Atacama. Depending on how far you want to go, you can rent for a half day (typically under 6 hours) or a full day. The hostel I was staying at had bikes for rent, so I figured that to be the most convenient option. I think it costs around $10 for a half day rental.
>
> ## Getting There
>
> It’s about 8 miles from San Pedro De Atacama to the Valley of the Moon. Most of the trip is on fairly flat and paved road. You’ll leave San Pedro de Atacama and bike on the highway for a half mile or so before taking a left towards the access road that leads to the Valley of the Moon. After a few miles, you’ll come to the ranger station where you have to pay a small entry fee ($5 or so). Continue onwards for another few miles until you get to a checkpoint. After the guard checks your ticket, your destination awaits just around the bend…ready to welcome you to its otherworldly terrain.
>
> Imagen
>
> ## The Valley of the Moon
>
> Welcome to the Valley of the Moon! The road is no longer paved, but is still comfortable to ride on. Here are a few places you shouldn’t miss at the Valley of the Moon:
>
> ### Salt Caves
>
> The Salt Caves will be your first stop in the Valley of the Moon. There’s a trail that leads into narrow salt caves that are pitch black and require you to navigate on all fours at a few junctions. As I peered into the dark cavern, I second guessed myself as to if this actually part of the trail. I peered into my daypack and prayed that I had brought my headlamp…and there it was. Phew. All alone with no one else in sight, I entered the cave hoping nothing would go wrong. Ducking, diving, and crawling through the passageways revealed incredible rock formations and views atop the cave. Just watch your head. I highly recommend bringing your bike helmet into the caves. It saved me from what would have been few painful bruises on my noggin.
>
> Imagen
>
> Imagen
>
> Imagen
>
> ### Great Sand Dunes
>
> The Great Sand Dunes offer impressive vistas of the wind swept dunes, as well as the surrounding expanse of the Atacama Desert. One caveat: you have to earn that view. After parking your bicycle, you’ll have to hike uphill for a bit to reach the viewpoint. Though not particularly far as the crow flies, you’ll be hiking in deep sand, which can be pretty challenging in the desert. No worries – it’s worth it and you’ll be glad you made the effort.
>
> Imagen
>
> Imagen
>
> Imagen
>
> ### Las Tres Marias
>
> The bike ride from the Great Sand Dunes to Las Tres Marias is a blast. You’re surrounded by desert dunes and bizarre earthly moonscapes. And, it’s all downhill, baby! Just remember…that does mean it’s uphill on the way back. So enjoy the downhill while it lasts. A few travelers that had biked a similar route were disappointed by Las Tres Marias, partly because they expected something that makes for a great picture. But it really is incredible. The three adjacent geological formations are made of quartz, granite, salt, clay, and other gems, and have been weathered by the wind over the past million years. The sheer age of Las Tres Marias was hard to wrap my mind around. It’s hard to fathom this place a million years ago.
>
> Imagen
>
> Imagen
>
> Imagen
>
> ## Practical Tips for your Bike Trip
>
> ### Bring Plenty of Water
>
> At least 2 liters. I brought a liter and a half and I was parched the entire ride back. This place is extremely dry, don’t underestimate it. Snacks, like energy bars, are a good idea as well.
>
> ### Sunscreen, Sunglasses, Sunhat
>
> Blue skies, no clouds, and an intense sun. Welcome to the desert. Make sure you apply and reapply sunscreen regularly. A sunhat, bandana, etc. would be helpful to ensure further protection from the sun. And a pair of fresh shades, of course.
>
> ### Flat Tire Kit
>
> You don’t want a flat tire in the middle of the desert, miles away from where you will be returning. Make sure you have a flat tire kit with you. It’s also a good idea to know how to use it beforehand. Chances are you won’t get a flat, but you never know. Better safe than sorry in the desert!
>
> ## Final Thoughts
>
> It’s a strange feeling being all alone in a desert. The sun beats down upon the rugged moonscape with little to no rainfall during the year. No wonder I was all alone out there…the desert isn’t exactly welcoming to living organisms. But it is a fun place to visit…just bring plenty of water and a friend, if you have one. You should definitely visit the Atacama Desert. It’s about as close as I’ll ever get to the moon, or Mars (space rovers destined for Mars were tested here because of similarities in terrain). Some areas in the Atacama haven’t had rainfall in years. It’s a really unique place.
>
> And if you have time, stay for sunset and then stargaze afterwards. No pollution and perfectly clear skies make for an unforgettable astronomical experience!
>
> Imagen
>
> Imagen
>
> Imagen
>
> #### What are your favorite bike trips? Comment below!
>
> #### Enjoy the trip!
>
> #### Jack

• • • • • -
          
          trabajadorPublico.
          
          Autor original: subtepass. | Si hago algo mal contacta a ffuentes. | Si te molesto bloquéame en Reddit o ignórame en RES. No hard feelings! :) | Código fuente

If you have a good sense of humor and don't mind making a bit of a fool out of yourself, you'll be fine without knowing english when you get here. I knew spanish coming in and immersed myself in Valpo with just Chileans for almost two years before moving to Santiago. Once I got here I met a ton of gringos and half of them didn't speak spanish at all. They're getting better, but its still basic most the time, and its totally fine. People appreciate you putting in the effort and so long as you have a smile on your face and keep trying they'll be more than happy to meet you half way. (Besides, lots of people here have a pretty solid basic level of english, its taught in every shcool and any professional degree will require you be fluent enough to read in english)

Get this book, first and foremost: The Chilean Spanish Bible True you'll need a basic level of spanish no matter what, but the chilean dialect (I would call it slang if it wasnt for the fact that everyone from your abuela to the 14 and 15 year old kids use it so long as they're not in some formal occasion) you'll here everyday is something that even my native spanish speaking colombian/venezuelan/mexican friends stare at me and go "what..did they just say?!". Don't let that scare you though, the "modismos" (as its called here) is actually really fun to learn, and once people see you're having trouble understanding them they'll try more general words. You'll be fine.
There are several dog parks, check out some ex-pat blogs for the area and you can get some good insider info. "Don't Call Me Gringa" is a great blog I've been following for years and the girl talks about her dog all the time and where her and her husband take her.
Allchile.net might have some good links for spanish classes around the area, but honestly, if you're in the center you wont have a big problem finding a place. There are a lot of foreigners here.
Sorry thats so long!! But I hole it helps a bit :)

This book seems to be the starting point to understand southamerican politic history:

http://www.amazon.com/Open-Veins-Latin-America-Centuries-ebook/dp/B009AC31TG/ref=la_B000AP701M_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1412254480&sr=1-1

This is a great Book by Heraldo Muñoz

http://www.amazon.com/Dictators-Shadow-Under-Augusto-Pinochet-ebook/dp/B0097D7FSQ/ref=la_B000ARBF4S_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1412254449&sr=1-1

Maybe you should ask some specific questions so people here could share their views.

In a nutshell, Chilean society is quite divided by the events related to Pinochet's dictatorship: Supporters, Critics, and people who couldn't care less about it and want desperately to move on.

The only decent source of good political articles is Ciper (On the left side of things). Economics:Diario Financiero (on the right...)

My personal view, is that the privatizacion of basic services like electricity, water, phone has been negative in the long run, but in a way it was unavoidable. Privatizations in general seemed to help to improve the quality of service in some cases, and helped the economy. The problem is that we don't seem to be very good with our anti monopoly regulations, so when some company gets big, they can be very soon seting the rules of the whole industry . (it happens a lot in retail).

The biggest fiasco for me, has been our pension system: AFP's.
They are being promoted as a wonderful system all around the world, but it's full of holes and problems: Our society has a huge concentration of wealth. 70% of our society earns less than U$20.000 a year, so they can't have really the possibility of extra savings. AFP's are designed to work around big saving investments, people from that 70% of the society will NEVER reach the number they require to have a minimal decent pension. AFP's can lose your money in their investemts but they take their yearly fee anyway ("Comisions"), so they never lose.

The current educational reforms are the result of what it was to have 30 years of private education which increased the gap between classes, because good education was available to the people who could afford it, so it didn't really promoted better opportunities, and a lot of politicians got rich thanks to it (Ironically, a good number of them, from the left wing).

We shouldn't get back to a system where everything is state regulated, but that won't happen anyway. The two biggest political blocks from the left and right are quite fine with out actual system.


Finally I must say that Australian wine is really nice too.
and a word of advice: bring some Vegemite and TimTams.
There's nothing like it over here.

Okay here is my go:
I did an internship a while ago in center Chile (Curico), having little Spanish under my belt and I only one person spoke English I got by. Really just because the people are super nice, easy to get along with, very helpful and patient. So speaking the cut up Mexican Spanish that I knew I did fine, I'm sure you will get along much better. There is a book that I invested in to help with their slang, I took it on my last trip there (1 week ago) and it help a lot. http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/9567802386

I loved it there so much I am working toward moving there once I get my degree. As I said before Chileans are really nice, even in Santiago so just put yourself out there enjoy life. And be careful of your mayonnaise intake.

In Chile we have 220v outlets, while ya'll have 110v outlets. Before using this adapters you have to make sure that your device says 110~240.

This'll do: http://www.amazon.com/Universal-Adapter-Converter-American-European/dp/B0078QEY9M/

Something fancier (i have this exact same one): http://www.amazon.com/Insten-Universal-Travel-Charger-Adapter/dp/B000YN01X4/

State-of-the-art travel adapter: http://www.amazon.com/Kensington-33117-International-Travel-Adapter/dp/B0002H4YUI/

If you need 220v to 110v conversion you gonna need this baby:
http://www.amazon.com/Simran-200-Converter-International-Countries/dp/B000W9DJ1Q

I hope it helps. Cheers.

edit: Is your screen name an Opeth reference?

📅 2018-04-23 ⏰ 23:56:15 (UTC)

>Sex differences in age preferences: Women tend to rate men roughly their own age as most attractive; men tend to rate women in their early twenties as most attractive, regardless of their own age https://www.amazon.com/Dataclysm-When-Think-Ones-Looking/dp/0385347375/ #chi2018 @okcupid

>— Steve Stewart-Williams (@SteveStuWill)

>🔁️ 24 💟 64



📷 image



 

^(I'm a bot and this action was done automatically)

A few weeks ago I saw this one at a Ripley store.

I know, I know, it says "arrocera" or rice cooker, but it is in fact a slow cooker. Check out the manufacturer's website.

I tried searching for reviews, but I only found two reviews on amazon so I don't know wether to get one or not.

As you may already found out, slow cookers are not common here in Chile, and as a Chilean I don't know a name for this appliance. Maybe "olla eléctrica" could work but that could include any sort of electrical cooking pot.

I hope it helps. If you get one write a review, I'm thinking about getting one myself.

50% de los reviews de amazon son de 1 estrella. Puros comentarios de que la wea es super inestable y se cae después de 10-30 minutos.

Evítenla como la plaga.

https://www.amazon.com/product-reviews/B079LT39Z7/ref=acr_search_hist_1??ie=UTF8&filterByStar=one_star&showViewpoints=0

i didn't know about that! i will get it. thanks!

http://www.amazon.com/Survive-Chilean-Jungle-Alvaro-Taboada/dp/9567802386

(actually, it's out of print, but there are a bunch more books related that seem like they could also be helpful)

Compré la más popular en /r/Dashcam – VIOFO A119 v2 más la lente polarizada para no grabar la reflexión del interior de auto y microSD de alta resistencia (por las temperaturas dentro del auto). La uso en el modo 1080p 30fps y la calidad de videos es super buena durante el día – puedo ver todos los números en las placas de otros autos.

Gringo checking in here. Just got to the country and agree with everything here. You only need the round two pin adapter to get your N. American plugs to work with the outlets here. I thought I had to buy a S. American adapter, but turns out, I needed to buy the European one. Also, if your laptop has a three prong I'd suggest getting a [grounding converter] (http://www.amazon.com/Prong-prong-grounding-converter/dp/B000I96AUM). It makes my laptop plug look like a franken-plug, but it works fine, no issues.

Also, your stuff will charge crazy fast here, which is nice.

Tengo varios relojes que quiero vender:

• Timex The Waterbury $75.000, poco uso caja incluida. Referencia
  
  
• Orient Bambino Open Heart automático $150.000 en caja, nunca usado. Referencia
  
  
• Glycine Combat Sub GL0079 Ambush automático, usado pero incluye caja y papeles $350.000 Referencia
  
  
• Hamilton Khaki Field Pioneer mecánico, usado pero incluye caja y papeles $300.000 Referencia

I'm taking a college course with the author of this book :)

It's this one http://www.amazon.com/Survive-Chilean-Jungle-Taboada-Brennan/dp/9567802386 however keep in mind that this book has been printed since quite a long time. The amazon edition is frmo 2006 so if there's a newer one, get that one because it's likely that it's changed a lot of vocab

Muy informativo, gracias. Entonces esto saldría 199 lucas o menos?

How to Survive in the Chilean Jungle