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Santiago de Chile
Area756,950 km²
(18x the Netherlands)
UTC -4
languageSpanish
Highest pointOjos del Salado - 6,880 m
Chilean independence was declared on February 12, 1818. At the same time the new flag was adopted. The star represents the pursuit of progress and honor. Blue symbolizes the sky, white represents the snow-covered Andes and red represents the blood that was spilled during the struggle for independence.
In 1851, the Spanish escudo was replaced by the Chilean peso. Depicted the banknote is Captain Ignacio Carrera Pinto, captain of a 77-man company who had to defend the city of La Concepcion during the war with Peru. He was killed in an attack by 400 Peruvian soldiers when the last remaining Chilean soldiers attacked the Peruvians with only their bayonets.
La Serena was the first settlement in the region founded by Pedro de
Valdivia. It became a starting point for settlers
through the barren desert. The city has 29 churches. An excursion from
La Serena to the Valle de Elqui. You can visit a farm where
the fungus of cacti is being used for lipstick and a
papaya plantation where they make fruit juice. In
Vicuña you can visit Capel, where they distill Pisco.
At the end of this valley you will find the oldest Pisco distillery
of the country, Pisco Elqui. Nearby, in the village of Montegrande is where the
Nobel Prize winner Gabriëlla Mistral was born. The parental home
of the author is now a museum. Because of the good weather conditions a lot of
observatories have been built in the valley.
San Pedro de Atacama in the north of Chile is very a relaxed town. When you descend through the Valle de La Luna
to San Pedro you think you ended up in a fairy tale. The bus ride from La Serena takes 16 hours and you can only get
out twice. Flying is more expensive but a better option. Make an early morning excursion to the El Tatio geyser field.
The approximately 100 geysers are at their most active from before sunrise until 10:00 AM. They are located in the desert
at an altitude of 4,300 meters in a beautiful valley.
When the sun is not up yet, in june, it is very cold here. Take thick clothes but also swimsuits because you can
bathe in a warm pool. On the way back you visit it picturesque tiny village of Machuca. Visit the Valle de La Luna in the late afternoon.
The stone is peppered with salt veins. When you are quiet enough you can hear the stone cracking when the salt expands because of the heat.
Experiencing a sunset here is unforgettable.
The smog in the capital of Chile, Santiago de Chile, obscures the view of the high peaks of the Andes but that's not what the Spaniard Pedro de Valdivia saw when he founded the city in 1541. Today the city has more than 4 million inhabitants. The Cathedal Metropolitana on the Plaza de Armas in Santiago de Chile is in great contrast with the glass tower behind it. When you go inside the cathedral you will enter a different world. When visiting Santiago definitely explore it It is the fifth cathedral that is built on this location. The first was lost to fire after an attack by Indians on the newly founded city. The other 3 were destroyed by earthquakes in 1552, 1647 and 1730. Construction of the current cathedral began in 1747. The Mercado Central, a large steel structure nearby, is a covered market where you can eat delicious fish. Originally built in England, In 1872 it was transported to Santiago de Chile where it functioned as an exhibition hall. Built between 1788 and 1805, La Moneda was originally the mint house. Today it serves as a government building. In 1973 jet fighters of Pinochet's army attacked the building with rockets after which the president, Salvador Allende committed suicide. There are frequent protests in the square in front of La Moneda.