what?! all this only for only 12 USD?!?

That's right folks... jealous? ;) No, in all seriousness "crap ain't cheap here." In doing conversions we've found we're paying less for fresh meat, fish, wine, vegetables, fruits and rent but possibly more for pizza, cheese, good beer, electricity and phone calls. (Plus I make less money but I work half as much, yessss!)

We've had fun checking out all the markets (within walking and public transit distance). My first experience with finding out just how much a kilo was ended with giving away half of my green bean stash on the street after I had just purchased it because it was weighing down my new-found walking self.

Here's a picture of tomatoes at the market which cost about 60 cents for 2.2 pounds.

And here's just.... yeah..... for all you vegetarians out there :)

femicide

In the United States when women are murdered by intimate partners, former partners, husbands or ex-husbands, the press repeatedly distorts the issue and consistently fails to mention domestic violence as an issue leading up to the murder. I have written to People magazine for their awful representation of the story about the WWF wrestler (Chris Benoit) who murdered his family and then killed himself two years ago. They query, was it roid rage? Maybe he just snapped one day? US politics distort issues of violence in general but it especially fails to link culture to violence; the US press world prefers sensationalism to disappointing and unfortunate realities. The WWF dude in Florida killed his wife and kids because of the same reason why men all over the world kill their partners/ex-partners- the perilous end to a vicious cycle of domestic violence.

In Chile, when a man kills his girlfriend, wife or ex they call it femicide. When I first saw this, I thought "wow, doesn't that convey a different message?" According to Wikipedia, all-knowing, ever-correct Wiki ;) femicide is defined as the systematic killing of women for various reasons, usually cultural. Femicide is seen as a gender crime. The word is attested from the 1820s. What would happen in the USA if the murder of women by intimate partners/ex-partners was called femicide? Shit would hit the fan. The only thing we know about words that end in -cide is a word called "genocide" and that doesn't happen in our country, only in countries really, really far away...

Don't get me wrong, Chile also has its problems with domestic violence; a country with about 17 million people, has just recognized its 10th femicide of this relatively new year of 2009. The Chilean Government (Gobierno de Chile) has launched a campaign "Cuando las mujeres advanzan Chile se advanza" (When women advance, Chile advances). The campaign has plastered large banners around the city with this phrase and a picture of ladies confidently walking next to each other (kind of like a Sex and the City poster). But the point I am trying to make here is that is SPONSORED by the government directly!


Yes, you might say "but Caitlin, March is Women's Month." Let me tell you, these posters and signs are so ubiquitous that they will be sticking around until October... I'll have plenty of time to conduct a public opinion poll and report back. :)

Scary Demons

With being in a new place, new continent entirely, comes different flora and fauna in addition to "different" everything else. I will tell you what though, these birds (below) are just not right! I bet you never noticed before that pigeons (and most small birds) walk with an exaggerated head waddle. Or maybe you noticed but let me tell you it has never quite mattered to me before I ran into these birds, who along with dogs are trying to eat everything they come in contact with. I don't know what it is but I was convinced they were going to attack me! Tough call between the ravenous appetite and their RED beady eyes...


Alas, the picture doesn't do it justice...

beautiful smog

This is beautiful downtown Santiago. This shot was taken on a particularly less smog-filled morning as I was strolling around. Up until this point I had literally forgotten that the city is surrounded by the Andes' foothills. I'll even add a personal detail... Two words: black boogers.

gay pride

Street graffiti is salient here in Santiago. It is not uncommon to see "poetic" phrases about the cops (pacos), el capitalismo and death of the "state" or youth rebellion. I like this one best at the moment. The Chilean translation is "I'm lesbian, so what, so 'f*%& you.'"