Santiago

My impressions of Chile!! Initially, I compared everything to Buenos Aires and YES there were significant differences. 

Everything seemed cleaner and less busy than BsAs.. The buildings and cars and people didn’t have the grey tinge of all the heavy pollution.  There were fewer dogs on the streets, and I did not have to constantly remember to keep my arm tightly over my purse.   It was a drastic change of pace as well �" not as much dog poo to look out for on the sidewalks, the people on the streets were in a hurry (as it is in every city) but at a speed that didn’t make me nervous. 

            What surprised me the most was the architecture of the buildings in the city as well as the number of American franchises that were scattered throughout downtown.  A few of us went on nightly jogs to tour the city on our own and we were pleasantly surprised by the beautiful structure of the houses that we ran past.  We also noticed the nicely manicured lawns and the well-groomed pets.  There is obvious evidence that Santiago is a much more affluent city than Buenos Aires. 

The differences of the density of the population were also evident: in BsAs, you are in constant danger of running another pedestrian off of the tight sidewalks into the busy streets.  Santiago either has more spacious sidewalks or less people on the streets or probably a combination of both… I came to the conclusion that if it came down to the decision between the two cities, Buenos Aires was the city to live in when you’re young and willing to sacrifice the sleep to live the fast life.  Santiago is much slower �" cleaner and safer.