When I made the decision to spend a year (at least) working in Chile I had to sell all of my things. To be honest, this process was igualmente dificil y libertador. You spend your life acquiring materials objects and don't realize until you are getting rid of them for pennies on the dollar that not only do you not use them, you never needed them. Having sold all of my furniture and donated a majority of the remaining items to Goodwill, I packed up 10 boxes to be stored at my parent's place, and took nothing but four bags with me to start a new life. Only now do I realize that with the exception of a french press and a coffee grinder, that was all I needed.
Since arriving, I have tried to spend my money on nothing but rent and consumables: food, toiletries, and cerveza. Having been down here for a little over two weeks now, I decided to go against what I just said and have started the search for a bicycle. Now of course I can survive without a bicycle but after riding them almost religiously for the last 7 years, it feels strange not to be on two wheels. So this last weekend my roommate (Pablo) and I went to check out a bike that I found. While I am usually pretty self sufficient, Pablo warned me that in his absence, I would be given the gringo price. As frugal as I am, I opted to pay for his bus fair and brought him along in hopes that he could haggle a better price for me.
Though I was prepared to spend the $400USD price tag, I had to write off the loss of $12 in taxis and bus fairs as the bicycle was too small. What you see above, an 18" bicycle, is actually considered a size L in Chile. If only I would have realized how difficult it would be for me to find my size before I committed to the idea of a bike. Luckily, my good friend Marshall works for a bicycle store in Austin and has offered to box up one of my old bikes and ship it down here. If you are curious why I did not go this route in the first case I, I would encourage you to google the process of shipping things to Chile. The customs agents are notorious for having sticky fingers and tend to add an extra tax for anything that looks too nice. With that said, I may try to convince my girlfriend to bring it with her on her flight. Though still not cheap, the chances of a successful arrival are much higher.
Alas, my trip into the mountains was not fruitless as I came across this merry group roasting some swine and stopped to chat. Pablo and I were tempted to partake in the festivities but decided that we should find our way home before it got dark.
On the way home I came across this scene. "Wild" dogs here are not really seen as a problem here as much as they are a commodity. I have lost track several times just trying to keep count on my way to work in the morning. They seem to be well fed and many of them even have collars on. Upon inquiry the locals have told me the perros de calle are just a part of life in Antofagasta and even help to dispose of the garbage by taking away any available leftovers.
I would be lying if I said I didn't think of a girl when I saw this. However, I am still amazed at how frequently I see lush green parks and beautiful flowerbeds in a city located in the middle of the desert. While my theories run from dust control to a symbolic triumph over nature, the fact remains that the city is genuinely an oasis on the shore. I even learned today that Antofagasta has been desalinating water since the late 19th century.
On that note, allow me to introduce my employer: AWT - Atacama Water & Technology. Though I have signed a Non-Disclosure-Agreement, I can admit that we are a sister company of Aguas Antofagasta and have share their facility.
In an earlier post that I mentioned the solar shading of a building on the back portion of the property. You can see in these two photos how that idea is continued here in the front fachada del edificio. While they are no longer functional, the louvers appear to be motorized and were likely installed with the idea that they could be adjusted throughout the day to maximize or minimize shading of the building, depending on the season. Unfortunately, I am still waiting for an answer to this question myself and will update this when I know more. In the meantime, perhaps you can appreciate the vista del mar y la montaña del norte that I see every day after work.
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