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The Ultimate Architecture Disrespect, Santiago’s Patrimonial Architecture on...
This morning I woke up thinking many things. Maybe I would finish a blog post on language, or give you a feria report, now that the asparagus, cherries, blueberries and nisperos/loquats are in. I...
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Yes, we all know each other, and Santiago is a hanky
Before you send out that mass email, I urge you to stop. So every now and then, dear reader, you come across one blog, or a group of them, and you write the blogger an email. I love your blog, you...
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Woe be unto she who dares to be hit by a bicycle with unshaven legs, a tale...
So. The other day (Monday, to be exact), I was minding my own business, walking across what in English I would call the park blocks of the Alameda. The Alameda is the main street, and for many blocks,...
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And then she was back, late April Feria Report, more tasty, colorful nibbles...
So. First of all, before I go to crazy on the colorfulness of mostly vegetables with which I am going to make great deliciousness in the kitchen, let me assure you that someone sucked all the color out...
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Button, Button, Who’s Got the Button in Santiago?
I recently stepped on a sweater of mine. And by me telling you this, you now know two things about me. 1. sometimes my clothes are on the floor and 2. I don’t even pretend that that’s not the case, and...
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Availability of goods in Chile re: workarounds, or yes, I really did make...
At the risk of pulling rank, I will not entertain you with tales of times of yore, or as we like to call them antaño, from when you couldn’t get cheddar cheese in Chile to save your life, tortilla...
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Feria report, now with lúcuma, a weak peso and Chico Trujillo
Dear Internet, It has been more than a month and a half since my last feria visit. My penance is that I feel like I have been through a nutritional wasteland with short visits to the paradises of the...
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In which, surprisingly, I am asked if I speak Mandarin Chinese (spoiler: no)
As you may know, I grew up in New York. And my parents were adventurous eaters. I have fond memories of walking through neighborhoods far from home where my father would hold up different food items...
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So you think you want to be a guidebook writer?
Ever since I started writing about travel, there are a couple of things that seemed holy grailish. National Geographic. Conde Nast. Guidebooks. I was 0 for 3 for a long time there, working on what I...
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How to make your casero smile (aka: feria report, pasamos agosto version)
Midweek feria visit! The weekends have been busy or I’ve had stuff to do early, and haven’t got a chance to head down to the Vega of late, so my fridge was really hurting. However, spring has sprung,...
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Feria report, with tomatoes with real tomato taste
There are times when you go to the feria obligado, you go because you have to, because when you open the fridge there is more space than stuff, and when dinnertime comes, you think, “I could eat rice...
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Water water everywhere, but not a drop to drink in much of Santiago
Rain, rain and more rain in Santiago. What’s a city to do? The first year I lived in Chile, I was caught unawares by many a rainstorm. First of all, because rain here seems to have a higher ceiling...
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How to parse a sign in Spanglish
Today I am going to teach you how to parse a sign you see in Spanglish, and by parse, I mean consider how it came to be written how it is written, as opposed to in actual English, based on a previous...
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Alto En, Exploring Chilean Memes, Nutrition and the Fiestas Patrias (Tiki...
One thing I love about Chile is how readily artists, graphic designers and other creative types take anything that’s happening in news, or in the world, and immediately incorporate it into memes,...
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Is that all you’re buying? Social norms and observations on the New Year
“Tan solo eso?” (Just that?) This was what the man said to me while I was buying a bunch of grapes the other day at Tirso de Molina, the small two-story market before the real chaos of La Vega begins....
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Street Spellcheck. What the Fock?
When I was living in DC, I worked at a publishing company, writing business-to-business compliance manuals and newsy bits about environmental law. It was a pretty big office, maybe 60-80 people, and...
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In Which Our Protagonist Makes the Most Out of Coconut
What’s in a coconut? Several things conspired to make this event happen. First, a friend recently was complaining that you can’t get fresh coconut in Santiago. Not true, I cried! And then set out to...
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New-to-me Santiago Feria Report
Oh, the feria. If there’s a constant in my life, and you are also in my life, you know I live by the feria. Cheaper fruit and veg, no long lines, and truthfully, it’s just one of the joys for me of...
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Santiago Carnaval Report. Dancers and Cuchiflies and Chaya, oh my!
At any event in Chile, you are sure to find people selling something. Some of these people live mainly outside of the formal economy, selling different things at events and wherever crowds are likely...
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8M, the International Womens’ Day March in Santiago, Chile (a commemoration,...
“Casi me emociono” said a woman standing next to me as I used the back of my hands to dry my own eyes. She “almost” got emotional. It was her way of saying it brought tears to her eyes, as it had mine....
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