Interurbanos

There are not that many train tracks in Chile, so to get from city to city there is a network of bus lines. These are called interurbanos and they are quite a bit more comfortable than a city bus. First you take a local transport to a " terminal de buses" and there you buy a ticket at one of the counters of the bus enterprises that share that terminal. Some of the bigger names are "TurBus", "Pulman" and "Linea Azul". When you buy your ticket you can select a seat number and if you want you can keep the return "blanco" so you can confirm later (or just hop on a passing bus and take an empty seat).

 foto by Jorge Gutierrez Pere, found here

There are several types of buses, depending on the distance of the trip. There are the buses with inclining chairs, where the inclination angle increases with the price for a ticket. These buses travel on the overnight long routes, which I took to Puerto Mont (13 hours). And there are the normal coach type buses, which I take twice a week to Valparaiso. These buses leave Santiago every 15 to 20 minutes, all day long. These buses are actually pretty comfortable and you can easily get some work done. All buses have a couple of television sets and TurBus is experimenting with free wifi internet with a mobile adsl hookup in each bus. It takes me about one and a half hour to get from Santiago to Valparaiso and it costs me about 6.75 Euro for a return trip, which doesn't have to be the same day.

ICE

A while ago my girlfriend's sister (who works in a hospital) told me about ICE, and not too long ago I received an email from a friend from Switzerland about it. You probably already heard about it, but it makes sense, so in case you didn't: ICE stands for In Case of Emergency. Create an entry in your mobile's phonebook called "ICE" and add to it the number of the person you would like to have contacted ... in case of emergency. You can add multiple numbers if you want, or create multiple contacts (ICE1, ICE2, etcetera).

That way, if you get into an accident and are unable to respond, the paramedics have an easy way to contact the right person. Makes sense, doesn't it? So whip out that mobile and do it now.

Haloween

Busy September

As spring sets in things return to normal after two crazy weeks. First we had September 11th, the date of Pinochet's putsch. In his days it has been a day of violent protests against his regime. The regime has gone but the protests live on. Against what? Nobody knows. Chileans hurry home after their bosses allow them to leave early and barricade themselves behind the front door. Public transportation grinds to a halt because buses become rock-magnets and the streets are blocked by burning tires. Police in riot gear everywhere, trying to clean up. This years result: three dead. And for what? The general consensus is that it's mostly youngsters way to young to understand the impor- tance of the date but are just looking for a fight. In the Netherlands you would call them (football) hooligans I guess...

And then there are the "Fiestas Patrias", celebrating the start if Chile's independence (18th) and the successes of the Chilean Army (19th, but basically just another free day to get rid of that mayor hangover). The days leading up to the 18th all (economic) activity grinds to a halt and those that have to show up for work on the 17th do so for half a day or so attending a pre-18 celebration with colleagues. Typical celebration consists of eating empanadas (see picture) and having a Chilean barbecue called asado and drinking grape chicha. My score: two days of asados and one day of home made empanadas and too much pisco sour and chicha. No wonder I was craving for fruit the sunday after. I didn't go to any Fonda this year, but I did go last year and watched how the Cueca is really done. All in all, it has been a busy two weeks.

Beep! Card

The Tarjeta Bip! (or Beep! card in English) is used to pay for all public transportation that is part of the Transantiago network. Obviously the name come from the sound the scanner makes when you put your card against it to pay your fare. You can charge your card at every metro station, at most banks and at pay-your-bills-shops (don't ask). To get onto the metro platforms you use your card to open a turnstile (gate) and the fare is deducted. The fare only only depends on the hour you are traveling (rush hour is more expensive) and not on the distance. Inside micros (city buses) hang yellow boxes where you are supposed to put your card and have your fare deducted. If you have enough credit a singe "Beep!" sounds and a light turns green. If you don't have enough credit it goes "Beep! Beep! Beep!" and the light turns red. But since bus drivers have a fixed salary most of them couldn't care less. If you ask them in broken Spanish if you can pay him or where you can charge your card they will most likely wave you on without saying a word.

Needless to say that fare evasion is high on Transantiago micros. Some estimates are as high as 30%. That's why micros on some lines (the ones I have come across run along university campuses, coincidence?) have turnstiles inside the buses. Not that that works, because people just crouch underneath them. Some bus stops are gated and during rush hour they put up yellow boxes and have personnel that checks if you pay your fare.

Speaking of fare, every transfer to another bus is free within two hours (I think). If you travel by metro your connection to the micro is free and if you get on the metro after using the bus you only pay 60 pesos (the difference between metro and micro fare). You can't leave and get on the metro for free though. The system also provides an "emergency fare" where you can use the bus between 2100 and 0900 even if you have no credit on your card. Your fare will be deducted the next time your charge your card though. Now I know why people have negative credit on their card at times!

The Metro (1)

The biggest problem of the Santiago Metro is its success. Daily the system transports over 2 million people and the density is over 5 people per square meter. It spans 84.4 km (20.1 km under construction) and has 107 (16 under construction) stations. It connects the cities center (inside the triangle created by lines 1, 2 and 5) with the municipalities and is a great way to circumvent traffic jams. Line 1 is hit hardest because it is currently the only east-west axis, but hopefully next year when the extension of line 5 is complete things might get a little easier. Station Los Heroes is the most busy, where you might see a train or two pass before you can get on.

The Chileans always complain about their metro, it's hot and it's crowded. But to be honest, in my opinion it's one of the best. It's very clean, train frequency is relatively high, layout of the station is good for the most part and security is very good. Maybe that's because the system only operates until around 23:00. Most stations have plasma television sets hanging above the platforms and a lot of stations have artwork and some even have exhibition areas. There are some aging cars in service, but for the most part they are modern, some with LCD television screens. Cars on lines 1, 2 and 5 run on rubber tires whereas the cars on lines 4 and 4A run on iron wheels.

At the end of this year, the metro should start using the the new extensions of lines 1 and 5. The most important one is that of line 5 because it will server as a parallel to the overcrowded line 1 and will unlock an region of Santiago (Maipú) that right now has a poor connection to the Metro network. Seems to me they might as well connect line 4A to that same end point, but as I understand it they want to evaluate the current system together with the Transantiago to see what problems need to be resolved more urgently. They have the money from copper sales and with the economic crisis hitting the construction sector hardest start building, I'd say! Seems a better way to stimulate the economy than buy giving away money to families based on the number of children, as they do now. Oh well, it's election year...

Now they've done it

Transantiago

From wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

"The name Transantiago was introduced with the reforms to the public transport system that serves Santiago, capital of Chile. It was considered the most ambitious transport reform undertaken by a developing country according to the World Resources Institute.

The system was introduced on February 10 2007. It standardized bus routes and eliminated redundancy of same; redundancies were commonplace in the old system, which was run by thousands of independent bus operators. The system combines local (feeder) bus lines, main bus lines and the Metro (subway) network. It includes an integrated fare system, which allows passengers to make bus-to-bus or bus-to-metro transfers for the price of one ticket, using a single contactless smartcard."

It's a national sport to complain about the Transantiago. The usual complains are that the buses are overcrowded especially at rush hour and that they are running at inconsistent frequencies, sometimes you have to wait twenty minutes and then 2 or three buses on the same line pass by. Most of these gripes stem from the time of introduction and things have gotten much better in the mean time.

However, a big difference with the system before Transantiago is that now it costs the state money. The government has used an emergency fund to keep it running and just this year an agreement has been made between all the major political parties to properly fund Transantiago the coming years.

Chilenismos

Chileans are hard to understand even if you know a decent level of Spanish. And it's not only because they talk so fast or because they swallow half of every other word.

First of all: instead of using the ending "as" or "es" for the 2nd persona singular they use "aí" or "ís" respectively in the presente simple or subjuntivo.

¿Como estas? -> ¿Como 'taí?
¿Donde andas? -> ¿Donde andaí?
Tú tienes las llaves. -> Tú tenís las llaves.
Tú vas al banco y luego mandas la carta. -> Tú vaí al banco y luego mandaí la carta.
¿Tú necesitas ayuda? -> ¿Tú necesitaí ayuda?
Quiero que tu vayas a la playa. -> Quiero que t' vayaí a la playa.

Huevón = Buddy (Pron. Weon). It used to be a swearword.
Plata = Money (Lit. Silver).
Luca = $1000 pesos bill.
Gamba = $100 pesos coin.
Quina = $500 pesos coin.
Micro = Bus.
Pololo/a = boy-/girlfriend.
Little = Chico.
Guagua = Baby (Pron. Wawa).
Mijita Rica = What men say to beautiful women on the street.
Bakan = Cool (Pron. Wacan).
Macabeo = Man controlled by their wives/girlfriends.
¿Cachaí? = Do you understand?
¡Al tiro! = Right away! (But usually not)
¿Que onda? = What's up?
Huevada = "Thing" (Pron. Wea). Can be used for anything.

El Sapo - The Frog

Sometimes when you are traveling by bus in Chile, you will see a man (that is usually standing in the middle of the street) shout some numbers at the driver, who will in turn give him a coin or two. The numbers that he shouts are in fact the number of minutes that have gone by since the last bus from the same bus line or going along the same route. These men are called Sapos and earn a living (though illegally since it's not permitted for tax reasons) by writing down the time every bus goes by that part of the street and calling out the numbers to them.

Why do they do it? So that the driver knows whether there is a bus a short distance ahead that could be taking any potential clients. If there is, they will usually speed up to try and overtake it. In Chile, the bus drivers apart from those that work for Transantiago don't receive a fixed salary. They receive a small percentage of every passenger they take, hence the race against time and other buses.

Ten indications the Financial Crisis is not over yet (4)

More and more people put up leaflets on our appartment buildings message board offering their services. From architects to cleaners, from engineers to people selling home made food, it's all on there. When I first got here, there were like one or two notes. But the last two months it went up to around twenty. Predictions are that unemployment rate will rise to 10% this year in Chile.

It finally happened...

Riding public transportation in Santiago is a bit different that what I am used to. The busses (called micros over here, don´t ask, I don´t know) might not all be the newest, but there is nothing wrong with their breaks and the drivers aren´t afraid to use them at the last moment in their urban battle for space. They also do no moderate their speed if they encounter a patch of bad asphalt, and that happens frequently.

Normally I´m pretty sure footed, but yesterday I was not paying attention and was send flying to be caught by a nice student to prevent me from looking really bad. I have a ton of respect for the elderly who somehow are able to keep riding the busses even though they can hardly walk.

In the comming weeks I´ll talk some more about the public transportation over here. Why everyone is complaining about Transantiago, why does the metro have lines 1, 2, 4, 4A and 5 but not 3 and what´s the difference between a taxi, a radio taxi and a collectivo.

Ten indications the Financial Crisis is not over yet (3)

If you open a bank account you get a free laptop

If you get a private loan you get a free laptop

If you get a credit card you get a free laptop

All the major retailers carry special offers for laptops

You get the drift...

Ten indications the Financial Crisis is not over yet (2)

Wilders popularity is still growing.

That one was easy, sheez.

Out of Office

My parents-in-law (well, sort-of) sold their house recently but can not yet move into their new one. Even though they couldn't be forced out of their old house, they decided to move out anyway because they are nice people and the couple moving in are expecting a baby soon. So where did they move to? Well, you guessed it, our appartment. So that means we are temporarily living at my sister-in-law (well, sort-of).

We don't have an internet connection here but, judging by the reception, in one of the opposite appartments they do...

Ten indications the Financial Crisis is not over yet (1)

While riding the metro to the bus terminal the other day I noticed that a lot of the advertisement boards at the stations were showing the same generic poster of the company owning the boards. They can't find companies to hire the advertising space so they prefer to put up their own poster instead of showing a blank board.

You'd assume that they would lower their pricing if they can't find any clients, so does this mean that every company lowered their advertising budget to almost zero? Since then I've noticed more "this space is for rent" advertisements and am wondering: is the number of these kind of advertisements an indicator of the state of the Financial Crisis?

Let see if we come up with nine more indicators, don't be afraid to leave a comment. 

Autumn in Santiago

First time for me to experience autumn in Santiago. Even though the temperature doesn't drop below 5 degrees Celcius it does get chilly, especially after the sun goes down. There is not much rain though, which is a nice change from what I'm used to.

Today was the first day in a while that the sky was clear, we had low hanging clouds all week. During that time it must have snowed in the Cordillera, as you can see from the picture.

Two out of thirteen

Well, to be honest, I had thought they would do better. The test wasn't that hard, my students told me themselfs. But only 2 out of 13 got a PASS on this first test mainly about Maxwell's Equations (which means a score over 4, since over here they get scores between 1 and 7).

They promised they would do better on the next two tests, though....