Chilean Legends – THE SPIRIT OF LICANCABUR VOLCANO
At the time that the Incas had extended their empire by the north and center of Chile, the Spirit of Licancabur Volcano, now extinguished, let feel his fits of rage to the natives who inhabited their neighborhoods.
In order to calm the God, the natives prepared a trimmed stone load and other presents. With it to their back they climbed until the top of 6,000 meters of the volcano. There they constructed his pircas and they deposited his offerings; after making their orations, they returned light, with his fears already calmed.
The descendants of those natives still show their reverence to the Spirit of the gigantic volcano and pircas that exist in his summit.
To accede to Licancabur Volcano the ascent between dry and curved gorges is begun until arriving on the brink of madness cone from the volcano, surrounding it by the south. Is the most impressive panoramic view of all salt to the evening, with perfect visibility of the San Pedro oasis.
It is located to 60 kilometers to the east of San Pedro de Atacama. It has a height of 5,916, from its top a considerable radius of the environs such as San Pedro de Atacama oasis, the Atacama salt and the Green Lagoon (laguna verde), in Bolivia can be appreciated.
The volcano, during a visit to San Pedro de Atacama, is always present in the landscape due to the proximity that is. It has an impressive vertical unevenness of more than 3,600 meters of height. It is possible to ascend until the cone itself, crossing curved; the time is of around 12 hours walking.
In the crater a lagoon covered with ice exists during the winter season. For making this ascent you must be in optimal physical training conditions, to have experience, its own equipment to scale and a good capacity of adaptation to that height.
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Twenty Five interesting Facts About Chile
1. Chile is one of only two countries in all of South America that does not border Brazil
2. Over 1/5 of the worlds copper production is produced in Chile
3. Valparaiso is one of the most prosperous cities in all of Chile and is known as “The Garden City”
4. In one 40 year span no rain fell in Chiles Atacama Desert for 40 years.
5. Chile has farmed salmon for years and in early 2000s is known as the top exporter
6. Contrary to popular belief that soccer is the most popular sport in Chile it is Actually Tennis
7. Along the mountainous region of Chile there are over 1500 volcanoes and a number of them can still be active.
8. Most of the Chilean population lives in the capitol city of Santiago, Chile
9. Chile received it independence from Spanish colonial rule in 1913
10. The “maoi” island of the coast of Chile belongs was annexed by Chile and renamed Easter Island in the late seventeen hundreds
11. One of the fastest growing cities in Chile La Serena has grown by as much as 30 % in the last 30 years
12. The inlet at the top of Africa was part of Chile in the days of Pangaea.
13. The City of Valparaiso, Chile has the largest annual fireworks show in all of South America
14. Chile has an unusual name for a football team (soccer) they call themselves the o’ Higgions a Patriot of Chilean rule
15. Chile owns a portion of Antarctica as well as the Sothern most island know as Joses
16. Chile has one of the world’s largest and most deserted deserts known as Atacama
17. The city at the very tip of Chile called Punta Arenas Is the southernmost city on a continent in the world
18. The southernmost village in the world is also in Chile Called Puerto Williams
19. Chile also has the One of the highest lakes above sea level in the world called Lake Chungara
20. the most popular tourist attraction in all of Chile is Vina del Mar
21. Chile has one of the longest coastlines in the world but also one of the smallest at being 6500 km long and 200 km wide
22. Chiles has many large cities but the second largest is located in the north along the bio river called Concepcion
23. Chile is thought to have come from a natives that use to roam the lands there and its meaning is where the land’s end.. Seems appropriate
24. Chiles Andes mountains have some of the world’s largest and still active volcanoes
25. By a flaw in design the church of Campania had doors that sung inward which caused a large wind to push them open and disrupt the meeting of worshippers by dumping a burning candle to the floor which resulted in the churches destruction. More than 2500 people died in that fire
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Chile Real Estate Investing
The economic pressures that are being experienced all around the world have affected every country. This has created a world of unpredictable turmoil were the stock markets are roller coasting, housing has slipped to all time lows and investors are hording their money awaiting a recovery. But this has also created economic opportunities in a variety of countries specifically in Santiago Chile. The reason behind this there are still places in parts of Santiago that have been affected but not to the great degree that other portions of the city have. This has created an opportunity for investors to scoop up prime real estate in these areas. Santiago, Chile is one place in the world where this is seen in abundance and this can lead to significant gains for savvy investors.
Currently Santiago, Chile is the leading city in the country it is home to more than 5 million residents. It is the hub of Chiles economic and has the potential for economic growth never before seen in the region. One reason for this is because a lot of multinational corporations have helped to increase the property value and demand for locations throughout the city. This provides companies like Microsoft, IBM, Ford and Coca-Cola a place with ample employment and it makes Chile the center of business in the region.
With the help of these multinational corporations making Santiago Chile their home base real estate has held its values over this world wide recession. Unemployment was one of Chile’s biggest drawbacks to many corporations. But, with tax savings and extra money promised from the government unemployment is down to its lowest levels and people are immigrating into the cities looking for housing to be closer to their jobs. All these factors are also attracting property specialist to the area to invest more of their money in Chile.
Being a property investor in Chile has many advantages. Chile has worked hard in getting the process of credit approval easier and more user friendly than in the past. The Infrastructure of government subsidiaries to help with the creation of modifying existing house and building new ones has been increased tenfold.
Chile offers its residents now once stuck in a 2nd world country now offer its residents robust infrastructure opportunity only dreamed of before. There are major airports being built, roads and highways between national cities being re done to handle the new influx of business and traffic. Big shopping malls with modern entertainments are being built all over the city. Each area will have all the comforts they are looking for in a modern city. Emergency services were once few and far between but have increased dramatically along with training and response time for responders. Many new technological hospitals are being built with medical care increasing so are life saving measures. Also numerous parks and playgrounds are available for tourist and residents alike.
Chile has become a new destination in the modern world and if you are looking for overseas property investment Chile is one of those prime locations. The tourists are flocking here for a wonderful experience in all the attractions that Chile has to offer. Along with these tourist which help local economies they also bring with them business and expats that are looking for new places. With all these advantages now is a great time to invest in Chile real estate.
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Chile’s Simple Pleasures
I’ve written alot about Chile over the past year in many articles. I have written about Vina Del Mar as well as Valparaiso but those are the big named coastal cities. This time around I want to concentrate on smaller areas. This particular article will focus on Horcon.
To begin with, it’s pronounced Or-Cone. It’s a tiny coastal town, almost a village if you will, but very picturesque. If you’re an avid photographer, amateur or otherwise, then this little town is a photographer’s dream.
Horcon is just about 30 minutes away from the hustle and bustle of Vina Del Mar. It’s a tiny fishing village and beach town.
You can find great arts and crafts here like anywhere else in Chile but the items you’ll find here are really unique. Horcon is reminiscent of Santa Cruz, California or any of the beach towns that line the coast of California. It’s laid back and the local culture is very hippie influenced. You’ll see so many of the locals with braided hair and beads, not to mention the occasional tie died shirt and even dreadlocks!
It’s a town that makes its living from two things: fishing and tourists. Mostly the renting of quiet cabana’s to tourists looking to “get away from it all”. The ironic thing about this town is that literally everywhere you go there’s a “for rent” (Se Arriendo) sign hanging. Here you can rent a cabana or just a room or “piezas” as they’re locally referred to. What’s even more amazing is you can literally knock on just about any door in town and ask the occupants if they have a room to rent and nine times out of ten they’ll say yes.
If you’re looking for big sights here there are none. If you’re looking for big attractions or museums you will equally not find those here either. (There is a beautiful public garden you can enjoy though). This town is for those people that love the ocean and beautiful views at sunset.
If you’re looking to truly rest and relax and work on your tan you can do no better than Horcon.
There are a few bars and some restaurants all boasting how they have the best seafood in town, but then remember this is a town that makes its living by the sea, so just about every restaurant has great food and the fish is of course fresh as the catch of the day.
The beaches are lined with the many little boats and dingies that the local fisherman use to make their catches, as well as being loaded with people enjoying the cool air and sun. There’s nothing like having a margarita in a small tavern or open air bar fronting the ocean.
It’s truly a place where Jimmy Buffet would feel at home!
The houses that outline the area are typical beach houses you would find in any coastal town, small and run down but with so much character and style. The old houses remind me of the area surrounding Coney Island. Old wooden houses weathered and worn but that say so much. I walked around taking photos of them all remarking to myself how picture postcard they looked.
The locals are a curious people, who only care about the sun by day and a cold beer at night. No one is in a rush for anything and in this little village it’s almost as if time has stopped. Life is simple and that’s how everyone wants it.
They shun the big cities like Santiago and are content to have their own little private world here.
There’s one main road that comes into Horcon and it pretty much has everything on this one road. You can find housing accommodations as well as stores and restaurants. Some of the accommodations are pretty swanky and some are downright run down but there’s definitely a living situations for any and all.
I can see in the future this could become a whole new spring break haven and I’m really hoping it doesn’t happen anytime soon as I see it ruining the charm and mysticism of the place. For those of you who are thinking it, the answer is yes, there’s land for sale in the immediate area. There’s also land for rent. This is land that you can rent for any period of time to put a trailer on or lease with an option to buy.
Most of the available land is about ten minutes from the center of town or village rather.
Level and mostly dirt surrounded by many trees, a resourceful man could easily build a cabin or cabana and live well or rent it out and make a living. I see potential everywhere I look but this place is not for everyone, only those souls seeking true peace and quiet from a fast paced existence.
I immediately fell in love with Horcon and could easily see myself living there. It’s paradise but then isn’t any place next to the beach paradise? Speaking of paradise Horcon was once billed by Chileans as the “Gay Paradise” as it had such a high number of gay and lesbian people in the community and this was due to the acceptance factor. Everyone is allowed to be who they are or who they want to be in Horcon.
You feel an instant feeling of freedom here and you can see in the faces of the locals as well as those that come to visit.
Now, again I want to stress Horcon is very small, we’re talking literally a one road town. In fact there is one road in and one road out, and it has not become overrun with tourists. In fact most don’t know of its existence and I have to admit, I’ve lived in Santiago a long time but I had to be initiated by a friend who took me there. He wanted to show me the beauty and the simplicity of the place, and it truly was just that, simple beauty.
It was almost hard to believe that just a few miles up the road were the bright lights of Vina with the tumblin’ dice of the casino and the crowds of tourists and people wanting to be in the “cool spot”. If you get tired of the glamour and pace of Vina and Valparaiso you can always find real people in Horcon.
Parking is a bit rough and that’s due to the small size of the village. It may be necessary to park aways up the road and walk down the hill that bottoms out onto the beach. You can try parking in the beachfront parking “lot” as I did but you may find it pretty cramped and hard to get out when you decide you want to leave.
Growing up outside of San Francisco, the waterfront and piers were all second homes for me, and being in Horcon reminded of being on Fisherman’s Warf. Yes, the place is small in comparison but the character of the place, the narrow alleys, the rundown beach houses and the little boats that lined the shore like a colorful quilt, all reminded me of the Warf. It has the same feel, the same look and anyone who has been to the Warf and who goes to Horcon would agree.
If you’re looking to just get away from it all or just disappear and start your life over, you can definitely do that here. There are many people that decide they want to leave the rush of city life in Santiago and many make their way to Horcon. Once there, most will tell you in a heartbeat that they have no intention of ever going back to the city.
Many fish or make their livings selling handmade wares such as beaded necklaces, unusual rings and body art but almost all seem to be happy and enjoying a simple life. If a simple life is what you seek, then Horcon could be your ticket!
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Legends of Chile — Las Tres Pascualas
At the end of the eighteenth Century the three Pascualas lived on the shore of a lagoon close to the rising city of Conception. These three sisters were called Sun, Hope and Joy but because their mother was very religious they were known as Las Pascualas. All of them were young and pretty and washers. As they washed they would sing love songs, wanting to find their true loves.
One day their father brought a visitor home, to lodge with them, and soon enough this young man got attached to the family, helping the father with his tasks.
The young man would spend hours watching the three sisters washing bundles of colourful clothing, splashing in the lagoon amidst laughter, and then when they returned home in the afternoon with the bundles of dry clothes on their heads. Very soon he started to romance all three sisters.
The deception of the young man did not last long as the three sisters were close and trusted each other very much, and during an early morning chat found out they all three shared the same lover.
The tragedy of this legend is that not knowing what to do about the young man the three sisters decided to end their own lives. They dressed in white like three brides and then going to the lagoon drowned themselves in its waters. It is said that when they flung themselves into the water a whirlpool appeared, a tremor shook the lagoon and it overflowed.
Today the lagoon bears their name and it is said that at midnight when there is a full moon the ghosts of the three Pascualas sisters can be seen combing their hair, and a small boat containing a inconsolable lover crying and searching in vain for his lost loves.
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