Parts of the country -- Tierra del Fuego, for example -- feel like
the ends of the earth. Yet Chile is one of the most modern and convenient
travel destinations in South America. In many places, it has a European
feel -- along with European-style prices that are high in comparison
with the rest of the continent.
Spanish, Irish, English, German and Scottish immigrants, as well
as Amerindians and mestizos make up the majority of Chile's diverse
population. Among their neighbors are the indigenous Mapuche, a tribe
that survived colonization with its traditions intact. The complex
history of Chile's settlement has made it possible to find cultural
anomalies throughout the country, such as German immigrants who speak
Spanish and revere a national hero named O'Higgins. |
