The Chilean Way of Life.

I want to preface what I’m about to say in telling you that I absolutely love it here in Santiago, but, once again, I find myself comparing it to New York. It has come to my attention, over the course of the past three weeks, that things are done a bit differently around these parts.

A Midwestern girl at heart, I always say, “I’m sorry” when I bump into someone and “excuse me” to move through a group of people. I constantly smile and frequently greet strangers in passing with a friendly “hello.” You can imagine my surprise when I arrived in New York only to get elbowed or have someone throw his or her shoulder into me without so much as a glance back. I suppose with all the hustle and bustle of a city like New York, people just don’t have time for politeness and manners. And while I always maintained a courteous disposition, I grew to not expect the same in return from New Yorkers. It took a little while to adjust to that sort of brashness, but at the same time, I didn’t really mind. I loved the energy that courses through that city’s veins. It’s really unlike any other place and while everyone always seems to be in a hurry to get to their next destinations, I truly enjoyed the fast pace of the people there.

Santiago is unlike NYC in this particular sense. Even just the movement of pedestrians on the sidewalk stands in opposition to the streets of the Big Apple. People move as slow as molasses here. New York may be a bit strung out, but here, it’s as if they don’t have a care in the world, nowhere to be, nothing to do. Every day seems like a leisurely walk in the park. AND IT’S DRIVING ME CRAZY. Part of me wonders if I should stop teaching English and start teaching sidewalk etiquette, for Chileans have no mind for anyone around them. They don’t move to the side to let those with a faster pace pass. With friends, they take up the entire sidewalk and don’t move into a single file for anyone, whether following or striding towards them, to get through. Couples are so concerned with holding hands, kissing and hugging all at once while strolling down the street, they have no regard whatsoever if they are in someone else’s way. Some days, I wish the New York part of me could just barrel through these people to teach them a lesson, but the Midwestern part keeps me from doing so by politely walking around them when such opportunity arises.

This sense of relaxation found in their sidewalk mentality is reflected in their general attitude about organization or rather lack of organization, as well. They are always running late. In regard to social activities, I truly believe that to make an entrance one must be fashionably late. Let’s be honest, no one wants to be the first one to a party. However, to meetings, work shifts, practices, games, classes and the like, one must always be punctual. As my brother learned from his soccer coach, “Early is on time, and on time is late.” Here, that idea is totally lost. Students showing up on time or even, heaven forbid, early for class is a rarity. If my class starts at 7:00, you can guarantee I won’t even begin to teach until 7:15 and even then only 50-80% of the students will be there.

The way everything operates seems to be slightly dysfunctional; some days, it’s amazing that anything gets accomplished here. For example, when I arrived at the Institute for my first day of work, I was told that my contract would be ready to sign two days later and someone would be in touch to tell me when to do so. A week passed and still no call or e-mail from the Institute on the matter. When I checked on the status of my contract, I was told it hadn’t been written because they were still waiting on me to give them a few documents; documents, mind you, that I had not only sent in three weeks prior, but that had also been confirmed as being received on the Institute's end. When I relayed this story to others, I was assured that these types of occurrences were quite characteristic of operations in Chile.

While this may suitable by Chilean standards, there is no way one would survive with these attitudes and behaviors in a place like New York. For this reason, the playing fields are leveled... NYC: 1 Santiago: 1.