Have you been wondering if the grass is greener on the other side?

Has everyone you know gone and you’re (again) the last to go?

Then get ready to get yourself across the border to Argentina, crossing the Andes along the way.

We’ll assume you’ll be driving, either your own car or a rental.

First, you’ll need to get the paperwork ready.

1) Authorization.  If the car is yours, you won’t need authorization, since the padrón (the yellow piece of paper in the car document pile that identifies the car and owner) and your ID will match.

If the vehicle is not yours, i.e. it’s rented or loaned, then you will need the owner’s notarized permission to take it from the country.  The owner should go to a notary with your usual identification details (full name, date of birth, passport number, home address), and fill out a permiso notarial for about 2.000 pesos.  A rental car company will charge you a fee starting around CLP 50.000 that includes both the permiso notarial and the seguro de responsabilidad civil, described below.

2) Seguro de Responsabilidad Civil Internacional. This is special insurance required by Argentina to allow a Chile-plated car to drive on their roads.

You can buy this insurance at various places: on the internet (Scotiabank, BBVA) or at Jumbo Bilbao, where the Paris travel agency has a little stand outside.

Always buy the minimum number of days required for your trip.

If you forget, don’t worry, all hope is not lost. You can buy it right after the toll booth to Los Andes, on the right hand side, and you can actually get it at the exact point where they request it (after you cross the border into Argentina) at a little stand that sells it (and if you pay in Argentine coin, it’s the cheapest option!).

But if you prefer to play it safe, you’ll feel better having everything ready the day before.

3) Map. You can buy the following roadmaps, which include the route through Chile and part of the way into Argentina, at Copec and Terpel filling stations.

• Copec Rutas de Chile
• TURISTEL Mapa Rutero

See below for Google Maps driving directions.

Ready!

This is one of the best drives in South America.

First, the route: Get out on Americo Vespucio highway (Américo Vespucio Norte) heading north, which from Vitacura, is the road that wraps around the north side of the San Cristobal hill. Drive to the Los Andes exit, and continue straight ahead.

When you pass the toll and the tunnel, you’re almost there. Keep on the highway, straight, en route to Portillo/Mendoza as marked. No need to go into Los Andes; it will slow you down. At the end of the bypass, make a right and drive up the mountain.

There are some wide turns that can seem a  little daunting, but press on, underneath the chairlifts and through the avalanche tunnels. Make a left at Portillo, snap some photos of the lagoon, and have a hot chocolate. Get back in the car, and 5 minutes past Portillo you’ll have to stop at a little window, a checkpoint where they will verify your vehicle’s documentation and give you a form to fill in with the corresponding information.

Once he hands you the form, drive through without stopping at the big building (that’s the Chilean border station, where you’ll stop on your return trip).  You’ll be waved through by a man at the end of the building.  Nothing between you and Argentina now.

After coming out of the big tunnel, there is a smaller one, then a sign a mile or so down that says (in Spanish), “Private vehicles turn left”. This is the Argentinean border control building. Fill out the form they gave you while you wait your turn. Then it’s window window window, stamp stamp stamp.  A small control station in the middle of the road will check that you have your seguro, and give you yet another scrap of paper, that will be stamped as you go through a few more minor checks.

It may sound complicated, but it’s not.

Recommendations? Stop in Uspallata, Argentina, 80 km from the border, at the end of the mountain segment of the road. Have lunch at the Bar Tibet (made from props used in the film Seven Years in Tibet, which was shot here). It’s right at the first corner, opposite the YFP filling station.

There are horseback trips available in Uspallata, but the top trip is taking the camino antiguo a Chile (“the old road to Chile”), a 365-degree curve, dirt switchback that has the most stunning view of the pampas as you come down.  At the end, you’ll encounter the Villavicencio hotel, closed since 1978, but maintained by the mineral water company of the same name, and with a very good restaurant serving the finest local fare. If you ask for chicken, you will get the whole bird.  And bread? Let’s just say the loaves are filling.

From there, it’s a relatively short drive into Las Heras (the backyard of Mendoza city).

Biking down this road is heaven on earth for mountain bikers.

If you prefer staying on pavement, continue on Route 7.  The road to Mendoza has been recently redone, while conserving the red stone tunnels and the impressive view of the Mendoza river.

Potrerillos is a small town past Uspallata. On weekends, more hearty country food can be found in small simple restaurants, with chairs and tables set up on the lawn. Don’t miss this, some of the places are Anthony Bourdain-worthy.

Potrerillos is also home to a massive artificial lake. One day, this will be developed with recreational boats, picnic areas, and weekend homes, but today, it’s just a big beautiful mass of blue water. See it today!

You’ll notice I leave out Mendoza; it’s more of a city than a town, and there are many things to do, from the vineyards on the outskirts, to the famous argentine beef and pasta restaurants.  The park is magnificent, rivaling the big parks in Buenos Aires and possibly even New York City.  Too much to list here.

Returning to Chile

Driving back, you don’t have to stop at the same Argentinean border control as on the way in. What you do have to remember is to keep 3 pesos in Argentinean money handy for the tunnel toll.

Back through the tunnel, carefully pass the lines of parked trucks (never get behind them, they can be there for hours!), into the Chilean border control. Here, the procedure is different than on the other side. You will have to get out of the car, all passengers, and go through the immigration procedure from left to right. Have a pen handy as you will need to fill out the SAG (agriculture/livestock ministry) declaration that says you are not bringing in honey, meat, live animals, etc into Chile.  No fruit either.

Once your piece of paper is fully stamped, check with the carabinero that you’re good to go, and give your paid toll stamp to the man in the tiny plastic cabin, before heading back home.

This article and accompanying photos were contributed by ywok.

Google Maps Driving Directions ⇑

…A most urgent question, posed many a newly-arrived expat.  Here are links to a few web sites that have the latest and most complete info on entertainment and nightlife in Chile.  Santiago gets the focus, as usual, but most of the sites include regional events as well.

Revolver Magazine Agenda
By far the most complete English resource for cultural happenings in Santiago. Check it out even if you’re staying in.

Wikén Panoramas
If El Mercurio is Santiago’s most respected newspaper, then this publication is the official list of things to do when you go out.  Nice interface, lots of pictures.

Carretes.cl
Carrete is one of those hard-to-translate Chilean words that gringos end up using even while speaking English.  I’d say the verb carretear is best translated as to party, that is, anything people teenage and older do for fun that isn’t arguably educational.  This web site actually does include some intellectually improving events, but a healthier portion of its bandwidth is dedicated to bars, clubs and parties.

Ticketmaster Chile
You may be thinking, Why would I want to get carrete ideas from a web site I know is going to overcharge me for every single event on it?  You may not use this site too often, but if you hear that your favorite britpop band is coming to Chile, you can trust that the official information will be on this site– and of course you can buy the tickets here, too.

Miercoles Po’
A well-known “cultural exchange” event for foreign students and their local counterparts to get to know each other better.  Every Wednesday in Santiago.

Things to do in Chile before you die… or leave, never to return again.  But how could you ever say you’re never coming back to Chile?

This is an open article, meaning everybody writes it. The idea is to make the big list of the best of the best, unconstrained by the requirements of travel guide writing or the criteria of a small group of people.

So head down to the comment form below and add your top suggestion(s) for something do/see/hear/taste/etc in Chile, something you wouldn’t let a good friend leave without trying.  It can be something you really love, or just something that’s really Chilean.  And tell us a little about it.

It doesn’t even have to be a specific place or event; feel free to challenge us.  My brother, for example, might say “Eat as much palta as you possibly can.”*  And don’t leave something great out just because it’s touristy.

So share your top pick with us now.  Then, next week or next month, when you think of something else, come back and add that too.

* The word palta translates very straightforwardly to and from avocado in English, but it’s a term that gringos seem to prefer the local version of while in Chile.

While Santiago can seem like a big, slightly scary city at first glance, it’s still the safest capital in South America, and probably on par with a lot of US cities.

But what’s the first thing that greets a newcomer at the airport?

Taxi drivers, droves of them.

Most are good, but a few bad apples try to ruin it for the rest. Those bad apples seem to think that anyone coming in on a plane, not speaking the language, is fair game.

Let’s see what they do and how to avoid them.

The Hustle

Coming out of any airport, you are normally tired, cranky, slightly off-kilter, and maybe even a bit confused. On top of that you need to get yourself out of the airport and into an unfamiliar city, which makes it easier to just pay too much.

As soon as you step out of the customs area, there they are: 25 drivers waving little signs at you that say TAXI, and saying, either in Spanish or very bad English, that same word. Someone may try to help you with your bag– baggage handlers work independently of taxi drivers; you should refuse their services or be prepared to pay for them.

What to do?

The best solution is to have reserved ground transportation before flying with a radio taxi/limo service.  You can often get a better price than with official airport taxis, and you’ll see that comforting sign with your name on it among the scores of people clustered around the international arrivals exit.  Here are a few companies that offer this service:

• Centro Oriente
• Transfer Class

If you won’t be able to order a taxi beforehand, there are official taxi booking stands before the exit. They are not the cheapest taxis going, but you’ll be safe, and they will whisk you directly to your waiting car.

Not enough cash for your own taxi? There are also buses and shared-ride vans you can book on your way out of customs.

So, ordered from most to least expensive, the official options for getting yourself from SCL to Santiago are:

• Taxi
• Minibus a.k.a. transfer.  This is the shared-ride van is the is the airport transportation of choice for many travelers, since it’s door-to-door service that’s quite a bit cheaper than a taxi.
• Bus At less than 2 thousand pesos, the price can’t be beat.  But it’ll leave you at a metro stop or a downtown terminal, and you’ll need to get yourself the rest of the way to your destination.

Willing to brave the sharks? Then have a pen handy, write down where you are going, and make sure they give you a rate right away. To downtown, it’s a maximum of 8 to 9 thousand pesos, plus 1 thousand for TAG (automated freeway toll), if your route will take you on a highway. To uptown, expect to pay 12 to 14 thousand plus 2 thousand for TAG. Always make sure to have them WRITE the fare, in Chilean pesos, and to put down INCLUYE TAG, so they don’t add another thousand on at the end.

Vocab

• minibus airport transfer, shared-ride van
• propina tip
• TAG automated highway toll (refers to the collection device as well as the fee charged by commercial transportation)
• taxi taxi
• transfer airport transfer, shared-ride van

Related links

• The official Santiago Airport website
• SCL on the World Airport Guide (English)
• Skytrax Airport Reviews for SCL (English)

This article was generously contributed by ywok.

An almost-finished bike path in Ñuñoa, 06/2009

The crosstown traffic’s atrocious, Transantiago takes forever, and you’re not quite rich enough to take a taxi to work every day*. How about biking?

At the turn of the millennium, biking as transportation in Santiago wasn’t a viable alternative for most people due mainly to the lack of infrastructure (followed perhaps by fear of Santiago drivers, whose take-no-prisoners driving style is on par with that of my fellow Bostonians). A decade later, municipal investment in bike paths, higher fuel costs and lower budgets, and generally increased consciousness about the social, economic and health benefits of biking have changed that. (Not that biking in Santiago doesn’t have its risks.)

The government has promised 690 km of bike paths in Santiago by 2012, and at the time of this writing is working on a “Bicycle Law” to promote its use.  However, if you want to get where you’re going quickly, you may actually want to avoid the bike paths.  My friend Philippe, a serious biker (he commutes, trains, travels and competes on his bike), doesn’t use them, because of pedestrians, holes, 90-degree turns and obstacles in general.  He says his trip takes twice as long if he uses bike paths rather than streets.  They’re probably still your best option for getting to know the city as well as your route to work; once you have the lay of the land you may want to join the motorized vehicles.

To get started on your self-propelled journey, you’ll want to buy a bike, plan your route(s), and meet some of your fellow cyclists.  Philippe recommends bikemontt as a one-stop shop for buying gear as well as getting in touch with the cycling community in Chile and South America.

Need expert advice?  You can contact Philippe at pdelteil@gmail.com, in Spanish, English, Portuguese or French.

Vocab

• bicicleta, (slang) bici, cleta: bicycle
• ciclorruta, ciclovía: bike route

* Taxis get to travel in the bus-only lanes, so at least during rush hour, they’re quicker than you in your car.⇑

No Reservations, our favorite travel show, finally did a Chile episode.  Here it is, courtesy of someone on YouTube.  A must-see for visitors and Chile Expats alike!

www.youtube.com/watch?v=D86C5139330EB18E