Living in Chile - Expat Guide
In the beginning, there was darkness. Then, Part I of Chileno’s never-ending guide to living in Chile. Yay!
Okay, so this article is designed for, as we’re called, foreigners, who think they might wanna try living in Chile. Experienced (one week +) expats are encouraged to sound off, and Chileans are more than welcome to read along. I mean, it's you guys who always ask, “Why the hell did you move to Chile?”
That’s actually a great place to start.
Why do people move to Chile?
So when you go online, most sites paint a very limited picture of what it is that an expat in Chile does: study abroad or teach English.
Very limiting, that picture. I mean, when I step back to think about what my expat/transplanted friends and acquaintances do here in Chile, and I rifle through my list of bloggers in Chile (don’t be afraid to do some rifling yourself), the diversity of experience is baffling, as it should be. People currently come to Chile to:
And I’m sure I’m not accounting for everything. Point is, you can do what you want:
Thanks Cat. But here's the Third World tune:
Work Opportunities Available in Chile (grimace)
Like prostitution is for a certain class of people, one can:
Teach English
This timeless, archetypal - perhaps the oldest occupation of the
(young?) expat. I’ve never done it, but based on what I’ve heard from a close friend and a few other people who have spent plenty of time living and working in Chile teaching English, I wouldn’t touch it with a 10 foot chalkboard pointer.
According to those I spoke to, the typical day revolves around calls to students’ homes, workplaces or public places like a bar or café. I haven’t heard of anyone with the “luxury” of a 9-5 shift teaching English in a single location.
Nor have I ever heard of anyone making more than $10 an hour.
Add to that, you’re spending most of your day scurrying around the sprawling city of Santiago with a failed (and, relative to your teacher’s income, expensive) transportation system, the now-infamous Transantiago.
Top that off, it’s not an exception to the rule, but rather a matter of course, that students will flake out on you. Anyway, if you really feel like hating yourself, go find out more about teaching English at Woodward.
Much better is to do what I do:
Freelance on the Internets.
Don’t depend on the Chilean standard of living, where a monthly salary of US $1,000 is ogled at and unattainable by most. Rather, go international. Internet-national. Network, get work, get a Paypal account and someone kind enough to deposit checks that come from Pay-un-pals.
And it’s not just me and my crazy Internets, Kyle’s a celebrity blogger and then there’s sluggers like Olivier who is actually a kids&mortgage-tier Internet entrepreneur, who’s taken his expat roadshow to all four corners of the world, and recently made the move to Chile.
Then again, total squares can get a job at Met Life or, like Joel, the front desk of a hotel. That requires the whole Work Visa nonsense and more importantly, to me at least, the idea of moving to a foreign country to get a boring office job raises existential questions that jeopardize the clarity of this article.
Wheel and deal
Then there are a bunch of others schemes people have going on. I heard the guy who destroyed La Tercera website by making this clunky-ass flash program meant to simulate the physical experience of reading a newspaper – I’d never seen anything so 90’s-tastic and, quite frankly, inhumane. He was a gringo and apparently made a lot of money.
So keep your eyes wide open for opportunity, if that’s what you’re into.
Thankfully, however, La Tercera has moved on.
Other schemes include film production. Actually, there’s plenty of room for honest work there. All this talk of work is making me feel slightly nauseous.
Well, that wraps up Part I of Chileno's Guide to Living in Chile. Here's a sneak preview of Part II:
Cost of Living in Chile
This is something I haven’t actually calculated yet, and I won’t unless one of you kind readers would like to defray my own cost of living in Chile and sponsor a serious study, by me. In the meantime, I’ll just point to a price list on Page 4 of:
http://www.teachingchile.com/pdf/cost.pdf
There's lotsa inflation in Chile too.
...
Boy, I haven't even scratched the surface of the cost of living in Chile. That's coming up soon.
For now, though, I’m really tired and I’m about to take off for a couple of weeks I’m gonna bring this to an abrupt halt. I promise you, though, that this is going to be the best damn guide to living in Chile that the world could hope for. Right now it’s just in “beta”. Okay, who am I kidding, it’s in Omega. What does that mean? A lot to look forward to. But don’t just sit there. Write your own thoughts on what it is like, as a foreigner, to live in Chile. Your thoughts on the cost of living in Chile, renting an apartment, finding work, etc. With your help...that'd be a miracle.
Okay, so this article is designed for, as we’re called, foreigners, who think they might wanna try living in Chile. Experienced (one week +) expats are encouraged to sound off, and Chileans are more than welcome to read along. I mean, it's you guys who always ask, “Why the hell did you move to Chile?”
That’s actually a great place to start.
Why do people move to Chile?
So when you go online, most sites paint a very limited picture of what it is that an expat in Chile does: study abroad or teach English.
Very limiting, that picture. I mean, when I step back to think about what my expat/transplanted friends and acquaintances do here in Chile, and I rifle through my list of bloggers in Chile (don’t be afraid to do some rifling yourself), the diversity of experience is baffling, as it should be. People currently come to Chile to:
But alsoYes, teach English Yes, learn Spanish Yes, study abroad Yes, travel Yes, experience a different culture
And that’s just what I’ve seen.connect to their roots save money pursue business opportunities be deployed by their government/corporation be married work in non-profit orphanages make films raise children report news dick around be a celebrity blogger do academic research write books
And I’m sure I’m not accounting for everything. Point is, you can do what you want:
Thanks Cat. But here's the Third World tune:
Work Opportunities Available in Chile (grimace)
Like prostitution is for a certain class of people, one can:
Teach English
This timeless, archetypal - perhaps the oldest occupation of the
(young?) expat. I’ve never done it, but based on what I’ve heard from a close friend and a few other people who have spent plenty of time living and working in Chile teaching English, I wouldn’t touch it with a 10 foot chalkboard pointer.
According to those I spoke to, the typical day revolves around calls to students’ homes, workplaces or public places like a bar or café. I haven’t heard of anyone with the “luxury” of a 9-5 shift teaching English in a single location.
Nor have I ever heard of anyone making more than $10 an hour.
Add to that, you’re spending most of your day scurrying around the sprawling city of Santiago with a failed (and, relative to your teacher’s income, expensive) transportation system, the now-infamous Transantiago.
Top that off, it’s not an exception to the rule, but rather a matter of course, that students will flake out on you. Anyway, if you really feel like hating yourself, go find out more about teaching English at Woodward.
Much better is to do what I do:
Freelance on the Internets.
Don’t depend on the Chilean standard of living, where a monthly salary of US $1,000 is ogled at and unattainable by most. Rather, go international. Internet-national. Network, get work, get a Paypal account and someone kind enough to deposit checks that come from Pay-un-pals.
And it’s not just me and my crazy Internets, Kyle’s a celebrity blogger and then there’s sluggers like Olivier who is actually a kids&mortgage-tier Internet entrepreneur, who’s taken his expat roadshow to all four corners of the world, and recently made the move to Chile.
Then again, total squares can get a job at Met Life or, like Joel, the front desk of a hotel. That requires the whole Work Visa nonsense and more importantly, to me at least, the idea of moving to a foreign country to get a boring office job raises existential questions that jeopardize the clarity of this article.
Wheel and deal
Then there are a bunch of others schemes people have going on. I heard the guy who destroyed La Tercera website by making this clunky-ass flash program meant to simulate the physical experience of reading a newspaper – I’d never seen anything so 90’s-tastic and, quite frankly, inhumane. He was a gringo and apparently made a lot of money.
So keep your eyes wide open for opportunity, if that’s what you’re into.
Thankfully, however, La Tercera has moved on.
Other schemes include film production. Actually, there’s plenty of room for honest work there. All this talk of work is making me feel slightly nauseous.
Well, that wraps up Part I of Chileno's Guide to Living in Chile. Here's a sneak preview of Part II:
Cost of Living in Chile
This is something I haven’t actually calculated yet, and I won’t unless one of you kind readers would like to defray my own cost of living in Chile and sponsor a serious study, by me. In the meantime, I’ll just point to a price list on Page 4 of:
http://www.teachingchile.com/pdf/cost.pdf
There's lotsa inflation in Chile too.
...
Boy, I haven't even scratched the surface of the cost of living in Chile. That's coming up soon.
For now, though, I’m really tired and I’m about to take off for a couple of weeks I’m gonna bring this to an abrupt halt. I promise you, though, that this is going to be the best damn guide to living in Chile that the world could hope for. Right now it’s just in “beta”. Okay, who am I kidding, it’s in Omega. What does that mean? A lot to look forward to. But don’t just sit there. Write your own thoughts on what it is like, as a foreigner, to live in Chile. Your thoughts on the cost of living in Chile, renting an apartment, finding work, etc. With your help...that'd be a miracle.
posted by Chileno @ 6:37 AM
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6 Comments:
The mountains in your new masthead are beautiful ... but has anyone figured out the illustration at the right? A Muslim lady with her face covered, perhaps - with a dog picture on her gown? Damned if I know ;-)
Have a great Christmas down there, Will.
This post has been removed by a blog administrator.
Actually, just go to my site, where there is the youtube video embedded, and MORE!!!!
There are two types of foreigners in Chile; The first group is more likely to cossetted and fawned at, while the other group are the ones who endure verbal(and sometimes physical)abuse.
I fit in both of FL's categories. Therefore I am the most qualified guide.
:-)
Hey
Great blog. Thanks for being able to call a spade a "spade," or perhaps more fittingly "huevon."
Since 1991, the year of my first foray into Chile, I've frequently wondered at how a country can be so over-rated. In my humble, but well-traveled opinion, Chile is the "Jennifer Lopez" of countries -- lots of hype and promotion -- and very little talent.
Third-worlders who insist on being considered "first-world," all the while continuing their third-world ways -- that just sticks in my craw. To use a chilenismo: "A donde lo viste, huevones!!"
I'll try to make a contribution once in a while especially in regards to "dicking around."
Chau for now, Rick
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