Chile
Table of Content
- Introduction …………………………………………………………………………….3
- History ………………………………………………………………………………….3
- Geography ………………………………………………………………………………4
- Climate ………………………………………………………………………………….5
- Conclusion ………………………………………………………………………………6
- Works Cited …………………………………………………………………………….7
Chile
Chile is a country found on the continent of South America. This nation has the attribute of being the most elongated nation worldwide as it is 4300 kilometers long and 175 kilometers wide. There are an estimated 17,067,369 citizens. The majority of the ethnic groups being the white and white Amerindian, followed by the Mapuche and other indigenous groups. Spanish is the official language, but other languages such as German, English and Mapundungun, are also spoken. It has a profound history, a diverse climate and has an amazing landscape.
History
Originally, Chile was under the rule of people known as the Incas who came from the north and the Araucanos who were nomads. A European, Ferdinand Magella, who discovered a passageway in Chile, was the first outsider to enter this nation. Later, Spanish men entered the country and they were attracted by the farming prospective of the nation’s Central Valley. As a result, they took hold of Chile and made it its territory (Country studies 79). Chileans underwent immense suffering under Spanish rule. Most of them were turned into slaves, and after slavery was abolished in Spain, their lands were encroached, and their treasury drained. Its army was also taken over and militarized, making this their stronghold against their enemies, the Europeans and the Dutch. (All this happened in the 1500s). The cruel treatment of the Chileans led to a revolution by the people, as they wanted back their freedom.
In 1808, the Spanish Empire was taken over by Joseph, who was Napoleon’s brother and this stimulated the fight for independence. A resistance group by the name of Ferdinand was therefore formed on September 1810. This group later became the government and made a proclamation declaring Chile an independent nation from Spain (Country studies 36). Thus, Chile became a republic, and in memory of this, 18 September of every year is celebrated as its independence day. Afterwards, a rebellion that aimed for complete independence began, led by Jose Miguel Carerra as well as his male siblings Juan Jose and Luis Carerra. They enhanced the war with the Spanish, and on 12 February 1818, Chile became a fully Independent republic. However, in the 19th Century there was a political revolt since the Chileans preserved a more of a social culture. Towards the middle of the 19th Century, democratic rule was adopted, but in 1973, the military took over. Thousands of people were murdered, children tortured, and there was an economic meltdown. However, in the 1980s the government allowed more freedom of speech, freedom of trade unions and numerous political activities. In December 1993, Eduardo Frei Ruiz Tagle, Led its party, The Consertacion, to victory and became Chile’s president. He handed over the reigns of power in 2000 to communist Ricardo Lagos. In 2006, it elected its first female president, Michelle Bachelet Juria also from the same party. Currently it is led by Sebastian Pinera from the Rightist party, with each term of presidency covering four years (Country Studies 58).
Geography
Chile is located between the Andes Mountains that cover the eastern side, and the Pacific Ocean that binds it on the western shore. This strategic location enables to have a vast and beautiful landscape, which makes it envy to most of the countries in its continent. It is a long and narrow coastal shaped country, extending 4,630 kilometers from north to south and 430 kilometers from west to east. It has a land area of 756, 950 square kilometers and lies between latitudes 17 degrees and 56degrees south and 66 degrees and 81 degrees west. Chile is endowed with offshore islands that are situated within the Pacific Ring of Fires. In addition, it has a vast forest cover, massive farming and grazing terrain, and a comparatively diminutive Central Valley that is host to the city of Santiago which is the most populated city and also very agriculturally productive. Its southern part has a series of volcanoes and lakes. Its southern coast contains a labyrinth of fjords, twisting peninsulas, inlets, canals and islands. It controls the Easter Island, Sala y Gomez and part of the Robinson Crusoe Island. Chile also has control of 1,250,000 kilometers of the Antarctica (McNairy 123). The northern part of Atacama is also found in this country and is endowed with valuable minerals such as copper and nitrates. Chile’s lowest point is at the Pacific Ocean, which are 0 meters and its highest point at Nevado Ojos del Salado at 6880 meters. It has 2.62% of arable land, where 0.46% is occupied by natural crops, and the rest is cultivated. Most of this land is however, irrigated due to the presence of the Atacama Desert. Chile’s breathe-taking landscape is however, exposed to high risks of tsunamis, earthquakes and active volcanism (Country Studies 27).
Climate
The climate of Chile is said to be extremely diverse. The desert is located in the north due to the presence of the Atacama Desert; a Mediterranean climate is experienced in the middle part, while on the Eater Island a humid sub-tropical. On the east and southern part, oceanic climate, alpha tundra and glaciers are experienced. Chile experiences four seasons in a year. Summer is the first season experienced from December to February, autumn from March to May, winter from June and leading to the month of August, and the season of spring from September to November.
Factors, which control the types of climate found in Chile, are The Andes Mountains, which allows a variety of microclimates to grow within short distances. These climates combine with other climatic zones to form transition zones. The Andes Mountains are divided into two main climatic regions known as the Dry Andes, and the second is known as the Wet Andes. The Pacific Anticyclone, the wintry Humboldt Current, the Chilean Coast Range, as well as the southern circumpolar low-pressure region also affect the climate found in Chile (Mcnair 89). The dry-arid climate in the Atacama is due to the Humboldt Current in addition to the Pacific anticyclone. This climate experiences rainfall of about 1 millimeter per year. The Mediterranean climate is due to the Chilean Coast Range that results in temperatures ranging from 7.5 to 19.5 degrees Celsius throughout the year and heavy rainfall. Here, rain falls between the first two months of the year that are the winter seasons, as well as the sixth and seventh months of the year. The temperate oceanic climate is due to the Andes Mountains and causes temperatures to range from below 7.5 to 16.5 degrees Celsius (Burgan 126). Precipitation in the temperate oceanic climate takes place during the winter and summer months. This causes a lot of rainfall on the southern-facing mountain slopes.
Food
Being a thin country between mountains, its agriculture is limited to a small space and has to import some of the food eaten. However, due to its interaction with different cultures from Europe and Asia as well, much of its food is influenced by these cultures. Spanish, being the major European settler in the country has a bigger influence in the food eaten. Other cultures influencing the food are Italian, native Indians, and British as well. Other foods were incorporated because of the different cultures such as the national dish called porotos granados that combines native Indian and Spanish influence.
Despite its lack of big agricultural space, the country produces some of the various fine seafood that makes up a big part of the traditional plate. Additionally, between the mountains and Andes are spectacular vineyards that compare to fruits of the Mediterranean Europe. This provides a wide variety of fruits all people and travelers to enjoy. Additionally, wine is available for all people including the lower class since there are a huge variety of inexpensive fine wines from which to select. There are many restaurants for everybody especially in the capital of Santiago where it is hard to make out what is typical food due to the diversity of immigration. Restaurants range from German influence, Spanish, Chinese restaurants among others serving traditional dishes from various cultures.
In Chile, there are four meals in a day, starting with breakfast that commonly serves a toast of bread and tea. For those who want more than these, eggs, and even freshly squeezed juice is available. Lunch serves at around 1 pm, which is the main meal of the day. Hotels here offer well-priced specials as additions to their regular menu. Some of the regular meals for lunch include the ‘cazuela’ that is a traditional food serving potato, a piece of chicken or beef, corn and rice served with a clear broth. In the evening between 5pm and 7 pm, tea is served with deserts and sandwiches. Dinner mostly serves from 9 pm until midnight. The food hours reflect the working hours as well, where work starts at 9 am ending in the late evening.
Conclusion
The geographical location of Chile elevates it to an outstanding state for a country to visit. It is strategically placed landscape is just awesome for suite-seeing and for mountainous sports. Its diverse climate encourages livestock keeping, agriculture and a diversity of other economic activities, making it among the best places to settling South America. Its long history tells a story of struggle and freedom, thus seeing the determination of the Chileans. Chile is a nation one should not miss to visit when given an opportunity.
Work Cited
Foreign Relations. Country Studies, 2012. Accessed October 1, 2012 from: http://countrystudies.us/chile/110.htm
Burgan, Michael. Chile. New York: Children’s Press, 2010. Print.
McNair, Sylvia. Chile. New York: Children’s Press, 2000. Print.
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