— Stop 1 —

USA

Today I’d like to share with you a great experience I had while traveling to Chile and Argentina through a non-profit organization called GEEO. GEEO helps educators travel abroad so that they can learn more about different cultures to share with their students. I was joined on my trip by teachers from all around the United States.

— Stop 2 —

South America

We flew from the U.S. to Chile in South America. While it was winter here, it was summer in Chile because it’s in the Southern Hemisphere, south of the equator. After Chile, we went to Argentina. Point to Chile and Argentina on the map. What languages do you think are spoken in Chile and Argentina? Spanish is most common. Native American languages including Quechua, Mapudungun, and Guarani are also spoken.

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Chile

Chile’s landscape is very diverse. In the north is the Atacama Desert, the world’s driest desert. The Andes mountain range stretches to Chile’s southern tip, near Antarctica. Chile has over 3,000 volcanoes, but only about 36 are active. Before Spanish colonists arrived in 1541, the Inca inhabited the north and the Mapuche people inhabited the center and south. Chile gained independence from Spain in 1818.

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Santiago

We flew to Santiago, Chile’s capital, which has a population of almost 7 million people. Spanish conquistador Pedro de Valdivia founded Santiago in 1541. It’s a bustling, modern city nestled in a valley near the Andes mountains. Like many Latin American cities, Santiago is defined by contrasts: colonial and modern architecture, busy streets and quiet parks, modern shopping centers and local farmer’s markets.

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Plaza de Armas

This is the Plaza de Armas, the main square of Santiago. The city is laid out in a grid pattern, and Plaza de Armas was at the center of the old city. Surrounding the square are some of Santiago’s historic buildings, including the Metropolitan Cathedral of Santiago, the Central Post Office Building, the Palacio de la Real Audiencia de Santiago, and the building that serves as the seat of local government for Santiago.

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Cerro San Cristobal

This is San Cristobal Hill, one of the tallest hills in the city. There is a funicular, or a very steep train, that can take you up to the top for some great views of the city, or you can make the 45-minute walk up.

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Cerro Santa Lucia

This is another hill in Santiago, Cerro Santa Lucia. It is much smaller than Cerro San Cristobal and is all that remains of a 15 million-year-old volcano! It is now used as a large park with beautiful stairways and fountains.

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Museo de la Memoria

This is the Museo de la Memoria, or “Museum of Memory.” Chile had a lot of problems with how its government treated Chilean citizens when dictator Augusto Pinochet was in power between 1973 and 1990. This museum commemorates all of the victims of the military government during that time.

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Casablanca Valley

The next day, we headed out of the city into the Casablanca Valley, an area with lots of vineyards. We learned about local agriculture in the fertile valley and Chile’s local wine production.

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Valaparaíso

Our next stop was Valparaíso, a colorful seaside town. Valparaíso (also called “Valpo”) is famous for its cobbled alleys, colorful buildings, and street artists and musicians. The Historic Quarter is on UNESCO’s World Heritage List. UNESCO World Heritage Sites are landmarks or areas designated by the UN for cultural or historical significance. The program conserves sites for future generations.

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Plaza Victoria

This is Plaza Victoria, one of the main plazas in Valparaíso. It is a central hub with important cultural significance for the city. It is surrounded by the Santiago Severín Library, the Cathedral of Valparaíso, and the building for the Naval Club of Valparaíso. It’s also a place where many cultural events take place.

— Stop 12 —

Pucón

That night, we took an overnight bus to another city called Pucón. Pucón is a beautiful town in the mountains that is known around the world for its adventure activities, including skiing, white water rafting, horseback riding, and skydiving.

— Stop 13 —

Villarrica Volcano

Volcán Villarrica is an active volcano near Pucón that most recently erupted in 2015. It is one of the only volcanoes in the world that contains a lava lake within its crater. It is one of Chile’s most active volcanoes, and it is frequently climbed from Pucón. The top part of the volcano is permanently covered by snow and glaciers, although the glaciers have been shrinking due to climate change.

— Stop 14 —

Huerquehue National Park

Also near Pucón are the lagoons and lush forests of Huerquehue National Park. This area has a lot of Araucaria or “monkey-puzzle” trees, one of the oldest tree species on the planet. The tree was popular in late 18th-century Europe for its unique prehistoric appearance. The park also has a lot of unique animals, including pudú, the smallest deer species in the world—they’re the size of cats!

— Stop 15 —

Seven Lakes District

The next leg of our trip involved taking a bus from Pucón in Chile to Bariloche in Argentina. On our way, we passed through a region known as the Seven Lakes District. It is an incredible scenic drive across the Andes mountains of Patagonia and past several beautiful glacial lakes. Patagonia is a huge and sparsely populated region at the southern tip of South America. It is known for its rugged landscapes, including towering mountains, pristine lakes, and glaciers.

— Stop 16 —

Argentina

As we drove through the Seven Lakes District, our time in Chile ended and we continued into Argentina. Argentina is South America’s second largest country (after Brazil), bordered by Chile, Bolivia, Paraguay, Brazil, and Uruguay. It’s about the size of the eastern United States (east of the Mississippi River).

Argentina is geographically diverse with rocky mountains, dense forests, a long coastline, and arctic regions. Natural resources, strong industry, and a well-educated population make it one of Latin America’s largest and most influential economies.

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Bariloche

After our scenic road trip across the Andes, we arrived in the beautiful town of Bariloche. It sits on the edge of Nahuel Huapi, a large glacial lake surrounded by the Andes Mountains. Bariloche is known for its Swiss alpine-style architecture and its chocolate. It’s also a popular base for hiking, skiing the nearby mountains, and exploring the surrounding Lake District.

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Gaucho Ranch

The next day, our group got to experience the culture of the gauchos, traditional Patagonian cowboys. We went to a gaucho ranch outside of Bariloche, took a horseback ride through the scenery of Bariloche, and learned about the area’s history from a real-life gaucho.

— Stop 19 —

Cerro Campanario

We had a free day in Bariloche, and some people in our group climbed to the top of Campanario Hill. From Campanario Hill, you can see the entire surrounding area: the Nahuel Huapi and Moreno lakes, the small El Trébol lake, the San Pedro peninsula, Victoria Island, Mount Otto, and several towns and forests.

— Stop 20 —

Buenos Aires

After several days in Pucón and Bariloche, we flew to Buenos Aires, Argentina’s capital and largest city. Buenos Aires’s metropolitan area—the city plus its surrounding suburbs and connected towns—has about 14 million people, roughly one-third of Argentina’s population. That’s bigger than Los Angeles’s 13 million. [Can students compare this to your own region?]

The city is Argentina’s political, economic, and cultural hub. It’s very European-influenced and called the “Paris of South America,” with theaters, landscaped parks, sidewalk cafes, and beautiful churches. The city’s residents, called porteños (people of the port), come from European backgrounds: Italian, Spanish, German, Swedish, Dutch, English, and French. More recent immigration comes primarily from Syria, Lebanon, Japan, China, and South Korea.

— Stop 21 —

Plaza de Mayo

Plaza de Mayo is the center of downtown Buenos Aires and the heart of Argentine politics. The public square is surrounded by important landmarks: Casa Rosada (the president’s office, the pink building in the foreground), the Catedral Metropolitana (Argentina’s main Catholic Church, top right), City Hall (top center), the Cabildo (the colonial-era town council, left of City Hall), and the financial district (background).

The plaza’s name commemorates the May Revolution of 1810, which started the Argentine War of Independence from Spain (1810-1818). The May Pyramid (center of the plaza), constructed in 1811, is Buenos Aires’s oldest national monument.

Plaza de Mayo has remained an important site for political demonstrations, including rallies starting in 1977 by the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo—women whose children were abducted during Argentina’s military dictatorship.

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Puente de la Mujer

Buenos Aires’ Puerto Madero is a waterfront district where all streets are named after women. he bridge connecting the neighborhood to the city center is called Puente de la Mujer (Woman’s Bridge). Architect Santiago Calatrava designed it to represent a couple dancing the tango. The bridge swings open like a gate to allow ships through Madero Port.

— Stop 23 —

Avenida 9 de Julio

Avenida 9 de Julio (named for Argentina’s independence date in 1816) is the world’s widest avenue. Landmarks include the Teatro Colón (bottom right), one of the world’s most famous opera houses, and the obelisk on Plaza de la República (middle), built to celebrate the city’s 400th anniversary. The obelisk is a gathering point for soccer fans celebrating their team’s wins.

— Stop 24 —

Recoleta Cemetery

Recoleta Cemetery is where many important Argentines are buried, including writers, politicians, and Eva Perón (Evita), wife of president Juan Perón and heroine to the poor. The cemetery is laid out in a grid with beautiful mausoleums representing different architectural styles.

— Stop 25 —

Floralis Genérica

The Recoleta neighborhood has the Floralis genérica, a metal sculpture donated by architect Eduardo Catalano symbolizing all the flowers of the world. The flower’s six petals—42×23 feet each—close in the evening like a real flower.