Tales of Chile, part I

I recently found myself in a hospital in Valparaiso (don´t be worried). This endeavor – to take a blood test – turned out to be quite a surreal experience. I have had time to observe before that hospitals in Chile (with the exception of the places for the very rich) are places for social gatherings and exchange. A bit like going to the market. There are always a lot of people waiting and chatting, and blocking the entrance to the information counter.

As an aside, the relation to space, both personal and social, is definitely different here. For example, many times I exasperate because there are no stable currents in highly overcrowded places; Instead, everyone walks han-solo-style, in a chaos, with sudden stops, turns and blockades. - On the other hand, I enjoy the fact that people are less dominated by a “social pace” and walking in right angles. - Relating to this subject matter is the territorial behavior of females of a certain age group. Shopping carts become weapons in their pushy fingers. But this might be an international problem? Am I mistaken, or are men, generally speaking, more considerate of possible backs, feet and knees into which they might be ramming their protruding artificial limbs? (Or is that because here you’d find only non-machistic men doing the shopping here?)

To return to my point, possibly as a result of this permanently crowded state of affairs, forget privacy: Both in hospitals and in farmacias, no-one would dream of voluntarily relinquishing space (even if it were possible) or at least turn the head or eyes away as a social act of performing inexistence (I really should find a place here that has huge and crowded elevators, and experiment with it). Again, this has its plus side. While everybody will know your tampon brand, rash medicine or worse, people are willing to assist with information. While in my case - that of a grumpy European - this interaction is mostly unasked for, I’ve had to grudgingly admit that it is very very helpful because of Information Gathering Rule 1. Which says that there is no secure way to obtain information. Forget authorities, certificates or logic such as “in a place where they sell xx, the vendors should know about xx.” The only reliable way to obtain valid information is to ask as many people as possible. Ask at least three times for a way, and don’t be shy to walk back a couple of blocks if the last person you asked, seemed to be more well-informed than the previous ones.