By Right or By Force
Despite keeping more than a weather eye on the Argentine situation, where President de la Rua has now resigned, an interim president has been appointed for 48 hours, and there is a declared state of emergency for 30 days, life here at the end of the world (the physical, not the apocolyptic) continues on in a holiday mode. Puntas Arenas (pronounced as though it is one word - "puntaREYnas") is a city of about 113,000 people, all of whom seem quite friendly. Since it was settled in the mid 1800s, mostly by European immigrants, like most other Chilean cities it is well organized, central square, grid of a street plan, two story house after two story house, impossible to get lost, and everyone knows everyone else. And, of course, everything is as orderly in process as it is orderly in appearance, thanks to the omnipitent presence of the Carabineros, enforcing the Chilean national motto (written on the side of the 100 peso coin, similar to the writing on UK sterling pound coins), which I have desperately been searching for to be written on a t-shirt as I just ache to turn up to a regatta with "By Right or By Force" whacked across my shoulderblades or chest in great big letters. I mean, that´s a motto that tells your enemies exactly what is going to happen, who is in charge, and that they might just as well roll over and surrender now, because they don´t stand a chance. I remember the Argentine lawyer I used to work with in New York telling me of a famous picture of Augusto Pinochet Duarte standing up to give an address to the Chilean nation, national motto draped behind him. His shoulders blocked out the middle bit, so the entire address was given with "By" over the one shoulder and "Force" over the other. Sometimes I think that the basics of all I needed to know about the relative South American cultures I learned in the New York offices of Clifford Chance, sharing an office with a Brasilian and a Chilean, with an Argentine just down the hall, and that this trip has just served to deepen the experiences and cultural inferences that I had then.

Chile now is democratic, but when Pinochet stepped down from the presidency, he carved out a role for himself in the military hierarchy for many years, and this has obviously left its longstanding effect on the country. Carabineros are everywhere, and while there is certainly no perception of a police state in play, I would not mess with these people. In contrast to most other South American countries, the guide books are clear that if you get into trouble in Chile you should NEVER try to bribe a Carabinero. It will just get you into more trouble than you already were in. But unemployment is very low, people seem happy, and of course, the trains (though there are few of them) do indeed run on time.

That said, while the Puntas Arenas people are nice, and the seafood is cheap, great and plentiful (the king crab stew has to be had to be believed), life is quiet. Its midsummer, and so the weather is a balmy 13 degrees C, but the constant strong winds do get into your system. In contrast to being at altitude having it hurt to breathe just sitting around, here at the shores of the Magellanic Straights, the sea air is constantly inflating the lungs and it takes no effort to breathe at all. And of course we are so far south, the sun doesnt set until 11 at night, and is up far before I am in the mornings. This adds a very pleasant feel to the very long day.

Yesterday, Emma and I ventured out to Seno Otway for our first visit to a penguin colony. (Ok, Emmas first visit. I, natch, swam up to a few in the Galapgos. But in deference, there were only about 5. This was more like hundreds.) It was great. The penguins at Otway are relatively unafraid of humans, coming quite close, although they are skitterish enough within a few feet. This is just as well, as they can apparently inflict quite a bite when they want, and lets face it, if ever a girl was more fated than others to receive an inadvertant penguin bite, its yours truly. But no biting, and lots of Magallenic Penguins. Also known as jackass penguins due to the fact that they bray like donkeys. Loudly. Often. In three part harmony. It has to be noted that while penguins are indeed cute, they are also well nigh stupid. This actually leads to some of the cuteness, as they will line up and follow each other all over the place, and watching them negotiate a bank where they could hop up or down or try to clamber actually reveals the smoke coming out of their little penguin ears as things just get too complicated for them. They dont seem particularly curious, though Emma kept hoping that if we just sat there they would come up to us out of curiousity. No go. Ems did get within a couple of meters of some though, but it was more due to wandering penguins on a mission than innate curiousity.

Today, we engaged in the other great pasttime of Puntas Arenas - duty free shopping. Emma realized that she spent a fortune to get out here and see the penguins and yet didnt have a decent enough camera to get any good photos out of it. I was craving a portable CD player, as I miss having music. (This wasnt a problem in Brasil, as there was music coming out of every open window and frequently partying in the streets. Peru was pretty good on the live music as well, and Ecuador wasnt so bad. But here, its just too cold. The windows are shut, the people are inside. And I do have my Marisa Monte CDs I bought in Brasil just aching to be listened to.) There is a duty free area set up on the outskirts of town, creating jobs, industry and tourism. You can buy lots of alcohol, perfume, anything electronic and even a car if you like without paying tax on it, except of course that you´have to get to Puntas Arenas first. The camera Ems got we saw later in town for UK sterling 35 pounds more, and the telephoto lens she bought we couldnt even find a price for in town. She got a good deal, and a great camera. I just paid sterling 25 for a CD player, but I think I am just as happy. We didnt really stock up on booze there, though. We did each grab some Baileys Irish Cream to celebrate Christmas with, as its cheap enough in the supermarket, and we strongly suspect that in the Falklands, its all going to be incredibly expensive. Even reading the literature, everything seems to be. We are prepared. Ish. We leave tomorrow. There will be an English style Christmas, and of course, many many many more penguins.

If I dont speak or hear from you before then, a very happy Christmas to all around me.

Love,

Anne