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Chile Culture, Geography and History

Geography and Environment of Chile

  • Chile
  • Easter Island

Chile is a land of quirky geographical characteristics, most noticeably its incredible length. Measuring in at over 4600km long, yet only 430km wide, Chile covers a massive geographic scale that includes a variety of unique landscapes as well as an impressive coastline. Straddled by the epic Andes, this gigantic mountain range acts as a natural border with Argentina in the east, while the Pacific Ocean - including the remote Chilean territory of Easter Island - forms Chile’s western coastline. The capital and largest city, Santiago, lies inland, roughly in the centre of the country. Further north, Chile shares a border with Peru and Bolivia, as well the largest section of the parched Atacama Desert, one of the world’s driest places. South of Santiago, Chile unfolds into the wilderness playground of Patagonia - a largely uninhabited, prehistoric landscape brimming with forests and enormous glaciers.


History and Government of Chile


Other Resources

Recommended Reading

  • Clandestine in Chile: The Adventures of Miguel Littin - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
  • The History of Chile - John L Rector
  • The Obscene Bird of Night - Jose Donoso
  • My Tender Matador - Pedro Lemebel
  • The Mermaid and the Drunks - Ben Richards
  • Desert Memories: Journeys through the Chilean North - Ariel Dorfman
  • My Invented Country: A Memoir - Isabel Allende

Handy Links

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Chile at a glance

  • 52
  • Santiago (population 4.6 million)
  • 16.7 million
  • Spanish
  • CLP
  • (GMT-04:00) Santiago
  • Type C (European 2-pin), Type L (Italian 3-pin)
  • +56

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