I'M AT: Casa Roja, Santiago de Chile. Been here before, for Peter's wedding. Can't remember what I wrote about it then. But it's a converted old house, quite beautiful, buzzy place, big dorms, squeaky bunks.
And so, after travelling in South America for five months, my time here's up. What better way to bow out than with thousands of rioting Chilenos?
Chile is a very divided country. On the one hand you have the right-wing, monied, educated elite, a fair chunk of the population. And on the other, the majority, staunch left-wingers, supporters of the current President, Michelle Bachelet. Bachelet was elected fairly recently and is a very iconic figure for the left. She was held captive and tortured under Pinochet's dictatorship. There can be no ambivalence about Pinochet in Chile.
The General (R) - as referred to in the papers - had been ill for some time. Last weekend, he had a heart attack. And today, at 2.15pm, he died. As an outrageous coincidence, it's the International Day of Human Rights.
The first signs that something big had happened were the car horns. Then, men carrying flags. Then shouting. Then an almighty gathering of people around Plaza Italia, which we stumbled across in a heated haze. Red flags, Bachelet flags, Chile flags. Then police helicopters overhead, at which the crowd swore and raged and tore their lungs.
And amongst all this I had to leave to get my plane. The airport bus took me and the driver - the bus was bloody empty - down the main drag, the Alameda, which was also empty. I saw a large green armoured lorry directing its water cannon at a big group of folk, and then, too late, saw the thick white cloud of gas, and noticed the bus windows were open, and into the swirl we went, the bus, the driver and me. And let me tell you, even a little tear gas is not pleasant. It gets into your throat, and burns, and chokes, and it makes your eyes stream.
Sweet chaos, I will miss you.
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