Every country has its own story and the past of Santiago, Chile is one that should especially never be forgotten. For the past few days, we have learned a lot on the cultural excursions. From the ways of honoring their dead to the nightmarish struggles with converting to a left wing government, Chile has had a range of transformations to make it what it is today. This country is certainly beautiful- from the mountains to the streets, its unique design and culture is one to admire! However, it was not always this way. The citizens of Chile has had a long history with fearing those who are supposed to protect and lead them. A few decades ago, Chile was the main country that government personnel traveled to in order to be trained in torture methods. Over 50 citizens (80% being men) had gone missing many years ago. These people had been taken from their homes and labeled as terrorists, to be used and killed to invoke fear into people who believed in converting from the Dictatorship. In Santiago, there is a museum called ‘Museo de la Memoria’ established to respect those who had been affected by this tragedy and to educate those who aren’t informed of this problem.
Before it received its official title “Chile,” This land was inhabited by the Incas until the Spanish invaded. Their calendar followed the Lunar cycle and also the cycle of a woman. Synchronized, each month had 28 days. Censuses were made by collecting knotted string called “Quipu” from each family on the land. The system of math seemed close to the abacus, where each section of the string had a knot which represented ones, tens, hundreds and thousands. Each family had one quipu to keep track of the amount of livestock, family members and other types of property. The Quipu was then collected by the end of each year to record the information of the people.
Chilean culture is certainly creative and resourceful when it comes to the preservation of their deceased. Their method of mummification was rather unique and interesting. The dead had been preserved using twigs over bone, and wax over skin to keep the shape of the face and body.
In the next blog I will reflect on the Health and Wellness workshops and how they impacted the artists and ambassadors for Santiago, Chile 2018!
