SANTIAGO DE CHILE

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Capital city of Chile, Santiago is its cultural and administrative centre. Santiaguinos are proud citizens of their city, although they can criticise it very easily because of its famous smog. But when it rains, the smog goes away and you can see the beauty of the Maipo valley. Surrounded by high mountain peaks and with the Mapocho River passing through, Santiago has a lot to show. Five million people live in this huge valley, almost one third of the total population of the country.  

Santiago has a Mediterranean climate, with very hot summers and cold winters. There is very little humidity, so it doesn’t normally rain in the summers, but winters can get very wet. Snow is very strange in the city.

There is an easy way to move around the city, Santiago has a very modern Metro that passes through a large part of the city, and also a bus transport system called the Transantiago. The tickets are cheap, but if you are staying for a long time, you should buy a Bip! card, sold in every Metro station and different kioskos.

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All international flights arrive in the Arturo Merino Benítez airport, at the edge of the city. You can also arrive in train; at the Estación Central or by car through different highways. To arrive in ship you can get to Valparaiso port, which is only two hours of Santiago.

        For money exchange there are many places, but I will personally recommend Transpacific SA, located in front of the metro station El Golf. There are also places like this in the airport, or Parque Arauco; one of Chile’s biggest malls. It has many department stores and many different stores too. ...

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