Historia Chilena

Okay, so maybe you have heard the news that Pinochet, former dictator of Chile has died. He is most famous for overthrowing a government that was moving towards Marxism, but also for questionable rule where thousands of members of the opposition "disappeared." He still has supporters and opponents, and the opponents celebrated in dramatic fashion yesterday. Even with a police force that is very trusted and respected here, there is still a mentality of people going crazy and destroying things for every big event or major soccer victory (stay tuned for what happens after their soccer team Colo-Colo plays for the South American championship on Wed.)
Anyways, I ran into the celebration zone last night on my way back from the weekend. I had not heard the news about Pinochet until I was on a very crowded bus that went through downtown and we noticed things were a bit "desordenado" and there was something in the air burning our throats more than the usual Santiago smog. I was surprised by the amount of damage that was able to occur as the police do not hesitate to use watercannons and tear gas to control crowds. Streets signs, trash, and confetti were all over the streets, and fires were still burning late into the night. So, people celebrated this historic moment in Chile by showing how happy they are, but by also making a mess in the streets. However, the guys who sweep the streets are very efficient and had already made impressive progress in cleaning it up by this morning.

I took this first photo in Plaza Italia around 11pm, my leg touched the sidewalk and it was still hot, I realized why when I saw some of the photos in the paper today