Interesting Tips and Tidbits

There are a couple of things in Chile that may seem odd to most Americans. These things struck me as the most interesting, in both good ways and bad.
For the first one, I do not have a photo, but you should be able to imagine what it looks like (or search for images of it). This item is called a calefont. A calefont is a small water heater that must be lit whenever someone wants hot water. It is usually found in a hallway and, in older homes, the bathroom. In my house, we are to light it when we want hot water to shower and turn it off when we are done. Utilities typically cost more here, so it is not ideal to keep it lit all day, or to even take very long showers.
The second thing is a little more strange, but when you hear the explanation for it, it doesn't seem so bad. When you use the restroom, more often than not, my guess would be about 80-90% of the time, you should throw the toilet paper that you use in the trash, not in the toilet. It may seem unsanitary, but if you throw it in the toilet, you run the risk of clogging the drains since they are so thing. That is much worse than putting it in a trash bin. When visiting, you should ask if it is safe to throw it in the toilet or if you should put it in the trash, just to be safe. The picture to the left was taken in the bathroom of the ISA (International Studies Abroad) office.

The third thing most people will find sad, but I believe that if you are warned about it like I was, it's not so bad. As you can see in the picture to the right, there is a dog eating out of the trash. This is just one of the many dogs that live on the streets of Valparaíso. These dogs sleep in public areas and walkways. They also follow you around and sometimes even walk into restaurants (which happened to a group of us when we went to dinner in Santiago one night). You will see dogs with matted hair and cuts. There are some that have rabies, fleas and ticks. My recommendation is to not pet or feed these animals, not matter how much you want to. You do not know these dogs, so you need to be careful. Like I said, they will follow you around, especially if you are in a large group. Most of the time it is okay. We have yet to run into any dogs that are hostile towards humans, although there have been a few that nip at other stray dogs (nothing too serious though). Today I asked my host mom why there were so many dogs on the street, to see if there was a reason. She said she didn't really know, but more than likely that most of these dogs had homes at one time and the owners didn't want them any more. There is also the possibility that some are breeding in the streets, although I have not seen many young puppies.
Obviously there are many more things that one needs to know about Chile, and they will be coming, I promise.