Making Ourselves at Home in Chile

At first glance, Santiago can feel extremely far from our Pacific homes. My first thought of the city as our LATAM flight flew over majestic mountains was, “Where did the Moana go?” The Island gurl in me is still adjusting to Chile’s most land-locked region as Santiago’s dry heat replaces my usual humid summers, which I admit is a very welcomed change. Mountains encompass the city making for beautiful views at every turn, though the height of these mountains I have never seen before. San Cristóbal ‘Hill’s’ 850m height makes Māngere mountain look like a speed-bump in comparison. 

The vastness of Santiago’s landscape can make one feel very small, but it only takes looking at the communities and history of this place to realise how much it has in common with home. The street art of indigenous resilience reminds me of the mana motuhake movement I saw growing up in Aotearoa. The Diaguitas artefacts in the Museo Chileno de Arte Pre-colombino resemble Samoan siapo patterns and every encounter with a new person turns into a cultural exchange. We stumble through our lists of Chilean Spanish words to share about Te Tiriti o Waitangi, as those we meet share their unique perspectives on how Chile’s political history has shaped the country today. From the teenage waiter at the empanada store down the road, to the Mapaché photographer at the St Lucia market, we have learnt so much about Chile through the hearts of those living here. We even met our very own Moana of Rapa Nui, who shared about the history of Isla de Pascua and the climate realities her communities are facing now. 

On top of all these amazing experiences, our first week attending Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile has been eye opening. The topics we cover are very similar to those of my population health major but with a Chilean context. From topics like migration, mental health, chronic conditions and many more, we are learning about how issues within Aotearoa are also global issues and through programmes like ours, we can create united fronts to enhance health around the world. Moving forward, I am excited to start our lessons learning about Indigenous health here and how we can collectively, as indigenous peoples, amplify each others’ voices from across the Moana!