Chile - The Rough Guide to South America on a Budget - page 376

PUBLIC HOLIDAYS
Jan 1 New Year's Day ( Año Nuevo )
Easter ( Semana Santa ) national holidays on
Good Friday, Holy Saturday and Easter Sunday
May 1 Labour Day ( Día del Trabajo )
May 21 Navy Day ( Día de las Glorias Navales )
marking Chile's naval victory at Iquique
during the War of the Pacific
June 29 St Peter and St Paul ( San Pedro y
San Pablo )
July 16 Our Lady of Mount Carmel
( Solemnidad de la Virgen del Carmen, Reina y
Patrona de Chile )
Aug 15 Assumption of the Virgin Mary
( Asunción de la Virgen )
Sept 17 If it falls on a Monday, an extension
of Independence celebrations

Sept 18 National Independence Day
( Fiestas Patrias ) celebrates Chile's
proclamation of independence from Spain
in 1810
Sept 19 Armed Forces Day ( Día del
Ejército )
Sept 20 If it falls on a Friday, an extension of
Independence celebrations
Oct 12 Columbus Day ( Día del
Descubrimiento de Dos Mundos ) celebrates
the European discovery of the Americas
Nov 1 All Saints' Day ( Día de Todos los
Santos )
Dec 8 Immaculate Conception ( Inmaculada
Concepción )
Dec 25 Christmas Day ( Navidad )

At the time of writing, the exchange
rate was £1 = CH$714; US$1 = CH$474
and €1 = CH$618.
Large and medium-sized cities have
plentiful banks and ATMs ; Banco de
Chile and Santander are good bets for
withdrawing cash with debit cards.
Santiago and most of the more visited
destinations have casas de cambio which
can change travellers' cheques and foreign
currencies at a reasonable rate. Some
smaller towns (and Easter Island) only
have Banco Estado ATMs, which accept
just Cirrus and MasterCard. If you are
heading to small towns off the beaten
track, it's wise to carry enough cash to
cover a few days as ATMs are not always
reliable. Credit cards can also be widely
used to pay for purchases, especially in
larger towns, though budget lodgings and
eating places rarely accept them.

Banks typically operate from 9am to
2pm on weekdays only, while post offices
generally open Monday to Friday from
9am to 6pm; in larger towns, they also
open Saturdays from 9am to 1pm.
Monday is a day off for most museums ;
they are, however, usually open on
Sundays, often with free entry. Shops
and services are closed during national
holidays, local festivals and on local and
national election days.

4

Santiago
Towered over by the snow-streaked
Andes, the buzzing metropolis of
SANTIAGO has a distinctly European feel.
Its rich pockets of culture and history are
often overlooked by travellers frustrated by
a lack of iconic sights, and put of by the
smog that hangs over the city. Yet those
prepared to venture beyond the grid of
central shopping streets will be rewarded
with quirky, vibrant neighbourhoods filled
with a huge variety of lively bars and
excellent restaurants. Streetscapes flit
between elegant colonial buildings and
high-rise office blocks. The city is a
microcosm of the country's contrasting
ways of life, with ramshackle markets,
smart office buildings, rough-and-ready
bars and plush shopping malls all just a
short metro ride from the main square.

OPENING HOURS AND HOLIDAYS
On weekdays, most services and shops
tend to be open from 9 or 10am to 6 or
7pm; Saturday hours are usually 10 or
11am to 2pm. In smaller towns,
restaurants are often closed in the
afternoon between the lunchtime hours
of 1 to 3pm and the dinnertime hours
of 8 to 11pm. An increasing number
of restaurants, bars and shops open on
Sundays, but smaller places, particularly in
more rural areas, generally remain closed.