🇨🇱🇵🇾🇺🇾 Where Vultures Circled

Hello Adventurers, 

This intro is brief because I'm living fast: having done quick visits to Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay this past week.

Specifically, I did two marathons in arid Santiago (thank you Tracy for the map of neighbourhoods to avoid), I did two marathons in humid Asunción (thank you Mike for teeing up a call there, and being such a supportive mensch), and — at the time of publishing this — I've done two marathons in atypically windy and rainy Montevideo.

The tempo was blazing so let's stage dive into all the noise.

- Ben Pobjoy

P.S. I made a tiny photo essay for my friends Ryan and Tagwa at Darby while marathoning Buenos Aires the other week. If you like football, check out their wonderful magazine and if you like Maradona then check out my little contribution here.

2023 TREK TRACKER

Where in the world...record am I?

• Countries visited: 8

• Flights taken: 16

• Kilometres flown: 18,656

• Marathons completed: 25

• Kilometres trekked by foot: 1,140.3

• Total kilometres trekked since 2015: 64,232

THE LAST MONTH: IN REVIEW

Stats and anecdotes from January 2023

Well folks, month one is in the bag! I did 23 marathons, and things are going to plan. Truthfully, I'm pretty happy with the results because I had some kind of lung infection for the first two weeks, and had to navigate lots of pollution, inclines, and high altitude while being sick. Overall, I'm strategically going slow — because I have a backpack that weighs 30 pounds and I'm shooting photographs along the way — and because I'm playing a long game this year where my goal is to surpass 239 marathons. Once I get deeper into this project — and if the body holds up — my intention is to go faster, but for right now it's all about going slow so that I can go far.

Physically, I feel pretty good. I developed blisters on blisters in January, but that was to be expected because of the heat and the rough terrain. However, they are now calloused and my beaten hooves have a protective exoskeleton so I'm over that hump of hurt (for the time being). I do have one black toe, and was worried that the nail would fall off, but it seems like it's going to stay (which is a blessing because they're hard to nurse back to health).

While I don't have a scale, I think I've lost around 15 pounds based on a visual estimate. My body fat has evaporated so quickly that I now have loose skin. It is what it is, and I don't really care: I don't exercise for vanity, I marathon because my variety is an exercise in moving through the world to observe the human condition. That said, I have been eating very well — and eating as much as I can — but being sick and being affected by the high altitude did curb my appetite. Moving forward, my weight should stabilize. The upside is that I'm now trucking on a lighter frame, and my joints are grateful.

One interesting anecdote: I did nearly 17,000 metres of elevation climb in January, and that's almost twice the height of Mount Everest. It is also one-third of the total elevation I climbed in all of 2022...done in just the first month of 2023! Wild stuff!

RAPID WEEKLY RECAP

A speedy synopsis for time-crunched readers

• The Wildest Thing: Santiaguinos whipping their dicks out in broad daylight and pissing all over the city centre...with their backs turned to public restrooms 🤮

• The Biggest Obstacle: Asunción's heat, humidity, and hellish sidewalks. I wanted to tape my feet and ankles but extreme perspiration wouldn't allow it 🥵

• The Lesson Learned: If you have a biometric passport then you can bypass the long immigration lines at Montevideo's Carrasco International Airport 😎

FIELD NOTES: SANTIAGO, CHILE

Dry by nature, dispirited by neoliberalism

Smog-blanketed Santiago wasn't what I expected. Yes, the Chicago Boys 'transformed' Chile for some (and provided partial cover — as well as legitimacy — for the military dictatorship), but things didn't trickle down, and the frustration here is —and was — palpable (e.g. a years-long social outburst has just simmered down). But who knows, maybe the young people here can build a better future?

Sure, regular life goes on. And the city has some merits. But here you quickly detect the effects of neoliberalism, austerity, and lack of opportunity, and see how it braids the people and the place into a bit of a bummer bind.

In Santiago, people shit where they eat: pissing all over the place in broad daylight (even though there are public restrooms in the downtown core), and some get so day drunk they'll just puke on the street. Both are expressions of misery and resentment. And the latter is visible in many ways here; there's revolutionary-seeking graffiti, vandalized politician graves in the Cementerio General, and anti-projectile grate-wrapped Carabinero cop cars due to the ACAB sentiment. There's also a grey market in front of the regular market, and behind that is the black market with the illegal cigarettes.

I've often seen joy somehow exist in poverty, but rarely this kind of pervasive dejection. I don't know if this place warrants a visit — it isn't remarkable — but as a student of political science and history, I enjoyed Chile's miraculous catfishing IRL. Anyhoo, beyond the grift and the graft, this local stuff was great:

Plaza de Armas: This central urban square in the city centre is where locals and visitors mix. Old dudes play chess, the dispossessed are crashed-out on benches, young people perform for paying tourists, and numerous streets branch-off from it: leading to everything from markets to a strip with food vendors cooking meats on converted shopping carts that double as barbecues or deep fryers. Fare-wise, there's a bunch of nearby restaurants that sell a fusion of Chilean and Chinese cuisine that looked really interesting, much of it marketed through signage with the most passé font.

Paseo Bandera: Visually, my favourite thing in Santiago was the ultra colourful, art-adorned pedestrian tunnel on Bandera (that goes underneath Avenida Libertador Bernardo O'Higgins in Santiago's city centre).

I don't care, I'll bang this drum until the day I die: when cities make unique pedestrian and/or public spaces, communities thrive. Here, teens were skateboarding, kids were popping wheelies through the tunnel on bikes, adults were socializing on ledges, and everyone was able to safely — and efficiently — move underneath a very busy avenue. The road, walls, and ceiling of this spot are awash in vibrant colours and your eyes will love it.

Templo Bahá'í de Sudamérica: I'm an atheist who 'gets' faith, and I also have deep appreciation for architecture...meaning I'm always down to check-out elaborate holy sites. And, wow, the Bahá'i temple outside of Santiago (on the lower slopes of the Andes) does not disappoint. The exterior is covered in dimensional panels of shaped glass and the interior has nine panels of translucent marble that swirl upwards into a skylight-punctuated dome. Visitors can't take photos inside (which is very beautiful, peaceful, and surprisingly cool despite no AC), but you can see what it looks like here.

This place isn't just worth a visit for the near-extraterrestrial architecture, it offers a spectacular view of smoggy Santiago that'll make you question whether we're in the anthropocene.

If you get outside early enough in Santiago, you'll see countless groundskeepers watering all the grass and the gardens to maintain the artificial existence of greenery. It's why I recommend exploring the outskirts of town where the terrain is naturally sun-scorched. It is cinematic and sorta dystopian: due to the football pitches on dirt patches, the slums, and the shanties that pepper it all (one of which had a makeshift swimming pool).

There are working-class neighbourhoods on the periphery too, and what struck me is how many of the two-story homes had chipboard and/or plywood exteriors. Here, much feels fragile, teetering on the brink of economical and environmental collapse. And overall, it feels metaphorical given that Santiago sits in a valley known as the Intermediate Depression.

FIELD NOTES: ASUNCIÓN, PARAGUAY

Assume it'll be hot and humid

I did not miss my wife for one second in Paraguay. Not because I don't love her, but because you can't flush shit tickets down the toilet here. Said another way, my prude ass would've been mortified to have had to share any type of accommodations with her...because some things are better left unseen between couples...like a pile of used booty wipes in a bathroom bin.

Washroom warning aside, Asunción is a simple place: it's physically small, easy to navigate, and very much non tourist-y. Compared to other capital cities in South America, there's not much to do...but I nevertheless really enjoyed my time here because the place is uniquely urban and agrarian.

That said, it is hot here and there were days with 65% humidity which — when combined with the gnarly sidewalks — turned my feet into ground beef. You know the deal, it's the kind of place where you step outside, and the full body sweating kicks in immediately. There's also puddles or raw sewage in some neighbourhoods and lots of live, crackling electrical wires above your head — or on the ground (near some of the sewage puddles) — so watch your step.

Flying in, I was struck by Asuncion's gobsmackingly green canopy which wonderfully contrasts — and compliments — the many terracotta-coloured dirt roads here. While this place lacks formal attractions, it is really visual and you can be really adventurous here. And I was, and this is what I found to be attractive:

Yes, Asunción has many of the things you'd expect from a South American capital: a presidential office in a beautiful palace, a preserved house where independence was declared, a memorial plaza for bygone national heroes guarded by sentinels, and a very simple promenade along the waterway.

However, I was most smitten by the old and weathered buildings in the city centre. Some are falling into disrepair, some have plants growing out of them, and some are abandoned / easy to enter...just begging for exploration. While Asunción only has a population of around a half-million, this place is overflowing with cops and military...and they're both jacked and strapped...so I didn't mess around.

Like, there's pick-up trucks cruising around with cops standing in the back with automatic weapons in hand and heavy artillery gun turrets mounted on humvees at the President's digs (unafraid to be pointed your way). This place has a 'fuck around and find out' vibe so you've been warned about the possible consequences should you trespass into old things.

For the moderates, there is a wonderful railway station museum in the city centre. I didn't enter it merely because there's so many rusted trains in surrounding lots (presumably waiting to be returned to their former glory someday?).

I can't give you specific coordinates, but if you wander Asunción you'll inevitably wander into roaming animals doing their own thing. And for a city, it's the most agrarian capital I have ever visited. There's chickens all over, which is ubiquitous in much of the world. However, what I liked were the horses randomly hanging out in parks and cows walking the streets in front of baller villas in the Lambaré neighbourhood. For me — as a foreigner from an uptight place — it was just so peculiar to see unattended farm animals cruising the city!

Reserva Ecológica Banco San Miguel y Bahía de Asunción: I took a bit of a gamble by going a little out of the way to marathon through a peninsula on the Bahia de Asunción...because I heard there were some beached ships there.

The area is an ecological reserve, and I presumed it would be a dense and possibly jungle-y park that I'd have to navigate with my SatCom device...but a little community lives along the area's defined dirt roads. And they have it rough. I wouldn't call it a slum, and I wouldn't describe the community's homes as shanties because the structures have electricity (and are brick and mortar with simple metal roof panels). But the construction is makeshift, some live amidst piles of garbage, and there are pigs eating trash as well as lying in the muddy pits in the middle of the road.

Observing it all — as well as the Paraná Express (the big beached ship) — was really something. I'm just in continual awe of how much dignity, ingenuity, and resilience people have despite having so little of everything else.

FIELD NOTES: MONTEVIDEO, URUGUAY

Capital city on — and in love with — water

In Montevideo, it is evident that people have deep reverence for the ocean. They fish it, play beside it, and stare out at it meditatively (like no one else I've ever seen).

Here, there's lots of coastline and a big maté culture, making this place both easy-going and relaxed in nature. And while it is a cosmopolitan city that's bustling in parts, it's somehow tranquil...or at least it just feels that way because the winds and waves dampen typical city sounds. Plus, there's just a little more than a million people in the capital, lots of plazas and public spaces, and generally low buildings which all combine to give Montevideo a pleasant, wide open feel. Here, you can just sorta exhale and go at your own pace.

Overall, I found Montevideo very charming. The Ciudad Vieja near the port has beautiful salt-kissed architecture, Palermo just south of Centro is so neighbourhood-y with lots of tree canopy'd streets and walls full of colourful street art, and there's just so much to see and do along the water (the latter of which is refreshingly non-commercialized, promenade protected, and full of high-density buildings...all making it feel 'of the people' rather than 'prime location obstructed by rich people's houses' being the sin of so many other places).

Oh, and if you can scale walls and get into the grounds of the Antiguo Gasómetro or the Dique Mauá with a camera then you're a better adventurer than I am...and would likely be rewarded with some amazing photos. That said, the following is what any visitor can see in Montevideo:

The Rambla: This major avenue along the ocean coast offers an uninterrupted 22 kilometre-long promenade that is amazing to stroll, bike or inline skate. Using it is a truly beautiful way to get across the city.

While the water isn't necessarily picturesque (because of how choppy it is), the promenade is dotted with countless beaches that you can do beach-y things on...all of which are amazing at sunrise or sunset (i.e. locals show up with foldable chairs — and friends — at golden hour, like clockwork).

I most enjoyed observing the roller-skating rink along the Rambla, where locals practice 'patin artistico.' It is essentially figure skating on roller-skates. And the athletes were so elegant and graceful. And crazy tough. Like, when a double axle attempt went wrong, they twist ankles and slam into no-glide concrete...and basically crumple in on themselves. But then they get up and try again. Don't be fooled by how pretty it all looks. These are focused athletes with a lot of grit, tenacity, and skill.

Avenida 18 de Julio: This is the main commercial strip that connects the Ciudad Vieja in the west — through Centro, and past Cordón — to the big park in the east that is home to Estadio Centenario, a football stadium that was built for the first World Cup in 1930 (where Uruguay defeated its neighbour Argentina in the final). The avenue is great for strolling as well as people watching. And make sure to look for the charming Fuente de los Candados, a fountain covered in padlocks.

If you cruise this avenue, do catch a glimpse of Palacio Salvo. And also consider detours from it to the neoclassical Palacio Legislativo as well as to the Asociacion De Boxeadores Del Uruguay...peek inside: it is a rough and raw gym untouched by time.

Mercado del Puerto: While this place was a market in decades past, the name is somewhat misleading. Why? Well, today, it's more of a food hall. And you should definitely visit if you like your grilled meat and fish stacked high on your plate.

I can't tell you what the style of cooking is called in this market. All I can say is that I've never seen food cooked like this before: each restaurant stall has a big, vertical wood-burning fire that functions like an open-air oven where embers are raked under slanted grills. A cook invited me into a kitchen, and it was an inferno. Should you eat here, tip well: the cooks — clad in thick and protective long sleeve shirts — are themselves getting cooked as they cook food. They're constantly swigging lots of water as they grill steaks that are no less than two inches thick as they slow cook — and smoke — spools of sausages and strips of thick bacon more than a foot in length.

This market is located in Ciudad Viejo and you should definitely stroll the surrounding area. There are lots of gems in it. I could itemize them all for you but I won't...merely because I want you to discover them, and be delighted by them.

BEST LOCAL THING-Y

Yerba-maté is a leafy tea-like drink that was first cultivated and consumed by the indigenous Guarani people in the territory that predated present-day Paraguay. I've long known about it (e.g. this historical hunk was always hitting it), but I'm more of a coffee guy so I never tried it.

However, given I was in Paraguay for the first time — and the locals are crazy for the stuff — I had to slurp the caffeinated sludge. When the mixture is served with hot water, it's called yerba-maté. However, when the weather is hot, it's served with chilled water, making the concoction tereré...which I had.

As soon as you're in Paraguay, you see everyone hitting it. As in, you can't miss it because everyone is carrying the sorta elaborate kit: a thermos (many of which are personalized with custom leather wraps), the gourd-like cup, and the perforated spoon-like straw (to mix the plant blend with water, and then sip it up).

So what does it taste like? I found it to sorta taste green tea adjacent. But with more earthy, medicinal, and smokey notes. It was like someone plunged three half-smoked menthol cigs into a thick green tea mixture that was topped with some citrus rind and dried ginger shavings.

In terms of preparation, you pour the dry mix into a little cup, add water, mix, start drinking, and continue to add water for as long as you like (with diminishing returns on taste and caffeination). Anyway, I went to my Airbnb host's café to try it. A former American who renounced his citizenship and is now voluntarily stateless, Glen warned me that locals are super sharesies with the drink's straws (as groups of friends and family share the stuff as social ritual). And when I was served the tereré, I was sucking the straw like a maniac...and not getting anywhere...so I asked the server what I was doing wrong. He took the straw, banged it against a wall, put it in his mouth, blew into it, dislodged whatever was blocking it, and passed it back to me to use...which I did. The frosty tereré was refreshing like a non-sweetened iced tea on a hot day, and I'm glad I tried it...stranger's straw kiss and all.

Anyway, I must give a shout-out to Glen. He's truly the best Airbnb host I've ever had. His place is great, he gives you a card to get discounts at nearby restaurants, his café kindly gave me the tereré for free (since it was my first time trying it), and he did me a HUGE solid by sending a paid service to my door to launder my truly revolting clothes on my final morning in Paraguay (as the dirt and dust from Santiago and Asunción obliterated everything I had).

I didn't get to meet Glen because he was sick, but I hope that we can crush some maté together one day...especially because I want to hear what it is like to be a voluntarily stateless person!

POBJOY'S GLOBAL PRICE INDEX

This is an on-going documentation of how much things cost in different places around the world. Here are some of the things I bought in Santiago, Asunción, and Montevideo (all prices converted to USD)

• Two 600 millilitre bottles of Pepsi Max, two 1.5 litre bottles of sparkling water, four veggie burger patties, and one 100 gram bar of dark chocolate from a grocery store in Santiago: $14.06

• Delicious twelve-inch vegan pizza and four vegan empanadas that were as big as an open hand from La Ruda in Asunción: $9.17

• One medium soy latte bought as a ticket to take a leak at a Starbucks washroom in Montevideo: $5.43

MARATHON MUSINGS

Words from the wreckages of war: covert, overt, proxy or otherwise

As I marathon through Operation Condor countries,

Strolling by the Salvador Allende memorial in Santiago where two men sung a somber song,

Asunción and Montevideo too,

Looking at the lumps of the still store losers,

As America commits to sending tanks — on top of other weapons of mass destruction — to Ukraine,

I think about the cunning victor,

That self-billed ‘good guy,’ then and now,

Most selfish in self-interests,

Always rigging the game in their favour,

And always running lead in the conditional arms race where the hand shake is the fist fuck for some future advantage.

And I just wish we all had a stronger desire to sprint towards peace…

…Rather than being forced to spectate a never-ending relay of war, violence, meddling, and destabilization.

Because the condor eats the carrion,

And then carries on.

To go hunt more game for sport,

And then gaming the game to win at any cost.

Past. Present. Future. Or until we decide no more.

Have any questions about the content of this newsletter? Reply to it, and I'll try and answer you when it's safe to do so!