Churches of Chiloe

SANTIAGO -- A national debate has broken out in Chile over a rather large mall currently under construction in a relatively small southern city called Castro. Located on the island of Chiloé, Castro is an isolated but popular tourist destination, best known for its seafood, local folklore and colorful wooden houses, some of which are built on wooden stilts.

Starting a few weeks ago, social media sites began buzzing with an image that for many seemed at first too strange to be true. In the foreground is a collection of typical seaside homes, fishing boats and a bit of the harbor itself – a scene captured countless times in postcards and tourist brochures. But this is not a picture postcard image. Looming above the homes is a huge, half-built rectangular shopping center covered in metal staging and tattered plastic wrap.

The image is shocking. In the interest of making a proper analysis, one tries to be neutral about all of this. But there are clearly some objective details regarding this half-built mall that jump out – even for someone like me, a complete neophyte when it comes to all things concerning architecture and urbanism. The size of the mall is considerably out of proportion with the surrounding area. The materials they’ve chosen to build it with – glass and metal – clash with the rest of the city’s homes and buildings. And it now dominates a city skyline that until now had been the sole domain of the 27-meter San Francisco church, which was declared a national monument in 1979 and a UNESCO world heritage site in 2000.

Chilean Patagonia In the 2012 Top 10 Travel Destination Of The New York Times

Merco Press; January 11 2012

Chilean Patagonia was included on the list as “proof that adventure doesn’t have to mean roughing it,” now that various lodges have been built near Chile’s national parks offering comfortable to luxurious accommodation alongside a number of activities from heli-skiing to horseback riding.

Meanwhile, it is the natural beauty and the numerous UNESCO heritage sites, (such as the Torres del Paine National Park) combined with the recent investment in infrastructure on the island that is already baring fruitful results, which make Chiloé Island a destination worth visiting in 2012.

Even ranked 37 the island of Chiloé, in an area where it seems “the soil has been bashed by a gigantic club” (because of the insular territory), has an unusual wild life and an incredible natural beauty.

The 45 Places To Go In 2012

The New York Times; January 6 2012

1. Panama

Go for the canal. Stay for everything else.

It’s been 12 years since Panama regained control of its canal, and the country’s economy is booming. Cranes stalk the skyline of the capital, Panama City, where high-rises sprout one after the next and immigrants arrive daily from around the world. Among those who have landed en masse in recent years are American expatriates and investors, who have banked on Panamanian real estate by building hotels and buying retirement homes. The passage of the United States-Panama free trade agreement in October is expected to accelerate this international exchange of people and dollars (the countries use the same currency).

Among the notable development projects is the Panama Canal itself, which is in the early stages of a multibillion-dollar expansion. The project will widen and deepen the existing canal and add two locks, doubling the canal’s cargo capacity. For those who want to see the waterway as it was originally designed, now is the time. The expansion is expected to be completed by 2014, the canal’s 100-year anniversary.