February 26, 2025

When I visit a new port there are a few things that I try to do if time allows. I like to visit the local church, browse through the neighborhood supermarket and if close by walk through the town’s cemetery. Cemetaries are also free until you die and then they can get quite expensive! And if taking a taxi try to engage as much as possible with the taxi driver. All of these activities teach me a lot about a community’s past and present.

In the towns we have visited like Punta Arenas in Chile I found a similarity in the churches that I saw. First, they were wooden churches with fine craftsmanship. Most were built during the 18th and 19th centuries, yet all remained structurally sound and vital parts of their communities. Some were so impressive in design that they were designated UNESCO world heritage sites.

The church’s exteriors all had a common theme. St. Mary’s roof resembled an inverted boat hull reveling that the builders must have spent time at sea. Our Lady of Sorrows was interesting because the wooden pillars are painted to look like marble demonstrating an ability to utilize basic materials in a unique way. It had what church architects call a telescoping steeple requiring precise and exacting craftsmanship. And all resembled the churches that I have seen that are common along the Rhine River in Germany.

Another area that I felt a European influence is when Chongae and I went for lunch. We visited a small restaurant and as the photo below shows if it weren’t for the Chilian flag you would have thought we had taken lunch in Austria, Switzerland or Germany. The sheep gazed peacefully in the meadow outside the restaurant.

Talk about a “farm to plate” restaurant. Those grazing sheep were soon to join their cousins who had relocated to a wood burning stove. And make no mistake about it although the surroundings resembled Europe, we were in Chilian Gaucho Country as reinforced by the bolas hanging on the wall. Skilled Gauchos swing bolas to capture animals by entangling their legs.

By reputation the quintessential gaucho was Juan Manuel de Rosas who could throw his hat on the ground and scoop it up while galloping his horse, without touching the saddle with his hand. Pretty amazing!

But where did all the Germanic influence come from?

I did some research and found out that in 1848 the Chilian government offered free land to those who would come and homestead in Chile. The industrial revolution had ended in Germany, it was overcrowded, and German pioneers set sail for Chile. Who came? Craftsman, farmers, educators, well educated professionals who forever transformed the region.

The Germans biggest influence was in education where Chile became the envy of all of South America. In Germany, because of its mountainous rural environment children were sent to government run reginal boarding schools for their primary education. This system was adapted in Chile and is still in place today. It is not until the beginning of high school when children return home to attend local high schools. The end result of this system is that it produces children who are disciplined and mature by the time they reach the start of high school. And I was told that because it is part of their culture young children enjoy their boarding school experience having fun with friends, enjoying extracurricular activities and developing lifelong friendships.

Thanks for traveling with us.