FACTS ABOUT CHILE

AMAZING FACTS ABOUT CHILE

1.                 Santiago is the capital city of Chile.

2.                 The total population of Chile is 17,650,114.

3.                 Chile shares a border with Peru, Bolivia and Argentina.

4.                 The Peso (CLP) is the official currency of Chile.

5.                 The natives of Chile are called Chileans.

6.                 Chile is the longest country in the world from north to south at 2,647 miles.

7.                 6,000 fireworks were exploded in the Chilean city of Valparaiso in 2007. This remains a Guinness World Record.

8.               \ One of the world’s lowest divorce rates is in Chile. Divorce was only legalized in 2005.

9.                 Pisco is Chile’s national drink. It is home grown in the country, and made with a mixture of a few different ingredients

10.             You can also find the world’s driest desert in Chile. This place has not seen even a single drop of rain since record-keeping began.

11.             The largest anthropomorphic figure in the world is also located in Chile at Cerro (119 m high).

12.             Chile hosted the 1962 FIFA World Cup, and tennis is their most successful sport.

13.             Fernando Gonzalez is a famous tennis player from Chile.

14.             Outside of Spain, Chile has the largest library, containing 1.8-million volumes.

15.             Many of Chile’s more than 1300 volcanoes can be active.

16.             You can spot 4000 years old trees in Chile’s southern region. They are mostly of the amazingly long-lived Alerce tree species.

17.             The biggest earthquake ever recorded on earth, measuring 9.5 on the Richter scale, hit Chile in 1900. The catastrophe killed more than 1500 people and left 2000 homeless.

18.             Chile was hit by an earthquake again in 2010, this time with a magnitude of 8.8. However, not many people were killed.

19.             The country has strict building codes in urban areas to prevent loss of life due to natural disasters.

20.             Puerto Williams in Chile is the southernmost village in the world.

21.             One of the highest lakes above sea level (4520 m), Lake Chungara, is in Chile.

22.             In 1818 Chile gained independence from Spain.

23.             In august 2010, the collapse of the San Jose mine in Chile caused the trapping of 33 miners 2000 feet below ground. Rigorous, safety-conscious efforts were made to successfully retrieve the affected miners. A small borehole was drilled by rescuers to provide food, liquids, lights, and send notes to and from the mine. All of the trapped miners were successfully rescued after almost 70 days.

24.             Chileans refer to their land as a “country of poets.”

25.             The world’s largest swimming pool is in Chile.

26.             Penguins are found in Chile, in addition to Antarctica. With almost 12,000 breeding pairs in the country, ‘Humboldt Penguins’ can be seen on the north coast of Chile.

27.             At 6500 km in length, the Chilean coastline is one of the world’s longest. And it is also one of the worlds narrowest – with a width of just over 200 km.

28.             Chile is home to the oldest ever known mummy. It was a ‘Chinchorro mummy’ found in the Camarones Valley in 5050 BC.

29.             To date, 282 such mummies have been found in the country.

30.             Chile has five UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

31.             Chile is devoid of poisonous snakes.

32.             Chile is the number-one exporter of Salmon.

33.             Reportedly, numerous UFOs have been sighted in Chile. The government also sponsors research on UFOs.

34.             Chile has one of the highest rates of working hours in the world.

35.               Michael Jackson visited Chile On October 18, 1993, for the first and only time in his lifetime.

36.             It is one of the world’s largest producers of copper.

37.             The Pudu, which is the world’s smallest deer, is found in Chile.

38.             Chile Exports: copper, fruit, fish products, paper and pulp, chemicals and wine.

39.             Chile Imports: petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals, electrical and telecommunications equipment, industrial machinery, vehicles and natural gas.

40.             The internet country code for Chile is .cl.