Around the World: Chile
Chile is one of the longest countries in the world. For a bicyclist to ride the length of Chile would require 20 days of riding around 32 miles per day.
Chile is a hotspot for earthquakes due to its location within the Ring of Fire. This fact may have you rethinking your trip. However, you can be assured that, because this Latin American country is so earthquake-prone, it has some of the best structural engineering and seismic building codes globally.
The Atacama Desert, located in northern Chile, is one of the driest places in the world. To put this into perspective, the Atacama Desert receives less than 0.47 inches of rain per year. Furthermore, there are areas of this desert that go hundreds of years without receiving any rain at all.
On the other hand, Chile is home to the world’s largest swimming pool. The famous pool which cost $2 billion to build is located in the city of Algarrobo. You may want to take along a boat if you plan on paying the pool a visit.
Chile has around 2,900 volcanoes. We mentioned that Chile is within the Ring of Fire. This location that experiences a high number of earthquakes is home to many active volcanoes as well.
Chile currently ranks as the 27th safest country on the planet. It is usually considered the safest country in South America, together with Uruguay.
The seasons in South America are the reverse of that in the Northern Hemisphere, meaning that in Chile summer falls between December and February and winter between June and August.
Chile has been one of Latin America's fastest-growing economies in recent decades, enabling the country to significantly reduce poverty. However, more than 30% of the population is economically vulnerable and income inequality remains high.