The view from an apartment building in eastern Santiago. Photo by Odette Magnet.
The smog is awful in Santiago this time of year, but when you can see the snow-capped Andes in the distance the Chilean capital is a delight. CNN International has just given it third place, behind Shanghai and Tokyo, in its list of the world’s ten most loved cities.
“There are bigger Carnivals and Tango festivals on the other side of the Andes, but would Buenos Aires or Rio look nearly this poised after being rocked 28 centimeters to the left by an 8.8 earthquake?” the report asks. It calls Santiago “South America’s version of every fine North American left coast city, “except with nicer weather than Vancouver, happier music than Seattle, sexier cafes than Portland, better bar hours and caipirinha prices than L.A. and cooler-looking people in gray suits and shades than San Francisco.”
http://www.cnngo.com/explorations/life/10-most-loved-cities-068149?page=0%252C1,1
Notes on the Americas 