Sailing in Chile

Located along the Pacific coast of South America, Chile is a narrow, skinny country that borders with Peru in the north, and Bolivia and Argentina in the east, to the Pacific in the west, and to the Antarctic in the south. A ribbon of land, 4200 km (2610 miles) long and nowhere more than 180 km (115 miles) wide.The country exercises sovereignty over a number of islands off the coast, including the Juan Fernández Islands and Easter Island. 

With a surface area of 756.096 square kilometers, Chile has 14.7 million inhabitants,  4.3 million of them concentrated to the capital of the country, Santiago. 80% of the population is urban-based. 

Politically, Chile is divided in 12 regions, including the Antarctic territory, plus the metropolitan region. 

The official language of Chile is Spanish, and its currency the Chilean peso. Chile is a mestizo country, of mixed European and indigenous extraction, and the indigenous tradition is still visible in several parts of the country. Chile's literacy rate is one of Latin America's highest. Nearly 90% of the Chileans are Roman Catholic, but there exists a freedom of religious expression here. 

Chilean people are friendly and hospitable to foreigners. The economy is strong, and the police are trustworthy. This, together with the incredible beauty of its geography, and the well developed transport system, make this country a very attractive destination for all travellers.

The Andes and a coastal highland range take up one-third or half of the width in parts, and run parallel with each other from north to south.The coastal range forms high, sloped cliffs into the sea from the northern to the central area. Between the ranges runs a fertile valley, except in the north where transverse ranges join the two major ones, and in the far south where the sea has broken through the coastal range to form an assortment of archipelagos and channels.

The country contains wide variations of soil and vast differences of climate. This is reflected in the distribution of the population, and in the wide range of occupations from area to area. The northern part of the country consists mainly of the Atacama Desert, the driest in the world. It is also the main mining area. The central zone is predominantly agricultural. The south is forested and contains some agriculture; further south, the forests on the Atlantic side give way to rolling grassland on which sheep and cattle are raised.