Patagonia 8K

watch the amazing landscapes of southern Chile and Argentina:

birds-eye view of Valparaíso, Chile

album of chilean masters

a painting by Pedro Lira. I am collecting artworks by chilean masters in a new album at Flickr, think that they- painters and works (my favorites) -  deserve an easy-to-find site where revise and admire them.

downtown Iquique, Chile // centro de Iquique

an old work, from 2007. it was really fun to draw the core of this warm chilean city on the Pacific. want more jobs like this!

Valparaíso drawings // dibujos de Valparaíso

Gran Bretaña Ave., on Playa Ancha hill,
southern Valparaíso, Chile

those who like my takes of  Valparaíso streets and corners, can go here to revise all the images made until now. there they are and I promise more to come. keep in touch! 

opening the week with the Port

port of Valparaíso, Chile. photo by Igor I. Solar

this time I want to start the week remembering the city where I was born and grew up. It's the port of Valparaíso, in the south-american Chile.
Chile is a very long and narrow country on the Pacific ocean, it's geography goes from the high altiplanic, desertic environment in the north to the antarctic, snowy, cold south, with all the grays through the thousands kilometers the country runs towards the southern pole.
in the middle, the port of Valparaíso, which the chileans call simply 'The Port', so people who live there are 'porteños'. they call it 'Pancho' also, due to a similarity the city has with the american San Francisco (Pancho is a spanish nickname for Francisco). (personally, I found it a lot more similar to the port of Haifa, in Israel).
but, I leave you with this nice article I found in the net about the Port. with a video, a bunch of excellent photographies and for sure, in better english. enjoy it!

Plaza Anibal Pinto, Valparaíso

in an old CD found this image. a photo I took in 2008 in Valparaíso, Chile. 

it's part of Plaza Anibal Pinto, a central place in downtown Valparaiso. plenty of cafes and restaurants, among them, the traditional Cafe Riquet (at the corner) and El Cafe del Poeta, related to chilean Nobel prize writer Pablo Neruda.

that's all. only wanted to share with you.

la chancha from Valparaiso

those who grew up in Valparaiso, Chile, know "la chancha" a very unusual play for children. of course it is very dangerous also. there is: a cultural expression from the times when children played outside home, in the street. when fun came from their own inventiveness and imagination.

the guy in the drawing is an adult - to make it funnier, because under the weight of a grown up earthling 'la chancha' became like a russian roulette.

coast of Chile images - part 2

yesterday I was talking about the excellent photography web site of Stéfan Lébesque and Carlos Álvarez in relation to a collection of photos shot by Stéfan in Chile's central coast.

today, Stéfan posted a second bunch of his Chile's coast images. a must see, and the web site itself 100% worth a follow.

coast of Chile images

Stéfan Lévesque shares a wonderful photography web site with Carlos Álvarez: texts, haikus and superb images.
days ago, Stéfan published a collection of photos of the Chilean central coast. colorful, perfect composition, full of air and light. enjoy them!

Happy Birthday Chile!

* my quick greetings for Chile in it's 200th birthday!

* ¡mis rápidos saludos a Chile en su cumpleaños 200!

flora and fauna from Chile - huiña

* the huiña, guiña, also called kodkod and "gato colorado" (red cat) is the smallest wild feline in South America. it's a forest inhabitant from central Chile to the very south, including the Patagonia. currently is under moderate danger, principally because the destruction of it's habitat.

* la huiña, guiña, kodkod o gato colorado es el felino salvaje más pequeño de Sudamérica. habita los bosques de Chile central hasta el extremo sur, incluyendo la Patagonia. en la actualidad se halla bajo peligro moderado, principalmente debido a la destrucción de su habitat.

flora and fauna from Chile - merluza

* the "merluza" (pron. merlootza) is a sea fish which inhabits almost all the chilean coast, from the very north to southern Chiloé island. it's an edible exquisite fish. it lives at litoral waters between 50 to no more than 500 mt. deep. beyond north Chile there is a sub-species which inhabites the cost of Perú, Merluccius gayi peruanus.
in Flickr I posted a bigger version of this image.

* la merluza es un pez marino que habita practicamente toda la costa chilena, desde el norte hasta la isla de Chiloé al sur. es un exquisito pez comestible. vive en las aguas litorales entre los 50 y 500 mts. de profundidad. hacia el norte existe una sub-especie que habita la costa peruana, Merluccius gayi peruanus.
en Flickr he posteado una imagen más grande de este dibujo.

Chile 200 - teaser for the Bicentennial

* this a 2nd design for the celebrations of Chile's Bicentennial. as the former one, it's rights-free and can be use for non-profit goals, only indicating the source. in Flickr there is a bigger version. slogan says: "The Richness of a Country is it's Diversity".

* un 2do diseño para las celebraciones de Bicentenario en Chile. como el anterior, también puede ser usado gratis, no con fines comerciales, sólo indicando la fuente. en Flickr hay una versión más grande.

celebrating Chile's Bicentennial

* a quick drawing to celebrate the Chile's Bicentennial this month of September. the image is rights free and you can use it in the way you want, only indicating the source and for no-business goals. in Flickr you can find a bigger version of it.

* ayer publiqué este rápido dibujo en celebración del Bicentenario de Chile este mes de Septiembre. la imagen es libre de derechos y puedes usarla como quieras, sólo indicando la fuente y sin fines comerciales. en Flickr hay una versión más grande.

Valparaíso side streets

Valparaíso - view from a hill

walking down the hill

◆ memories from those times when I lived in Valparaíso, Chile.

◆ recuerdos de Valparaíso, Chile, cuando caminaba bajando el cerro.

city of Iquique, Chile

■ illustration showing downtown Iquique, a northern chilean city, on Pacific ocean coast. it appeared some time ago in Breiq magazine.

■ dibujo del centro de Iquique, que apareció un tiempo atrás en la revista Breiq.

Urriola st., Valparaíso, Chile

■ the street winds down from cactus to sea

■ la calle serpentea desde el cactus al mar