In honor of my good friend Christine who is moving to Chile today, I wanted to write a post about her soon-to-be home- and more specifically, my favorite souvenirs from Chile.
Chile is a country rich in mountains, seafood, backyard barbecues and really sweet people. I have been there seven times due to a boyfriend I had back a while ago.
The other day I wrote a post about my favorite souvenirs. I decided to write another post altogether for my Chilean souvenirs, as there are so many to include. Here is what you should buy in Chile. Trust me on this.
1. Lapis lazuli
Lapis lazuli is a beautiful, azure stone that can only be found in Afghanistan and Chile. It’s inexpensive in Chile so pick up some lapis lazuli jewelry at the Lapis Lazuli House in Santiago, where I bought this pendant.
2. Greda
Like I’ve mentioned in other posts, I have a huge obsession with pottery. Greda is a Chilean clay that works well for cooking, and like cast-iron retains flavor over time. Many traditional Chilean dishes, such as pastel de choclo, should only be cooked in greda.
While you can buy greda is Santiago, the prices are often higly marked-up. The best place to buy it is Pomaire, a tiny town about an hour and a half from the center of Santiago. The town has one dirt road and shops with stacks and stacks of pottery. The pottery is very breakable so be careful on the ride home!
Note: This pig-faced bowl is called a chanchito and it’s good luck.
3. Ceramic animals
You will see these little ceramic animal figurines, including birds, frogs and elephants, all over Chile. I love this little blue horse… very Chilean and so cute!
4. Copper cookware
Chile is the world’s largest producer and exporter of copper. (It’s one of reasons Chile has the strongest economy in South America.) What does this mean for tourists like me and you? Inexpensive copper pots and pans! I bought this pan in Puerto Varas, Chile for only $40 USD.
5. Merquén
Merquén is one of my favorite spices, and yields a smoky, spicy flavor. It is used a traditional Chilean dish called curanto, a meat, seafood and potato stew. It’s hard to find in the U.S. (it seems to be the ONE spice the Spice House doesn’t stock!) so it’s a good idea to bring some back from Chile.
6. Wine
Chilean wine is good. Very, very good. I prefer Chile’s Carmenere to Argentina’s Malbec because it’s much less tannic. While I don’t know much about wine, I do know this- bring home some good Chilean wines like Casillero del Diabo or Concha y Toro and your friends will be happy.
Note: Chilean beer is also delicious due to a large influx of Germans after WWII (They were absolutely not Nazis, mind you). My favorites are Austral and Kuntzmann Miel.
7. Neruda paraphenalia
This is a box I bought at Isla Negra, one of the three homes of eccentric and brilliant Chilean poet and Nobel Prize Winner, Pablo Neruda. His symbol is the fish emblem on this box because he loved the sea more than anything else. His house in Isla Negra has a room exclusively designated for antique mermaid figureheads.
I would highly recommending any of his three homes; La Chascona in Santiago, La Sebastiana in Valparaiso and Isla Negra.
Me at Isla Negra after Delta PERMANENTLY lost my luggage. Please don’t hate on my hot outfit.
Ashley
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Need to buy small hummingbird figurine (quartz) with bronze beek in lapis stone. I bought one im Santiago Chile in a bazaar and wanted to purchase another. Any thoughts or websites that u can suggest??
That tiny horse is adorable! The copper pans sound like a great souvenir too, although I need to hear your packing secrets if you got that into a backpack! ;)
Haha I wish! I was always down in Chile for a couple weeks at at time to visit my then-boyfriend, so I would just pack things in my suitcase and fly home. But I admit, I have backpacked with pottery- my obsession knows few bounds.
Pick up a jersey from the Chilean national team or one of several Chilean teams like Colo-Colo or La Universidad de Chile.
Hi Ashley, soon it will be my first time in Chile and I found your souvenir suggestion list very interesting, professional and cute… on my way back home I will be able to tell also how useful it was! Many wishes for your professional and personal life…
Thanks so much! Glad you found it useful :)
Hi Ashley, I am back to Italy after a short stay in Santiago. As I had supposed, Your souvenir list turned out to be a real beacon, as I bought a Neruda box (identical to the one you pictured, although I bought it at “La Chascona”) for my daughter, merken for my son, a copper bell for my wife and a sackful of rough lapislazuli for myself. I thank you SO much and hope to read more from you – I am a geologist and love travelling, so please send me reprints of your articles I might be interested to! Cheers, Dario
So glad to hear you found this helpful! I LOVED La Chascona, as well as all of Neruda’s homes. Ah, I miss Chile!
Thanks Ashley for the info,
As a Chilean living in Australia I was struggling to get some sovenirs for my friends, thanks, now I have got clear what to take with me .
I’m glad to hear it! :)