Chile is a long, narrow country in the southwest of South America. It’s actually the longest and narrowest country in the world! An easy way to remember what the country looks like is to think of a long chilli pepper. If you look at Chile on the map you will see it shares borders with Peru, Bolivia and Argentina. 


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The capital of the country is Santiago and the language they speak is Spanish. Chile used to be a Spanish colony. Do you remember how to say hello in Spanish?... Hola!

Over 18 million people live in Chile.

Chile is a beautiful country with amazing landscapes to explore. The Atacama Desert is in the north, it’s the driest place on Earth, sometimes it doesn’t rain for years!


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The south is the opposite. There you can find the Chilean Patagonia which has glaciers and icebergs. 

The highest mountain in the country is, in fact, the peak of a volcano, it’s called Ojos del Salado and it’s 22.572 feet (6,880m) high.

The Loa River is the longest river in the country, covering a distance of 440 km. 

Some amazing animals you can see in Chile are the puma, cougar, guanaco (a llama-like animal) and rhea, which is a huge flightless bird like the ostrich. It’s one of the largest birds in South America.

You can also find pelicans, penguins, otters and sea lions.

Wow! Chile is an amazing place, let’s find out more.

 

What is Chile like?

Because Chile is so long, the weather and landscape is completely different from north to south. The north has deserts and tropical areas whereas the south is subantarctic. The centre of the country has a more Mediterranean climate which has mild, wet winters and warm to hot, dry summers.  

In the east of the country, you can find the spectacular Andes mountains. There are also many volcanoes in Chile and some of them are active, they can explode at any time. The country also has earthquakes and tsunamis.

 

Colours of the flag

The flag of Chile is blue, white and red.

 

Major Cities

Santiago - the capital city of Chile. It has the biggest building in South America, Costanera Center. You can also find the president here at La Moneda Palace. 

Valparaiso - on the coast of the Pacific Ocean, this city is a beautiful place full of colourful houses, street artists and musicians.

 

What is Chile famous for?

Chile is famous for the Atacama desert, Easter Islands and beautiful landscapes.