Surely, you will be interested to learn about our company from the clients we work with. Why they chose Chile, their experience in medicine, the language barrier, prices, transatlantic flights, people and Chilean dogs.
In this regard, we decided to open the Chile Kids Interview section. Meet the charming Rina Shaekhova, and the first question:
— We are really glad to see you in Chile and visiting our blog! Please, tell us how you came to give birth in Chile?
— All my adult life I liked learning something new, developing and finding myself, broadening my mind. Traveling without stopping for a minute, learning languages, meeting new interesting people! It is not surprising that at 30 I found myself on the edge of the Earth! In a friendly and beautiful country – Chile. Together with my husband Timur, we decided to give birth to our superman here. That’s what we call our first baby, since he hasn’t been born yet, but he already flies around the world and does good deeds.
— What is your and your husband’s occupation?
— We and our partner have our own Printing House. We come from a harsh, industrial city of workers – Chelyabinsk. We are interested in printing souvenirs and printed products, graphic design and programming.
— If we put aside love to travel… Why did you make a decision to give birth in Chile and not in the USA or Canada?
— It is an often asked question to us. I won’t hide that we considered for a long time a huge number of countries for childbirth: hot Indonesia and its world-famous clinic in Bali, diverse Mexico, sunny Spain, childbirth in the USA and others.
We chose Chile because we didn’t just want to give birth in comfort, as it would have been in Bali or any developed European country, we wanted to give the child dual citizenship so that our son would have a choice and freedom of action from birth!
Not all countries, as it is known, grant citizenship at birth and Chile is one of the few countries that grants citizenship to a child and many other advantages, such as good ecology and excellent medicine.
A Chilean passport opens the door to almost all countries in the world without a visa. The child, upon reaching adulthood, is not obliged to pay taxes, as is customary in the USA. He is not obliged to serve in the army under duress. But he can get an education and medicine in his second home country and travel the world almost without restrictions.
— What are your general impressions of the country? Prices, people, life…
— My impressions of the country are mixed. But the positive side definitely outweighs the negative. First, about the negatives. I’ll say right away that I’m a pretty picky person and of the 9 countries we’ve visited so far, I didn’t like all of them.
I didn’t like the capital of Chile – Santiago. It is a purely subjective opinion, for sure, but I’m talking about my life. The capital is incredibly noisy and bustling, but also dirty in places.
The prices are comparatively higher than in Russia. We’re used to the fact that for 7,000 rubles, for example, we can buy the necessary products for a week, but here you’ll need almost 1.5-2 times more, especially if you’re a meat eater.
We, people whose work is also done via the Internet, were unpleasantly surprised by the relatively low Internet speed and high cost.
Another thing I didn’t like is that you can’t swim. It seems like a small thing and the pools save it, it’s not for nothing that Chile has the largest pool in the world, San Alfonso in Algarrobo, 1013 meters long. It’s no surprise that it was created in Chile! Because the water in the ocean is cold. The cold Humboldt Current straight from Antarctica ruined all dreams of swimming. However, I see that surfers are not at all afraid of this.
That’s probably all! In my opinion, there are disadvantages, but they are not critical. There are many more advantages!
I liked the climate and nature. How can you not like nature? These are magnificent reserves with clean, unpolluted lakes and an abundance of greenery, despite the cold nature, the ocean is still incredibly beautiful.
What sunsets there are! Of course, the majestic Andes Mountains and much more… I can probably tell you about it in a multi-part interview.
I really liked the local medicine. Everything is at a high, decent level, to put it briefly.
Oh, people here..! They often smile, rush to help you at the first opportunity, apologize, even if they touched you just a little. They constantly say hello and goodbye. I won’t generalize, there are exceptions in every country. But in common, I very rarely encountered that, when entering public transport, people politely greet, smile, give up their seats to absolutely all the old ladies and say goodbye when exiting. Well, I rarely encountered this in my city! Maybe in other cities it is different? Therefore… the friendliness of the Chileans pleasantly surprised me.
— Did anything else seem unusual in Chile?
— The attitude towards animals made me laugh and I was pleased. I love our smaller brothers with all my heart and my soul was torn apart when I saw skinny homeless dogs, which no one needs and which sometimes even try to kick or cause other harm. I have helped and help kennels for dogs and cats.
Here, the attitude towards street animals, I would say, is no different from the attitude towards pets. When Chileans meet them, they always pet them, smile, play with them, give them food. Even when a homeless (please note, not skinny) dog is lying in someone’s sheepskin coat and is blocking the way, they just carefully step over it.
— At what stage did you go to Chile? How was the flight?
— We arrived at 29 weeks of pregnancy, as this was the period recommended by the doctor. Airlines also do not particularly like to let pregnant women in after 32 weeks.
The flight went well, I felt great. The only thing is that my legs go numb and it is uncomfortable to sit. Therefore, I recommend that mothers take compression stockings/tights and a comfortable blanket/pillow on the flight.
After the transatlantic flight.
Rina and Timur at the lake in the Chilean park.
— Have you been observed at a women’s consultation in your country? What can you say about the comparison of it with Chilean women’s consultations?
—I was observed at a private, fairly good clinic. I liked everything! Cleanliness, service, attentive doctors, meticulous tests. Only they called me in very often for an appointment (as I now understand) for any reason and without. I got a highly qualified doctor. We discussed every moment of my pregnancy with him in detail.
Here in Chile, I can’t say whether it’s good or bad, but after examining me for the first time and receiving my fresh test results, the doctors didn’t call me for an appointment more often than once every 2 weeks! Or even less often.
I’m just enjoying my pregnancy at home, walking by the ocean. The Chilean doctor’s attitude towards me also surprised me a little, she talked to me as if we had known each other for many years. She was sincerely happy (almost clapping her hands) when she saw my good test results. Is that how it’s done here in Chile, I guess? It surprises and worries us Russians at first. You expect a catch everywhere. But there isn’t one. They just smile at you. Just hug you. Just kiss you when they say goodbye. It’s that simple!
— How did you look for a clinic for childbirth in Chile? Did you like the local medicine?
— We looked at several clinics – a clinic in Viña-del-Mar and a clinic in Reñaca. There are good clinics. I like our private ones – clean, beautiful, the mother in labor has a shower in a separate room, a TV and even a fold-out sofa for the father. Nothing out of the ordinary.
But we want to give birth at home, it is not prohibited in Chile. Not everyone is suitable for home birth, every woman should have the right to choose. I will only say one thing that in clinics of all countries all actions are performed “according to protocol”, that is, as prescribed in the documents. Epidural anesthesia, oxytocin, cesarean section, episiotomy – all these things are not always necessary. Only in certain cases. But, unfortunately, doctors in Russia, Chile, Argentina or the USA often act according to a “simplified” scenario for them and not what is best for a particular mother and child.
I do not want to offend any doctor and do not presume to evaluate all of them equally, there are different cases, of course, and different opinions. I am of the opinion that if a woman has good tests, everything is moving according to the great plan of nature and there is a highly qualified specialist next to her – a woman is capable of natural childbirth on her own! Without any interventions such as “puncture of the bladder”, pain relief and cesarean section.
This is exactly what my husband and I want – natural childbirth. Just in case, for our own peace of mind, we know that there is a clinic very close to our house.
Рина и Тимур, родившие сына в Чили
How do you like the country itself? Have you managed to visit the tourist places? Where do you live?
Yes! We saw some sights: Santa Lucia and San Cristobal hills, Plaza de Armas, visited several nature reserves.
We live in the city of Concon and admire the ocean from our window. We often walk, do sports (there is exercise equipment both in the house and on the streets), swim in the pool, which is also located in our house, on the first floor.
I really like the place where we live now. It’s clean! It smells delicious, you can hear the ocean, there is a lot of greenery, palm trees and there are no huge crowds of people.
I am in love with the Viña-del-Mar embankment, where people leisurely stroll along the ocean on a paved road. The city is buried in greenery and flowers!
— How do you cope with the language barrier? After all, everyone speaks Spanish!
— That’s a funny question! While traveling, I got used to the fact that in almost all countries English is recognized as the second official language and is understood everywhere.
There are few English speakers in Chile. We don’t know Spanish, so it was hard at first and without the support of the Chile Kids company, as well as people who know everything about Chile, it would have been so hard! Now, living here for the second month, we have adapted a little and even learned a couple of simple phrases. But still, when the conversation turns to a more interesting topic, you involuntarily want to switch to English. At the moment, we had a fun conversation with some taxi drivers who know English.
Беременность на пляжах Чили. Рина
— How did you find out about Chile Kids?
— We found it almost by accident, on a forum on Facebook. If my husband was still considering other options, I was immediately won over by the sincerity, literacy, intelligence and, I would even say, warmth of your company.
No one has ever provided us with such detailed and kind consultations as Danis from Chile Kids. There were detailed consultations with other companies. But sometimes I had to pull out information almost with pliers. Danis immediately began to explain all the subtleties and details, knowing in advance what I was worried about. Sometimes he attached importance to even such trifles that it involuntarily amused me.
I want to thank God, fate, luck – that we met such kind and sympathetic people on our life path. As well as I wish the Chile Kids company that their noble cause develops and that they never lose their human attitude towards their clients.
Thank you very much, Rina! We wish you the most magical pregnancy in the world and an easy childbirth!
