'One of your passions is sailing. Associating it with your fascination with Latin America and Chile, I assume that sailing around Cape Horn is already among your sailing achievements.’
Jędrzej Jachira, PhD, Honorary Consul of Chile in Wroclaw: ‘It is still ahead of me, I am planning such a trip with my wife. But already now I am co-organising a voyage in August this year, over which I will have patronage as honorary consul. A group of my friends will sail from Argentina on the Selma yacht.’
‘Cape Horn is a goal for many sailors. It is a legendary place for sailing, which requires knowledge, courage and, most importantly, humility. The best sailors visiting this region south of Chile always point out particularly difficult conditions and weather surprises.
The second goal of the participants of the trip will be a downhill ski ride from icebergs. August will be a winter month on the southern hemisphere.’
‘Wroclaw is located over 14,000 km away from Tierra del Fuego, the southernmost trip of Chile. How to find common topics, phenomena and challenges for points so remote on the globe?’
‘I look for common features in the attitude of people. Chile is a geographically and topographically specific place. The cultural openness of the Chilean is also a typical trait of Wroclaw inhabitants who arrived here from various regions of pre-war Poland and formed a cultural melting pot. The same goes for Chile: we have an Indian minority (the native Mapuche), but also many national, Creole and European connections. Chile is a pearl on the map of South America from a social and economic perspective.’
‘Where would you send the residents of Wroclaw who are considering a trip to South America?’
‘It is important that, in the context of safety, Chile is on a very high level when compared to other regions of South and Central America. It is free of things that occur in some other countries, such as large favelas, kidnappings or criminal cartels.’
‘I would recommend a trip along Chile also because it is a very diverse country. For example, you can go skiing in resorts with high-level infrastructure and service that are located over 3,000 metres above sea level.
You will find there great conditions for mountain biking. The choices of professional riders enchanted with this region confirm that it is an ideal place for those who love this sport. We have an example of such relations in Wroclaw – our freerider Szymon Godziek prepared for Red Bull Rampage in Chile.
You can find there also great places for trekking and astronomical observatories, including one of the most famous Atacama Desert, where a Polish scientific centre functions.
If you go south of Santiago de Chile, you can taste exquisite wines, for example, in the Colchagua Valley. You can also choose beautiful beaches and relish the pleasure of Chilean summer. This country offers lots of tourist attractions. Chile has recently won a World Travel Award (called an Oscar of tourism) among countries with greatest natural attractions. And it is not the first distinction of this kind.
You can travel there with little children. I am going to Chile with my wife and our six-year-old son in May; we are planning a trek and a camper ride towards Tierra del Fuego.’
‘What can the Chilean look for in Wroclaw?’
‘The Chilean minority comprises around 20 persons; other South American nations also have their representatives here. These people arrived a long time ago; there are also entrepreneurs and scientists among them.
Newcomers will find the essence of the openness of Europeans to cultural diversity and great hospitality – something that our region and the Chilean have in common. Access to various kinds of cultural niches that are typical of Lower Silesia.’
‘Do other non-tourist relations occur, too?’
‘Of course. Take, for example, an investment made by the biggest Polish copper company in Sierra Gorda in Chile. Chile is a country with an exceptionally large number of totally cloudless days, hence the growing interest of Polish companies in co-operating with local entrepreneurs from the power sector and the renewable energy source sector.
Exquisite wines, high-quality vegetables and seafood are what Chile can offer to Europeans. There are Polish companies for which relations with producers from Chile became a starting point to build a high position. We also export our goods to Chile.
A growing number of persons arrive from Chile in search of business opportunities, and Polish investors also think of building such relations, in which I actively participate as consul.’
‘What made you think of becoming the consul of China in Wroclaw?’
‘This is a consequence of many meetings, relations and events in which I took part. Firstly, it was my fascination with Ibero-American culture, the history of this region and everything connected with this part of the world. One of the inspirations was the co-operation with Mateusz Mazzini – a great Polish reporter and expert on Latin America, the author of a sensational book Koniec tęczy. Chile po Pinochecie [The End of the Rainbow. Chile after Pinochet].
I maintained friendly relations with the Chilean diplomatic corps and the Corps of Honorary Consuls. In the summer of 2023, I even took part in a sailing regatta on the Baltic under the Chilean flag that ended in the first place on the podium for a Chilean team.
Being the youngest honorary consul in Poland, I am planning to organise meetings and various events connected not only with South and Central America, although I will focus on this region, but also with diplomatic and international relations within the scope of economy, culture and business.’
