Santiago’s impressions of the Russian YouTuber who traveled the entire surface of metro line 1

“For me, it’s like a devil forgotten in an attic. It’s full of interesting things, but you have to investigate and discover this city, because most of these secrets are very well kept.” .

With these words Andrei Sokolov (31) describes Santiago, the city where he arrived eight years ago to pursue his dream of residing in another country. What didn’t occur to him at that time was that, some time later, he would have his own YouTube channel dedicated to the capital: Encyclopedia of Santiago .

In this space which already has nearly 120 thousand subscribers, the journalist and content creator invites you to learn more about the architecture, urban planning and historical value of the Chilean city . “Santiago is a treasure. We must not forget that he has a unique peculiarity and spirit,” said the YouTuber. The third .

Andrei was born in the city of Rybinsk although he lived for several years in St. Petersburg, where he studied journalism at the university. From the first years of his career, he worked in various media, even becoming a news anchor for the Russian National Television .

But in 2014, he felt like leaving his job and his home country. He was motivated by two reasons: first, he had graduated, and second, he did not agree with the political and social processes taking place in Russia. Accompanied by his partner, he packed his bags and set off on a seven-month journey through Southeast Asia.

“The idea was born to live for a while in another country to gain the experience of knowing another culture and learning another language. In other words, live an adventure,” says the communicator.

This goal coincided with the offer of a position on Chinese national television for its Russian service. Andrei and his partner spent months waiting for their papers to live in this Asian country, until they finally realized that they did not want to continue wasting time in this process. They had to find a new destination.

After surfing the Internet, Andrei ended up selecting three Latin American countries in which he wanted to live: Chile, Brazil and Argentina . Among the first, he was struck by the geographical variety it presented from north to south.

Just two weeks later, in February 2016, they set foot in Chile for the first time. “It was a very quick decision. We arrived and for both of us it was love at first sight. I immediately fell in love with Santiago. For me it was a surprise, because I didn’t expect it.” ” says the content creator, who then decided to stay in the country permanently.

The pandemic, as for many people, has been a difficult time for Andrei. “I am one of those people who cannot sit still. I also understood that what I am passionate about is creating content, since I am a television journalist, I need to do it,” he says.

Another of his great passions is the architecture and urban planning of all the cities he visits. “On every trip I do a little research. I always like to know beyond the tourist, walk through hidden streets, see the transport system, know the more residential neighborhoods, which have nothing to do with tourist places, find cafes or restaurants that only locals know”, Add.

All this, added to his love for the Chilean capital, led him to create the YouTube channel Enciclopedia de Santiago. His first video, released in March 2021, was dedicated to the emblematic neighborhood of Cocha y Toro, whose architectural style and historical value Andrei highlights.

Today, thanks to the rapid growth of his channel, Andrei devotes himself exclusively to content creation. The hidden palaces of the Alameda, the transformations of the Santiago metro, the stories of abandoned buildings and the construction of new stadiums are just some of the topics he has covered in his viral videos.

In early July, Andrei set a new mission for his channel: walk the entire surface of line 1 of the Santiago metro The challenge was not surprising, since from the San Pablo station to Los Dominicos there is a distance of more than 20 kilometers.

“I wanted to show how the city evolves along the route and highlight the importance of the underground transport we have. I explained the idea to a friend, he told me I was crazy but he decided to accompany me anyway,” says the Russian YouTuber.

The journey began at 11 a.m. at the San Pablo train station, located in the municipality of Lo Prado. However, he had not even been walking for half an hour when some individuals tried to attack him near the Neptuno station.

“Until now, I have a bruise on my left eye that reminds me of that warm encounter. They attacked us while we were in Neptuno Park, in broad daylight. With my friend who accompanied me on this adventure, we have some experience, so we managed to defend ourselves,” he says.

Andrei did not let this episode discourage him and continued walking until he reached his goal. At the central station he took a little time to get to the bus terminal, arriving at La Moneda he quickly visited the crypt of Bernardo O’Higgins and in Los Leones he stopped for a ramen lunch. As he moved through each municipality, he also noticed how the scene could change in details such as debris, smells, street commerce and green spaces.

“The difference in the quality of the urban infrastructure between Lo Prado and the Central Station, compared to the rest of the route, is evident. “Each municipality has its problems that can be explained by multiple factors, but coherent measures are needed to improve the urban life of the people who live and work in these spaces. argues the YouTuber.

And how long did it take in total? According to what he described in the video of his trip, when he arrived in Los Dominicos it was 7:17 p.m., that is, He walked for a little over 8 hours, including breaks. The distance traveled was 21.86 kilometers during which he took more than 31,000 steps.

Andrei thinks that in the future he could repeat the same challenge, but with other metro lines. “When we take the subway, we go from station to station and we don’t think about what these places look like on the surface. But it allows us to get to know their neighborhoods, their municipalities, their differences and their similarities better. he concludes.