Empanadas to Empanadas

Disclaimer: I am part Colombian, and often make the mistake of comparing Chile to Colombia (Yes, they speak a variation of the same language, yes they’re on the same continent, yes they were both colonized by Spain, yes they are both Latin, but, no they are not THAT similar). This proves to be a mistake mainly because the weather – which highly affects many aspects of the culture - is vastly different in these two countries. Colombia is equatorial. Chile is not. In fact, it is about 5 degrees Centigrade right now.

About the Empanadas.
Since I’ve been here, I’ve had an unnecessary amount of empanadas. If you don’t know, empanadas are usually some form of patty consisting of meet, vegetables, and whatever else, wrapped in a flour shell, and baked or fried. Now, empanadas are found all over latin America. However, they differ greatly from country to country. Naturally, I am accustomed to Colombian empanadas since I visit Colombia nearly every year, and occasionally assist my mother in making these delicious little suckers. But, alas, I am in Chile, and the empanadas that shape my warm memories of my mother’s country are not the same at all.
The main difference is that Colombian empanadas are made with corn flour as opposed to wheat flour, and Colombian ones are usually fried, not baked. The meat/vegetable mix in Colombian empanadas are also flavored quite differently. I can’t describe the exact difference, but, trust me, there is one. Maybe I’m biased (obviously I’m biased), but I think that Colombian empanadas are way better than Chilean empanadas. Too bad empanadas are all over Santiago (in the streets, at restaurants, in my room…). But I shall learn to love them, or just eat them moderately. The latter would be preferable since most of the food in Santiago is very hardy, consisting of lots of meat, corn and bread.
And some pics to compare...

http://images.google.cl/images?hl=es&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla%3Aen-US%3Aofficial&hs=J2l&um=1&sa=1&q=chilean+empanada&btnG=Buscar+im%C3%A1genes&aq=f&oq=
Chilean empanada

http://images.google.cl/images?hl=es&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla%3Aen-US%3Aofficial&hs=th6&um=1&sa=1&q=colombian+empanada&btnG=Buscar+im%C3%A1genes&aq=f&oq=
Colombian empanada