Sex in Chile

The teens call their public orgies ponceo.
On a typical Friday afternoon in the Chilean capital of Santiago, hundreds gather in a leafy urban park for a few hours of sexual experimentation.
Surrounded by passing strollers, they trade partners multiple times—mostly engaging in anonymous rounds of oral sex.
When the party is over, no contact information is exchanged.
Same-gender interactions are commonplace, as the lines between hetero- and homosexuality are blurred, partly by the alcohol and drugs consumed, but also by shifting social mores held by Chilean youth, in contrast to their conservative parents.
"Ponceo is about having fun," says Natalia Fernandez, a 15-year-old with pink hair and a pierced chin.
"This time I had seven partners."
Fernandez, like many others in the park, is wearing an anime T-shirt.
Drawing inspiration from Japanese anime culture, the teens refer to themselves as "Pokemones."
Their behavior, though, doesn't quite resemble that of the cartoon characters that once obsessed young TV watchers around the world.
"It's shameless," says Gina Mazzini Aliste, a middle-aged woman in the park that day.
"They act like ponceo is a competitive sport."
Girls count up their partners just as boys do, and the bisexual activity, along with the Pokemon aesthetic, suggests that gender roles are not clearly defined.
"I'm just having fun.
I'm only 16, and I won't get hurt through ponceo because I don't go hoping to find a boyfriend," says Isidora Fernandez, who insisted on being called Frambuesa (Spanish for raspberry).