Justin Bieber fans in Santiago Chile besiege W Hotel.Toby Saltzman
First, from my hotel room, I heard singing. And then screaming. And as the day wore on, the screaming got louder and louder. Word was out that Justin Bieber (pre salacious paternity scandal) was staying – or was about to arrive – here, at the W Hotel in Chile's capital. The 17-year-old heartthrob was scheduled to perform to a sold-out crowd of 55,000 at Chile's National Stadium.
It seemed like his fans were determined to see him at the hotel first. Security put the elevators out of commission after some tried to get to the lobby on the fourth floor (infuriating a guest who had been jogging and wanted to get back to his room).
The luckier (wealthier and more organized) fans didn't have to sneak in: They had persuaded their parents to book them rooms. I ran across six teenage girls in the hotel's Terraza Restaurant. Beatriz, 15, told me her mother had booked a room for all of them. Great...
By the time the Bieb arrived in Santiago, the W was fully booked.
Once I battled my way out and headed for the subway, I saw scores more teens en route to the hotel. It didn't matter that it was midmorning on a school day. Later, when I returned, there were even more fans surrounding the hotel. Frantic screaming interrupted their singing (Bieber's songs, of course) every time a vehicle with tinted windows pulled near. More security and police arrived to set up barriers. TMZ.com reported police were afraid they wouldn't be able to maintain control, and had advised Bieber to arrive by helicopter.
By the time of the concert, I had left for a flight to Patagonia where Magellanic penguins and elephant seals greatly outnumber teenage girls. And I made a note to check Bieber's concert schedule before my next trip, to make sure our paths don't cross again.
Special to The Globe and Mail