The blue house
Shaped like a ship.
Carlos yo — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Pekka Parhi (Pecksique) — CC BY-SA 2.5 · Arturo Rinaldi Villegas — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Arturo Rinaldi Villegas — CC BY-SA 3.0
The house of the Chilean poet Pablo Neruda, winner of the 1971 Nobel Prize in Literature, in Bellavista at the foot of Cerro San Cristóbal. He began building it in 1953 for his lover Matilde Urrutia and called it «La Chascona», the tousle-haired one, after her thick red hair. The blue house climbs the slope in small wings linked by passages, stairways and a garden, and Neruda shaped it like a ship: the dining room recalls a cabin, windows look like portholes, and secret doors and hidden passages reflect his imagination and love of the sea. Inside are the poet's curious collections: furniture, paintings, coloured glass and objects gathered on his travels, plus his library. The visit comes with an audio guide in several languages telling the stories of the objects and the poet's life. The house is small and numbers limited, so book ahead in high season. Two more Neruda houses are open to visitors: La Sebastiana in Valparaíso and Isla Negra on the coast.
Shaped like a ship.
Travel treasures.
On the slope.
Fernando Márquez de la Plata street, Bellavista, at the foot of San Cristóbal
Cerro San CristóbalA green hill rising about 300 metres above Santiago, to 880 metres above sea lev16 minutes walk4.6
Cerro Santa LucíaA small rocky hill in central Santiago, called Huelén in Mapudungun, at whose fo16 minutes walk4.5
Plaza de ArmasSantiago's heart since its founding in 1541, when the Spanish captain Pedro de V21 minutes walk4.3La Chascona in Santiago was built for Matilde, La Sebastiana in Valparaíso overlooks the port, and Isla Negra on the coast holds his grave.