Detours
SPOTLIGHT Valparaiso, Chile By Tim Johnson
Sun-baked and cheery, each building is painted brightly, and every road looks like a rainbow in Valparaiso.
VALPARAISO, CHILE
PABLO NERUDA’S MUSEUM HOUSE
Walking up and down the hilly streets, the late-afternoon light fading, my shoes slip on the cobblestones and my calves burn, just a bit. I feel like I’m chasing the ghost of Pablo Neruda. The Nobel Prize laureate once lived a furtive life here, bundled away in the basement of a friend, hiding from the authorities. That tale contrasts with what I see around me – sun-baked and cheery, each building is painted brightly, and every road looks like a rainbow. Valparaiso is a city with a long history. Its labyrinth of lanes tells stories from almost five centuries, which echo from the top of the ridge and slide all the way down, along these colourful streets, to the ocean. This UNESCO World Heritage site city, perched at the base of the Andean foothills, is about two hours northwest of Santiago. Arriving by car from Santiago, my day begins in Valparaiso’s neighbouring city, Viña del Mar. Rounding a corner, skirting the coast, a long line of white high-rise resorts perched along a broad beach swing into view. It could be Miami or Tel Aviv. “Everything here is new,” my guide says from behind the wheel, his arm out the window, gesturing beside us, and then ahead. “This is a dynamic city, a young city. You will really notice the difference.”
10 • Vacations ® • Winter 2019
