A capital with the Andes as its backdrop
Santiago sprawls across a valley with the Andes rising abruptly behind it, clearest after winter rain. Climb Cerro San Cristóbal by funicular or Cerro Santa Lucía on foot for the view, then explore Bellavista, where Pablo Neruda's house La Chascona sits among bars and murals, and the bohemian streets of Lastarria. The Museo Chileno de Arte Precolombino is excellent, and the Museum of Memory and Human Rights tells the story of the dictatorship. Wineries in the Maipo Valley are within easy reach.