Someone once told me that the irony in his major of study, was that as a planner, his favorite cities in the world were actually unplanned. I felt this observation in the steps I took and the meandering change of elevations I made along the streets of the seaside Chilean town Valparaiso. The artistically and visually rich city was interesting from top to bottom, every wall displaying a unique piece of art. This colorfulness of the city’s walls and buildings was matched also by its inhabitants, and namely one of its more famous, Pablo Neruda. The Neruda house, La Sebastiana, was filled to the brim with visually stunning objects, and a visually stunning view of the sea as well. Each object had a story, but my favorite was a map all the way at the top of Pablo’s house in his study. Reading 1698 at the top, I knew that as a lover of history (and maps) I would be spending at least fifteen additional minutes pouring over the ancient artifact to learn the many secrets it held. Valparaiso was beautiful in many ways. It’s chaotic beauty in the realization of its city-scape is apparent, matched by the rolling Pacific Ocean to its west and ever-present Andes to the east. Having experienced every facet of the topography of Chile’s capital region (save climbing a mountain) has helped me understand Valparaiso and Santiago better than a map or a book ever will.
One colorful street in Valparaíso. One of many, each with its own set art and architecture.
That’s a great description of Valparaíso. It’s interesting to compare the development of cities that are planned and those that aren’t planned. In unplanned cities you find people settling wherever is convenient or open. Valparaíso has expanded into the hills since that was what was available and open. Santiago, on the other hand, avoids the hills and turns them into parks. The plan of a designed city is more organizational, such as Santiago’s grid streets. Valparaíso had streets curving and cutting in all directions.
I think there’s pros and cons to both setups. One follows how people move and is based on current interests while the other looks at the potential for growth and is easier to maneuver around. A city like Valparaíso would have a lot of difficulty providing public transit to its populace. As we experienced, buses struggle to climb the hills. Building a metro would also be challenging as you would have to cut into the mountain with more bedrock. On the other hand, the unique plan of Valparaíso adds to creativity amongst its citizens. Houses are built over cliff edges, in cattywompus angles, and on uneven terrain. The ease of not having a planned city allows for creativity in how the towns are designed. Ultimately it depends on if you are a fan of order or creativity. There’s never a right answer.
Comparing the 2 cities of Valparaiso and Santiago offer a list of pros and cons as Ruben pointed out. One of the most compelling things I saw in Valparaiso in comparison to Santiago was the building up on the hills. It’s very fascinating how the building process worked in Valparaiso. Sergio told us that as long as you could operate a space for 5 years the property became yours. It was ironic that many people could build their own homes with no permits or degrees but yet I’d struggle to build my own house as a graduating senior in Architecture. I have many questions as to how the homes resist flooding and earthquakes but clearly the Chileans have found a way to make it work. Throughout this trip I found that common theme among the Chilean culture. They are a resilient population who’ve sustained earthquakes, political unarrest, and even the metro stations during rush hour.
I was also very inspired by the artfulness and playfulness of Val Valparaiso. The Pablo Neruda home I feel was a microcosm for the entirety of the city. The sloped landscape added to the uniqueness and spunk Val Valparaiso vibed on. The art encompassed all of your senses. When I walked past a mural I could feel the artist’s spirit and soul, and almost smell the paint as it colored a once dull wall. I could feel the emotions in every mural I saw. Many times that emotion was anger or fear, and Im sure those feelings came from the recent tragedies of Chile under Pino Chet. I love that art is a universal language that can be understood by anyone around the world. It connects us all, and made the city feel like home. Although I was above all only a visitor to this great city, I felt that I could spend forever among the colors, sounds, and sea.