The second winner was Pablo Neruda, in 1971. He was a diplomat and great traveler who collected art, sculpture...pretty much anything he found from all around the world. He has three houses in Chile which are all museums and display his vast collections of "toys", as he called them. We went to visit the one in Santiago.
Neruda had a lifelong fascination with the sea, but couldn't swim and so never went on it by choice. Instead he built his houses to resemble ships and lighthouses, and collected lots of ship-things like carved figureheads and ships' bars. He was a communist, so spent quite a bit of time in exile. He died 12 days after the Pinochet coup and they've just reopened an investigation into his death, and he rubbed shoulders with the likes of Picasso, Diego Rivera, and Marcel Marceau. That would have been a fun party.
His Santiago house is like a maze, with secret passages, hidden stairs, and stuff everywhere. Apparently the one in Isla Negra is even more crazy. This one does, however, have his Nobel Prize on display, which was useful because I now know how much shelf space to leave for mine.
We came home via Los Dominicos, a beautiful old church at the end of the subway line with a large artist's commune/shopping centre pueblito next to it. Everything Chilean was on offer in wood, silver, llama wool, etc. From there we headed to Vitacura to meet Pete and Fini for a coffee and a wander around this very nice neighbourhood.
They've just put an offer in on an apartment by the huge new Bicentennial Park, and overlooking the Andes on the other side. News that they're moving in will inevitably send property prices soaring. We said goodbye to them (until they're next in California, of course) at an amazing sushi restaurant but, still struggling to be truly Latin, were home and in bed by midnight.
Part of Neruda's house, the lighthouse bit.
A tiny section of his collection inside...before I was told I wasn't allowed to take pictures.
The view over Santiago. That building in the middle is owned by a telephone company and meant to look like a (80s-style) mobile phone. I think Pablo would have approved!
The man himself, in mural form.
"I'm sorry mate, you can't park your llama here."
The church at Los Dominicos.
To really understand Hamlet you have to see it in the original Spanish.
Inside the Los Dominicos artist's pueblito. I think these birds were actually for sale.
Later, catching up on the South American news, though the sports pages were surprisingly devoid of cricket.
Showing our colours.
Father and son (although Ignacito gets his taste for chocolate from his mother).
Really really great sushi (or "suchi", as they say around here). This one has passion fruit on top.
Look we're partying!
And over here too! (Actual time: 9.17pm).
