{"version":"1.0","provider_name":"Persa Victor Manuel","provider_url":"https:\/\/www.persavictormanuel.cl\/en","author_name":"Persa Victor Manuel","author_url":"https:\/\/www.persavictormanuel.cl\/en\/author\/user\/","title":"36 Hours in Santiago, Chile: Things to Do and See - The New York Times - Persa Victor Manuel","type":"rich","width":600,"height":338,"html":"<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"z5EshA0X6Z\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.persavictormanuel.cl\/en\/2025\/08\/15\/36-hours-in-santiago-chile\/\">36 Hours in Santiago, Chile: Things to Do and See &#8211; The New York Times<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" src=\"https:\/\/www.persavictormanuel.cl\/en\/2025\/08\/15\/36-hours-in-santiago-chile\/embed\/#?secret=z5EshA0X6Z\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" title=\"&#8220;36 Hours in Santiago, Chile: Things to Do and See &#8211; The New York Times&#8221; &#8212; Persa Victor Manuel\" data-secret=\"z5EshA0X6Z\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\"><\/iframe><script type=\"text\/javascript\">\n\/* <![CDATA[ *\/\n\/*! This file is auto-generated *\/\n!function(d,l){\"use strict\";l.querySelector&&d.addEventListener&&\"undefined\"!=typeof URL&&(d.wp=d.wp||{},d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage||(d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage=function(e){var t=e.data;if((t||t.secret||t.message||t.value)&&!\/[^a-zA-Z0-9]\/.test(t.secret)){for(var s,r,n,a=l.querySelectorAll('iframe[data-secret=\"'+t.secret+'\"]'),o=l.querySelectorAll('blockquote[data-secret=\"'+t.secret+'\"]'),c=new RegExp(\"^https?:$\",\"i\"),i=0;i<o.length;i++)o[i].style.display=\"none\";for(i=0;i<a.length;i++)s=a[i],e.source===s.contentWindow&&(s.removeAttribute(\"style\"),\"height\"===t.message?(1e3<(r=parseInt(t.value,10))?r=1e3:~~r<200&&(r=200),s.height=r):\"link\"===t.message&&(r=new URL(s.getAttribute(\"src\")),n=new URL(t.value),c.test(n.protocol))&&n.host===r.host&&l.activeElement===s&&(d.top.location.href=t.value))}},d.addEventListener(\"message\",d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage,!1),l.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\",function(){for(var e,t,s=l.querySelectorAll(\"iframe.wp-embedded-content\"),r=0;r<s.length;r++)(t=(e=s[r]).getAttribute(\"data-secret\"))||(t=Math.random().toString(36).substring(2,12),e.src+=\"#?secret=\"+t,e.setAttribute(\"data-secret\",t)),e.contentWindow.postMessage({message:\"ready\",secret:t},\"*\")},!1)))}(window,document);\n\/* ]]> *\/\n<\/script>","thumbnail_url":"https:\/\/www.persavictormanuel.cl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/21hours-santiago-gphb-facebookJumbo.jpg","thumbnail_width":1050,"thumbnail_height":549,"description":"The New York Times &#8211; Because Santiago, Chile\u2019s sprawling capital, is the gateway to some of the world\u2019s greatest natural wonders \u2014 Patagonia, the Atacama Desert, Easter Island \u2014 many travelers understandably breeze through. It might not wow like Rio de Janeiro or Buenos Aires, but scratch the surface and the city is alive with music, art and nightlife, against the arresting backdrop of the Andes. Divisions still run deep, 50 years after Gen. Augusto Pinochet\u2019s U.S.-backed&nbsp;coup d\u2019\u00e9tat&nbsp;ushered in a 17-year dictatorship. Just four years ago, Chile exploded into cathartic and, at times, violent unrest, as hundreds of thousands of Santiaguinos protested social inequalities. The scars are there for all to see. But if you\u2019ve made it all this way, you should give Santiago a chance to impress. Recommendations Key stops Restaurants and nightspots Museums, galleries and shopping Where to stay Getting around Itinerary Friday 7:30 p.m.&nbsp;Step to the rhythm of la cueca To the uninitiated, la cueca, which was declared Chile\u2019s national dance by the Pinochet regime in 1979, can appear a bewildering whirl of handkerchiefs and heels. Get the basics at&nbsp;la Casa de la Cueca, a cheerful dancehall at the top of a narrow staircase in the up-and-coming Matta Sur neighborhood. On Fridays, the establishment hosts dance classes (3,000 Chilean pesos, or about $3.40) to a live soundtrack of local musicians. Mar\u00eda Esther Zamora and her husband, Pepe Fuentes, opened the space in 1996, bedecking it with flags and photographs of the city. Sadly, Mr. Fuentes passed away in 2020 and the pandemic nearly forced the place\u2019s closure, but the dance classes \u2014 and raucous three-course lunches on the first Sunday of each month (22,000 pesos, book in advance) \u2014 show that la Casa de la Cueca is back stronger than ever. 9 p.m.&nbsp;Try reimagined Chilean classics La Pulper\u00eda Santa Elvira, a few blocks south, has only seen its reputation grow since opening in 2018. The place has a cozy, front-room feel, with family photos on the walls and squat jars of pickles, peppers and spices dotted around. You can also sit outside in a courtyard on warm summer evenings. The chef&nbsp;Javier Avil\u00e9s\u2019 small menu, which changes often, remixes seasonal Chilean classics, such as a creative bread basket that plays on&nbsp;\u201cla once,\u201d&nbsp;a traditional afternoon meal. Others play with textures, like a pumpkin puree served in its hard skin. Three courses and a glass of local wine come to about 35,000 pesos per person. Book in advance via&nbsp;WhatsApp&nbsp;or on the&nbsp;website. People drink in El Bajo, a plant-filled mezzanine bar under the GAM, a distinctive arts center that hosts exhibitions, book fairs and live events. Saturday 10 a.m.&nbsp;Trace the scars of a violent coup In a striking, container-like building, the&nbsp;Museo de la Memoria y los Derechos Humanos&nbsp;is sobering but essential. The museum walks visitors through Chile\u2019s dictatorship, from General Pinochet\u2019s coup d\u2019\u00e9tat on Sept. 11, 1973, that divided the country, to the nation\u2019s return to democracy in 1990. A wall displaying the faces of the more than 3,000 forcibly disappeared or executed men, women and children, best viewed from the second floor, is chilling. The museum takes about an hour to visit and is free, although voluntary donations are encouraged if you choose to take an audio guide (available in English, Spanish, French or Portuguese). There is also an&nbsp;intuitive free smartphone app&nbsp;in Spanish or English. To book a guided tour for up to 15 people,&nbsp;email&nbsp;the museum in advance, and check the&nbsp;schedule&nbsp;for talks and events. Peluquer\u00eda Francesa 11:30 a.m.&nbsp;Visit a historic restaurant \u2026 for a haircut From the museum, head up Compa\u00f1ia de Jes\u00fas, a colorful street bisecting Barrio Yungay, a gritty, low-rise neighborhood. (In 2022, the leftist millennial president Gabriel Boric and his partner, Irina Karamanos, shunned recent precedent and made the neighborhood their&nbsp;new home, rather than a lavish uptown residence.) Enjoy the politically charged murals splashed across historic buildings, and look for the 155-year-old&nbsp;Peluquer\u00eda Francesa&nbsp;restaurant (where you can get good food, and, strangely, a haircut). Peer down&nbsp;Pasaje Adriana Cousi\u00f1o, a beautiful passageway with checkerboard sidewalks and palm trees, where you\u2019ll also find the&nbsp;Teter\u00eda Cleopatra, a feline tearoom. If you\u2019d prefer coffee and no cats, then an americano and alfajor cookie at&nbsp;Caf\u00e9 Cit\u00e9, which has sleek metal furniture in a renovated historic building, will cost you 4,500 pesos. El Franchute del Barrio 1 p.m.&nbsp;Cheer for your singing waiter Take the metro down to Franklin, a booming commercial neighborhood full of surprises. There, in the&nbsp;Persa V\u00edctor Manuel&nbsp;flea market you\u2019ll find&nbsp;El Franchute del Barrio, a French-inspired restaurant cooking onion soup, duck a l\u2019orange, tagines and cr\u00e8me brul\u00e9e. Every inch of wallspace is adorned with art and photography, and shafts of light criss-cross the beams supporting the roof. Every now and then, the restaurant falls into awestruck silence when Carlos D\u00edaz, a 31-year-old baritone-turned-waiter from rural Venezuela, bursts into song. Ask for the fresh oysters, which don\u2019t usually make it onto the chalkboard menu the waiters pass between the tables. It\u2019s walk-in only, so put your name down and listen to the regular cast of musicians who swing by \u2014 it\u2019s worth the wait. The three-course lunch deal, without drinks, comes to 17,000 pesos. 2 p.m.&nbsp;Lose yourself in a flea market After lunch, explore the&nbsp;Persa V\u00edctor Manuel&nbsp;flea market, a former leather-tanning works that is one of the few spaces where Santiaguinos of different socioeconomic backgrounds mix. Start at&nbsp;Galer\u00eda La Curtiembre, an art gallery where you can pick up stylized maps of the market, before venturing into the incense-infused alleyways with more than 1,200 stalls. Among the market\u2019s characters are Carlos Escobar, who wears solderer\u2019s goggles and sells old film cameras, and the collector Roberto \u00c1vila, who has maps and monographs of Chile and elsewhere \u2014 some from the 1800s. Marvel at&nbsp;Basti\u00e1n Cifuentes\u2019 photography&nbsp;of the social unrest in 2019, and pick up colorful prints at the gallery of the muralist&nbsp;Alejandro \u2018El Mono\u2019 Gonz\u00e1lez&nbsp;(where you might meet the artist). For a post-lunch pickup,&nbsp;Kilig, next to El Mono\u2019s stall, has the market\u2019s best coffee. Destilados Quintal at Factor\u00eda Franklin 3:30 p.m.&nbsp;Chill in the courtyard A couple of blocks east is&nbsp;Factor\u00eda Franklin, a new labyrinthine arts and cultural space built in&nbsp;former pharmaceutical laboratories, and entered through a nondescript warehouse door. You\u2019ll step into a courtyard with stalls and workshops offering&nbsp;kombucha,&nbsp;home-brewed beer&nbsp;and&nbsp;Destilados Quintal\u2019s&nbsp;gin infused with native botanicals (a gin and tonic costs 5,500 pesos). Upstairs are the tiled workspaces of the Colombian coffee roaster&nbsp;Andariego&nbsp;and&nbsp;Bymaria\u2019s&nbsp;pickle and salsa kitchen. Down the alleyway at the back is&nbsp;AFA Galer\u00eda, a modern art gallery, and a&nbsp;large warehouse, which hosts art fairs and sales. The whole space is open daily, but it\u2019s liveliest on weekends. 7:30 p.m.&nbsp;Try the original completo As far as national cuisines go, a hot dog drowned in mayonnaise, tomato and mashed avocado might not blow you away. Still, you must try a completo. As the story goes, in the 1920s, a young Chilean man named Eduardo Bahamondes returned from the United States to Santiago with a simple hot dog, inflaming passions by adding toppings and quickly establishing a new national obsession. At&nbsp;El Portal Ex Bahamondes, the brightly lit, mirror-lined diner he opened in 1928 on Santiago\u2019s Plaza de Armas, the most traditional combination is a vienesa italiana (named for the the avocado-mayonnaise-tomato layers that resemble Italy\u2019s tricolor), but you could also opt for a chacarero: tomato, green beans, green chili and mayonnaise. A completo and a pint of Escudo lager cost 3,000 pesos each. El Bajo 8:30 p.m.&nbsp;Drink in an artsy bar Stroll from the Plaza de Armas to Lastarria, one of Santiago\u2019s liveliest areas. Start at&nbsp;El Bajo, a bar under&nbsp;the GAM, the distinctive arts center named for Chile\u2019s first Nobel laureate, the poet and educator Gabriela Mistral. After the presidential palace was bombed during the coup, the military junta ruled Chile from the tower above El Bajo until 1981. Order two pisco sours, one Peruvian (with egg white and lime) and one Chilean (sans egg, with lemon), for 6,500 pesos each. Then head to&nbsp;Caf\u00e9 Escondido, a plaza with tables beneath a gnarled ficus tree. In his youth, President Salvador Allende lived next door. Order a carafe of borgo\u00f1a for 12,500 pesos, a strawberry-infused equivalent of sangr\u00eda, and sit back while roving musicians play Chilean classics. 11:30 p.m.&nbsp;Join an eclectic crowd on the dancefloor Take an Uber downtown to&nbsp;Blondie, an L.G.B.T.Q. nightclub in a former movie theater which provides for a wide range of ages and tastes. Enter through a neon-lit shopping arcade, pay your 10,000-peso cover and descend a [&hellip;]"}