1. Home
  2. Chile
  3. Santiago
  4. Mysteries & legends

Santiago · Mysteries & legends

Santiago of earthquakes, fire and memory

Santiago is a city that has lived with earthquakes, fires and silences. On this route you will hear stories that tradition has turned into legend, and others that are no legend at all, because they are documented and they still hurt. At every stop we tell you what is proven and what belongs to popular memory.

  • 5 stops
  • 1.8 km
  • 1 h 35 min
  • Free
Start with GPS Read about this stop 1
Engraving of the fire at the Church of the Company of Jesus in 1863

The route

Stop by stop

  1. 1 Gardens of the Former National CongressBeneath this garden stood the Church of the Compañía, where in 1863 a fire killed some two thousand people in little more than an hour.
  2. 2 Church of San Agustín and the Christ of MayA crucifix that survived the 1647 earthquake with its crown of thorns slipped down to its neck, and a legend linking it to the dreaded Quintrala.
  3. 3 Church of San FranciscoSantiago's oldest building, raised to shelter the Virgin that Pedro de Valdivia carried on his saddle.
  4. 4 Londres 38, memorial siteOn a street with a Parisian air, a townhouse that the dictatorship's secret police used as a detention and torture centre.
  5. 5 Santa Lucía HillThe crag where Valdivia founded Santiago holds the tomb of the man who turned it into a garden, and the memory of the dead who were refused a cemetery.

Loading the map…

Start with GPS

Guide mode

Walk it with GPS.

Open guide mode on your phone: you’ll see your position and the distance to each stop, and we’ll let you know when you arrive. Then read or listen.

Start with GPS

  1. Turn on your location

  2. Walk to the spot

  3. Check the photo and listen

What you’ll discover

Santiago of earthquakes, fire and memory

Legends with a date

The Christ of May, La Quintrala and the Virgin of Succour: tales the city has repeated for centuries.

Documented tragedies

The 1863 Compañía fire and the Londres 38 detention centre, told with rigour.

Tradition kept apart from fact

At each stop we separate what the archives say from what popular memory tells.

Keep exploring

More routes in Santiago

Back to Santiago
HistoryFrom Valdivia to the Centenary station MixedFrom Santa Lucía Hill to Neruda's house

Itineraries

How many days do you have in Santiago?

We’ve planned it day by day for you: which routes to walk and in what order, what else to see and where to eat.

1

Santiago in 1 day

All three routes in one full day: the highlights, the history and the legends at dusk.

See the itinerary 2

Santiago in 2 days

A gentler pace: the three routes over two days, plus extra sights and where to eat.

See the itinerary 3

Santiago in 3 days

The city in depth: one route a day, extra museums and neighbourhoods, and a day for good food.

See the itinerary