Plaza de la Independencia is the historic and geographic centre of Concepción, a square ringed by the cathedral, the intendencia building, banks and shops. The neat formal layout dates from the 1856 rebuild that followed yet another earthquake; the trees are tall enough now to give shade across most of the plaza on a summer afternoon.
The square is a good orienting point for first-time visitors. The pedestrianised Calle Barros Arana, the city's main shopping street, runs east from here, and the cathedral on the eastern flank rebuilt itself yet again after the 2010 quake. Street musicians, hot peanut vendors and political pamphleteers all converge on the benches by the fountain.