La Chascona is one of three extraordinary houses Pablo Neruda built for himself in Chile, and the most visited. Neruda designed it himself with no formal architectural training, following the principle that a house should look like something it isn't — in this case, the unruly assemblage of terraces, towers, and gardens at the foot of Cerro San Cristóbal looks like a ship run aground on a hillside. The rooms are full of the collections he accumulated compulsively: ship figureheads, coloured glass bottles, shoes, maps, and books everywhere.
The guided tour runs about an hour and covers the main living areas and Matilde's room with its hidden staircase and the bar/library combination that Neruda used for entertaining. It is one of the more personal museum experiences in South America — the house has the feel of someone who lived here recently and will be back shortly, not of a monument. The Fundación Neruda runs excellent tours in Spanish and English. Open Tuesday to Sunday; book ahead in summer.