Valdivia is a university city in Chile's Lake District, built where the Calle-Calle and Cruces rivers meet before flowing into the Pacific. The rivers define the city — the waterfront market is one of the best in Chile, and the resident colony of sea lions that camps beneath the fish stalls, barking for scraps, is one of the most entertaining urban wildlife spectacles in South America.
The city was founded by the Spanish in 1552 and fought over for centuries. The string of colonial forts at Corral and Niebla, guarding the river mouth, are worth a boat trip downstream. Valdivia was devastated by the 1960 earthquake — the strongest ever recorded, at magnitude 9.5 — and much of the city was rebuilt afterwards, but the riverside setting and the lush green surroundings give it a beauty that concrete cannot diminish.
Valdivia is known for its German heritage — immigrants arrived in the mid-nineteenth century and established breweries that still operate today. The Kunstmann brewery offers tours and tastings, and the city's beer culture is the best in Chile. The Teja Island museums cover the region's history from Mapuche civilization through Spanish colonization to the German immigration period. The surrounding countryside of forests, rivers, and the Valdivian coastal rainforest is superb for day trips.