Location, location, location. It's not just important for real estate. I remember hearing somewhere that the best way to understand the literary greats is to visit where they spent most of their time. OK, I now realize that this came from the movie Orange County--but it still makes sense. And even though Neruda had three houses in Chile, he alledegly sepnt the most at Isla Negra, where we took a day trip with the whole Stanford group.
And what did we find?
The house was, simply put, picturesque. Ironic, of course, given that my camera broke so I don't have any pictures. But I digress. Isla Negra is a beautiful, down to earth beach town that could fit right in along the Pacific Coast in Northern California or Oregon. The house is perched right over the sea, with every room set to offer breathtaking views of the waves crashing over the black rocks. Inside, historians have preserved much of Neruda's collection of art and artifacts. The first room we stepped into was martimep-themed, filled with compasses, statues, and ships in a bottle. The subsequent rooms boasted ancient globes, maps, and tribal masks. It was a fantastic collection, inspiring in a way, although not enough for me to spring any cash on the various trinkets the street vendors were selling outside.
We also spent sometime exploring the beach below. The craggly rocks are good for hosting tide pools, and luckily we had BC in tow--fresh out of Stanford's program in Monterrey--to explain our findings. The weather was fantastic, and it had been a while since I enjoyed a day at the beach. All in all, Isla Negra was impresive. I could almost say that if I spent most of my days there, I could write some award-winning poetry, too.
Almost.
There's no pictures yet, but once the rest of the crew shares theirs I can put a couple up. I'll also be posting some of my journal entries from Valpariso and Vina del Mar, our other destinations this past weekend, in the next day or two.
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