Begin your tour of Santiago at the Plaza de Armas (Metro: Estación Plaza de Armas). The plaza was founded by Pedro de Valdivia in 1541 as the civic nucleus of the country, and its importance was such that all distances to other parts of Chile were, and still are, measured from here.

The impressive plaza was surrounded by the Royal Court of Justice (now the Natural History Museum), the Governor's Palace (now the Central Post Office), the Metropolitan Cathedral, and the grand residences of principal conquistadors, including Valdivia himself. In the mid-1800s, the plaza was fitted with gardens and trees, creating a promenade that became a social center for fashionable society. The plaza is not only a wonderful place to sit, relax, or read, but is also a great place to watch the colorful characters milling about -- old street photographers with box cameras, men lingering over chess games, shouting religious fanatics, office workers having their shoes shined, young couples strolling hand in hand, and artists hawking paintings.

There are several monuments here: a giant chiseled-stone sculpture dedicated to indigenous peoples; an equestrian statue of Pedro de Valdivia; a monument to the first Chilean Cardinal José María Caro; and A la Libertad de América, a marble statue commemorating independence from Spain.