Neighborhood Guide -
Barrio Brasil
Elegant but far from snooty,
Barrio Brasil delivers culture, good food and nightlife by the
truckloads
It all started in the early 1990s when a number of rock bands and
eccentric artists moved in to vacant buildings in the vicinity of
Avenida Brasil, west of central Santiago, to find creative inspiration
and neighbours with high tolerance to noise and nuisance. It wasn’t all
too difficult; the place was dotted with unglamorous car servicing
garages, making any kind of cultural regeneration be welcomed with open
arms. This once well-heeled district had been in decline since the
1950s, a destiny that was sealed after the area was severed from the
centro histórico by the construction of the appalling Norte-Sur
highway. Such was the state of its isolation, than the Barrio Brasil
managed to escape some of the hideous architectural rationalism that
assaulted the city in the decades to come. Indeed, the timeless scenery
of this most picturesque of neighbourhoods has prompted authorities to
declare it a conservation area in an effort to boost its development as
a cultural hotbed.
The Barrio Brasil remains quaint and romantic in its cobbled
streets and seigniorial mansions, but its double life of gossipy barrio
and hippie conglomerate have rendered it irresistibly cool. This is an
enchanting, inviting neighbourhood of wide open windows from where one
can walk past a family lunch moment or hear a punk-rock soundtesting
bursting out of a dilapidated fin-de-siècle loft. No wonder it has
become de rigueur for locals and visitors alike. A great number of
bars, designer restaurants and boutique hotels have surfaced in recent
years without altering the ambiance of hip that is so innate to this
beautiful area.
To get the most out of this barrio one must really just wonder along
its streets and explore. For a general view of the place, try kicking
off at Republica Metro Station and making a turn up Calle Concha y
Toro, where you’ll reach its dinky little plazoleta and
its entourage
of magnificent palaces and cinematographic prettiness. The encircling
mansions that in the past belonged to Chile’s most select upper-class
families, including that of the Concha y Toro family (now renamed for
their wineries) have inspired exciting
redevelopment projects, such as the Zully
bar & restaurant at
number 34, now a leading attraction for its elaborate cocktails and
stylishly decorated lounges.
Make sure you also check out the streets east of Avenida
Brasil which concentrate, apart from a large number of hotels and
hostels, a great deal of fine buildings with quite eclectic
architectural styles; from the gothic Basílica del Salvador
on Calle
Huérfanos and Calle Almirante Barroso to the Art-Nouveau maisonettes of
Calle Cienfuegos.
Back to the north end of the palm tree lined Avenida
Brasil, right where it merges with Plaza Brasil, you’ll find the
epicentre of the neighbourhood’s 24-hour life. By 
day, you’ll find
children playing among the vivid sculptures designed by Federica Matta,
daughter of the renowned Chilean painter Roberto Matta. By contrast,
night-time transforms the plaza into a meeting point for young people
before the party moves on to one the many nearby clubs and bars. The
square is wonderfully sited among some elegant and colourful palaces
and the sight of the Iglesia
de la Preciosa Sangre, on Calle Compañía,
with its distinctive red-coloured bell towers. During early 20th
century, this church and convent was well-known for providing
accommodation to unmarried aristocratic girls who became pregnant or
had a notoriously ‘immoral’ behaviour. Such was the chastise for Teresa
Wilms, one of the most prominent of Santiago’s socialites forced into
seclusion by her family in 1915 only to stage a subsequent scandalous
escape with Vicente Huidobro, one the most celebrated poets at the time.
The Barrio Brasil narrates a tale of wealth and refinement in every corner that retains a slice of its opulent past. One of those corners, that of Compañía and Calle Libertad, is where the Peluquería Francesa – the local ‘french’ hairdresser’s – used to operate. Now transformed into a project blending the concepts of restaurant, bar and antique shop, the now called 'Boulevard Lavaud' offers a great tapas-style menu as well as the possibility of browsing through its hundreds of picturesque antiques, which can also be purchased. This side of the barrio draws closer to Plaza Yungay and its residential area, perhaps one of the most untouched traditional neighbourhoods in the central area of Santiago. Here are some beautiful cités and cul-de-sacs, particularly in the vicinity of Adriana Cousiño, Lucrecia Valdés and Hurtado Rodríguez.
On the west fringes of the district is one of the capital’s newest cultural regeneration projects, the Biblioteca de Santiago on Avenida Matucana. Inaugurated in the year 2004, this has become the city’s main public library, orientated to an non-academic audience and with a noticeable relaxed feel. The brilliantly redeveloped building, which was formerly a government storage, holds exhibitions as well as workshops and all sorts of activities for adults and children.
Just across from the library is the Quinta Normal, Santiago’s oldest public park. The Quinta Normal started off in 1830 as the Botanic Gardens or Jardines de Aclimatación, which was for years the single open space in the capital. The park’s original purpose was to provide the prospect of enhancing national research in natural sciences. To that effect, museums such as the Museo de Historia Natural were created on the inside, but evidently – and regrettably – at the expense of quality open spaces. In fact the Quinta Normal, as well as other parks in Santiago, just doesn’t feel green enough and it’s a little bit of a disappointment that not much has been done to make it an inviting place to unwind in the surrounding nature.
Just outside the northern entrance to the park lies a rather
impressive Art deco church, the Basilica
de la Virgen de
Lourdes, truly one of the most remarkable churches of the
capital.
Absolutely packed on Sundays and not significantly quieter on other
days, the so-called santuario is an emotive symbol of religious life in
Santiago. At the other end of the park and just across Avenida Portales
lies the structure of the Chilean pavilion at the Paris World
Exposition of 1889. This remarkable construction, made mostly of
assembled iron and glass, has now been converted into Santiago’s
interactive children museum, the Artequín,
which houses a
screen-touching and button-pushing display of educational games for the
appeal of curious kids and families.
Back to Avenida Matucana and heading south towards the Alameda you’ll
find one of the capital’s latest additions to cultural life, the Centro
Cultural Matucana 100, an art space that has grown
increasingly popular
since its inception in 2001. The M100 houses a large hall staging
theatre and dance productions, gigs and various different forms of
exhibitions by independent local and foreign artists. You shouldn’t
finish a tour of the area without paying a visit to Santiago’s Estación
Central, the city’s main Railway Station with its
impressive Art
Nouveau glass roof built in 1897 by the French company Schneider Cie.
(which in spite of popular belief does not appear to have been designed
by Gustave Eiffel, who was an employee in the company). After
the disappearance of the Northern Railway terminal at Estación Mapocho
this station absorbed all of Santiago’s train
services.
