Pablo Neruda

Pablo Neruda's poetry is lyrical, passionate and quirky.  It turns out the house he lived in for many years in Santiago is the same.  Neruda, Chile's greatest poet and actually one of the world's greatest poets lived for many years in the house pictured above with Matilda, his last wife and reportedly the love of his life.  The house, perched high on a hill is not so much a house in the traditional sense but a series of rooms connected by terraces and patios and cobbled together in a delightful way.  It is now a museum, but preserved just as it was when he lived in it.  There is a view of the Andes from many rooms and terraces.

Neruda was friends with many artists.  In the bedroom is a portrait of Matilda painted by Diego Rivera.  A  photo of Neruda and Picasso hangs in his study.  There is also a Leger painting.  The first room one enters is the winter bar.  This is a cozy room with a nautical motif and a heavy, carved wooden bar and chairs from a Parisian cafe.  Next comes the dining room, my favorite, I think.  Neruda designed the table which is long and narrow to facilitate lively conversation.  He was a collector of many things and the table is set for ten with blue and white willow pattern china and heavy glass goblets in reds and greens.  It looks as if Neruda and his guests are about to begin a meal of perhaps a garlicky asopao and a hearty Chilean red wine.
There is a secret passage off the dining room that looks like a bookcase in the wall until it swings open to a pantry and a narrow spiral staircase.  That leads upstairs to the bed-sitting room.  The living room, study and summer bar are also upstairs.  He definitely knew how to live life to the fullest and his house reflects that.