Valparaiso is located 120km north-west of the capital, Santiago de Chile, and is one of the country's most important sea ports. In its golden age, back in the 19th century, it was known as both 'The Jewel of the Pacific' and 'Little San Francisco', due to its vertiginous location on dozens of steep hillsides overlooking the Pacific Ocean. In fact, a common method of transport in Valparaiso is still, to this day, its system of funicular elevators and these, together with its labyrinthine streets and cobblestone alleyways, earned it the status of UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2003. Today, Valparaiso is a place of faded grandeur and bohemian charm; it is a bit ramshackle and poverty is an issue, as in many harbour cities around the world, but it offers the visitor a rich architectural and cultural legacy, including one of the houses of renowned Chilean poet Pablo Neruda.
