Temuco - Culture

Temuco (220.000 inhabitants), one of Chile's fastest-growing cities, is the capital of the Araucania Region and gateway to the country's Lake District. This is one of Chile's foremost tourist areas, with some of the most frequented national parks, renowned lake resorts, volcanoes, ski resorts and Mapuche settlements where traditions are still kept alive.

Temuco is the perfect starting point for an exploration of Chile's stunningly beautiful Lake District, a region of rolling hillsides, lush green forests, and snow-capped volcanic peaks. Temuco is also the cultural centre of the Mapuche Indians, the original inhabitants of the area. Almost alone among South American peoples, the Mapuche successfully resisted European incursions, maintaining independent control of their territory for over 300 years in the face of considerable force. Today, the Lake District has almost 3,000 Mapuche reservations, and Temuco is the principal market town. Traditional Mapuche crafts are sold at Temuco's Mercado Municipal and Feria Libre. For more information on the Mapuche, visit the Museo Regional de la Araucanìa.

One of the best places for Mapuche handicrafts and products is the Mercado Municipal (at the corner of Aldunate and Diego Portales), which not only includes the stalls selling meat, poultry and vegetables, but also a couple of good restaurants.

Another place of interest is the Feria Libre, located close to the railway station, where you may see Mapuche women wearing their traditional attire. Best buys are their silver ornaments, woodcarvings and textiles. At the Casa de la Mujer Mapuche you can find further Mapuche products.

For an insight into Mapuche culture and traditions, try the Museo Regional de la Araucanía (Av. Alemania 084), which also covers the colonial and settlement period.

Downtown centres on the shady Plaza Aníbal Pinto, which sports some rather unexpected (for this latitude) palm trees. The shopping areas are on or around Calle Bulnes, and in the new mall on the outskirts of town, which rapidly became a favourite spot for the temucanos. At the end of Hochstetter street are the municipal swimming pools, surrounded by gardens.

Climb to the summit of Monumento Natural Cerro Ñielol (head north on Arturo Prat) for a sweeping view of the city and the environs. The hill is covered by native forests; you may see some copihues, the Chilean national flower. Here you'll also find the patagua tree under which the final peace treaty with the Mapuche was signed.

Temuco is the gateway to Lake Villarrica, one of the tourist hot spots in Chile, and to numerous national parks and lake resorts.

The main lake resorts are Pucón, Villarrica and Lican Ray. National parks include Conguillío, Villarrica, Huerquehue, Tolhuaca and Nahuelbuta, all but the last one in the Andean foothills. Nahuelbuta is located on the Coastal Mountain Range.

Between Temuco and the coast, the countryside of soft rolling hills used to be the backbone of Mapuche country. The remaining Mapuche here still keep their traditions alive. On the coast, right beyond the low hills of the Coastal Range, is beautiful Lake Budi, little known and totally unspoilt. The coast is almost unpopulated, solitary and open to the unrelenting westerlies.

Just a short distance from Temuco is the Parque Nacional Conguillìo, an outstanding place to gain an introduction to the natural beauty of the Lake District. Conguillio features a number of very good walking trails, which lead through the forest and meander past alpine lakes and deep canyons. Dominating the park is the still-active Llaima volcano, which erupted as recently as 1994. The park is also home to the rare araucaria (monkey puzzle tree), a protected species that can live for as long as 1,000 years and takes five centuries just to reach maturity.