Punta Arenas: on the Strait of Magellan

Overlooking the strait that bears its name, Punta Arenas was for decades a mandatory port of call before the Panama Canal opened, and it still preserves that architectural wealth.

The center, laid out on a grid around the Plaza Muñoz Gamero, can be easily traversed on foot despite the often-intense wind.

On Plaza Muñoz Gamero, the 1920 monument to Magellan has at its base an indigenous figure whose big toe, according to local tradition, should be touched to ensure your return to the city.

A few blocks away, the Sara Braun Municipal Cemetery astonishes with its perfectly trimmed cypress alleys and mausoleums of families enriched by nineteenth-century sheep ranching.

Walking down toward the port you visit the Nao Victoria Museum, which displays full-scale replicas of historic ships, from Magellan's Victoria—the first ship to circumnavigate the globe—to Darwin's Beagle.

For those with more time, a boat excursion takes you to Magdalena Island, a Magellanic penguin colony off the strait.

The cemetery of Punta Arenas tells, through Croatian, English, and German surnames carved on the tombstones, the same migratory wave that made the city rich through wool exported worldwide.

The excursion to Magdalena Island depends on the conditions of the strait, often windy: departures can be cancelled even with very short notice.