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Parque Quinta Normal

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LenR
LenR
First Reviewer
4 out of 5
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1
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4
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Quinta Normal

  • October 15, 2009
  • Rated 4 of 5 by LenR from Townsville, Australia
Quinta Normal

This is an attractive park with several museums. The area was originally established in 1830 to form a botanic garden and although the total area has been whittled away since then, quite a large park remains. Unfortunately the trees are unlabelled but there are some superb specimens well worth seeing. The easiest way to reach here is by metro line 5 to the last stop – Quinta Normal. We did this on a weekday and were surprised how few people were using the train, station and park but we were told it can get quite crowded on the weekend.

Inside the park there are plenty of paths, open spaces and small quiet corners. There is a pond with boats for rent, bikes for rent, soccer fields, tennis courts and seats for relaxing. The most important museum in the park is the Natural History Museum (Tel. 680 4600). The exhibits follow the earth’s formation, geological history, wildlife, human artefacts and so forth. The presentation may be a little static but the quality of the exhibits seems to be high.

Of more interest to me was the Museo Ferroviario or Railway Museum (Tel: 681 4627). This is an open-air display of 16 steam locomotives, most used on the broad-gauge main line to the south of Santiago. Some of them are absolutely massive so it was no surprise to discover that the older locomotives were US-built and most of the later ones are from Germany. There are toilets here and a model railway display.

Across the road from the southern end of the park is the remarkable Artequin building. This is one of the most striking buildings in Santiago and should not be missed. This was the Chilean pavilion at the 1889 Paris Exhibition and was then dismantled and sent to Chile. The cast iron and glass building is unlike anything else in Santiago. Since 1992 the building has housed the Museo Artequin where there are reproductions of the Western World’s great art. Most would never be mistaken for the originals but it is an interesting concept and is very popular with children and art students.

Two further museums catering mainly to children are in the northern part of the park. These are the Museum of Science and Technology (Tel: 681 6022) and the Museo Infantil (Tel: 681 8808) for under-fives.

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