The town of Punta Arenas sits almost at the southern end of South America. This Mirador (lookout) on Cerro La Cruz shows a panoramic view of the town and beyond. Across the water isthe outline of Tierra Del Fuego (End of the Earth), the largest island in Chile, and the most southern part of the country excluding Antartica. The large river is the Straight of Magdalena, once a busy shipping route from Europe to west coast USA before the Panama canal.

Before 1850 few people lived in this area, it was a military garrison and penal settlement before it later became a port as ships heading for the California gold passed through the straight.

Today it's a common stop for tourists travelling by bus or cruise heading further south towards Ushuaia (the worlds southermost city) and eventually Antartica.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Punta_Arenas,_Chile