Valdivia has felt the unbridled wrath of God. Only a few short years ago did the mountains collapse and the rivers overflow; only a few short years ago did untold numbers of fathers and mothers and daughters and sons drown in the mud. The Valdivia of 1960 was brutal and total in its destruction, and yet Valdivia stands firm. Rebuilding is a long (and perhaps never complete) process, but the swarms of proverbial ants have already built back up the hill.

The city has often been called the best defended city in the New World due to the extensive series of forts built by the Spanish during the colonial era, and it is perhaps this sense of physical resilience that gives the people of Valdivia their mental resilience. Even in times of greatest crisis and decay, Valdivia holds firm to their motto-- they are Muy Noble y Muy Leal.