Part 2 of 2666 focuses on Óscar Amalfitano, a Chilean professor of philosophy working at the University of Santa Teresa, who met with the critics during the previous section of the novel. This part of 2666 takes place before the previous section.

Amalfitano thinks about his life with his daughter, Rosa. He is a single parent after his wife, Lola, leaves him. She feels compelled to seek out “her favorite poet” (165), with whom she had a sexual relationship before she met Amalfitano. She is accompanied by Inmaculada, or Imma. During her journey, Lola sends letters back to Amalfitano, describing her journey and her overall good experiences. She and Imma are poor and need to earn money however they can. Lola describes the night she met the poet. At the time, there was a famous gay philosopher in Barcelona: Everyone assumed that the poet and the philosopher were in a sexual relationship, but Lola had sex with the poet at a party. She became obsessed with the poet, but he eventually disappeared. Lola arrives at the mental healthcare facility in San Sebastian in the Basque country, where the poet is being treated. The staff prevents Lola from entering.