Trinidad
District Guide

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Any tour around the historical center of Trinidad, a city declared the Patrimony of Humanity in 1988, should start in the Plaza Mayor, around which the city grew. Although only 18th and 19th-century buildings remain today, it is known that a church with a thatched roof had been built here by about 1620, in the very place where the Parroquial Mayor de Sancti Spíritus now stands. This temple was consecrated in 1892 after several reconstructions. The palaces and mansions of the Brunet, Padrón, Sánchez-Iznaga and Ortíz families, which have surrounded the square since the early 19th century, have become during the last decades the Museo Romántico, Museo de Arqueología Guamuhaya, Museo de Arquitectura and the Casa Ortiz, a gallery of art.

The blocks around the Plaza Mayor contain other interesting buildings, including the Palacio Cantero where the Museo de Historia is located, and the Palacio Iznaga, which has not yet been restored. Other historic buildings house cultural institutions such as the Casa de la Trova, Bar Casa de la Música and the Fondo de Bienes Culturales (Cultural Properties Fund).

Down from Plaza Mayor along the Calle Real, there's a little square called Plazuela Real del Jigüe with a poster and a tree commemorating the first council and the founding mass of the city. The big houses around this little square contain the Restaurante Vía Reale, specializing in Italian food, the Restaurante El Jigüe, specializing in poultry, and the tavern La Canchánchara, one of the most visited places in Trinidad. One block away, above the Museo Nacional de la Lucha contra Bandidos, you'll find the tower of the Convento de San Francisco de Asís, which has one of the city's best views.

Walking along the same Calle Real toward the limits of the historic center, one arrives at another small square where three crosses stand. These marked the limits of the processions during the Holy Week and Corpus Christi. There is also a temple house in which the Afro-Cuban rituals of the Cabildo de los Congos Reales de San Antonio have been celebrated since 1859. Other small but worthwhile plazas include Plazuela de Segarte and Plaza de Santa Ana. The former, lying close to the Plaza Mayor, is lined with mansions with wooden balustrades, distinctive roofs and eaves typical of the 18th century. This little plaza also has the Bar cafetería Ruinas de Segarte and the 19th-century Casa Borrell, now the Oficina de Restauración. In Plaza de Santa Ana, one can see the ruins of the hermitage of Santa Ana, with its facade, walls and tower intact. Also located here, Cárcel Real, the former jail, now contains a gallery, a restaurant, and several bars and shops.

The last point of interest is the Plaza de Carrillo, also called Parque Céspedes. Chosen as the future center of Trinidad just before the city's decline, this area has the Parroquia de San Francisco de Paula, built in the early 19th century. Nearby there are the former Ayuntamiento (Town Hall), where the Poder Popular Municipal meets today, the Hotel La Ronda and the Romelio Cornelio movie house. The Bar Cafetería Daiquirí lies one block away as does the Casa Fisher where Casa Artex organizes cultural meetings and sells tours and handicrafts.

Although not as relevant as the old center, the peripheral neighborhoods have important sites as well, mainly having to do with modern life. The funeral home, the police station and the baseball stadium are all in the Armando Mestre neighborhood, and the airport lies a little farther on. The ceramics workshop Taller Alfarero has given its name to its neighborhood, where one may visit the ceramics galleries of Taller de alfarería y cerámica Coqui Santander and the Hospital General. In La California, to the southeast, the former Cuartel de Dragones stands, now home to the Escuela Provincial de Arte. The hermitage of Nuestra Señora de la Candelaria de la Popa lies in a neighborhood called Popa, which also contains the Mirador de la Vigía, a good vantage point. Farther to the northeast, you will find the Hotel Las Cuevas, which includes the subterranean disco Ayala with its strange rock formations.