| Dawn and dusk are the most beautiful times of day to contemplate the
tints of blue, ochre, pink and green that color the buildings of Trinidad..
Three streets of the center of town are paved with millions of stones,
granite and gypsum, and become an ideal playground for children. The houses
are low to the ground and very close together, and if you look in through
their windows, you'll see beautiful interiors with furniture inherited
from their illustrious past; that of European kingdoms.
Around the Plaza Mayor
All the streets in town lead to the Plaza Mayor, a masterpiece of architectural
good taste. The central park, paved with Bricks from Bremen brought by
the many ships that came through Trinidad, is composed of four small gardens
separated by white painted cast iron fences, and divided by two perpendicular
walkways, one of which opens on to two bronze statues of greyhounds, and
is adorned with fountains from the beginning of the 19th century… and
in the center of all this beauty is a statue of Tersciphore, the muse
of Dance. 
Here and there in the park you will find: to the northeast, the Iglesia
Parroquial de Santisima Trinidad, a church with five naves that was rebuilt
between 1814 and 1892 ; la Casa de Los Sanchez-Iznaga built in 1819, which
today houses the Museum of Colonial Architecture; la Casa de Aldeman Ortiz
built to the southwest of the plaza in 1809, with its long wooden balcony
and its arts and crafts gallery, etc.
To the right of the church, you'll find a pleasant little café
with reasonable prices, in the open air which looks over the wide staircase
leading to the Casa de la Trova, which, every night since 1777, turns
into a discothèque where you can dance all night long. During the
day, tourists can buy music and instruments there.
The steeple of the Convent of San Franscico de Asis
To get a good view of the tile roofs in Trinidad magnified by the verdant
green of the Sierra del Escambray, you should climb up the 100 or so granite
and wooden steps up to the top of the steeple of the Convent of San Francisco
de Asis, completed in 1813 on the corner of Guinar and Echerri streets.
The former church in the convent dates back to the 18th century and since
1960 has housed the Museum for the Struggle against Bandits, Bandidos,
counter revolutionaries. On its patio you'll even get to see an exhibit
of armored cars. For a dollar, you'll get a wonderful view of the town
and a view of the enormous bell, 1.2 tons, cast in 1853 by José Giroux. |
France :