Architecture sights in Central America
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Catedral de León
Construction of León's most famous building began in 1747 and went on for over a hundred years. The largest cathedral in Central America, it was voted by the Nicaraguan National Assembly as the country's 'building of the millennium'. This architectural jewel is also home to Rubén Darío's tomb, guarded on one side of the altar by a sorrowful lion.
According to local legend, the city's leaders feared their original grandiose design for the structure would be turned down by Spanish imperial authorities, so they submitted a more modest, but bogus, set of plans.
The fairly sober facade (more triumph-of-the-will Neoclassicism than fluttering cherubs) fronts an interior that…
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Moravian Church
Activities in town are sparse, but do stop by the Moravian Church, built to the exact specifications of the 1849 original, destroyed in Hurricane Juana. Friendly and simple with nice columns, it has the typical stained glass of the order, depicting a chalice. But chances are, you're eager to explore the constellation of wilderness areas and other attractions just a boat ride from town.
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Panama Canal Murals
The story of the monumental effort to build the Panama Canal is powerfully depicted in murals mounted in the rotunda of the Panama Canal Administration Building.
The murals tell the story of the canal's construction through four main scenes: the digging of Gaillard Cut at Gold Hill, where the canal passes through the Continental Divide; the building of the spillway of the Gatún Dam, which dammed the Río Chagres and created Lago Gatún; the construction of one of the giant lock gates (the canal uses some 80 of these gates); and the construction of the Miraflores Locks near the Pacific entrance to the canal. A frieze located immediately below the murals presents a panorama…
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Iglesia de San Félipe
Every October 21, pilgrims from all over Panama arrive in Portobelo to partake in the Festival de Cristo Negro (Black Christ Festival), which honors the 1.5m-high statue of the Black Christ housed in the Iglesia de San Félipe. The exact origins of the Black Christ statue are a matter of speculation, especially since all definitive church records were lost in the fire that followed Henry Morgan's sacking of Panamá in 1671.
However, there's no shortage of fanciful stories surrounding the origins of the statue.
One story has it that a ship bound for Cartagena, Colombia tried to leave Portobelo five times, but on each occasion a mighty storm blew the ship back to the town's…
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Catedral de Santiago
The Catedral de Santiago was begun in 1542, demolished in 1668, rebuilt between 1669 and 1680, repeatedly damaged by earthquakes, wrecked in 1773, and only partly rebuilt between 1780 and 1820. The present cathedral, without its expensive original decoration, occupies only the entrance hall of the 17th-century edifice, and strictly speaking is not a cathedral but the Parroquia (Parish Church) de San José. It's most striking at night when it is tastefully lit.
More interesting by day are the remains of the main part of the cathedral, entered from 5a Calle Oriente. Slightly overhyping itself as 'the most important monument in the country,' it's nonetheless an impressive…
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Basílica de Suyapa
On the Suyapa hillside, the huge Gothic Basílica de Suyapa dominates the landscape. La Virgen de Suyapa is the patron saint of Honduras and all of Central America. The construction of the basilica, which is famous for its large, brilliant stained-glass windows, began in 1954 - finishing touches are still being added.
La Virgen de Suyapa, who is believed by many to have performed hundreds of miracles, is a tiny wooden statue, measuring only 6cm (2.4in). She is brought to the large basilica on holidays, especially for the annual Feria de la Virgen de Suyapa beginning on the saint's day (February 2) and continuing for a week; the celebrations attract pilgrims from all over…
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Iglesia de San Francisco
Little of the original 16th-century Iglesia de San Francisco remains, but reconstruction and restoration over the centuries have produced a handsome structure. In the north transept is the tomb of Santo Hermano Pedro de San José de Betancurt (1626-67), a Franciscan monk who founded a hospital for the poor in Antigua and earned the gratitude of generations. He's Guatemala's most venerated local Christian figure, and was made a saint in 2002 when Pope John Paul II visited Guatemala.
His intercession is still sought by the ill, who pray fervently by the tomb. On the south side of the church are the Museo del Hermano Pedro and the ruins of the adjoining monastery.
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Iglesia y Convento de Santa Clara
Iglesia y Convento de Santa Clara was first completed in 1702, and the existing construction, inaugurated in 1734, was wrecked in 1773 but remains large and impressive. In front of the church is one of Antigua's prettiest plazas, lined with palm trees. At the eastern end are public clothes-washing sinks, where some women still come to do their wash, spreading their laundry out on the ground to dry.
Also in the plaza stands a gift made to Antigua (formally Santiago de los Caballeros de Guatemala) in 1988 by the city of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia, Spain: a cruceiro, a typically Galician stone cross carved with biblical scenes.
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Iglesia de la Merced
Home to León's patron saint, La Virgen de La Merced, Iglesia de la Merced with it's less immediately enchanting gray edifice (albeit with a glittering and ornate interior) is considered the city's second-most important church. The image, originally from Barcelona, was brought to León's original church in 1528. After Volcán Momotombo erupted and forced the city's evacuation, the Leónese built a new church here in 1615, replaced with the current building in the early 1700s.
The virgin's feast day, September 24, is one of León's biggest religious bashes.
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San Juan Bautista Subtiava
About 1km west of the León cathedral, the neighborhood is centered on San Juan Bautista Subtiava, better known as 'Catedral Subtiava,' and the oldest intact church in the city. Built in the 1530s and reconstructed in 1710, its relatively plain beige facade and precious wood interior is largely unadorned; even the struts are there to stabilize the structure during earthquakes.
With two exceptions: spirals outside, and an extraordinary sun icon mounted to the typical arched timber roof, pay homage to deities far older than the Spanish conquest.
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Iglesia y Convento de La Recolección
The massive Iglesia y Convento de La Recolección is among Antigua's most impressive monuments. It's set a little ways out of town, and a serene air pervades the site. Built between 1701 and 1715, the church was inaugurated in 1717, but suffered considerable damage from an earthquake that same year. The buildings were destroyed in the earthquake of 1773: enormous chunks of masonry still lie jumbled around the ruined church.
You can clamber up to the second story for better views, but watch your step.
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Iglesia de La Recolección
Three blocks north of the cathedral, the 1786 Iglesia de La Recolección is considered the city's most beautiful church, a Mexican-style baroque confection of swirling columns and bas-relief medallions that portray the life of Christ. Dyed a deep yellow accented with cream and age, the lavishly decorated facade may be what makes the cover of all the tourist brochures, but be sure to stop inside and admire the slender mahogany columns and ceiling decorated with harvest motifs.
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Las Capuchinas
Inaugurated in 1736 by nuns from Madrid, Las Capuchinas, was seriously damaged by the 1773 earthquake and thereafter abandoned. Restoration began in 1943 and continues today. Looking around at the high, arched passageways, pretty gardens and stately courtyards, it's tempting to think that the nuns who lived here were onto a good thing. The building has many unusual features, including a unique tower-like building of 18 nuns' cells built around a circular patio.
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San Pedro Cathedral
This cathedral is worth peeking into. Occupying almost a full city block, it has high, pale-yellow walls and pillars, and an even higher central cupola. The walls are laden with paintings of the saints and other Catholic imagery and hand-carved wooden statues of the same. Like so many huge urban cathedrals in Latin America, this one offers instant respite from the hustle and bustle on the street.
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Iglesia El Calvario
A hodgepodge of neoclassical and baroque styles, 18th-century El Calvario stands at the top of Calle Central. The interior is nice, with predictably gory, full-sized statues of Jesus and the thieves being crucified, but you're here for the brightly painted facade between the red-brick bell towers, with brightly colored bas-relief biblical scenes that resemble comic-strip panels.
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Iglesia de San Jerónimo
Among the major buildings worst hit by the earthquake of 2000, which also destroyed about 80 homes, was 1928 Iglesia de San Jerónimo, the spiritual heart of Masaya and one of the most recognizable silhouettes on the skyline. But that hasn't stopped anyone from celebrating the longest fiestas patronales in Nicaragua, with their epicenter, as always, right here.
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Old Train Station
Nine long blocks north of town along Calle Atravesada, you'll find shadeless Parque Sandino, next to the old train station, now a technical vocational school. Built in 1882 and operational in 1886, the US marines remodeled it in 1912. There's lots of playground equipment, some with train themes, and a few well-preserved railroad cars are on display nearby.
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Iglesia Catedral San Pedro
The 1874 Iglesia Catedral San Pedro is considered one of the country's most beautiful buildings. It's a solid neoclassical structure that has simply seen one too many bombing runs. Originally founded by the Jesuits, who were later run out of the country, this fading beauty fronts Parque Morazán, where most of the city's public events take place.
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Iglesia Los Dolores
Iglesia Los Dolores, northwest of the cathedral, is worth a visit, with a plaza out front and religious art inside. On the front of Los Dolores are figures representing the Passion of Christ - his unseamed cloak, the cock that crowed three times - all crowned by the more indigenous symbol of the sun.
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Iglesia La Merced
An 18th-century church, Iglesia La Merced, faces Parque La Merced. In 1847, the convent of La Merced was converted to house Honduras' first university; the national gallery was established there in 1996. The well-restored building is itself a work of art, and is as impressive as the paintings inside.
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Ermita de San Pedro
The Ermita de San Pedro, two blocks east and one block south of San Juan Bautista, was constructed between 1706 and 1718, and is considered one of the best examples of primitive baroque style in Nicaragua. This means that it's almost unadorned, save for three brick crosses inlaid into the adobe.
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Iglesia de San Francisco
The 1639 Iglesia de San Francisco is one of the oldest in the city, a national heritage site with lots of gold, a gorgeous nave, and rather rococo interior. It was abandoned between 1830 and 1881, then refurbished with two elaborate altarpieces for San Antonio and Our Lady of Mercy.
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Templo El Calvario
You can get a fine view over the town from the Templo El Calvario, a church atop a long flight of stairs at the north end of 7a Av. Indigenous people leave offerings at outdoor shrines and crosses in front of the church. Don't linger here after 16:00!
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Convent San Francisco
Founded in 1639, Convent San Francisco was badly damaged during the 1979 Battle for León. Most of the church, which still has two of the original altars, is being renovated, but you can check out what used to be the convent at Hotel El Convento.
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Iglesia San José
Iglesia San José was originally constructed in 1751 and used as a jail for indigenous rebels in the late 1800s, then rebuilt to its current glory in 1917 by Franciscan friars. It fronts Parque Rubén Darío and has a nice baroque altar.
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