Sights in Cienfuegos
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A
Teatro Tomás Terry
Swapping French influences for Italian, the Teatro Tomás Terry is grand from the outside, but even grander within. Built between 1887 and 1889 to honor Venezuelan industrialist Tomás Terry, the 950-seat auditorium is embellished with Carrara marble, hand-carved Cuban hardwoods and whimsical ceiling frescoes. In 1895 the theater opened with a performance of Verdi’s Aïda and it has witnessed numerous landmarks in Cuban music and dance in the years since.
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B
Palacio de Valle
The ultimate in kitsch is yet to come. Continue south on Calle 37 and, with a sharp intake of breath, you’ll stumble upon the Arabian Nights–like Palacio de Valle. Built in 1917 by Alcisclo Valle Blanco, a Spaniard from Asturias, the structure resembles an outrageously ornate Moroccan Kasbah. Batista planned to convert this colorful riot of tiles, turrets and stucco into a casino, but today it’s an (aspiring) upscale restaurant, with an inviting terrace bar.
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C
Cementerio La Reina
- Cienfuegos, Cuba
- Sights › Dark
The Cementerio La Reina was founded in 1837 and lined with the graves of Spanish soldiers who died in the Wars of Independence. La Reina is the only cemetery in Cuba where bodies are interred above ground (in the walls) due to the high groundwater levels. It also has a marble statue called Bella Durmiente: a tribute to a 24-year-old woman who died in 1907 of a broken heart. It’s an evocative place if you’re into graveyards.
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Malecón
- Cienfuegos, Cuba
- Sights › Bay
Heading south for 3km on Prado, you cross into Cienfuegos' aristocratic, waterfront quarter called Punta Gorda. The Malecón here shares none of the sexy extracurricular characteristics of Habana's seawall, but it still offers an exquisite vista of what is considered to be one of the world's best natural bays. The architecture is distinct, with bright clapboard homes boasting sun-dappled porches and intricate lattice work.
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Paseo del Prado
Paseo del Prado, stretching from the Río El Inglés in the north to Punta Gorda in the south, is the longest street of its kind in Cuba and a great place to see Cienfuegueños relaxing at their leisure. The boulevard is a veritable smorgasbord of fine neoclassical buildings and pastel-painted columns and at the intersection of Av 34 you can pay your respects to a life-sized statue of local hero Benny Moré.
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D
Casa de la Cultura Benjamin Duarte
On the western side of Parque Martí is the former Palacio de Ferrer (1918), now the Casa de la Cultura Benjamin Duarte, an eye-catching neoclassical building with Italian marble floors and – most noticeably – a domed rooftop cupola equipped with a wrought-iron staircase. For a tip of CUC$1 you can climb up for unparalleled city views.
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Necrópolis Tomás Acea
- Cienfuegos, Cuba
- Sights › Dark
The Necrópolis Tomás Acea is classed as a ‘garden cemetery’ and is entered through a huge neoclassical pavilion (1926) flanked by 64 Doric columns modeled on the Parthenon in Greece. This cemetery contains a monument to the marine martyrs who died during the abortive 1957 Cienfuegos naval uprising.
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E
Museo Histórico Naval Nacional
A little out of the way, the Museo Histórico Naval Nacional is housed in the former headquarters of the Distrito Naval del Sur (1950). It was here in September 1957 that a group of sailors and civilians staged an unsuccessful uprising against the Batista government. The revolt is the central theme of the museum.
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Polivalente
Weekend boxing matches and other sporting events occur at Polivalente. There is also a small sports museum here including hockey, fencing and baseball paraphernalia as well as the boots and T-shirt of local boxing hero, Julio González Valladores who brought back a gold medal from the 1996 Atlanta Olympics.
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F
Arco de Triunfo
Start your wanderings in the town center at Parque José Martí, passing under the Arco de Triunfo the only one of its kind in Cuba and dedicated to Cuban independence. This impressive monument ushers you into the heart of the park, dropping you at the feet of José Martí rendered in marble.
reviewed
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G
Centro Recreativo La Punta
The Centro Recreativo La Punta has a gazebo on the point’s extreme southern tip and this is where lovers go to watch the sunset. You can also grab a beer or mojito at the bar. Live music sometimes breaks the tranquility.
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Museo Provincial
The Museo Provincial offers a microcosm of Cienfuegos’ history and displays the frilly furnishings of refined 19th-century French-Cuban society, as well as other assorted knickknacks.
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Catedral de la Purísima Concepción
The singular Catedral de la Purísima Concepción, dating from 1869 is distinguished by its French stained-glass windows. Surprise – it’s nearly always open.
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Palacio de Gobierno
The southern side of Parque Martí is dominated by the red dome of the Palacio de Gobierno, where the provincial government, called the Poder Popular Provincial, holds forth (no visitors).
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Casa del Fundador
The city’s oldest building, the Casa del Fundador was once the residence of city founder Louis D’Clouet, later a bank and now a souvenir shop.
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Casa del Educador
The Casa del Educador is a great example of the local beach villas.
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