Sights in Sancti Spíritus
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Fundación de la Naturaleza y EI Hombre
Replicating its equally diminutive namesake in Miramar, Havana, the Fundación de la Naturaleza y El Hombre on Parque Maceo chronicles the 17,422km canoe odyssey ‘from the Amazon to the Caribbean’ in 1987 led by Cuban writer and Renaissance man Antonio Nuñez Jiménez (1923–98). Some 432 explorers made the journey through 10 countries, from Ecuador to the Bahamas, in the twin dugout canoes Simón Bolívar and Hatuey. The latter measures over 13m and is the collection’s central, prized piece.
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Parque Serafín Sánchez
Here hundreds of metal chairs host cigar-smoking grandpas and flirty young couples. Your eye will first be drawn to an imposing theaterlike building on the southwest corner that was built in 1929 by the Progress Society and today serves as the Biblioteca Provincial Ruebén Martínez Villena. Sport and coin fans might like the Museo Provincial (Máximo Gómez Norte No 3) on Parque Serafín Sánchez, with its dedicated numismatic and athletic collections.
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Iglesia Parroquial Mayor del Espíritu Santo
The verging-on-decrepit Iglesia Parroquial Mayor del Espíritu Santo, originally constructed of wood in 1522 and rebuilt in stone in 1680, is said to be the oldest church in Cuba still standing on its original foundations (although the clock seems to have given out in recent years). While the interior isn’t particularly interesting, locals are proud of this place and the best time to peek is during Sunday morning Mass.
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Puente Yayabo
The city's most famous sight is the Puente Yayabo, a quadruple-arched brick bridge built by the Spanish in 1815, now a national monument. The structure actually looks more English than Cuban, especially when glimpsed on the ubiquitous local postcards.
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Galería de Arte
The Galería de Arte, next to the agropecuario (vegetable market; enter via Independencia Sur), houses numerous works by local painter Oscar Fernández Morera (1890–1946).
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Museo Provincial
Sport and coins make improbable bedfellows in the obligatory Museo Provincial on Parque Serafín Sánchez, which might appeal to numismatically minded baseball fanatics, but few others.
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Museo de Arte Colonial
The Museo de Arte Colonial has 19th-century furniture and decorations displayed in an imposing 17th-century building that once belonged to the sugar-rich Valle-Iznaga family.
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Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la Caridad
The handsome old Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la Caridad is the city’s second church whose internal arches are a favored nesting spot for Cuban sparrows.
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Museo de Ciencias Naturales
The Museo de Ciencias Naturales, off Parque Serafín Sánchez, has a stuffed crocodile that will scare your three-year-old and some shiny rock collections.
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Museo Casa Natal de Serafín Sánchez
Birthplace of Serafín Sánchez - a local patriot who participated in both wars of independence and went down fighting in November 1896.
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Calle Llano
A quintessential local street with cobblestones, wrought-iron balconies and wooden beams reminiscent of Trinidad.
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