Architectural, Cultural sights in San Juan
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Casa Blanca
First constructed in 1521 as a residence for Puerto Rico’s pioneering governor, Juan Ponce de León (who died before he could move in), the Casa Blanca is the oldest continuously occupied house in the western hemisphere. For the first 250 years after its construction it served as the ancestral home for the de León family. In 1779 it was taken over by the Spanish military, then with the change of Puerto Rico’s political status in 1898, it provided a base for US military commanders until 1966. Today it is a historic monument containing a museum, secluded grounds, a chain of fountains and an Alhambra-style courtyard. The interior rooms are decked out with artifacts from…
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B
La Casita
Looking like a yellow gatehouse, La Casita greets visitors near the cruise ship docks in 'lower' Old San Juan, in the outskirts of the walled city that rises on the hill to the north. The Department of Agriculture & Commerce built this miniature neoclassical structure with its red-tiled roof in 1937 to serve the needs of the burgeoning port. Today, La Casita is the information center for the PRTC.
Stop here for maps, and to check out the weekend craft market. Also look for the food vendors selling icy piraguas (delicious snow cones) or taste the local coffee at the old-fashioned hexagonal stand.
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C
House
Once the residence of a political reformer and Puerto Rico’s first representative to the Spanish court, this restored 18th-century house is now the headquarters of the Conservation Trust of Puerto Rico. The house contains limited exhibits of Taíno artifacts along with a small gift shop, and highlights the precarious nature of much of the island’s ecology. The staff can be helpful with information about visiting the trust’s other island properties.
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D
Museum
This museum honors the memory of this legendary Puerto Rican figure, and it also serves as a venue for concerts and experimental theater. Call for events, and visit if you want to find out more about the pretty astounding political career of Luis Muñoz Marín. Also take a minute to check out the great vegetation and expansive grounds. Look for the house on the east side of Río Piedras.
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E
Catedral de San Juan
Although noticeably smaller and more austere than other Spanish churches, the Catedral de San Juan nonetheless retains a simple earthy elegance. Founded originally in the 1520s, the first church on this site was destroyed in a hurricane in 1529.
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