Located
in the center of the island, this
province possesses one of the most beautiful bays in Cuba, Jagua
Bay, place of settlement of aboriginal communities first and target
for pirates and privateers later. The bay has so many legends that
one can say it has a mythology of its own. The city, founded by
French hailing from Bordeaux, was called Fernandina de Jagua. The
urban center was originally conceived according to the standards
of the time. Around the arms square the first blocks were built,
having a very modern conception (in comparison to other cities of
the island), and the first constructions were
built there. Many of them are still preserved today and enrich local
architecture and culture. Worth-admiring are the Catedral de Nuestra
Señora de la Purísima Concepción (1819), Tomás
Terry Theater, and the Palatino, the latter considered the oldest
of all. Nowadays, this area concentrates several cultural facilities
where the visitor can enjoy local art and music.
Cienfuegos treasures many other outstanding constructions of great
architectonic value such as The Arc of Triumph (only
one of its kind in Cuba), erected in 1902 in the ancient arms square
(today José Martí Park). There are also palaces, parks,
theaters, churches restaurants, and an avenue called Paseo del Prado
that extends up to the Palacio de Valle, a luxurious mansion considered
a real jewel of Cienfuegos architecture.
To illustrate the accelerated progress of this city in cultural
matters, it can be said that barely 25 years after its foundation
the first printing house was
opened, publishing its first newspaper, "El Puerto de Cienfuegos",
the following day. A hundred years later, 253 serial publications
would see the light in the city, not considering those of adjacent
towns.
The development reached in education can not be left unmentioned.
Cienfuegos has three higher learning institutions in which hundreds
of students, not only from Cienfuegos, but also from other countries,
receive education. For instance, every year, its Medicine School
alone graduates more professionals than the University of Havana
prior to 1959.
this
province possesses one of the most beautiful bays in Cuba, Jagua
Bay, place of settlement of aboriginal communities first and target
for pirates and privateers later. The bay has so many legends that
one can say it has a mythology of its own. The city, founded by
French hailing from Bordeaux, was called Fernandina de Jagua. The
urban center was originally conceived according to the standards
of the time. Around the arms square the first blocks were built,
having a very modern conception (in comparison to other cities of
the island), and the first constructions 
were
built there. Many of them are still preserved today and enrich local
architecture and culture. Worth-admiring are the Catedral de Nuestra
Señora de la Purísima Concepción (1819), Tomás
Terry Theater, and the Palatino, the latter considered the oldest
of all. Nowadays, this area concentrates several cultural facilities
where the visitor can enjoy local art and music.
(only
one of its kind in Cuba), erected in 1902 in the ancient arms square
(today José Martí Park). There are also palaces, parks,
theaters, churches restaurants, and an avenue called Paseo del Prado
that extends up to the Palacio de Valle, a luxurious mansion considered
a real jewel of Cienfuegos architecture.
was
opened, publishing its first newspaper, "El Puerto de Cienfuegos",
the following day. A hundred years later, 253 serial publications
would see the light in the city, not considering those of adjacent
towns.
