As a Santiago native and the daughter of a historian, places rich in history in Cuba are not unfamiliar to me. However, in five months in Havana, I had not visited the Plaza de Armas.
The truth is, I stumbled upon it by chance. My mother, who is visiting, insisted on seeing the Perfume Museum (which I’ll tell you about in a future post), and while walking through the area, we unexpectedly found ourselves in this place. To my immense surprise, I had no idea it even existed. And oh boy. What a place.
The square is the founding site of the Villa de San Cristóbal de La Habana. This is where it all began, folks. Initially, there was a church, the parish, the fortress, and the park in the middle, but things happened, and now the layout is different. I’ll explain as I go.
The first thing that caught my eye was the Castillo de la Real Fuerza. From what I could find out, it’s the oldest standing fortress in all of the Americas. It was built between 1558 and 1577, on the very spot where a fort once stood before it was destroyed by French corsairs in 1555.
My mum for scale 😅
I loved that the moat had water!!! There was even a little boat anchored there. Although I didn’t go inside the museum (I’ll save that for another day, another post), just walking around the outside was already a marvel.
The fortress has a tower known as the Torre de la Espera (Tower of Waiting), named after a beautiful yet sad legend. It is said that Doña Inés de Bobadilla, the wife of the Spanish conquistador Hernando de Soto, was left as the governor of Cuba while her husband attempted to conquer Florida. Every day, she would climb the tower to wait for the arrival of her husband’s galleon. Unfortunately, he never returned, as he died during the conquest.
It’s a Cuban story of women waiting on a dock or similar place for men who go out to sea and never come back—bittersweet. I’ll tell you more about the tower, the legend, and other details in a specific post about the museum, which I definitely plan to visit.
There’s also the Palacio de los Capitanes Generales, now the Museo de la Ciudad, and the Palacio del Segundo Cabo. I promise to visit these places and make posts about them. These buildings are IMPRESSIVE—very old, majestic, imposing... I can’t even explain how beautiful they are.
Around the square, you’ll find El Templete. This site is from another era and has a unique beauty. El Templete was built in the 19th century as a tribute to the site where the first Mass, the founding Mass of the Villa, supposedly took place.
Inside, there’s a beautiful mural painting, a bust of Columbus, and the famous ceiba tree around which Habaneros walk several times and make wishes on the day of the city’s founding (another beautiful tradition I’d love to witness one day). I understand it’s the first neoclassical building in Cuba, though I’d have to confirm that. In any case, it’s absolutely lovely.
And then there’s the square itself. I left it for last because, surrounded by tall, majestic stone constructions—structures built by humans to demonstrate and maintain their power—the square is one of the most beautiful natural spaces I’ve seen in all of Havana. And notice I say beautiful: chaotic, natural, zen, cute, whatever you want to call it—beautiful.
In the very center stands a statue of Carlos Manuel de Céspedes, the Father of the Nation, the man who started the war of 1868 and set the path that would eventually lead to the end of Spanish colonization in Cuba. It’s curious because around the square, there are several statues, all of Spanish kings, and over there, a bust of Columbus, the one who "discovered" us (I won’t get into that specific debate). But right in the center of the square, Céspedes. Hah. Well, I like it.
The design features four large spaces around the statue, each with a fountain, and those fountains are what I loved most about this place. Covered in moss, ancient, flowing with water, bringing freshness and a relaxing sound, with little birds bathing in them—it’s just so lovely 😭.
And the vegetation there doesn’t look, you know, perfectly even and controlled like in a European garden. It grows freely. It’s... gorgeous. My favorite place in Havana so far.
And that’s it for my post about a place I discovered by chance and plan to explore further. A hug to everyone from Cuba, and happy travels, my curious community 🥰.
