Cuba's Old Capital: Santiago de Cuba City Tour

n [Music] [Music] here I am at Santiago de Cuba come join me after a 3-hour drive from my resort to Santiago de Cuba our first stop was Santa eia Cemetery it's the burial site for Fidel Castro and other notable Cuban figures [Music] we also witnessed The Changing of the Guard that happens every hour there's music that plays through speakers while they do the ceremony [Music] the cemetery is a national monument that was inaugurated in 1868 and probably the most important burial site the architecture and sculptures throughout the cemetery were impressive and intricate it was a quiet and sobering stop to our journey through Santiago the Cuba next up we briefly visited a rum Factory for anybody who wanted to buy some rum and cigars and also a washroom stop we were all quite hungry by then so we stopped by a restaurant to cool down and have some nice lunch [Music] the Castillo de San Pedro DEA also known as Castillo Del Moro is a historic fortress perched on the coast of Santiago de [Music] Cuba so I'm at a castle here right outside of the city and it is so secluded so nice and peaceful and the view of the water my gosh it's beautiful it almost looks like Italy it's crazy located about 10 km Southwest of the city center it majestically overlooks the bay as you can see this impressive structure was designed by Batista Antonelli in the early 1600s to defend against raiding Pirates constructed on a series of terraces it has four main levels and three large bullworks to house artillery [Music] there are tons of old forts like this scattered across Cuba because obviously you know they were at War when they came in they had to protect themselves and the Cannons are real here and they have a lot of artifacts inside as well usually it's a a bit of a money um for me I had to pay one us dollar to get in but otherwise it's just beautiful it's like you're transformed back to history you know I think about how you know people were here hundreds of years ago and they were actually in the midst of War it's very hot though it's extremely hot today don't mind the sweat [Music] I know I said this before but the view of the water is magnificent here it's one of the best that I've ever seen [Music] oh can I can I pick it up yeah I did oh really okay let's try this okay okay let's go let's go so they would tie this to your ankle make sure you didn't get anywhere oh it's the finger The Citadel itself took a staggering 62 years to complete starting in 1638 and finishing in 1700 UNESCO recognized its significance by declaring it a world heritage site in 1997 citing it as the best preserved and most complete example of Spanish American Military architecture [Music] and now on to the main attraction and after a brief drive we came to the city center of Santiago de Cuba which is the second largest city in the country after Havana so I am in the middle of Santiago de Cuba the city and I'm at a square this is their Cathedral right behind me there are tons of people striking up conversations here because obviously they want to sell you stuff so you know just be for worned but otherwise just say thank you and move on usually that seems to do the trick [Music] it's in a picturesque Valley of the Sierra Maestra situated in the Southeastern coast of the island approximately 870 km southeast of Havana it is so hot outside today but I mean it's fun walking through here and looking all the buildings lot of people still trying to sell me stuff [Music] the city has a population of about 500,000 people it was founded in 1514 and it played a strategic role in the early colonial period and served as Cuba's capital until 1553 the city itself played a focal point in the Spanish American war with decisive battles that happened nearby this is one of the walkable streets here in [Music] Santiago hi I need some water it's a scorcher out [Music] here like car Sano Carnival car no thank you no July in July oh I see in July okay okay monal I see nice is good yeah it's nice a lot of people trying to sell me things but okay it's fine thank you [Music] brother hold uh do you have bottle water yeah just one [Music] just taking a little break right now with my water and Santiago is more well-kept and cleaner than Havana and there are a lot of tourists here they're just walking around and wandering there are a lot of colorful buildings Cathedral Style one thing that's also interesting is that a lot of people are actually sitting here on the side of the road and just people watching which is something that we used to do a lot but we don't do that much anymore everybody's trying to find a spot of shade just trying to relax a little [Music] bit Santiago de Cuba is also the birthplace of Cuban rum famous Brands like bardi and Ron Santiago go where produced here walking through the streets I could see how it was a tourism Hub people from all over the world flocking to experience what it's like to walk through it now this City's R beside a body of water the Caribbean I believe so when the sun isn't beating down like this you can go there and relax so many streets here that you can just walk through and every street has character [Music] so now I'm at the revolution Square in Santiago the Cuba and this is where they would have a lot of their important [Music] speeches thank you for joining me at Santiago de Cuba see you in the next one [Music] la

Channel: Imagine There

Views: 507

Keywords: santiago, cuba, city, walking, tour, havana, adventure, travel, explore

Id: BsW43SIwj0U

Length: 11min 48sec (708 seconds)

Published: Mon Jul 01 2024