Baracoa

"Baracoa, that must be said, is one of the most beautiful and magical places on the island and the people there are of disarming kindness and naivety."(Leonardo Padura: The man who loved dogs). Fortresses from the colonial era, mountains with lush vegetation, numerous streams, rainforest (for example the Alexander von Humboldt National Park), cocoa and coffee plantations and almost untouched shores, all this you may find in and around Baracoa. In the Bay of Baracoa Christopher Columbus anchored on his first voyage of discovery on November 27, 1492. The Cruz de la Parra which he set up in Baracoa is the last remaining cross and thus the oldest Christian symbol in the New World. It can be visited today in the cathedral "Catedral Nuestra Señora de la Asunción". Until 1522 Baracoa was the capital of the Spanish colony, then Velázquez moved the administrative headquarters to Santiago de Cuba. Until 1964 Baracoa could only by reached only by sea. Today Baracoa is located in the province of Guantanamo at the south eastern tip of Cuba and has about 80,000 inhabitants. The distance to Havana is about 1,100 km.