PLAZA DEL CARMEN

Entirely reserved for pedestrians, this pretty square built in the 18th century - Plaza del Carmen means the Square of Charm in French - is surrounded by pastel-colored colonial houses and pretty little restaurants. Note the elegant lamp posts, the famous tinajónes (huge earthenware jars), but especially the statues of Martha Jimenez, an artist recognized by UNESCO for her ceramic works, which embellish the whole. Her bronze statues represent historical characters of the city (the water seller in tinajones, the couple of lovers, the newspaper reader who is the only living character represented) or imaginary figures such as "the celestial gossips" who are sitting seemingly in the middle of a gossip session... If you sit on the free chair and ask them to grant a wish, your wish will come true. This superstition, created by Martha Jiménez Pérez, is a way to make passers-by participate in this work of art. Afterwards, you can believe it, or not.

Nearby, visit the beautiful Baroque church of Carmen with two bell towers (19th century), the only one in the region. Completely restored in 2002, it adjoins the Ursuline convent, dating from 1829, whose patio with beautiful arcades invites meditation. After the departure of the sisters to Havana, the convent sheltered hurricane victims and a school for the poor. The premises now house the offices of the city's official historian.