Day 102 - Saturday at the Plaza

Saturday at the Plaza

Saturday I met Mary and Shirley, some friends from work, at the Plaza.  Both of these ladies work at the Learning Center with me, and both of them live by the school.  I live in the center of town and wanted to show them around, as a tour guide, or as close as can be as a Gringo living in Santa Cruz.  It was a beautiful day; temperatures in the 70s when we started and breezy.

 

First I showed them around the Cathedral of San Lorenzo.  The Cathedral is about 400 years old and rebuilt about 200 years ago.  Some parts have been rebuilt again in recent years.  There are some beautiful things to see in the Cathedral.  At the rear is a chapel with the most amazing painting of Christ rising from the tomb.  It looks like you are in the tomb and he is walking out.  I can't think of a more beautiful representation of Christ.  He did not stay on the Cross, but rose from the tomb.  That is possibly the most beautiful thing to see in Santa Cruz.

We climbed up the bell tower next to the Cathedral.  For an old man like me it is a chore.  But once you are at the top, the view is amazing.  Saturday was clear, so you could see the distant mountains, the farthest east of the Andes Mountains. 

Next to the Cathedral is the Manzana 1, a second plaza connected to the Plaza.  A few decades ago, this was the city jail, now it is a center for upbeat modern art.  You can see me kissing the pig – it has locks on it that are put there by young lovers.  I showed them the modern art museum, which is just a few rooms.  Currently there is an exposition by a man that seems to have a preoccupation with death.  I am not a modern art lover, but modern art can tell you a lot about a local culture.

I tried to show them another art exposition at the Casa de Cultura, but they were “cleaning” the place. I think they took an early lunch.  So instead we sat in the Plaza and fed the hungry pigeons.  When less people are around, I can get them to eat out of my hand.  Saturday was a little busier.  There were lots of families out with their little ones.  It is one of the reasons I love the Plaza.  I love to see the families enjoying time together.

We ate at my favorite restaurant, La Pascana.  I had told Shirley that the fried yucca there is delicious.  She had tried yucca before and didn’t care for it.  I was able to convince her that their fried yucca is amazing, as were the empanadas.

I walked them a few blocks to introduce them to the Mojon con Cara, probably the oldest thing in Santa Cruz, dating from the early 1700s (or so one website on the internet told me).  There is a love story, the Romeo and Juliet of Santa Cruz, that goes with the carved post.  I have written a blog on it, so you will have to return one day soon and read about it.

We topped it off with ice cream from Nice Cream, the parlor that freezes it in two minutes with liquid nitrogen.  Mary, the high school science teacher, loved it.  Maybe she can have a field trip to it one day.  Just an idea.

That was my Saturday morning.  I hope the ladies enjoyed it.  What adventure can I think of next for them?