©Shawna Scherbarth 2001-05. All rights reserved.
Statues and Stairs
Camagüey, Cuba
December 14, 2003
The city of Camagüey, like Trinidad, was well-preserved due to its relative isolation. The layout of the historic center is unique however. In order to confuse marauding pirates and other bandits it was built in a labyrinthine fashion with no clear rhyme or reason to the layout of streets. Due to the relative sprawl and confusion of the historic center, we opted to ride in bicycle taxis through the city. Imagine, if you will, an incredible procession of thirty-odd bicycle taxis all hurtling through the narrow, winding streets of this old Colonial town. It was like a parade, and we received a lot of amused attention from folks as we passed by.
One of the first stops was in the Plazuela de la Bedoya, which is presided over by the Iglesia del Carmen and features several charming statues of people like the one you see here. Our next stop was to visit the sculptor responsible for these statues, but I was rather too busy fending off marriage proposals from the bicycle taxi riders to go in.
