Cienfuegos, Cuba

Cienfuegos is a port city on the central Caribbean side of the island. It is called the "Pearl of the South." Our ship was anchored here. It was founded 200 years ago by people of French descent coming from Louisiana. It is near the agricultural areas of the island. During our tour of the city, we visited a cigar factory (no photos allowed), the central plaza, shops on the promenade, and a beautiful Moorish palace at the end of the peninsula.

It was fascinating to see how cigars are hand rolled from tobacco leaves.  Most of the employees at the factory were middle aged women who must produce 120 cigars per day. The Teatro Tomas Terry on the central plaza (top photo) was built in 1889 by a wealthy sugar baron.  It has 3 levels of seating, no air conditioning, and hosts concerts and plays.  Lots of craft stalls are set up on the promenade near the central square (middle photo).  Our last stop was to the Palacio de Valle (bottom photo), a beautiful Moorish-style building that is now used as a restaurant, but was originally a private home.  A pretty town with a long divided boulevard where many businesses are located.