The best museums Caraïbes

Long before being transformed into a museum, these two imposing palaces were the seat of the main royal institutions. They housed the General Captaincy (the first Court of Justice in the New World with authority over all the courts of America) as well as the Royal Treasury and the Royal Audience, which was created in 1513 before being transferred to Cuba on 12 December 1799, after the signing of the Treaty of Basle that ceded the western part of the island to France. The construction of the complex was completed in 1520, and on the southern façade facing Mercedes Street was the only known coat of arms of Queen Joanna of Castile, mother of Charles V. The coat of arms is now on display in the museum. The complex was restored in 1967. The entrance is through the main façade of the building. It is decorated with the coats of arms of Emperor Charles I of Spain, those of the island of Hispaniola and that of the city of Santo Domingo, granted by royal privilege on 7 December 1508.

The museum exhibits treasures found in Dominican waters and traces the history from the beginning of the Conquest to 1821, the date of the first independence. All the Spanish period of the island is shown in the form of objects, maps, weapons... An interesting curiosity is the magnificent apothecary's cabinet, where the ceramic pots for the different medicinal herbs are displayed in a rigorous alignment. Temporary exhibitions are held here regularly. The whole place is well worth a visit.

The former presidential palace is now the Museum of the Revolution. Designed by two architects, the Cuban Rodolfo Maruri and the Belgian Paul Belau, it was built between 1912 and 1919. From 1917 onwards, it was used as a residence for presidents. Between its inauguration in 1920 and the revolution in 1959, twenty-one presidents passed through it. This four-story building is built entirely of white stone. The sober elegance of the exterior contrasts with the luxury of the interior, where marble, columns and salons abound, including the Salón de los Espejos, a replica of the famous Versailles gallery, and the Salón Dorado, all in yellow marble.

On March 13, 1957, a group of young revolutionaries attacked the presidential palace with the aim of assassinating President Fulgencio Batista, who had taken power five years earlier in a coup. The operation failed. Batista managed to escape through a secret door in his office. Most of the attackers were killed, while the president of the Student Federation, José Antonio Echeverría, who had successfully participated in the seizure of Radio Reloj to spread the news, was killed by the police as he tried to reach the university. To honor these young revolutionaries, the park in front of the palace was named Parque Trece de Marzo. Fidel Castro, in January 1959, gave his first big speech in Havana on the terrace of the north wing of the palace. He never lived there, probably wanting to distinguish himself from all the presidents who preceded him. But it was the close relationship of this place with recent history that designated it, in 1974, for its new function, that of the Museum of the Revolution.

With documents, photos, objects, maps, models, etc., the Museum of the Revolution offers, on three levels, a complete and chronological vision of the history of the Cubans' struggle for independence. Don't miss it under any circumstances and plan at least 1 hour and a half because of its richness. You will go from the aboriginal rebellions against the conquistadores to the independence wars of the 19th century against the slavery of the Spanish colonial power. The twentieth century is not to be outdone with the highlighting of social and political demands, naturally. Linger on the fascinating history of the labor movement in the 1920s and 1930s and the emergence of the revolutionary process. Don't miss the sections devoted to guerrilla warfare, including the two life-size sculptures of Camilo Cienfuegos and Che Guevara in the Sierra Maestra. The last part of the museum is dedicated to the consolidation of the gains of the 1959 revolution.

You can also visit the presidential office where the different Cuban presidents succeeded each other until Batista.

Then go outside the museum to visit the Granma memorial, where the eponymous yacht on which Fidel Castro and 81 fighters left Mexico to wage the last revolutionary war is on display. The overloaded boat sailed painfully for a week before running aground in Las Coloradas on December 2, 1956. Spotted by Batista's troops, many of them were killed immediately. However, Fidel Castro and some of them managed to reach the Sierra Maestra mountains, home of the insurrectional struggle that ended in victory on January¹, 1959.

This immense grey concrete edifice is the capital's most recent and probably least attractive monument. However, its illumination and blessing by the Pope was the highlight of the 1992 celebration of the ^500th anniversary of the "discovery" of the New World. The building stands on a hill in the center of the Mirador del Este park, in the eastern part of the city, on the very spot where it was originally founded in 1496.

The project to build a monument to honor the memory of the great admiral dates back to 1852. Dominican historian Antonio del Monte y Tejeda launched the idea of erecting a colossal edifice on the site of America's first city, La Isabela. The collaboration and financial participation of all the countries of the American continent, as well as that of the European capitals, were obviously required. The initial project envisaged a statue the size of the Colossus of Rhodes, embracing the two American continents between its two arms. In November 1927, the Pan-American Union (now OAS: Organization of American States) decided to launch an international competition for the construction of the lighthouse. Nearly 450 projects were submitted by 1,926 architects of 44 nationalities. The ten best were selected in April 1929 and exhibited at the Palacio de las Artes in Madrid. On October 17, 1931, an international jury, meeting at the National School of Fine Arts in Rio de Janeiro, chose the design by English architect J.-L. Gleave: a gigantic, elongated cross, placed on the ground, symbolizing evangelization and progress. At night, the lighthouse would offer a fairy-tale spectacle: two great blood-red rays forming Columbus's cross would be encircled by the white cross of progress. The cross would be reflected in the sky, as if suspended above the city.

The project was built in reinforced concrete, on the hill where the original city of Santo Domingo stood. Construction began on April 14, 1948, then was interrupted. It was not resumed until 1987. The inauguration finally took place on October 6, 1992. The monument officially cost 135 million pesos, but the Dominicans claim it cost much more.

The Faro a Colón is exactly what was planned: the imposing edifice (310 m long, 44 m wide and 33 m high) houses at its center the remains of Christopher Columbus, in the white marble mausoleum, now guarded by an incessant ballet of sailors.

A museum traces the history of the monument. Another evokes the period of the Conquest and colonization.

Here, you'll find Martinique's largest tree nursery, as well as boutiques (arts and crafts, ready-to-wear, bookshop, florist, coffee roaster), services (car rental, real estate expert, communications agency, drone pilot school, orthoptist, osteopath, masseuse, hair clinic), leisure activities (escape game, gym, leisure center with wakepark, hydroclimb, trampoline) and food and beverage outlets (local culinary restaurant, home-made burgers, oenology center, chocolatier, etc.)).

Inaugurated on December 28, 1988, on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the battle of Santa Clara, it is the only museum dedicated to Che. Photos, objects, documents and videos evoke his life from his birth to his death. His remains and those of seven companions assassinated in Bolivia on the orders of the United States, were transferred there in 1997, for the 30th anniversary of their death. In the memorial, we can see the coffins of Che and all his companions. It is rather sober but moving.

The Maison du volcan is an information and documentation center specialized in vulcanology, with a library on the eruptions of Mount Pelee in 1902 and 1929 in geology and astronomy. The permanent exhibition “The ballet of the continents and its consequences” informs about the seismic risks affecting the region as well as the Caribbean volcanoes, and shows a rich collection of rocks and sands. If the visit can sometimes be difficult to access for the youngest, it provides a better vision of the volcanic phenomena.

Built in 1885 (inaugurated on September 8) at the request of Marta Abreu de Estévez, who was also responsible for the construction of the first free clinic in Santa Clara in 1878, the Teatro de la Carida (Theatre of Charity) is decorated with paintings by the Spaniard Camilo Zelaya. It is worth noting that the first temple in the city was located here: the Ermita de la Candelaria. Plays are regularly performed here and every Thursday night at 7 pm a concert is held in the entrance of the theater. The guided tour is interesting and highly recommended.

Housed in an old colonial house, built between 1827 and 1830, the museum features magnificent neoclassical murals by Cuban and Italian artists. It traces the history of Trinidad since its foundation: Indian archeological finds, the slave trade, the development of the sugar industry, the struggle for independence undertaken by the Trinitarios and other significant episodes in the city's culture, society and economy.

This museum opened in 1973 and presents a very complete panorama of Dominican culture, from prehistory to the present day. An important part of the exhibition rooms is devoted to the indigenous populations of the island. A magnificent collection of Taino art is presented: ceramics, urns, trigonoliths and cemis, vomiting spatulas, ceremonial seats(duho). An important section is devoted to the period of the Conquest, as well as to religious syncretism and the carnival.

Long under renovation, this museum reopened in March 2011 and the inauguration ceremony took place in the presence of Princess Napoleon herself, as the museum is largely dedicated to Napoleon. The history of the museum is linked to that of Julio Lobo, a Cuban billionaire nicknamed the Sugar Czar, who lived in a residence in Vedado, now the headquarters of the Ministry of Culture. A great admirer of Napoleon, he was not afraid to claim that he was his reincarnation... His passion for the Emperor led him to buy objects from all over the world that belonged to him or were related to his time. You will see a death mask of the Emperor made by Dr. Antommarchi, who ended his days in the island of Cuba. After the revolution, in 1960, Julio Lobo preferred to leave Cuba. The government decided to exhibit his collection in the former residence of Ferrara, a minister under the Machado regime, and the museum was opened to the public on December 2, 1961.

Architecturally, the residence was inspired by a Florentine Renaissance palace (Medicci Ricardi). In addition to the attractiveness of the exhibits, the museum enjoys a breathtaking view of the entire city. On the first floor, linger over the ancient engravings dating from the time of the French Revolution and Napoleon. The first and second floors contain an office, a bedroom, a dining room, a living room, all furnished with period furniture. Finally, the top floor is occupied by a library, containing all the great classics of universal literature.