CubaPLUS Magazine

Five hundred years after its founding, the easternnbsp;Cuban city of Bayamo bears the pride of an entirenbsp;nation. Never before has the history of a small citynbsp;carried so much weight in determining a countryrsquo;snbsp;destiny, or merited so many names, earned with a long historynbsp;of glorious and heroic events.

Inaugurated by the Spanish explorer Diego Velázquez onnbsp;November 5, 1513, the second colonial villa created in Cubanbsp;after the islandrsquo;s discovery grew from early on within thenbsp;rebellious spirit of its sons and daughters.

The cityrsquo;s indomitable spirit was no doubt sufficient motivenbsp;for the long delay in giving the city its official title: it wasnbsp;designated as such by Spain 324 years after the city was born.nbsp;It was out of the events that arose from an inexorable desirenbsp;for freedom that the city earned the illustrious name ofnbsp;Cradle of the Cuban Nationality. This was the home of ournbsp;countryrsquo;s founding father, Carlos Manuel de Céspedes, thenbsp;mastermind and architect of the first pro-independencenbsp;struggle.

That anti-colonial war, unprecedented in the islandrsquo;s history,nbsp;featured Bayamo as the first territory that was freed fromnbsp;Spanish rule, as the earliest moment of a chain of militarynbsp;victories by the Mambí Army, the pro-liberation forces.nbsp;In the same context, on Oct. 20, 1868, the city earned thenbsp;name of the City of the National Anthem, when the patriotnbsp;Perucho Figueredo wrote, on a piece of paper stained with thenbsp;sweat of his horse the lyrics of the song sung most ferventlynbsp;by the Cuban people: To battle, run, people of Bayamohellip;!"nbsp;Almost three months later, in response to the overwhelmingnbsp;strength of the oppressorrsquo;s forces, the people of Bayamonbsp;decided to reduce the city to ashes before they would defilenbsp;their freedom in the shadow of surrender. They marked itnbsp;forever with letters of fire, enshrining it as the City of thenbsp;Torch, or the Phoenix of Cuba.

In a short period, from their triumphal entry to their tragicnbsp;sacrifice at the mercy of the flames, the patriots of this citynbsp;created for the first time a revolutionary government andnbsp;newspaper and a law to abolish slavery.

History, culture and tradition
A city where innumerable historical and cultural milestonesnbsp;have taken place, Bayamo, now the capital of Granma province,nbsp;has also borne witness to the events narrated in verse in Cubarsquo;snbsp;first literary work, Espejo de Paciencia (Mirror of Patience), andnbsp;its streets gave rise to La Bayamesa," the song that initiatednbsp;the countryrsquo;s romantic song movement in March 1851.nbsp;

A stronghold of the pro-independence cause at every stagenbsp;of the popular struggle for definitive liberation, Bayamonbsp;was also the setting for another action of importancenbsp;that immortalized July 26, 1953 as the Day of Nationalnbsp;Rebelliousness: the assault on the local military garrison, lednbsp;by todayrsquo;s president, Raúl Castro, at the same time that Fidelnbsp;Castro was leading the assault on the Moncada garrison innbsp;Santiago.

Bayamo also has the unusual feature of three plazas of thenbsp;Revolution," justifying another one of its nicknames: City of thenbsp;Plazas. These include the first square in Cuba that was namednbsp;Plaza de la Revoluciónmdash;by Céspedes, Figueredo and othernbsp;patriotsmdash;as well as the Plaza del Himno (Plaza of the Nationalnbsp;Anthem") and the Plaza de la Patria (Plaza of the Homeland").nbsp;One symbol of pure tradition that still circulates through thenbsp;cityrsquo;s streets and avenues are the hundreds of colonial-stylenbsp;horse-drawn carriages, which generated yet another famousnbsp;name: City of the Carriages.

However, it was in 1935 that Bayamo was granted its greatestnbsp;title, in recognition of all of its valuable features and the honorsnbsp;it accumulated throughout the centuries, when it became thenbsp;first city in Cuba to be declared a national monument.

An awakening to modern times
Recent years confirm a measured pace of progress towardnbsp;prosperity.

Hundreds of projects to benefit society have been completednbsp;during this period, improving the peoplersquo;s quality of life withnbsp;important services, the impeccable cleanliness of public places,nbsp;and an exquisite culture of perfectionism, all contributing tonbsp;Bayamorsquo;s growing reputation.

Spontaneously, new names are given to the city by itsnbsp;surprised visitors: Capital of Ice Cream, Mecca of Gastronomynbsp;and Services, and similar allusions that add to a long list,nbsp;backed by its hardworking inhabitants and the ingenuity of itsnbsp;government institutions.

Today Bayamo has its share of exclusive spots, many of themnbsp;located on the new Calle General García, a pedestrian mallnbsp;paved in granite and decorated artistically.

Likewise, the pavement simulates the winding course of thenbsp;nearby River Bayamo; the utility poles are tree trunks, andnbsp;paint tubes spilling paint. On either side, ancient homes nownbsp;restored and other interesting buildings: the Wax Museumnbsp;(Museo de Cera), which holds dozens of likeness of celebrities;nbsp;the Model of the Historic City Center (Maqueta), which isnbsp;currently being built; a small aquarium with endemic fishnbsp;species from our rivers and seas; ice cream parlours for all agesnbsp;and especially for children; shops, art and sports academies,nbsp;specialized restaurants, a painstakingly restored hotel, andnbsp;two plazas overflowing with the history of our countryrsquo;snbsp;founding, including the one where our national anthem, Lanbsp;Bayamesa," was created.

For a restful, pleasant visit, other sites are inviting: Cubarsquo;snbsp;largest indoor cabaret; an exquisite botanical garden full ofnbsp;endemic species; a riverside resort; and another plaza thatnbsp;proudly displays the largest single-pane piece of stainednbsp;glass in the world. And there is also the possibility of takingnbsp;a horse-drawn carriage ride and reliving the past, presentnbsp;and future of a city that seems to have been the inspirationnbsp;for a song by Pablo Milanés, the celebrated poet and singersongwriternbsp;who hails from these parts: Man does not sit tonbsp;contemplate the fruit of his action. Tomorrow he will proposenbsp;to make it to the sun."

Now an essential stop on the route of travellers whonbsp;enjoy surprises, an obligatory reference among smallnbsp;capitals; Bayamo will perhaps have as its next nicknamenbsp;the Mirror City."