THREE DAYS IN SAN JUAN

ARTS & CULTURE IN OLD SAN JUAN

Old San Juan is an exploration into the decorative arts, historic art collections and documents from a 16th century city where the need for protection from constant threats, by foreign powers and pirates, et al, is built into its very DNA. 

“El Morro”– the citadel Castillo San Felipe del Morro, with its original cannons and dungeons, is one of the largest fortifications built by the Spaniards in the Caribbean.

Casa Blanca– built as the home for Puerto Rico’s first governor, Juan Ponce de León. The explorer and eternal youth seeker died before he had a chance to live in the house, but this oldest residence in Old San Juan housed his descendants for generations.

Catedral de San Juan– the second oldest church in the Americas, where the world’s first archdiocese was founded. The Gothic and Spanish colonial cathedral also houses Ponce de León’s tomb. La Fortaleza– “The Fortress” is the oldest executive mansion in the U.S., (built from 1533 to 1540), and still the residence of the sitting governor.

Galeria Botello. Tucked away on Calle del Cristo is a truly great way to spend an afternoon. Throughout the midcentury, Spanish-born, French-trained, and Haitian-inspired artist Ángel Botello, along with his wife, opened several galleries throughout San Juan. The last of these, the 400-year-old Spanish colonial house where he lived and worked, contains Botello’s life’s work, along with significant local and international contemporary art. If you’re lucky, the artist’s son, Juan, may be there to show you around and offer insights into their creative legacy. The gallery is open to the public Monday to Saturday and the museum by appointment.