Santo Domingo.

I ended up with a trip down to Santo Domingo on my schedule, but had no idea what to expect as I had never really explored what there is to do there. To my surprise this little city right on the coast is now one of my favorite Caribbean spots! Zona Colonial is the area we went out in. It is super walkable and such a colorful city, the pictures just keep getting better.

At first I mapped out a few buildings to see, but as we walked I found a city map with street directions to all the iconic spots. While following this map we also veered off when we saw things we liked. The map was helpful to get a general sense of where you were in the city.

Each spot also had a sign with the location’s history. Keep scrolling to see the map route in the photo gallery at the end of my post. 

 

I would suggest starting at the northeast corner of the city and following exactly as the map suggests. Even if you decide to take an alternate road than suggested you will still find gorgeous architecture all around. Plaza Espana is super cute and spacious. 

Walking around I imagined it filling up on a weekend with some festival. People all around with music and food. I am curious if they have events throughout the year in this plaza. 

 

Moving west up the little hill the next two stops are Casa del Cordon and Monasterio de San Francisco. This house was the first house built of limestone. Many of the buildings in the city looked really similar. 

I wish I could have snapped a pic of the monastery because it was the most gorgeous set of ruins in the city. The view was not too picturesque because they were setting up for a wedding and there were trailers and road blocks. The venue inside was so perfect I wish I could have snuck in to take a picture. ​

Walking down the street pictured below with the colorful buildings was one of the highlights of the city. The two sidewalks were elevated and the street was down below. Something so unique about it. Make sure once you get to the bottom you turn around and take a look from the bottom angle. 

 

We passed the hospital ruins on the way down, the picture of this is on the cover photo of my post! 

El Conde was a street that had shopping and little restaurants. The streets were lined with people selling canvas art representative of Santo Domingo. I was so tempted to buy one, they were absolutely beautiful. One of my favorites was drawn from the picture above with the perspective on the bottom of the street, so make sure to look back on you way down. 

 

Parque colon and catedral primada de America is right in the heart of the city. The church is the first to have been builtin the Americas and the structure said it was finished in 1540. 

Parque Duarte and Iglesia y Convento de los Dominicos are on the southwest side of the city. I loved this church! It really matched the looks of the city with the orange color; there was also a little garden.

 

Casa Tostado is the next stop. I loved this intersection for the beautiful buildings and plants around it. Looking back I wish we had gone into the house for a tour because it was one of the first built and it is supposed to have nice courtyard and architecture throughout. 

Lastly, you will head northeast and see the Fortaleza Ozama, Panteon, and Calle Las Damas, which was the first street in the Americas. The fort was not free to enter, but also did not seem worth it to pay. 

This city seems to hold a lot of history for the Americas, definitely worth the work trip! I seriously can’t wait to visit again and spend even more time roaming around.