Plaza Martí, the town’s main square, is shaded by tall royal palms beneath which you can sit on marble and wrought-iron benches. Dominating the square is the venerable Parroquia de San Juan Batista (Camilo Cienfuegos #20, Mon.–Sat. 9–11 a.m.), dating from 1692. Its pious exterior belies the splendor within, not least a carved cedar altar that glimmers with 24-carat gold leaf, a statue of the Immaculate Virgin heavy with child, and a Moorish-style ceiling of carved mahogany, splendidly gabled and fluted. The church has an impressive bell tower. It was badly damaged by an earthquake in 1939 and restored over the ensuing 15 years at the behest of a local benefactor, who also donated European paintings.

Museo de la Música Alejandro García Caturla (Camilo Cienfuegos #5, tel. 042/39-6851, Tues.–Sat. 9 a.m.–noon and 1–5 p.m., Sun. 9 a.m.–5 p.m., CUC1 entrance, CUC5 camera), on the north side, honors one of Cuba’s foremost avant-garde composers. The house features period furniture and Caturla’s original manuscripts. The musical prodigy began writing music in 1920, when he was only 14. He was heavily influenced by the rhythms and sounds of Africa and fell under the sway of Stravinsky. The iconoclastic composer was a noted liberal and an incorruptible lawyer who rose to become judge for the city. He was assassinated in 1940.

On the park’s northwest corner stands the Iglesia Buen Viaje (Alejandro del Río #66), a prim little church with a three-tiered bell-tower with a life-size figure of the Virgin Mary and Jesus in the “dove-hole.” It is fronted by a marble statue of Cuba’s Indian maiden, a symbol of the nation’s liberty.

One block west of the plaza, the Museo de las Parrandas (Calle Máximo Gómez #71, no tel., Tues.–Sat. 9 a.m.–noon and 1–6 p.m., Sun. 9 a.m.–1 p.m., CUC1 entrance, CUC1 cameras) celebrates the festivals unique to the region. Given the ostentation of the actual parrandas, the museum is anticlimactic.