Santo Domingo Church and Monastery: Santiago de Guatemala (now known as La Antigua Guatemala, or simply Antigua) was founded in 1543, and it was the capital of Spain's Central American confederacy and the fourth most important city in the Americas (after Mexico City, Lima and Zacatecas). Antigua has well-preserved churches (22 total, and 14 convents, and 11 monasteries). These were built in the 1500’s, 1600’s, and 1700’s. These buildings in Antigua were named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979. This encouraged both the government and private sector to work on the restoration of the city's historic buildings. Thus, Santo Domingo Church and Monastery is now one of Antigua's restored architectural gems. Therefore, this page of our tour of the Guatemala Highlands and Antigua is devoted to the Santa Domingo Monastery, which is not only a colonial day monastery but probably the nicest hotel in Antigua. In 1542 the Dominican Friars built the Santa Domingo Monastery. Then in 1773 the Santa Maria earthquake led to the destruction of its buildings and it was used as a garbage dump for several years. In 1989 the ruins was dug out and a hotel was built in the same area. It opened in June of 1989. Today it is called the Hotel Casa Santo Domingo. Several museums are housed within the same complex. Highlights of this wonderful historic complex include a gorgeous monastery church, cleared of rubble and restored in the early 1990s. Below this area there are two crypts. The first of these is the Cripta del Calvario, which has a well-preserved Crucifixion mural. The other crypt harbors two graves containing human bones. We enjoyed our stay and we highly recommend this hotel to people who visit the area. Book early, as it fills up months in advance.
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| George Near The Kitchen | This Is Where They Cooked |
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| Cemetery | Cemetery |
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| Altar Closed On Saturday Preparing For Sunday Mass | Altar Open On Sunday Preparing For Sunday Mass |
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| Crypt | Crypt |
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| Artifacts From Colonial Days | Artifacts From Colonial Days |
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| Crypt | Skeleton |
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| Crypt | Crypt Of The Calvary |
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| Door Near The Kitchen | Flower Over The Door |
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| Audrey At Fountain Near Hotel Entrance Check In Counter | Court Yard Of Hotel |
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| Hall Toward Our Room | Hall Toward Our Room |
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| Hotel Dining Area | Another View Court Yard Of Hotel Agua Volcano In Background |
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| Our Room | Our Room |
| Highlands, Guatemala, Page Four
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