Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
(San Alberto; 10am-noon)
The brilliant-white Convento de Santa Teresa belongs to an
order of cloistered nuns. They sell homemade candied oranges, apples, figs and limes
daily by way of a miniature revolving door. The adjacent
Callejón de Santa Teresa
, a
lantern- lit alleyway, was once partially paved with cow knee bones laid out in the shape
of a cross, a local good luck symbol known as
tabas
. The alley was considered to be a
haunted place, inhabited by a variety of local ghouls including a baby with a moustache
and teeth, and the cow knees were thought to be the most reliable way of protecting pass-
ersby. In the 1960s it was repaved with the cobbles you see today.
Convento de San Felipe Neri
(Ortíz 165, entry via the school; admission B$10; 2:30-6pm Mon-Sat)
The view from
the bell tower and tiled rooftop of the San Felipe Neri convent more than explains Sucre's
nickname of the 'White City of the Americas'. In the days when the building served as a
monastery (it is now a parochial school), asceticism didn't prevent the monks from appre-
ciating the view while meditating; you can still see the stone seats on the roof terraces.
The church was originally constructed of stone but was later covered with a layer of
stucco. Poinsettias and roses fill the courtyard, an interesting painting of the Last Supper
hangs at the entrance and the stairwell is lined with paintings that prepared the monks for
confession.
CHURCH
Iglesia de San Francisco
(Ravelo 1 at Arce; 7-9am & 4-7pm Mon-Fri)
The Iglesia de San Francisco was estab-
lished in 1538 soon after the founding of the city, but was turned over to the military in
1809. The soldiers weren't big on maintenance and it fell into disrepair before eventually
being reconsecrated in 1925. Its most interesting features are its
mudéjar
(Moorish)
paneled ceiling and the Campana de la Libertad, Bolivia's Liberty Bell, which called pat-
riots to revolution in 1825.
CHURCH
Iglesia de Santa Mónica
(cnr Junín 601 & Arenales)
The Iglesia de Santa Mónica was begun in 1574 and was ori-
ginally intended to serve as a monastery for the Ermitañas de San Agustín. However, the
order ran into financial difficulties in the early 1590s, resulting in its conversion into a Je-
suit school. The interior is adorned with mestizo carvings and the courtyard is one of the
CHURCH
