Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
run in both directions. Ask at the small
tourist office
(
962-4022)
in the municipal
building for the latest timetables.
SANTIAGO DE CHIQUITOS
Set in the hills, the Jesuit mission at Santiago de Chiquitos, 20km from the militarized access town Roboré (on the
railway line), provides a welcome break from the tropical heat of the lowlands. Its church is well worth a look, and
there are some great excursions from Santiago, such as the restaurant El Mirador, a 15-minute walk from the village,
with dizzy views of the Tucavaca valley. The round-trip taxi fare from Roboré is B$120 for up to four people.
SAN JOSÉ DE CHIQUITOS
3 / POP 16,600
An atmospheric place, San José de Chiquitos has the appeal of an old Western film set.
The frontier town, complete with dusty streets straight out of
High Noon
and footpaths
shaded by pillar-supported roofs, is flanked on the south by a low escarpment and on the
north by flat, soggy forest. With an enormous and handsome plaza shaded by
toboroche
(thorny bottle) trees, the most accessible Jesuit mission town is also arguably the nicest.
Sights & Activities
Jesuit Mission Church
(
8am-noon & 2-6pm Mon-Sat, 10am-noon Sun)
San José has the only stone Jesuit mis-
sion church and merits a visit even if you miss all the others. Although the main altar is
nearly identical to those in other nearby missions and has vague similarities to churches in
Poland and Belgium, the reason behind its unusual exterior design remains unclear.
The church compound consists of four principal buildings arranged around the court-
yard and occupying an entire city block. Construction began prior to 1731 with the bell
tower finished in 1748, the
funerario
(death chapel) dated 1752 and the
parroquio
(living
area) completed in 1754. It is believed, however, that only the facades were finished be-
fore the Jesuits were expelled in 1767. All construction work was done by the Chiquitano
people under Jesuit direction.
CHURCH
