Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
OFF THE BEATEN TRACK
RAFAEL TRUJILLO'S SAN CRISTOBAL
Most visitors heading west from the capital pass through San Cristobal, the home town of dictator Ra-
fael Trujillo. Trujillo erected all sorts of monuments to himself here and built extravagant buildings,
but today it is a traffic-clogged provincial capital just 30km from Santo Domingo that few folk stop in.
Little evidence of Trujillo's brutal and authoritarian regime remain, but San Cristobal's strangest sight
remains open for visits - the
Castillo del Cerro
( 809-983-7692; admission free;
8:30am-4:30pm) . Currently used as the National Penitentiary School, the castle was built on
Trujillo's orders for himself and his family in 1947 (at a cost of US$3 million) but he reportedly hated
the finished product and never spent a single night there. The name means 'Castle on the Hill,' which
is pretty accurate - it overlooks the city - but the concrete-and-glass structure looks more like an of-
fice building than a castle. Inside, however, huge dining rooms, ballrooms and bedrooms have fantast-
ic ceilings and wall decorations painted in gaudy colors. The bathrooms - of which there must be 20 -
have tile mosaics in reds, blues and gold leaf. There are six floors in all, and you can spend a half-hour
or more just wandering through the once-abandoned structure. There is also a small museum detailing
some of Trujillo's atrocities, including a few original instruments of torture and murder, a replica elec-
tric chair and - huh? - loads of exquisite bed frames.
Any taxi driver or
motoconchista
(motorcycle taxi driver) can take you there - it probably makes
sense to ask the driver to come back in 30 to 60 minutes to pick you up. If you've got a vehicle, from
Parque Independencia take Calle María Trinidad Sánchez west for 700m. Take a left onto Calle Luper-
ón and follow it up the hill 500m until you reach a fork in the road. There, veer right and head up the
hill another 700m to the entrance gates. Visitors must adhere to the dress code of shirts and closed-toe
shoes.
Also interesting is the informal
Museo Jamas El Olvido Será tu Recuerdo
( 809-474-8767;
Calle Gral Leger 134; adult/child RD$200/100) in the home of local resident José Miguel Ventura
Medina, known to some as 'El Hippi.' The museum's name translates literally to 'Forgetfulness will
never be your remembrance,' or simply 'You will never be forgotten.' The 'you' in this case is none
other than Generalísimo Trujillo, who, along with John F Kennedy, was Ventura's favorite world lead-
er. Most will not agree with Ventura's assessment of Trujillo as a 'good dictator,' but the extensive
collection of photos and other memorabilia - plus a slew of random antiques - is worth poking
around. If Ventura is not home, give him a call ( 809-474-8767). When we came through, he was
converting two
very
rustic rooms into a B&B (r RD$300), so you can now sleep amid the history if
you so fancy. It's located on Calle General Leger, 6½ blocks north and one block east of Parque Colón
- look for a small white car perched on the rooftop.
Buses for San Cristobal leave Santo Domingo from Parque Enriquillo (RD$50, one hour). In San
Cristobal,
guaguas
for the capital (RD$75, 45 minutes, every 20 minutes from 6:45am to 7pm) leave
from a stop at the southeast edge of the park.
Guaguas
to Baní (RD$85, 45 minutes, every 25 minutes
from 7am to 7:30pm) leave from beside Isla gas station on Carretera Sánchez (Calle Padre Borbón),
600m west of Parque Colón. For towns further west, you have to go out to the Isla gas station, 4.3km
north of Parque Colón on the main highway, and flag down a passing bus: to Ázua (RD$150, 1½
hours) and Barahona (RD$225, 3½ hours), for example.
