Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
(Plaza Independencia; 9am-8pm Tue-Sun)
This municipal museum is a relatively small but
well-organized facility with modern and contemporary art exhibits. Free concerts and
theatrical performances are usually held here on Sunday nights at 8pm; make sure you
stop by for the weekly program. The museum is located underground at the Plaza
Independencia.
Museo Histórico General San Martín
MUSEUM
(Remedios Escalada de San Martín 1843; admission AR$5; 9am-1pm & 3-8pm Mon-Fri)
Honors
José de San Martín, the general who liberated Argentina from the Spanish and whose
name graces parks, squares and streets everywhere; the Libertador is dear to Mendoza,
where he resided with his family and recruited and trained his army to cross into Chile.
The museum is in a small arcade off Av San Martín.
Iglesia, Convento y
Basílica de San Francisco
CHURCH
(Necochea 201; 9am-1pm Mon-Sat)
Many
mendocinos
(people from Mendoza) consider
the image at this church of the Virgin of Cuyo, patron of San Martín's Ejército de los
Andes (Army of the Andes), miraculous because it survived Mendoza's devastating 1968
earthquake. In the Virgin's semicircular chamber, visitors leave tributes to her and to San
Martín. A mausoleum within the building holds the remains of San Martín's daughter,
son-in-law and granddaughter, which were repatriated from France in 1951.
Parque General San Martín
PARK
Walking along the lakeshore and snoozing in the shade of the rose garden in this beauti-
ful 420-hectare park is a great way to enjoy one of the city's highlights. Walk along
Sarmiento/Civit out to the park and admire some of Mendoza's finest houses on the way.
Pick up a park map at the
Centro de Información
( 0261-420-5052, ext 22; cnr Avs Los
Platanos & Libertador; 9am-5pm)
, just inside the impressive entry gates, shipped over
from England and originally forged for the Turkish Sultan Hamid II. The park was de-
signed by Carlos (Charles) Thays in 1897, who also designed Parque Sarmiento in Cór-
doba. Its famous
Cerro de la Gloria
has a monument to San Martín's Ejército de los
Andes for its liberation of Argentina, Chile and Peru from the Spaniards. On clear days,
views of the valley make the climb especially rewarding.
