Elsewhere in the central region

Cubans have named this town The Birthplace of the Constitution. In fact, it was here that was written and made official the first Cuban Constitucion which specifies « se declaró iguales ante la Ley a todos los habitantes de la república ». Demanding that "all be equal under the Law", the Ejército Libertador de Mambises completed in 1869 a document whose objective was the liberation of the Cuban people from the colony imposed by Spain. Thanks to the vision and idealism of Ignacio Agramonte, its main author, other such as Carlos Manuel de Céspedes, Salvador Cisneros Betancourt and Manuel de Quesada were able to assume leadership which would eventually reach the Royal Court in Madrid. Adding her voice to the Cuban demands, Ana Betancourt insisted that womens' rights be the same as everybody else's. It was in Guaimaro's plaza pública on April 10 1869 that the announcement was made and this was the start of celebrations which lasted weeks here and elsewhere on the island. Geographically, the area is crossed bu three waterways : rios Guáimaro, Ciego Molina and Saramaguacán. Natural resources include zeolith, copper, kaolin, sand, baryt, gold, and other stone stuff we never heard of ; ) In the Monte Grande sector, most of the land is used for cattle grazing and crops. A large saddlery sellerie nearby and a stone quarry in Palo Seco are some of the important employers in this part of Camaguey province. Every year, locals, camagueyanos and other Cuban vaqueros join guajiros from neighbouring towns such as Cascorro, Martí, Palo Seco, Pueblo Nuevo, San Miguel and Camalote to meet and compete in the great annual fair, the Feria Agropecuaria. Guáimaro is the name of a local tree in the Taino aboriginal language. The local Taino population was wiped out by Spanish colonists in 1530. DISTANCES Amancio, 42 Cayo Romero, 65 Cayo Sabinal, 82 Camaguey, 80 Colombia, 12 Florida, 120 Gibara, 161 Guayabal, 60 Holguin, 128 Jobabo, 31 La Habana, 608 Las Tunas, 48 Marti, 15 Nuevitas, 52 Playa Santa Lucia, 90 Puerto Padre, 100 Santa Cruz del Sur, 118 Santiago de Cuba, 250 Sibanicu, 30 MAPS & LINKS Regional Map — South Coast Camaguey-Guayabal Regional Map — South Coast Camaguey-Las Tunas Regional Map — Guaimaro to Las Tunas Parque de la Constitucion, photo enlarged Weather (Wunderground) Viazul bus going through here — Ruta 16 and 24 Daily exchange rates All that's natural about Camaguey provice POPULATION 57,333 in regional municipality, of which 21,000 in Guaimaro, the town (2007) PLAYAS On the south coast, at some 60 km, the seaside town of Guayabal has a beach and a campismo. On the way there, stop in lovely Amancio — see below. SEE.KNOW.DO • The large central park, Parque de la Constitucion with its 46-foot high Obelisco was inaugurated in May 1944 to honor the libertadores with bronze plaques of José Marti, Maximo Gomez, Carlos Manuel de Céspedes, Ignacio Agramonte, Calixto Garcia and Antonio Maceo. • In the same park, the Mausoleo a Ana Betancourt (1832-1901), journalist and teacher, one of the first women in the world to demand womens' equal rights. 0Betancourt's remains were transported back from Madrid to rest in Havana's Cementerio Colon in 1968 as suggested by another great Cuban woman, Celia Sanchez Manduley (Fidel Castro's companion until her death in 1980) • In 1982, the local mausoleum was inaugurated and declared Monumento Nacional as well as the Museo General Municipal de Guáimaro • Busto de Calixto García is a work — located on Avenida de la Libertad— of one of the 20th century's most important sculptors, Teodoro Ramos Blanco • Now located in what was first a school in 1925, the Museo Municipal General de la Constitucion relating the story of the ratification of the island's first constitution.

Asemblea Constituyante © Lizopedia flickr •|• In the central park Sitio de la Constitucion © eyanex

Parque de la Constitucion © Eyanex, panoramio •|• Calle al lado del Parque © Eyanex

Soft agriculture — organoponic — without chemicals, just sun, water and human care has taken over locally, aiming at regional sufficiency © radioguaimaro.co.cu •]• Other view of the plaza with the obelisco © radioguaimaro

United on the First of May, International Day of workers, here and elsewhere © radioguaimaro •]• A small memorial park in support of "Los Cincos" unjustly emprisoned in the USA © radioguaimaro

Other view of Parque de la Constitucion © Eyanex, panoramio •]• The plan of the city centro as seen from the air © googlemaps

Attracting guajiros and vaqueros from the region, along with their admiradoras, the annual Country Fair, Feria Agropecuaria Guaimaro © Miriam Alvarez •]• Three generations of vaqueros (cowboys) parade in town on Workers' Day in May © eyanex, panoramio.co

The Farmacia in nearby Cascorro : take a number ! @ Robin Thom •]• The barberia on a balcony in Guaimaro @ Davida, flickr.com

FROM CULTURE TO AGRICULTURE ; )
every April since 1978 is held here the Semana de la Cultura en Guáimaro a week of cultural events to which take part some of these institutions : Sociedad del Teatro de Guáimaro, Galería de Artes de Guaimaro, Brigada de Instructores de Arte José Martí, Brigada artística Martha Machado, Museo Salvador Cisneros de Guáimaro, Casa de Cultura, Librería Municipal Ignacio Agramonte and the great cultural site of the town, built in 1918 and modernized in 1958 : the Cine Guáimaro. • In May, it's time for Taller de tradiciones Cuiqui Sum which highlights regional literary talents of poetry, tale-telling, riddles, proverbs and epigrams • Early June, in the spirit of feminist Ana Betancourt takes place the Encuentro de poetisas Décima al filo, a meet of Cuban women (and men) poets with music, dance and plastic arts • In July, since 2008, the Festival del Audiovisual at Cine Guáimaro. • During the first week of October the unavoidable Feria Agropecuaria Guaimaro with horse races, rodeos, bull riding, lasso contests and everything to please the guajira and her cowboy (vaquero) • In November is the annual Salón de Mural, Artesanía y Cerámica Artística (murals, arts & crafts and ceramics) in the Guaimaro art gallery.

EVENINGS
Casa de Cultura Luz Palomares García — Theater, dance lessons, arts & crafts, music and an art gallery • Cine Guáimaro — movies, theater, shows and video room, théâtre.

HEED THE HINTS IN THIS FINE PRINT
::: Make sure that in your first email or phone call you specify that you want to book a room in that particular casa and that you will reconfirm your booking on arrival in Cuba. Unless you only want a room in any house which may be of the same quality, not the specific casa you booked through photos on these websites ::: So as to not abandon expecting owners with empty rooms, reconfirm (or call ahead to cancel) your booking by phone as soon as you can after arriving in Cuba ::: Please write or phone a casa owner to cancel a booking. As late as it may seem, it allows them a chance to rebook. ::: Children under the age of 16 may share a bedroom with adults for free. Specify the child's age when booking. ::: Since October 2010, maximum bedroom capacity is not limited to two adults ::: Also, large casas are not limited to renting only two bedrooms per night. ::: At the end of the casa name, the V signals the casa was suggested by travelers or owners but not verified by the website staff. If you try it and like it, write us about it. ::: Unless otherwise mentioned, the average room rates and service prices are : 20-25cuc per bedroom per night [up to 40+ for 4 in a room]; breakfasts 3-5cuc, dinners 7-10cuc. ::: Note : monthly taxes have increased 15-50% for owners; this may be reflected on the aforementioned rates. ::: Any casa particular anywhere in Cuba must have a hot water shower, otherwise it cannot have a permit to rent.

::: On certain occasions in the past year, overbooking may have inadvertently hurt some travellers, some casa owners and some webmasters more than would appear and this prompted this webmaster to overreact by generalizing about individual realities; having hurt most casa owners, this webmaestro's self-righteous attitude [all action, no talk] was uncalled for. Lo siento mucho I am truly sorry and apologies given, Marcos 070112 ::: Please share your Complaints, comments & suggestions webmaster [@]cubacasas.net

CASA MARITZA V
Calle Constitución # 116 entre Máximo Gómez y Gabriel García. Tel. (32) 81-2910

MAIBY y LUIS V
Calle Victoria #48 altos (upstairs), entre Loma y Irene Munoz Tel. (32) 81-3449 or 81-2466

Maiby Gonzalez Torres and hubby Luis Aguilar Lapinet have a two-storey casa located near the centre, 100 m from the Carretera Central in a quiet area. They rent two air-conditioned bedrooms, shared bath, kitchen, TV room, terrace.