158 
THE STANDARD GUIDE. 
THE WATERFRONT OF GIBARA. 
right of this is a house of bright blue with white trimmings; just beyond, 
the cathedral is cream with red towers and domes; and other color com¬ 
binations are of yellow and blue, and green and red. The houses fairly 
glow amid their settings of palm and banana; and sea and sky and town 
unite to make a painted panorama. Enclosing the town is a high stone 
wall, which begins at the water’s edge on the left, climbs the hill, extending 
along the crest, and descends to the sea on the right. At commanding 
points here and there it is complemented with high watchtowers. 1 he 
wall was built in 1870, to keep out the Cuban insurgents; it is falling into 
ruin, and the watchtowers are peopled by negroes, goats and dogs. 
Sharks of formidable size infest the bay, and alligators may be seen from 
the wharf. The Plaza and Cathedral are but a block distant from the 
wharf to the right, and just beyond is the relic of Fort San Fernandina, 
on the point of that name jutting into the bay and commanding the 
harbor. The fort long ago fell into disuse, but the old moat and the 
drawbridge still remain. If time permits, an excursion should be made 
to the top of the hill back of the town, a half-mile from the waterfront. 
On the crest of the hill are the remains of the Spanish barracks. The view 
here afforded is well worth the climb to attain it. Below lies the town, its 
predominating color tone the deep red of the tiles, which is interspersed 
with shades of blue, pink and brown, set off by the green foliage of the 
gardens and patios. Beyond the harbor entrance, the coast line stretches 
eastward in a series of crescents, marked by surf of silvery whiteness. 
There are hills all about, and in the southern distance lie the isolated 
mountains Silla de Gibara, the Saddle of Gibara, and Sugar Loaf and 
Table mountains, all densely timbered on the lower slopes, and near the 
summits steep and scarped and in certain lights shining like snow peaks. 
From Gibara the Holguin & Gibara Railroad runs to Holguin, a town 
lying on a high plain twenty miles inland. The elevated site and beautiful 
