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SAN FRANCISCO CLOISTER
The history of the Cloister and the San Francisco complex, the first buildings constructed in Getsemaní even before the neighborhood existed, is one of rise, abandonment, dismantling and additions, multiple uses, demolitions, and reconstructions.
A CLUB FROM THE PAST
Upon arriving at its classic location in Centenario Park, Club Cartagena had been established for thirty-four years. Why did they decide to move to a location outside the most traditional neighborhood? How were those years in Getsemaní?
TEMPLE OF SAN FRANCISCO, WHERE THE NEIGHBORHOOD WAS BORN
In the old Temple of San Francisco in Getsemaní, behind the old theaters, there is a dome that is hardly visible from the street. It is the upper part of the original 16th-century presbytery, which for decades was hidden behind a movie curtain, remaining somewhat intact. If one had to say where the neighborhood was born, it would be there, right under that dome.
THE COLONIAL DINOSAUR
The Cloister of San Francisco, part of the hotel complex being constructed in Getsemaní, has undergone constant evolution over its more than four centuries of existence. Its construction combined European, Catholic, Franciscan, and Creole architectural traditions.
ANNEXES: PUZZLES IN A FRANCISCAN CONVENT
How did a modest building, dedicated to minor tasks, end up being the most complex to interpret and intervene in the Franciscan cloister of Getsemaní? This story involves a council, a guardhouse, two gardens, and a theater with a curved screen.
THE CLUB CARTAGENA
The location of Club Cartagena, in front of Parque Centenario, was not chosen by chance. You needed to be there if you were part of the city’s production and commerce at the beginning of the 20th century: close to the market and the port, where maritime life entered the city.
AN UPSIDE-DOWN SHIP
In a sense, constructing a colonial roof is like building a large ship, turning it upside down, and placing it on top of the walls. Of course, this is a simplification, but there is indeed a relationship between the art of building ships and that of making building roofs. Their structures and functions are similar.
A GRAFFITI WITH A MYSTERY
The afternoon is setting in Cartagena. Two artists, in front of the old theaters of Getsemaní, take out several cans of spray paint and begin bringing to life the enclosure of that restoration project.
A FACADE AS A TRIBUTE
If a property has over four hundred years of history, but nothing remains standing, what should be considered when creating something new there? To simplify: should one look to the future or appeal to the past? If it's the latter, which past should be referenced?
RESTORING AND INNOVATING IN A FRANCISCAN CONVENT
Every day, masters of ancient masonry and carpentry combine their skills with those of experts in cutting-edge techniques to address the problems and challenges of an old convent with many patches, which is now preparing for a new life.
A FACADE TO LOOK AT TWICE
Behind an apparently simple front, the facade of the San Francisco temple in Getsemaní reveals the mindset of two different eras. Although it might not seem so, there is more than one facade in those walls.
EIGHT WAYS TO EXPERIENCE CINEMA
The Teatro Cartagena, since its opening in 1941 and for several decades, was the elegant choice for watching movies in the city. Even the world boxing champion Rocky Valdez (1946-2017), who had the means and status to enter as the sports glory he was, had doubts about going in. “They didn’t let the little black boys in, and if you wanted to enter, you had to be very well dressed,” he told Professor Ricardo Chica in an interview.
A MESSENGER ON THE WALL: THE FRANCISCAN FRESCO OF THE CRUCIFIXION
Our story begins with an anonymous European painter of masterful hand who disembarked in Cartagena on his way to Lima. But before reaching there, he painted frescoes at various stops along his extensive journey. The first of these stops was in Getsemaní.
THE WALLS SPEAK
Little remains of the mural art that once adorned the Cloister and the Temple of San Francisco, but it is imperative to recover and protect it for the immediate future and for posterity. This is what is currently being done with two works that reveal much about the past.
BONES THAT TELL A STORY
Those who have walked through colonial churches will have noticed that the floor is sometimes quite uneven, as if it were sinking in patches. The reason is surprising: for several centuries, parishioners were buried throughout the temple, including outside, in the atrium.
FROM LIME TO CARBON FIBER
A Colonial Temple Comes Back to Life: The Temple of San Francisco in Getsemaní is resurging as it did in its prime after four centuries during which its cover collapsed due to a fire, it was abandoned, and repurposed so many times that the exact memory of all its uses has been lost. To bring it back to life, ancient techniques must be combined with cutting-edge technology.
THE THEATER OF CARTAGENA
In many ways, Teatro Cartagena was the theater for the whole city. Although it opened in 1941 with the intention of being the most modern and luxurious cinema, it ended up becoming a hub of our social life.
THE LONG JOURNEY OF A FAÇADE
For those who grew up with the Teatro Cartagena as a neighbor, its facade was part of the landscape. But a curious eye would reveal that it had something different from the other buildings.
It seemed integrated into the rest of the urban landscape, yet at the same time, it stood out in its own way without clashing with the others. This effect was intentional, and its architectural lines made a surprising and long journey from Mexican Baroque to Colombian Caribbean.
A ROOF FROM ANOTHER ERA
The original roof of the Temple of San Francisco collapsed many years ago, most likely due to relentless termite activity and lack of maintenance. It remained that way until the mid-20th century, when a contemporary roof was added to create the Teatro Claver, which later became the Teatro Colón.
CARTAGENA, COLÓN, CALAMARÍ, AND BUCANERO THEATERS
In addition to journalism and literature, Gabriel García Márquez was passionate about cinema. In his column Punto y aparte in El Universal, he wrote his first article related to the seventh art. In that text, published on June 4, 1948, his interest in the impact that stories projected on the big screen had on the audience could be seen.
LA CUEVA
Restaurant and bar where Gabriel García Márquez arrived during his first night in Cartagena and to which he later returned frequently. The manager of the place impressed Gabriel García Márquez and was the inspiration for creating the character Catarino in One Hundred Years of Solitude. One Hundred Years of Solitude.
Talking about Arsenal Street necessarily means talking about the port, the docks, the sandbank, the wall, the public market and many other things (...)
A whole book could be written about Larga Street. It has more than four centuries of history and together with Media Luna Street, they were the basis for the layout of the streets of Getsemaní (...)
San Juan Evangelista Street is one of the few that still retains its colonial name. When it was paved around 1967, many items such as weapons and pellets were found during excavation work (...)
A memory in a scent. This is how the older people in the neighborhood remember San Antonio Street: the carts of pellets that left the Imperial Bakery at four in the morning to supply so many places in the city (...)
The name of the street is clear: at the end, near the bay of Las Ánimas, was the waterhole of the Navy (...)
Its full name is Calle Nuestra Señora de las Palmas Benditas because, it is said, its first residents were very devoted to that devotion of the Virgin Mary (...)
It is said that during colonial times, fishermen left their wet flip-flops on the sidewalk to dry in the sun while they worked (...)
Pozo Street has almost as much history as the neighborhood. From its small square, the lancers marched towards the center in 1811 to tip the balance in favor of declaring total independence from Spain (...)
One of the streets with the highest number of residents per square meter, here you can experience neighborhood life like no other (...)
Together with the Angosto alley, they are among the blocks with the most neighborhood life in Getsemaní (...)
What a street like Carretero to be in the heart of Getsemaní! Not only because it leads to the Plaza de la Trinidad, but also because of the neighbors and people who lived there before and who still live there (...)
Little is known about the name. It comes from the Colony and traces point to the region of León, in present-day Spain (...)
The origin of this street dates back to 1603, when the Order of Saint John of God created a hospital called the Holy Spirit, on land adjacent to the current Hermitage of San Roque (...)
Talking about Media Luna Street is placing ourselves in a reference par excellence that the Getsemaní neighborhood has (...)
We must begin by correcting a misunderstanding: it is not Guerrero Street, but Guerrero Street (...)
The presence of the Obra Pía, built between 1640 and 1650, has gravitated around this street. It occupies a good part of the block and its front faces Media Luna Street (...)
This short street has a very long history. From being one of the least valued streets, it became a large neighbourhood centre and now, a commercial and transit hub between the Centre and the rest of Getsemaní (...)
It is one of the few that still maintains a name of Catholic origin, as did almost all the streets and landmarks in cities founded by Spaniards (...)
Both streets have had various names, almost all of them more common or 'formal', so to speak. But those that have survived are the popular ones, which are perhaps signs of a modest origin. (...)
Popularly, it was also called the street of the Goats, because there was always someone who said something or something happened to a neighbor and everyone came out to defend him (...)
There is no consensus on the origin of its name. Sierpe means “snake” in old Spanish and it is one of the few streets that has kept its original name since the Colonial period (...)
On Turtle Street, the houses were attached to the San Anastasio Canal. Its inhabitants placed mangrove stakes with which they kept confined the four species of turtles that the fishermen brought from other places through the Juan Angola Canal (...)
Many people remember that the monument to the Botas Viejas was originally erected there. Today it is the place where pelota de trapo, the traditional sport of the neighbourhood, is played.
The name Plaza de la Trinidad was given to it in 1643, the year in which the church was completed.
Source: (NotiCartagena)
Its design is based on a French-style park; with an almost quadrangular shape, the park is surrounded by a perimeter fence and eight entrances decorated with an arch.
Source: (El Universal Newspaper)
The arrival of the Hotel San Francisco, operated by Four Seasons, allows Getsemaní to open up to luxury tourism, elevating Cartagena's name as a world-class tourist destination.
Source: (Iriante, 2022)
This square was the place where the people gathered to celebrate popular festivals, in which floats were used and the most beautiful girls paraded.
Source: NotiCartagena
The two streets that border Centenario Park between Media Luna and the old San Felipe hotel have many stories to tell. Today they are an avenue and, on the park side, an informal parking lot and a taxi station.(...)
The Cartagena de Indias Convention Center was created as a project by the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Tourism in 1978, as a mechanism to generate regional development hubs through the implementation of broad-based activities, such as congresses, events and conventions. It was designed by the firm Esguerra, Sáenz and Samper Ltda. and built by the Cartagena firm Civilco.
Source: Convention Center - Cartagena de Indias
It was the last flank of the neighborhood to be closed. It was so recently that many Getsemaní residents remember it as the baseball and soccer field of their childhood. (...)
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