Fodor's Expert Review Plaza de Santo Domingo

The eponymous church looming over the plaza is the oldest in the city and a contrast to the plaza's generally festive and bustling atmosphere. At night the area is particularly attractive as it fills up with tables from surrounding bars and restaurants. A popular, eye-catching landmark since 2000 is Colombian artist Fernando Botero's large bronze Gertrudis, a sculpture of a plump, naked woman. Don't pass by the Iglesia de Santo Domingo: built in 1539, the church has a simple whitewashed interior, bare limestone pillars, a raised choir, and an adjacent cloistered seminary. Local lore says the bell tower's twisted profile is the work of the Devil, who, dispirited at having failed to destroy it, threw himself into the plaza's well. For a fee you can take an audio tour.