San Juan is the city that was founded in the early sixteenth century lies in Puerto Rico which is one of the Caribbean islands. Like other Caribbean islands, Puerto Rico is also popular for its exquisite beaches and tropical climate. But San Juan which is the capital and most significant city of the Puerto Rican Island has more to its attractions. San Juan was discovered for being the springboard to colonize and get through the rest of America. The temporary settlement of the early Spanish colonizers today makes San Juan historically rich and affluent city. So when you are planning for a complete vacation, look for a cheap flight to San Juan. Or you can book a cheap flight to Washington DC and then take a scenic ferry ride to San Juan. It is the place where you can have all, beautiful sandy beaches, picturesque views, the enormous range of flora and fauna, and not the least rich history and cultural background wrapped up in the entire package.
San Juan was a focal point of colonization, with the status of the most important historical port for trading riches from the New World to Europe. This significance of the ancient city led to the creation of fortifications and an organized infrastructure in San Juan. The historical forts that led to the development of this city are certainly the most focal point of attraction for tourists to gaze into the tales of the city’s past.
El Morro is a six-level fortress built in the sixteenth century, but it experienced some additions later in the eighteenth century. This fortress which is around one hundred and forty feet above the sea level has eighteen feet thick walls to make the entry to the city of San Juan a formidable task. The name of the fortress was named in honour of King Phillip II of Spain in the sixteenth century. The fort is an amazing architecture that makes you completely lost in its antique maze of tunnels, barracks, dungeons, outposts and ramps. The small sentry circular boxes called the ‘garitas’ have now become symbols of Puerto Rican nationality.
The exalting beauty of the El Morro fortress and its rich historical lineage has won the status of National Historic Site which is popular both in Puerto Rico and the entire world. this was done in 1992 when Puerto Rico celebrated five hundred years of its discovery by Christopher Columbus. The fortress that expands around seventy-four acres of land is perhaps the biggest ancient building and the largest historic fort in the entire Caribbean region.
Castillo de San Cristobal Fort is El Morro’s very close partner that vowed to the protection of the city of San Juan built in the seventeenth century. The Fort is proud to be UNESCO’s World Heritage Site. Though it is not as large as the El Morro its defensive mechanisms are much more strong and dynamic. It is a strategically built masterpiece which is one hundred and fifty feet above the sea level is comprised of five independent units. All of those units are connected by moats and tunnels so that the downfall of one does not affect the validity of the others. Cristobal is proud to be America’s best-designed defence fortress.
There is an array of other fortress and other historical buildings and sites in San Juan which are worth visiting. San Juan holds the colonial legacy and protects till date the founding stones of a massive empire in the Americas.
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