With a population of 294,000, Camaguey, Cuba’s third-largest city, overlooks a large plain in the middle of Camaguey Province in central Cuba. Founded in 1515 as Santa Maria del Puerto del Principe by Diego Velasquez, the city was renamed in 1903 after a Native American chief.

The city has become a centre for communications, trade, and industry, mainly processing and shipping livestock and sugar. Because early city did not have a source of fresh water, Spanish potters made huge earthenware jugs, called tinajones, to collect rainwater.

The city’s twisting, turning streets often surprise visitors. Row houses built in the 1700s; each painted a different colour, and may appear around one corner, while another street may end in a large plaza surrounded by museums and churches.