The Cathedral of Sucre was constructed between 1559 and 1712, an amazing span of time which crosses three centuries, on one of the corners of the Plaza 25 de Mayo, the town’s central square. In the era of instant buildings popping out on modern cities outskirts everyday it is hard to comprehend such a time-span. A result of such a prolonged construction-time was the use of several styles in the edifice, from Renaissance to Baroque with Mestizo influences.

It is by far the most imposing and interesting structure next to the central plaza; the cathedral and its museum are well worth to the hurried visitor a couple of hours. The wonder begins at the fence surrounding the structure; a strange corner topped with an unusually shaped cross announces the visitor that he is about to enter a special place. The elaborated main door – built in brown stones as opposed to the sparkling white of the main structure - is beautiful and shows an extremely elaborated craftsmanship. The clock on the cathedral tower is more than two centuries old and still works.

The cathedral has three naves and its main altar (Altar Mayor) is in Greco-Roman style with the gorgeous Cruz de Carabuco cross over it. The silver-adorned cross arrived from Carabuco, a settlement next to the Titicaca Lake, where another important Bolivian cathedral is placed. Behind this altar is the chorus of canons and six paintings representing the Apostles martyrdom, all of them painted by Montufar. The lateral naves include interesting crystal chandeliers, which are quite unusual in Bolivia. A stone banister surrounds the atrium with a stone cross at one of its angles known as the Rumi Cross. Overall it is probably the most beautiful cathedral in the country and well worth the visit.

The museum is on the cathedral side – away from the plaza – and opens at 10AM; the entrance costs 10BOB ($1.25). The art collection was organized from artworks that belonged to Archbishop Arrien and was afterwards enlarged with contributions from other churches and individuals. This is one of the best collections in Bolivia of Sacred Art from the 16th to the 18th centuries and it includes paintings, silver works and sculptures. The museum structure itself – the cathedral’s backside – is an elegant wonder of colonial times with small inner yards and rooms hanging out of unexpected locations.

Local markets are always a good place to meet the local culture and people. While traveling, they provide a fascinating opportunity to examine differences among cities. For example, moving south through the Andean Plateau from La Paz down to Oruro, Sucre and Potosi would result in finding substantially smaller breads in the markets. Anyone there – even those few without a PhD from the London School of Economics – would explain the nosy visitor that this is a result of moving into poorer areas of Bolivia.

However, there are other reasons to visit markets. In such a busy capital as Sucre, people don’t really get up before 9AM and coffee shops do not open before 10AM. Thus, the Central Market is a handy place for a breakfast. To make things friendlier, the market is centrally located next to the San Francisco Basilica and thus the breakfast can be combined with a visit to that magnificent church. Actually, in the sixteenth century the market was part of the basilica. The town’s central plaza is also nearby.

Bolivian markets can pose a serious threat to health, but along time I have found that the basic breakfast offered in them – bread, cheese and coffee – is constantly reliable and safe. In Sucre, the bread takes the shape of tiny buns. The round ones are called "sarnas" and usually – in the rest of the country - have a bit of cheese incrusted on their top; here the last is very symbolic, more an atavism than anything else. The set breakfast costs a quarter and includes two buns, a triangular piece of cheese and a sweet coffee. The only cheese available in the Bolivian markets is white, solid, and extra-salty, fact that balances off the coffee over-sweetness. The coffee is what the denizens call "destilado." It is prepared out of a concentrate diluted to fill up a cup; unless warned in advance, the shopkeeper would automatically add two big, overloaded spoons of sugar to it. A children’s (and dentists) Heaven.

Another option for breakfast is to have a healthy fruits juice. Sitting on the broken hills between the Andean Plateau and the Amazonian Basin, Sucre has access to a wide variety of fruits. Papayas, peaches, apples and pomegranates are obvious, but more exotic options exist. Chirimoya (custard apple), tumbo (a fruit resembling huge, solid dates but with a green skin and orange interior), pakai (a long green fruit filled up with sweet, fibrous, white units), tuna (a cactus fruit appearing in green, yellow or red) and maracuya (looks like a soft cousin of the pomegranate) are interesting options for an unusual meal. They can be prepared with water or milk.

The most distinctive feature of Spaniard colonial towns is the central plaza, which serves them as an administrative and cultural centre. Standing at the plaza’s centre, a glance is enough to identify the importance of the town and if there is something special in it. Even without knowing Bolivian history, it is easy to see that Sucre’s plaza is unique, that something special happened here. Despite the town’s tiny size, its main plaza is huge. The cathedral by its side is monumental. The administrative centres – belonging to the town and the province – have national proportions. Moreover, by the end of this quick glance, the eyes stop at a humbler building that does not fit into the list of regular structures in such a plaza.

The odd structure is the Casa de la Libertad, the Liberty House, where the Bolivian independence was declared almost two centuries ago. The house was built in 1621 as part of a Jesuitical Monastery and in 1624 was dedicated to the Universidad Mayor, Real y Pontificia de San Francisco Xavier de Chuquisaca. There, the assembly that declared the independence met. Nowadays it is a museum.

To understand the incongruence, it is essential to realize that Sucre is a bit off-side in the Bolivian map. The main routes connecting La Paz – the most important city in Bolivia and where the government is – with Argentina do not cross Sucre, thus the official capital of Bolivia is a semi-forgotten town in the hills. A century ago the Bolivian government moved to La Paz and left Sucre to live alone with its memories.

The most distinctive building by the plaza is the cathedral, the Catedral Metropolitana, which was founded in 1559. The beautiful structure includes a museum with one of the best collections of sacred art in Bolivia.

Next to it is the Prefectura, the administrative centre of the "Departamento," which is the Bolivian name for their provinces. The structure includes interesting casts representing the different Bolivian provinces and in that reinforces the feeling of being at a location of national importance. Continuing the walk around the plaza, the Casa de la Libertad is reached and a bit afterwards the municipality building. The last is worth visiting for a beautiful vitrage in its interior depicting an indigenous woman posing as Justice.

The next side of the plaza includes commercial structures, and the last one hosts the ASE – Asociacion Sucrense de Ecologia – where embalmed animals from the different Bolivian habitats are showed, from condors lacking a few feathers to strange mammals. Next to it is the Museo Universitario Dr Alfredo Gutierrez Valenzuela.

At the plaza’s centre there is a statue honouring the Mariscal de Ayacuchoo and celebrating the centenary of the 25th of May 1809 insurrection, which preceded (and prepared) the declaration of Bolivian independence by sixteen years.