Culture of El Hatillo

Between El Hatillo and La Lagunita is the smaller Manuel Escalona Plaza (Spanish: Plazoleta Manuel Escalona), another urban monument displaying the bust of Escalona that formerly occupied Bolívar Square. Sucre Plaza (Spanish: Plaza Sucre)—graced since 1915 with a ceiba tree at its center—is in the southern part of town; this was historically where people tied their mules while frequenting The Four Corners, and it is also known as Plaza La Ceiba. The Four Corners (Spanish: Las Cuatro Esquinas) was a convenient social gathering spot in El Hatillo, comprising a general store, hardware shop, gambling place and bar.

La Lagunita is the site of the San Constantino and Santa Elena Romanian Orthodox Church. The building is an architectural work from the 16th century, brought from Romania, made completely from oak and fir woods, and detailed with more than 40,000 individually placed and carved tiles. It is one of only 15 churches of its type remaining in the world, and one of only two outside of Romania, the other being in Switzerland.

For children, the Caicaguana hacienda in La Lagunita houses the Expanzoo, where visitors can see and touch exotic animals. The zoo is recognized for offering unique employment opportunities; the workers are from families with few resources, and the staff include the mentally ill. The Baby Zoo is another place for children to interact with animals; visitors can feed and touch the animals, ride horses and rent the location for special events. More interaction with nature can be experienced by visiting the Morro la Guairita park in El Cafetal—commonly known as the Indian Caves a system of 22 natural openings in the mountain, and the only place