Santo Cerro ~ Dominican Republic
Iglesia Las Mercedes, Columbus Church
Santo Cerro Dominican Republic: Iglesia Las Mercedes, the church with the relic from Columbus cross, is located between the Dominican Republic north and south coasts, overlooking the Valle de Cibao.
Santo Cerro is about 25 kms (15.5 miles) south of Santiago (see waterfalls), just north of La Vega, and a popular day trip stop on tours from the beaches resorts in Puerto Plata or in Santo Domingo. Day tours usually include stops at a cigar factory and a pottery.
Day trip information is available at hotels or travel agencies, or from your own tour operator. You can also hire a cab: Taxi cab rates are usually set for destination, rather than distance traveled, so agree on a fare before you get in to the cab. See also Dominican Republic information and Packing for DR holidays.
At Santo Cerro, Outside Iglesia Las Mercedes 
Christopher Columbus and his brother left footprints all over this part of Hispaniola, in both Haiti and the Dominican Republic.
C. Columbus placed a wooden cross, a gift from his Queen, at this church, Iglesia Las Mercedes. The relic is no longer here, and thought to be privately owned.
Santo Cerro, which means 'Holy Hill' in Spanish, offers wonderful views to the expansive and ferile Valle de Cibao.
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Iglesia Las Mercedes 
The Virgin Mary is said to have made an appearance many years ago at Iglesia Las Mercedes.
Local Indians tried to burn the cross during a battle, but thanks to Her holy protection, it would not catch fire.
From the courtyard on the far side, on a clear day, you can see north many miles across the valley, to the ocean and Puerto Plata.
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Inside the Church of Las Mercedes Santo Cerro 
When this church was built in 1860, on the site of the original church, the builders left this 'Santo Hoyo' (Holy Hole) to mark where the cross had been planted in 1490.
At the time of my visit, there were several parish members inside.
Though there wasn't a service in progress, they did appear to be involved in something church-related, so we left after a quick look into the hole.
For more information, check a good guidebook - here are some offered on Amazon.com: I took along the Lonely Planet Dominican Republic and Haiti, as I was continuing on to Haiti.
You can get a travel guide just for the Dominican Republic.Guides will have maps, but if you'd like a proper map, here's a list (amazon).
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Valle de Cibao View from Church Courtyard 
Thunderstorms (you can see the clouds building up) had been rolling through on a daily basis, but never lasted long.
From this perspective, you have some indication of how high the church is from the valley floor.
On the highway back to Puerto Plata, we felt as if we were driving through Jurassic Park -- lots of jungle underbrush, palm trees and exotic flowers.
There is amber to be found in the Dominican Republic, especially in this area on the (northern) Amber Coast
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Santiago area Flower Farms on route to Santo Cerro DR 
En route to Santo Cerro, we came through this region where there are many commercial flower growing operations producing cut flowers for export.
One U.S. airline operates daily direct cargo flights just for the blooms for the American market.
MORE day trip stops at Santiago, cigar Factory, waterfalls. and the pottery or choose from the menu below.
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