During the night of December 7th, the inhabitants of Leon in Nicaragua, in a spontaneous and unanimous proclamation of faith, excitedly respond:

The Immaculate Conception of Mary!!

Cradle of the faith and of Nicaraguan culture, the historical center of the colonial city of Leon safeguards churches, celebrations and traditions that constitute a valuable cultural treasure of the Central American region.

The night of December 7th is however, extremely special. It is the eve of the festival of the Immaculate Conception of Mary, Patron Saint of Nicaragua; and amid of the clamor of fireworks and music of the "chicheros", the whole town gathers in the streets shouting spontaneously: "What’s the Source of so Much Joy?" as other voices with equal emotion respond: "the Immaculate Conception of Mary!".

The tradition honors a dogma of the catholic faith: Mary, a young virgin selected "amongst all women" to be the mother of Jesus, was blessed with the privilege to have been born without original sin, as related by theologians of the Roman Catholic Church and the centuries of tradition. So this is the reason for a celebration that today has extended throughout all of Nicaragua and beyond, by Nicaraguans residing in other lands.

During those same dates, many Nicaraguan homes also conserve the tradition of prayer of the ninth rosary of the "Candor de la Luz Eterna" (warmth of eternal light), a set of hymns and prayers written in 1720 by the Guatemalan friar Rodrigo de Jesus Betancourt and during nine days, after singing and praying to the Virgin Mary, it is customary to give the gift of “la gorra”: a plate made with fruits and candies.

Throughout the years, this and other religious traditions have been conserved in the church, and among them, without a doubt the Cathedral Church, the most important of Central America.

Following cosmic conception, the Cathedral of Leon is divided into three levels: the Infraworld, lower level comprised of seven cellars that have served as crypts for clergy and personages; the World represented in the main level and the Sky symbolized by the upper level.

The five halls that make up the main level of the Cathedral and their corresponding lateral altars as well as the beautiful Principal Altar, also lodge the ancient confessionary, the Choir of Cordobes and a the priceless Stations of the Cross.

One of the best examples of the baroque architecture in Central America, are the five terraces that comprise the upper level of the Cathedral. Protected by 100 knobs and thirty and four minor domes of the vaults, the terraces not only facilitate views of the handrails, vaults and lanterns of the construction, but also the splendid vista of this historical center with its churches, tile roofs and colonial houses, framed by the fourteen volcanoes of the Maribios Mountain range.
At the entrance to the street known as the "Calle de los Blancos", is the Iglesia de la Recolección (Church of the Harvest), with his beautiful stucco embossments as examples of the best of American baroque architecture and the quarry stone bell tower. The church construction began at the end of XVIII century by the priests of the Congregation of San Felipe Nery.

This baroque style, although splashed by some neoclassic manifestations, is also manifest in the Church of the Mercedes that houses the image of the Virgin of the same name, Patron Saint of the City. The construction of this church also dates back to 18th century, as an initiative of the friars of the Virgin of Mercedes.

At the foreground of the plaza of the old indigenous district of Suitiava, a church was built at the end 17th century to honor to Saint John the Baptist. In the construction of this beautiful church, the principal architectural styles of the time were fused. Primitive colonial style is present in the heavy outer arches of roman influence and the baroque style of the façade, flanked by beautiful octagonal columns, is also present in splendid craftsmanship of the polychrome wood and in the gorgeous lateral altars, honoring Santa Lucia and the Virgin of Guadalupe.

On the Calle Real de Leon, main street of the city, two of the best religious altarpieces of Nicaragua are conserved within the walls of the Church of San Francisco that, together with the Convent of the same name, constitute one of the oldest monuments of the city.

The visit to the Hermitage of San Pedro concludes this interesting route, that together with the hermitages of Santiago, San Andrés and Veracruz, border the urban area of Leon, at a time when its nucleus was in the Principal Plaza of Suitiava.