Days of Doreese in Cuba: August 2016

Sunday February 28 2016 ~~ Day 3 Part 1

So it’s been a few years since we’ve slept in a double bed…..there was some elbowing and knee-bashing going on during the night, but overall, a good sleep and it was very quiet in the apartment. While I finish getting ready, Vince takes a few steps from the front door to get some coffee

Apparently I’m taking too long and he runs quickly back in to check on me, leaving his coffee on the table. Two minutes later he pops back out and finds his coffee cup gone. Oops! The staff is just too efficient! Not their fault at all, but they are kind enough to offer him another cup….good thing as it was $3CUC plus tip.

I join him while he finishes and we are soon approached by 2 little boys…probably 8 or 9 years old. They don’t say anything…just hold out their hands. Ah, okay, hmmm. What to do? I pull out a few coins for them and suddenly we are swarmed by 5 or 6 more kids. Uhoh! Vince is done his coffee and we quickly head off for the day. Looking back at our square I’m still in awe of how pretty it is….

We walk just a few steps down the block and across the street to the Museo de la Revolución $8CUC each. You have to check any purses or bags.

It was initially built in 1913 to house the provincial government. By the time it was done in 1920, it instead became the Presidential Palace. Tiffany’s of New York was responsible for the interior décor. The marble staircase leads to the ‘Mirror Room’, a replica of Versailles. After the revolution, it became the museum. It’s a bit surreal walking through the rooms, filled with beautiful history and then revolutionary history. Several rooms feature a chronological order describing the progress of the revolutionary period and a lot of propaganda.

View from the museum of the back of the church in our square…

Inner courtyard….

And of course, Che….

Behind the museum is the Granma Memorial. It houses the large boat that brought Fidel Castro from Mexico to Cuba in 1956. It’s surrounded by various vehicles and a tank used in the revolutionary war as well as a turbine from a U-2 spy plane downed during the missile crisis in 1962.

Looking back at the museum….

There was a notice not to take photos of the military personnel on site, but apparently it was okay to take photos with them!

As I walked around a corner I heard a whistle…turning to see another guard smiling and waving at me. Haha…made me laugh. Of course I waved back!

Time to head the short walk home for some cool drinks before heading out again. So much to see and so little time! Just down the street from our casa, looking back at the museum….

Looking down the side street where we had dinner last night at Habana 61, the green sign…

Another favourite photo…

We saw numerous buildings that had greenery growing out of the rooftops!...

This is the Palacio de Artesania. Originally built in 1780 for a nobleman. Today there are shops on the main floor and music in the inner courtyard.

We bought some Cuban cigarettes and cigarillos for our kids…

There was a little ‘tienda’ in one corner….most items imported from Mexico or China…

A bottle of Havana Rum will cost you anywhere from $4CUC up to $40CUC…

Huge tree across from the Palacio...

There was a carnival going on nearby….rides and music and delicious-smelling food carts…

We continue on our way, past the local police station. It looks colonial, but was actually built in 1941….

And across from the police, this building. It looks like another abandoned building, but with all those antennas on the roof, it is probably fully occupied…

Some of the many classical cars, rumbling and roaring as they pass….

The back part of Catedral San Cristóbal del la Habana….

There was something being filmed inside…

Hmmmm….do I hear music? Well, look at that! Our wanderings somehow brought us back to our favourite watering hole! It’s mid-afternoon and I don’t think we’ve had much to eat yet, but we sure are thirsty! Dos, por favor!

Yup, we’re happy now! Our feet needed a rest anyway…

Different band here today but also very good!

Canvas paintings hanging across the street…

Time is marching on so we guzzle with glee and then venture on again, heading towards the more ‘touristy’ area of Habana Vieja…..heading down San Ignacio towards Obispo…

We hear music again….love all the music everywhere! Café Paris calls to us…I think I can manage another mojito. There’s a table with our name on it and we enjoy la musica while we wait for a server….and we wait, and we wait. Hmm…it’s not that crazy busy. Time is ticking so we decide not to linger. We head east on Obispo…

Stopping in at a bakery….the line is long so we just window shop….

Next stop is the Museo y Farmácia Taquechel…..drug store of years gone by…

We continue on and stumble upon Hotel Ambos Mundos….

I hadn’t done a ton of research prior to this impromptu trip to Cuba, so it was often exciting to come across some place that I had read about. I felt very directionally challenged in Habana Vieja…not sure why. By Day 4 I knew my way around! Anyway, I knew about this place as it had a rooftop deck with great views, plus it was Hemingway’s home away from home and his room was a museum. In we go…

Built in the 1920s, I can just imagine it how ‘posh’ it must have been. But, do I trust the original elevator to take me to the 6^th floor???

We arrive safely with help from the elevator operator…when’s the last time you saw one of those! Remember when department stores had operators that would announce what you could find on each floor…..okay, I’m dating myself!

Our view as we exit the elevator on the rooftop…

What a wonderful view!

Anything for a photo!

We’re having such a good time!

Better try a mojito here too….only $4CUC. I take some time to make some notes on our day so far….

We linger for a while (nice baños here)….and then take the stairs down one floor to the Ernest Hemingway museum in Room #511, where he lived for 7 years in the 1930s, paying $1.50 per night.