Havana City Walk - Travel Report

Old Feb 19th, 2017, 02:45 PM
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Havana City Walk - Travel Report

Havana – a capital city of a communist country; wherever I went, it was like I just traveled through time and went back to the 1950s. Previously, I was talking about how pleasantly surprised I was waiting in front of the Hotel Telegrafo, little did I know that it was actually a private tour and we spent the morning exploring the four main squares of the old town Havana: Plaza de la Cathedral, Plaza de Armas, Plaza de San Francisco, and Plaza Vieja.The first part is at http://wp.me/p5Lw9a-Nz
Afterward, I was brought into the business area outside of the old town to have an “intimate” lunch with my guide on the rooftop of a small building, without big billboard or road sign – a place that I would never know if I was not accompanied by a local. (Though I saw numerous recommendations from different travel media at the front of the kitchen door).
Check out http://wp.me/p5Lw9a-1BR for more photos and info about the afternoon in Havana!

*Lunch at Restaurante Paladar Café Laurent*

It was a quiet restaurant with homey and comfy décor, and we sat down in the balcony overlooking the Havana skyline, with views of the Gulf of Mexico. The owner of the restaurant was friendly and he insisted on treating me a glass of Cuban Mojito. The Mojito has more rum than the typical ones and I felt like he added syrup in there so it was sweeter. Although it didn’t exactly taste top-notch and amazing, the dish had a nice finesse when it was brought to the table.

As we were having lunch, my guide and now friend shared with me a lot about the Cuban daily lives and how they got in touch with the outside world. Apparently, the closed country was not that closed after all as there were ways to stay connected with current issues. She also told me she would love the opportunity to travel and see the world; I appreciated a lot the freedom that I had– and how I should defend it and not take it for granted.

*Enjoying the tropical breeze in a vintage car in Miramar*

After lunch, the vintage car driver was already waiting outside for a spin! The driver offered me the car to drive it, I turned it down as the only time I drove a stick was in a driving lesson and I didn’t want to crash. Driving along the Quinta Avenida, it is named Havana’s “Fifth Avenue”, we enjoyed a nice afternoon breezed under the shadows of tropical trees that lined up on the sidewalk. We soon arrived at the Revolution Square.

*Admiring the national heroes at the Revolution Square*

The city square is an important area as being where many political rallies took place including Fidel Castro’s address to more than a million Cubans on countless occasions. One of the most striking features of the square was the José Martí Memorial, a 109m-tall, a star-shaped tower that pays tribute to the national hero, José Martí. Another photo-shooting moment was the steel memorials of another two important figures of the country, Che Guevara and Camilo Cienfuegos, that were built on the façades of the opposite two buildings, the office of the Ministries of the Interior and Communications.

There, I got a surprised from the guide as she said she was going to surprise me – a three Cuban Peso-dollar note. She told me as most tourists used US dollars in Havana, they don’t usually receive Cuban Peso and some of them would love to keep one as it was printed with a Che Guevara Head. What an amazing gift! For some time, I kept this dollar note together with my lucky one US dollar note in my wallet, hoping that the “two national leaders” could have a nice time in there.

*Sipping drinks at the Hotel Nacional and what a gorgeous sunset at the Malecón!*

Then we had a spin around the Colon Cemetery and went through the Parque Almendares, where the giant trees were grown hundreds of years in the “Havana’s forest”, and the Flora and fauna were stunning as a green lung to the city. I was amazed by the volume of greens in an urban park I literally felt like I entered a rain forest.

Soon we headed back to the city and we were on the waterfront main road. It was a sunny day and driving along the road was pleasant and enjoyable.Originally the guide planned to bring me to El Focsa, yet it was closed for the day for a private function so we walked to the Hotel Nacional de Cuba, which was pretty nice too as it is a very important hotel to the city, and the yard at front has a great panoramic view of the ocean.

In the evening, I walked along the Malecón, an 8 km long waterfront esplanade facing the beautiful Gulf of Mexico. On a rough day, waves could hit the walls and wet the passing cars. But that day was not the day. At the perfect twilight, everything looked pink.I sat there, looking at the Morro Castle, soaking in the beauty of the sunset, and enjoying the weird feeling of isolation as I had no signal reception (for once) that connected me with the rest of the world.

You are welcome to go to http://wp.me/p5Lw9a-1BR for the photos of Havana and comment!
knycx_journeying is offline  
Old Feb 19th, 2017, 03:22 PM
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The blog and photos are nicely presented.
Note that the above is Part 2.

antidote vs.anecdote?
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Old Feb 20th, 2017, 11:27 AM
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A week from Wednesday (March 1, 2017,)--I hope to make my third trip to Cuba. The first time was, I think, in 1989.
The second was in 2015 but for a lowly week to ten days. Although quite outstanding, it was just far too, too short.
This time it will be for almost a month via the assistance of www.LocallySourcedTours.com.

Your wonderful report and some of its contents will definitely enhance my stay while in Habana. Muchas gracias-
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Old Feb 20th, 2017, 11:45 AM
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For the tour company which I am using for the aforementioned trip to Cuba next week, the website is: www.locallysourcedcuba.com. I do hope that it works, for this tour allows for much more independent touring while on the island.
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Old Feb 20th, 2017, 09:18 PM
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Thanks @ SambaShula. Yes, the first part was about the old town walk.
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Old Feb 20th, 2017, 09:20 PM
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Thanks for stopping by, Axiom and wow, I hope you will enjoy your third trip to Cuba soon! Any recommendations about places outside Havana?
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