Our 4 hour road trip to Habana from Trinidad did not disappoint. The drive was interesting through large agricultural areas of fruit, cane and cattle. Habana is quite a cultural change from the smaller communities of Cuba that we have been to. Busy streets full of people, construction/restoration everywhere but unfortunately rubbish all about. The rest of Cuba has been amazingly clean compared to other islands in the Caribbean, with the exception of Habana. They are trying to change the appearance but it’s going to take some time. It took us a good day to relax into the cultural change and hustle of city life here. Like any big city you need to keep your eyes open and be aware of what’s happening around you or you could run into problems, especially at night.

One of the many busy streets in Vieja – Calle Obispo

The Casa Particular (private home) in Habana where we stayed was reasonably priced at approx US$30/ night and included our own bathroom. It was close to Habana Vieja, with a lot more character inside than a tourist hotel. Nice to support the people of Cuba. David & Lidia have 3 bldgs so lots of rooms for rent contact: diazdavidlidia@yahoo.es or 537-07-879-7934.

The pet crocodiles in the entry at the main Casa were interesting and yes we were told they bite

Coming in off the busy street to a quiet courtyard was so relaxing as the sounds of the city just disappeared

The red double decker hop on hop off buses seem to be in every city and were great here to get a lay of the land and see some of the top spots. At approx US$5 each, a bargain, compared to other city tours we have been on. Around Vieja and Centro Habana it was easy wandering the streets aimlessly during the day or sitting and just people watching. We hit most of the main tourist spots.

one of the many Plazas with vendors selling books on the heros of the revolution

Plaza de la Revolución is the base of the Cuban govt where many political rallies have been held

Murals on buildings around Plaza de la Revolución:

View to Castillo del Morro from Malecón

The view to Habana from the Christ statue near Fort de San Carlos.

Fort de San Carlos would be great as a hotel but was overpriced to enter at approx US$6 each.

A pharmacy on Calle Obispo. The pharmacy was mostly a display as they had very few items to actually sell – like many of the government run shops

We found lots of great places to eat and drink. Los Nardos restaurant opposite Capitolio Nacional ( well worth standing in the line up), Sloppy Joes, the rooftop at Hotel Ingleterra and restaurants along Calle Obispo are some places we found good. The Taberna microbrew down near the piers on San Pedro had a great system for delivering beer.

Sloppy Joes on Right

At the Taberna microbrew

The people are so friendly but you can see that life is tough for them here. It is nothing to hear that they work a number of jobs for very little money. In the parks around town you see the social scene happening including different events to entertain and educate the children. No sitting around watching TV here for them.

Transportation in Habana city did not disappoint; they are everywhere and come in lots of different types:

Bikes are used to transport all sorts of things; yes even wedding cakes

Trolleys move a lot of things, this looked like hard work!

The very old worn buildings even fit with this car

Old cars lined up in Centro Park

Of course we had to get a tour in one of the many old convertible cars sitting in Parque Central, which was a real treat. Approx US$35/hr.

The 1953 Buick we hired for an evening tour

There’s lots of restoration going on all around Habana, which is going to take many many years to complete. The buildings look worn out and in some cases are very broken. Those that have been restored are impressive but there’s ALOT to fix. Looks like everything’s done by hand too so who knows how long it will take. Vadado district is a more residential area with some very big homes that have been restored and look amazing, you can see the potential.

Centro Habana – a little paint would help as the architecture is amazing

Vedado had some great homes, more of a residential area

While in Habana we could not miss going to the Tropicana, a show. Wow! So many flashy outfits. Not quite Las Vegas, especially the food, but a good night out.

Brett’s birthday was spent in Habana where we wandered the streets of Centro Habana firstly to Callejón de Hamel, where an artist Salvador has created weird pieces of art on buildings and in yards on this street. Hotel Nacional, which overlooks the Malacón and is considered to be Habana’s finest hotel (expropriated from Hilton) with some amazing views, comfy chairs and well deserved cold beers after walking in the heat.

Entrance to Callejón de Hamel

Artwork inside

Hotel Nacional, there are bunkers from the late 1800s underground along the front of the hotel

Relaxing in the comfy chairs at the hotel

The highlight of Bretts birthday was going to a baseball game, which had an amazing atmosphere with the crowds really supporting and cheering for their teams. Its loud as they all blow horns and when there was a grand slam they all went crazy. As tourists you sit in a separate section right behind home base for approx US$3 each. Bargain. For a Cuban it would be less than US$0.25. We finished up out for dinner in El Barrio Chino; China town where there are no Chinese people but Cuba felt they needed one like any other big city. Good meal out.

4 days was plenty of time in the big city, we were ready to get back to some fresh air on the sea.