Undiscovered Cuba - March 11 - March 22, 2018
Page Seven - Havana
Plaza de la Revolución or Revolution Square in Havana, the capital of Cuba.
The square is where many political rallies take place. Fidel Castro and other
political figures have addressed Cubans here. Other notable speakers here include
Pope John Paul II during his 1998 first visit by a Pope, and Pope Francis in 2015.
Shown here is the steel memorial of Che Guevara on the Ministry of the Interior,
one of the buildings surrounding the square.
The National Library
You can see the bus we toured in.
The construction of the square and the José Martí monument
commenced
during the Presidency of Fulgencio Batista.
Camilo Cienfuegos (sometimes mistaken for Fidel Castro), with the quotation
"Vas bien, Fidel" (You're doing fine, Fidel) on the
Ministry of Informatics and Communication.
Camilo Cienfuegos Gorriarán was a Cuban revolutionary born in Havana. Along
with Fidel Castro, Che Guevara, and Raúl Castro, he was a member of the 1956
Granma expedition, which launched Fidel Castro's armed insurgency against the
government of Cuban dictator Batista. He became one of Castro's top guerilla
commanders.
The Cuban government and Communist Party of Cuba control
almost all media in Cuba. Cubans cannot read books, magazines or
newspapers unless they have been approved/published by the government.
The Ministry of Informatics and Communications is the body responsible for
regulating, directing, supervising and monitoring state and government policy
on activities related to information technology, telecommunications,
information and communication networks, broadcasting, the radio spectrum,
automation, postal services and the electronics industry.
Revolution Square is dominated by the Jose Marti Memorial that features
a 358 ft.
tall tower and a 59 ft statue of Marti. There are many memorials
to Marti
in Cuba, who promoted independence from Spain.
One form of Cuban taxi in Havana
1950s car at Revolution Square
Looking inside the car
Like a lot of the Cuban economy, the hotel in the
photo is run by the military. This is a view from
my room at the hotel where we stayed in Havana.
Another Jose Marti Memorial in the plaza
in front of our hotel. From our hotel,
we did a walking tour of historic old Havana.
The original city was built in 1519.
Where we stayed 3 nights in Havana, the
Hotel Parque Central.
Gran Hotel Manzana, near our hotel, is under the control of the military.
Under the most recent restrictions on U.S. travel to Cuba that were
issued late 2017, U.S. citizens cannot stay in places under the control
of or operating on behalf of the Cuban military, intelligence,
or security personnel. Most hotels are under the control of the
military.
A common sight in Havana. To the left is the Gran Hotel Manzana, a 5 star
hotel. Right next door are dilapidated housing units.
This stray dog followed us for a while during our walking tour.
He almost seemed to be asking for us to take care of him.
The dog even cuddled up to Peggy, putting one leg on her
foot while he closed his eyes and rested.
In case you do not remember what this is, it is called a telephone booth.
It is common to see people waiting outside to get into stores. These people
were waiting to get into ETECSA, the full telecommunications
service provider owned by the Cuban government.
Home access to the Internet is largely inaccessible to the general population.
Internet access was not available or very weak where we went.
Our hotel in Havana provided one, 5 hour Internet card free to
access the Internet with a password, but it was not accessible everywhere in
the hotel and was weak or unuseable during prime use times.
Some of us
purchased Internet
cards earlier in the trip and were able to sign on occasionally.
For mobile communications, incoming and outgoing phone calls
are still being paid in Cuban Convertible Pesos (CUC)..
Receiving and making such calls is very expensive for Cubans,
even for tourists. I had some time left on my Internet cards
at the end of the trip, so I gave them to our local Cuban guide.
He reacted like I was handing him pieces of gold.
Street scene in old Havana
Women making clothes at sewing machines in old Havana.
They use old cannons now to protect buildings from being hit/scrapped by vehicles.
Another street scene in old Havana
School kids exercising
at Plaza Vieja
Plaza Vieja - In colonial times it was a wealthy residential neighborhood.
Plaza Vieja was the site of executions, processions, bullfights, and fiestas,
all witnessed by Havana's wealthiest citizens, who looked on from their balconies.
Boys playing soccer at Plaza Vieja
Women trying to earn money by getting tourists to take
photos with them.
An artist selling his art on the street.
Man pretending to be a statue to entice tourists to take photos of him
and provide tips.
Woman on the left doing the same thing.
San Francisco Plaza
Right across from Havana harbor, Plaza de San Francisco is one
of the first three built in the 16th century. It takes its name
from the Franciscan convent built there.
Street leading from San Francisco Plaza
Church and Convent of St. Francis of Assisi at San Francisco Plaza,
now a small museum of sacral art.
The tower is 140 feet tall.
These police came into view while I was taking this photo from San
Francisco Plaza. We were told to avoid photographing them, but
they were not what I was photographing.
A quiet, cobblestoned street in old Havana
This guy was quite a character. He had 2 dogs that he had dressed up.
He was selling a few souvenirs, but his main focus seemed to be
attracting photos for tips.
Restaurant where we ate lunch on the top of the building.
As usual, we were entertained by musicians while eating. And, of course,
they tried to sell us their DVD album. That's our driver on the right in
the foreground. The woman on the left is an architect who took us on
an architectural tour of Havana.
View from our restaurant, La Maneda Cabana Paladar.
Looking at the Malecon. The Malecón (officially Avenida de Maceo) is a broad
esplanade/roadway and seawall which stretches for 5 miles along the coast in
Havana from the mouth of Havana Harbor in Old Havana. It is a favorite
area for locals to walk along the bay. Some also throw lines in to fish.
While we were eating lunch, a large cruise ship came
through the bay.
Link to Page 8 - Havana continued
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