Cuba 2007 (pt. 3: And the Beat Goes On)

This peacock was strutting his stuff in the Museo de la Cuidad. I have nothing else to add other than, like Havana itself, he was purdy.



These shots of the Capitol building, designed after the same building in Washington D.C., only quite a big bigger, were taken by Jessica. She was smart enough to capture the building's name in the shot. Quite an opulent building that doesn't serve much purpose anymore beyond housing some government offices and a few interesting art galleries.

I like these shots below, both taken by Jessica. She has a nice eye for capturing the essence of a scene. It appears that while all children in Cuba are given one liter of milk each day gratis, puppies have to work a little harder for their daily meal.

And then we hopped in a cab and drove for two hours for our stay at an all-inclusive in Varadero. The kids were turning cartwheels (yeah yeah, so those aren't cartwheels. Sue me).











The shot of the ancient church is a reminder of how quaint the town of Varadero is (note the lone cyclist and dearth of automobile transport) though the thousands of tourists who never leave their resorts would have no clue.









While the kids were turning cartwheels (I know! Enough already!), our mood was considerably bleaker. We missed the humanity and energy, the musicality and overall festiveness of Havana. The darkening skies over Varadero matched our mood. There's something almost Biblical about this shot. I half expect a Terry Gilliam creation to pop up on the screen and berate me for being a tosser.



However, troopers that we are, we let our smiles be our umbrellas. Plus, the water wasn't half bad, the booze was freely flowing, and it beat the hell outta Victorian drizzle.

And finally, an interesting shot of the two Cubas. Firstly, we have the severely dilapitated house, clearly on its last legs, and in the foreground, a nice shiny new automobile. Global tourism and trade with the Pacific Rim has helped bring Cuba into the new millenium vehicle-wise, but global warming be damned, it would be a shame if Cubans stopped driving their 57 Chevy's.

Cuba 2007 (pt 2: Into the breach)






You probably recognize the dude on the right--Che is to Cuban iconography what Coca-Cola or McDonald's is to that of the west. The fella on the left is Camilo Cenfuegas, another lesser known hero of the revolution. Laugh if you must, but on my first day in Havana, a local gave me a "Camilo" shout out. Other than a similarity of hirsuitedness, I'm not sure I see the similarity. Still, every picture I have seen of Camilo, he looks happier than a pig in shit, so I guess it was meant to be flattering.

I'd say I look more like Camilo's debonaire uncle or his slightly older brother.


















An outdoor market down in Vieja was packed cheek by jowl with stuff. Mostly touristy, but we found a few treasures, including a beautiful 55 piece Cuban dominoes set.




Vieja has its oases as well. Here's a nice little public green space.
















This is a view of the courtyard to the Museo de la Cuidad, which was well worth the price of an English-guided tour (11 CUC pesos for the four of us). The tour provided a glimpse of how the governors in colonial Cuba lived, from the 16th through the early 20th Century.



















Which is to say, pretty damned high off the hog. Witness the Italian marble bathtubs. His and hers.















They have a museum for just about everything in Cuba. Here we are enjoying the wares of the Museo de Chocolate.

Cuba 2007 (part one: the opening gambit)

Where we stayed in Havana (the lovely Hotel Sevilla). View from the balcony of a paladar across the street (the mighty fine Dona Blanquita)

By way of contrast, a more typical piece of architecture in Havana has a much

more rundown facade.

That being said, the government is pouring a lot of money into restoration, so that these centuries old marvels will survive the ravages of time.

The Palace of the Revolution. We really should have sprung for the English guided tour. Still, plenty of cool stuff worth seeing here, including a plethora of revolutionary minutia, as well as ...

...the Hall of Mirrors, and exercise in pre-revolutionary decadence that takes its name (and design) from the original, in Louis XIV's palace in Versailles.

Got into a bit of trouble after taking this shot, as we were sitting in Fidel's chair, even though we saw another couple sitting in the same chair only minutes before us. They, however, had paid extra for the guided tour, which apparently has among its privileges the right to warm Castro's chair up.

Katherine and I on the streets of Vieja, or colonial Havana. This is where the money's really pouring in to preserve the ancient architecture.

More proof of same. Vieja was our favourite part of Havana, really brimming with life.

Much more to follow...