Havana

You got a nice overview of the city as you slowly went forward in the red vintage car. The gentle wind made the curls flutter. The arm leaning on the door and everything felt very right. The driver guided us around Havana and stopped along the way.

El Malecon

The people meet here in the afternoons and evenings to socialize, drink beer and dance salsa, at least those who could not afford to go out, the driver said. We passed the long promenade El Malecon. There were a lot more people now than when we visit it in the morning.

Callejon de Hamel

We came to a walled gate that led into a colorful alley. There were murals and sculptures. Even if the surface was small, there were several small bars and a tiny dance floor. The idea was probably that you would pay for be guided around. There was no entry so they had to find other ways to get money. The man who sold CDs could probably look straight through me because he made me buy a disc by saying that the money would go to children at the school.

Cristobal Colon CemeteryB

The Catholic cemetery is huge. In all directions you see chalk white tombstones, coffins and monuments. We went towards the center of the cemetery but constantly sought shade to get some relief from the hot sun’s heat. We looked at a grave with a statue of a woman holding her little child in her arms. The tomb is adorned with flowers.

Plaza de la RevolucionB

Plaza de la Revolucion is a large open and bright square. If you stand on the square and turn in different directions you can see a tall tower and two pictures. These are made in memory of people who have been of great importance in Cuba’s history, José Marti, Che Guevara and Camilo Cienfuegos.

John Lennon Park

In a park in Havana there is a statue of John Lennon sitting on a park bench. We looked at the statue, sat down on the park bench and took some photographs. He didn’t feel completely familiar. After a while a person came and placed John’s glasses on the statue. Apparently, the glasses have a tendency to disappear.

Street life

Everywhere in Havana you can hear music. People are playing and singing in restaurants and in the streets. Sometimes you get to help them a little with the maracas.

On weekdays you can see the schoolchildren fill squares with outdoor activities

Summary

We went with Finnair from Copenhagen to Havana. We stayed 3 nights in Havana, 2 nights in Vinales, 1 night in Cienfuegos, 3 nights in Trinidad, 3 nights at Cayo Santa Maria and 2 nights in Varadero. When we were going from one accommodation to another we went by taxi colectivo. We booked the cars through our accommodations the day before we were going. If we were going on the trip today we would have stayed more nights in Vinales and skipped to go to Varadero.