Cuba: Hemingway in Cuba

Growing up in Idaho in the '50s, Ernest Hemingway was a local celebrity, living in the center of our state in Ketchum, near Sun Valley. He showed up in our local newspaper frequently and everybody knew someone who knew him, or had met him, or had spotted him in a bar or at the train station. We didn't have many famous authors in Idaho. At the same time he also maintained a home in Cuba.

On our walking tour of old Havana, we stopped to see this hotel where Hemingway stayed when he first started coming to Cuba. It was just down the street from the Floridita Bar, where he hung out, and apparently he liked to drink daiquiris on the roof of the hotel and watch the sun set over the water.




Later his wife convinced him to buy a farm in the country, where he could write and relax away from the city. It has been preserved exactly as he left it when the revolution started.




You cannot go inside the house, but you can view every room through the doors and open windows.























Peaceful, comfortable, unassuming. I remembered Mary Hemingway, who I knew very slightly in the early '70s. I worked in a fancy furniture store in Boise, Idaho and she was a regular customer. This was after her husband took his own life. She remained in Idaho with their family and she was involved in charity and community projects. I remember her as a vibrant, but down to earth woman—very kind and easy to be with. I could imagine her in these lovely rooms in the Cuban house.

We walked around the lush grounds and saw Hemingway's boat, The Pilar.




Back behind the main house was a small tower, with his writing room at the top. This is where he wrote The Old Man and the Sea.







I have seen Hemingway's grave and monument in Idaho, but I somehow imagine that this place is where his spirit resides. A beautiful hilltop in Cuba.

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Cuba: Those cool old cars

I knew that Cuba is famous for all the old American cars from the '40s and '50s, but until I actually saw them, I didn't understand how many and how great most of them look—I assumed they would be pretty beat up and ramshackle. Some are that, but there are hundreds(?—it seemed like...) of real beauties rolling around the streets of Havana.






A lot of them are used as taxis in the city.



Behind this gem you can see the other kind of ubiquitous taxis in Havana—weird little "bubble" taxis.

We saw the old cars everywhere. There were always several parked out in front of the hotel. One night our group met in the lobby to go to dinner. Our guide, Sergio, had teased us that there would be a surprise. He had arranged for 5 vintage convertibles to convey us to the paladar for dinner. What a blast! The cars drove along the sea wall, known as the Malecon, where the locals gather to stroll, fish, visit, neck—. The sun was setting and our driver cranked up the '50s music. I know—cheesy tourist stuff, but honestly, it was so fun!










Before we got to the restaurant we stopped near the beach and got out to check out the cars more closely and take photos. Our driver was pretty proud of his car and said it had the original engine. We heard that many had had engines replaced and parts scabbed together from whatever they could salvage and convert. To own one of these cars one had to become a skilled and creative mechanic.










This was a common sight—







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Cuba: Havana Architecture and History

Here's a fun fact: In the early years the streets of Havana were paved with stones from Massachusetts that arrived as ballast in the ships that came into the harbor to trade with Cuba. The photo below shows me walking on American soil in the heart of Havana.

I learned that from our first lecturer, Miguel Coyula, a distinguished Cuban architect and urban planner. (there's a terrific video interview with him here) Architecture and history can not be separated, so we got lessons in both as he talked about Havana's past, present and future embodied in its built environment.

Cuba was claimed by Spain in 1492 and Havana was seen as the gateway to the Caribbean. In order to guard their holdings in the region the first structures the Spanish built were fortresses.

Then churches.

Cuba was a Spanish Colony for 400 years. In 1898 the Spanish-American War freed the last two colonies in the Americas, Cuba and Puerto Rico, from Spanish rule. Puerto Rico went to the US and Cuba became an independent country. Independence brought a period of prosperity as Cuba became the largest exporter of cane sugar in the world, and its most beautiful buildings were built during this period.

Cuba became a popular destination for Americans seeking beautiful beaches, nightlife, a romantic culture and music. During Prohibition it was a place to go to drink and party. In the '40s gambling was introduced, which brought the American mafia who built hotels and casinos all along the beach.

The Riviera Hotel built by American gangster Mayer Lansky

Castro's Revolution of the late '50s ended the rule of the corrupt dictator Fulgencio Batista and an end to gambling and the American mafia in Cuba. The post-revolution era created a period of economic hardship and changes and little of architectural significance was built other than rather ugly soviet style prefab concrete structures, including many schools and hospitals that remain.

The building on the right is the Russian Embassy.

And now the city is left with a stock of a mixture of crumbling old buildings. My first impression of the city, driving in from the airport was that the whole city needed to be painted. Our lecturer, talking about the terrible condition of the buildings put things in perspective. The average salary for a Cuban (remembering that nearly all Cubans are government employees) is the equivalent of $30 per month. A gallon of paint costs $20. It is not hard to do that math. And yet, he told us, there is more renovation happening in Havana right now than in the last 60 years. The reason is an influx of American money. Nearly half of Cubans receive money from family members in the US. In 2015 when Obama eased the embargo on Cuban, part of that agreement did away with restrictions on Cuban-Americans sending money to family members remaining in Cuba. It has made a huge difference for nearly half the population.


Sad reminders of a glorious past--

Renovation work in progress--

Pride of ownership--

Many of the beautiful old houses have been restored to be Paladars, which are privately owned restaurants. We ate most meals in Paladars and found them beautiful with excellent food. Private ownership of businesses is growing slowly in Cuba.


Charming details--

The future?

Walking and riding through the city is a study in contrasts. Once you get past being appalled by buildings that are literally falling down before your eyes, you begin to see the beauty that was, that is, that will be. Havana is perhaps the most unique and fascinating city I have ever visited.



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Cuba: Havana. It begins

Where to begin? Our week in Cuba taught me just enough to know that I still have more questions than answers, and to understand all that Cuba is would require far more time and study. Take my observations with a grain of salt. I took lots of photos and will let them do most of the talking.


















We arrived in Havana on an early morning flight with 18 other Road Scholar participants, meeting up with 2 guides—1 Cuban and 1 half Cuban-American—and the Cuban driver of our comfortable, Chinese-built, state-owned tour bus. We were immediately plunged into the bustle of the busy city. Our home for the next 4 days would be the imposingly grand, historic Hotel Nacional, also state-owned and operated.












Despite its small failings (it is old and things don't always work) and the occasional sewer-ish odors wafting from the plumbing, we came to love the beauty of the old building, the views from the vast lawn, the history and the unfailingly helpful, friendly, good-humored staff. This is where I first observed that there is live music around every corner in Cuba, from breakfast onward. Here I observed a timeless, joyful Havana spirit, hard to describe, but palpable. My daughter and her husband visited Cuba about 12 years ago, when they lived in South America. My son-in-law told me, "Cuba has this special—thing—something—." Words failed him. "You will see—" he finally said. I saw.











































Americans may currently visit Cuba, not as "tourists" but as visitors with a purpose. Ours was education, so each day began with a lecture by a local expert in some aspect of the history and culture. Each was exceptional, my favorites being the speakers on architecture and religion. Both were retired university professors, and each unexpected and fascinating. Following the lectures, our days were spent visiting areas of the city, museums, and meeting with arts groups and observing their work. In my next post we explore Havana.


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