Havana glimpses

I finally managed to download some of my photographs from our trip to Cuba. It's been really interesting reviewing these images and selecting some to show you what we saw on our trip.We were in Havana for almost four days at the end of our trip so we had time to roam the streets and explore this fascinating city of 2.13 million people. We spent a lot of our time with friends Paul and Wendy who came from Comox BC to join us on the trip. That's Paul on the right talking to a fellow who was selling newspapers in front of a bookstore one evening. We found the people there to be incredibly warm and friendly.

This doorway looks like it's to an abandoned building but it's quite likely that someone lives behind it. The old buildings in Havana are generally in a state of mild to severe decrepitude. We didn't see many homeless people but places like this are home to many citizens.

"Faithful to our History"....  Signs like these with images of Fidel and Che and other Cuban heroes are everywhere, on the sides of buildings, on billboards, statues. 

Parts of Havana still retain the beautiful Spanish Colonial buildings in good repair. These areas are set up for 50's cars that you can get driven around in and fancy hotels and restaurants. 

There are some commercial establishments although I don't think most residents of Havana would be buying anything there as the prices would likely be in CUCs, the money that only tourists have access to. Most people in Cuba are paid in Cuban pesos, worth about 1/25th of the tourist money.

Once you get outside the touristy areas you see how most people in Havana live. The buildings are beautiful but falling apart. Some of them are propped up with two-by-fours to keep the balconies from collapsing. I read somewhere that most Cubans prefer to walk in the street to avoid being hit by falling pieces of buildings.

Peering through doorways you see scenes of beautiful decay...

And often amazing artwork. (More about this later.)

And from almost every balcony the laundry hangs--adding colour, texture, and humanity to the views of this complicated wonderful city.