Cuba, Day 07

Meandering around Old Habana

It was Sunday, and time to meander around the city. One of the participants and I saw some Tiffany stained glass in one of the posh hotels. The doorman beckoned us in, and after initially demurring, we decided to accept his invitation.

He spoke passable English, certainly better than our Spanish. After he explained the features of the ground floor, including the magnificent view up to the domed Tiffany glass roof, he took us up in the functional back elevator to the second floor.

There was beautiful art work, and he explained that on what they call the first floor (the ground floor is 0), the rooms all had male names. Up on the second floor, the women’s names took over.

Ahhh, but we were not done yet. Up a narrow, circular metal staircase we went onto the rooftop where we were greeted by tables and chairs and a great view of the city on most sides.

There is something about laundry in foreign countries that attracts so many of us, and I am no exception. I liked this view from the rooftop of a clothes line than ran across several windows.

It’s always fun for us to meet talented photographers from other countries, and we had done that earlier in the week. This day, however, a number in our group wanted to have photographs from the twins, Orlando y Eduardo Garcia, rising stars in the Cuban photographic world. Their work is really strong and compelling. As I sat on a bench, watching people pour over the portfolio of prints, I kept staring at this wall. It begged to be photographed!

And then, I looked out the door at two men engaged in conversation while young girls, perhaps their daughters, scampered up the stairs.

So many of the buildings in Habana were once grand houses, some in better shape than others. Regardless of their age, their open doors are inviting. Light catches your eye as you pass by, and you take a step or two back to be greeted by the view of an inner courtyard with stairs leading to upper levels.

Those of you who know me will remember my passion for classic wooden boats, and these fishing boats were no exception. Laid against a backdrop of Colonial architecture, it set the stage for me.

We all met back at the hotel to head out for our final dinner. We did not have ordinary transportation. Instead, we toured the city in beautiful, classic cars. Four to a car, we hooted and hollered and behaved like the teenagers we used to be. What fun it was!

It was a great way to end the day.

Next: The Changing of the Guard … er … Groups

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