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Above:
The national capitol and opera house as seen
from our hotel room.
Left: Iberostar
Parque Central Hotel as seen from the park.
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Above:
Typical street scene of older buildings.
Right:
Hotel Inglaterra (English Hotel),
one of the oldest, opposite Central Park
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Old buildings leave their footprints behind.
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José Marti statue in Parque Central
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The National Capitol is a museum now. It was designed to copy
the
U.S. capitol. The dome is being repaired and hopefully it
will be
finished by the 60th anniversary of the 1959 revolution.
Right:
Two statues which flank the Capitol entrance.
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The Gran Theatro de Habana is magnificent.
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It was built in 1915 and seats 1,500.
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Left:
Alicia Alonso, Cuba's prima ballerina
for whom the teatro has been renamed. She died at 99 years old in
2019.
Below: The salon on the top floor
is used for art exhibits. The winding staircases lead down
past the statue of Alicia Alonso.
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 We
went on a walking tour of the historic center of Old Havana.
Our
guide was Marcel with Strawbery Tours. He was excellent and
his
English was outstanding since he doesn't have any English- speaking
friends. We cannot recommend him enough.
The colorful, old buildings (right) reminded me of New Orleans as well
as Mexico with their bright colors.
Right: Among our stops was a weapons museum which
displayed some of the medals from the Cuban Revolution.
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With food and medicine rationed, I was shocked to see a store featuring
the upscale names shown above, strictly for tourists..
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One of the many old forts which protected Havana harbor during the days
when f pirates were a threat.
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The terminal where cruise ships can dock. Guests can eat and sleep on their
ship yet easily wander around the city
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Mural showing important figures from the Spanish colonial period.
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The Christ of Havana statue is 66 feet tall and stands by the entrance
to the Havana Harbor. Some say he is holding a cigar and a
glass
of rum :)
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This is the mail chute of a colonial Havana house.
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The Cathedral of Habana was impressive.
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Not far from the Cathedral there is a Muslim mosque.
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