"By the end of the 1950s, American cars were so reliable that their reliability went without saying even in car ads. Thousands of them bear testimony to this today, still running on the roads of Cuba though fueled with nationalized Venezuelan gasoline and maintained with spit and haywire." P. J. O'Rourke

Well, it’s been a minute.  

So much life has happened since my last post 

and while most of our traveling here on Traveling Simile takes place on land, 

hubby and I spent a year and a half exploring 9000 miles 

of Americas waterways aboard our 32 foot Ranger Tug, Odysea II. 

We completed what's known as Americas Great Loop 

and are now officially ‘Loopers’.  Ha!

For weeks I wrangled with an answer to the common question 

about my favorite part of this odyssey 

until we listened to Goodbye to a River by John Graves, 

who offers the most unique aspect of travel by water.  

“Penetration into the country is no longer a possibility; 

barbed wire and the universal privacy of property obstruct passage, 

and the highways are mere gashes across the land … 

rivers thread through it and are still public domain…”.  

We were basically cruising through peoples backyards 

where family gatherings were taking place amongst artwork 

ranging from sculptures to mannequins dressed in amusing attire.  

Please enjoy our Great Loop adventure on Odysea II @ www.odyseaii.com

Meanwhile, back on land, we polished up our Spanish and traveled to Cuba 

where many preconceived thoughts dissolved into thin air.  

At the airport in Miami our already high excitement level expanded 

when we met musicians and others headed to the International Jazz Festival 

taking place while we are there.  Pure serendipity as you will see later.

It will be difficult to mask my peevish disdain for flawed media

 and yes, even our one-sided education

 after meeting the people and hearing their stories.  

  All with huge smiles, creative spirits and an ability to carpe diem.

Our lodging was an old house turned boutique hotel, The Claxon.  

They are now allowed to turn homes into hotels.  

We enjoyed lunch and some dinners each day in homes known as paladars; 

a small family run restaurant.

Paladar El Cafe

Paladar Sensaciones

ChaChaCha

El Cocinero

The best example of a family run paladar is Grados, 

serving modern Cuban cuisine just inside of the patio/bar 

in the front room of the home complete with a piano.  

A visit to the toilet offers a view of the well stocked library.

Fortunately, we traveled with AHI, an Alumni travel group who arranged informative speakers for our small group of 14.  Questions were encouraged and thoughtfully answered.  Healthy, respectful discussion with differing politics proved it is possible to listen and learn from each other and also gave us an opportunity to hear the other side of the stories we hear back home.

Their willingness to enhance our visit was made clear when they found tickets for a small group of us to hear Frank Fernandez, a cuban pianist, who was celebrating his 80th birthday and decided if it was his party he would invite friends to help him celebrate.  

We were treated to quite an unforgettable  jazz evening.

Our local guide wandered with us through the Plaza de la Catedral... 

where I have great regret for not sitting down and visiting with this woman.

She has stories.  I just know it.

The Cathedral behind her is beautiful but a mere backdrop.

We then passed through the Plaza Vieja... 

where the sculpture known as "Wooden Cloud"

has become the 'improvised wall of lamentations'.

No one knows the story behind the rooster with a woman holding a fork in her hand

 wearing only stilettos but the sculpture is known as Viaje Fantastico.  

Atlas Obscura offers some explanation. 

Old Town is a burst of color.

We stopped by to see a successful women owned designer clothing store.

The street art is an outdoor walking museum. 

San Francisco Square de Asis overlooks the port of Havana

 and was built as home to the Franciscan society...

but today is a flurry of comings and goings... 

and great people watching.

Americans are not allowed to stay at the National Hotel 

but sipping mojitos in the Hall of Fame 

filled with photos of Hollywood stars is a must do.

We had exhibits opened for our group in the Fine Arts Museum 

where staffing is tough when wages are $17.00 a month.  

 

Next door to the museum was the public library...

complete with an aluminum book tree..

sculpture.

After admiring the American classics parked around town from afar...

we had the opportunity for a cruise through the Miramar neighborhood

 filled with embassies and beautiful homes missing their better days... 

and under the massive trees of the Mount Barreto Ecological Park.

Quite the cruise.

One evening we met artists with the Ludwig Society 

and had the opportunity to see their individual studios.

There was an artistic display going on outside as the sun set over Havana.

We finally get a close enough view of the Christ of Havana...

on our way to visit the Jewish Center.

The jewish population reached its peak of 25,000 in the 1920's 

but is now a 'small but vibrant' community of 1,000.

Another vibrant community can be experienced at the Afro Cuban Cultural Center

 filled with art and live dance events.

Our days in the capital city...

were filled to the rim.

Fortunately, we were able to venture out to the countryside. 

That is for another day.

Coming soon!

Thanks for following along.