Santiago de Cuba: 500 years of history

Transcription

jul
2015
Santiago de Cuba:
500 years of history
Carnaval de Santiago de Cuba:
July 21-29, 2015
Baseball in Santiago de Cuba
The Sanctuary at El Cobre
SANTIAGO DE CUBA
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EDITORIAL
Cuba Absolutely is joining LaHabana.com. As we gradually move to our new home, the digital destination, we will
continue to showcase the best in Cuban culture, life-style, sport, travel and much more…
To our loyal readers to date: thanks for your continued support! We hope you will soon be joined by many more.
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reviews, insightful articles and inside tips.
For our first issue together we have gone on a road trip east from Havana, around 760km to be precise to the steamy,
sultry and very Caribbean city of Santiago de Cuba. The cradle of the Revolution has had a makeover so good for its
500th Birthday to be celebrated on July 25, 2015 that even the most devout Habaneros may forgive us this month for
dedicating this issue to the city.
To understand the importance to Cuba of Santiago de Cuba we quote the Cuban poet, Waldo Leyva:
“Si encuentras alguna piedra / que no haya sido
lanzada contra el enemigo / si descubres una calle
por donde no haya pasado / nunca un héroe / […] /
puedes decir entonces que Santiago no existe”
Should you ever find some stone that has never
been hurled against the enemy, should you ever
find any street over which no hero has walked…
then and only then can you say that Santiago does
not exist
Apart from the anniversary, this month also features an article on the Anniversary of the attack on Moncada barrack
which really kick started the Revolution all those years ago as well as well as pieces on Cuba’s best Carnival, held in
the city from July 21-29 and the Caribe Festival del Fuego. If you need an excuse to make the trip you can always sign
up for the business forum, Cuba-Caribe Fórum that takes place from July 15-17 in Santiago.
We will be back to Havana for next month’s issue but in the meantime head east and enjoy the party.
Abrazos!
The LaHabana.com Team
Santiago de Cuba port. photo Alex Mene
JULY 2015
SANTIAGO DE
CUBA
Santiago de Cuba: 500 years young p6
Santiago de Cuba: 500 years of history p9
Baseball in Santiago de Cuba p11
EVENTS
Carnival de Santiago de Cuba: July 21-29, 2015 p13
July 26:
Anniversary of the attack on Moncada Barracks p15
Fiesta del Fuego, July 2015 p18
HIGHLIGHTS
Parque Cespedes: Heart & Soul of Santiago de Cuba p20
The Sanctuary at El Cobre p23
Castillo San Pedro de la Roca p26
Casa de la Trova p27
HAVANA LISTINGS
HAVANA GUIDE
Visual Arts p32 — Photography p33 — Dance p34 —Music
p35 — Cinema p42 - Theatre p43
Features - Restaurants - Bars & Clubs - Live Music Hotels - Private Accommodation p52
Santiago de Cuba: 500 years young
by Victoria Alcalá
Until we started celebrating the half-millennium
of the founding of first seven towns in Cuba, we
seemed to have been living under the illusion of
knowing the order in which they were established:
Nuestra Señora de la Asunción de Baracoa (1511),
San Salvador del Bayamo (1513), Santísima Trinidad
(1514), Sancti Spíritus (1514), San Cristóbal de La
Habana (1514), Santa María del Puerto Príncipe
(1515) and Santiago de Cuba (1515). It is said that the
eighth town, La Sabana, later called El Cayo or San
Juan de los Remedios del Cayo, came into being
on some unrecorded date in the first half of the
sixteenth century, although quite a bit later than
the first seven.
With such an avalanche of “500th anniversaries,”
changes have been made to the order: Puerto
Principe, which today is called Camagüey, held
its festivities before Sancti Spíritus did, Havana
postponed theirs until 2019 to coincide with the
500th year of its present-day site, and Remedios
celebrated before Santiago did. The key factor
in all this seems to be that, except Baracoa, all
the other towns have moved from their original
locations and some of them decided to celebrate
the dates of their original settlements, though
hardly no traces of them remain.
And so Santiago de Cuba closes the cycle of this
binge and we will have to wait four more years
until Eusebio Leal surprises us with the apotheosis
of Havana.
We get the feeling that the residents of Santiago
are going to go all out this July, and rightly so.
Santiago is one of the most beautiful cities in
Cuba and everyone who visits it delights in the
truly unique personality it possesses, defined by
its gorgeous physical setting—situated on several
terraces, bordered by the Caribbean and backed by
the highest mountains on the Island—the warmth
of its extroverted and courteous inhabitants, and
the manifestations of popular culture that have
generally managed to maintain their original
nature, oblivious to any deformations that could
be imposed by the market.
Founded in 1515 by Governor Diego Velázquez—
because of the name it received, it is presumed
that the date was July 25, the feast day of St. James
the Apostle (Santiago in Spanish)—the town rapidly
assumed the mantle of capital of Cuba. In 1522, it
received the denomination of city but because of
the greater importance of Havana, largely given its
proximity to Veracruz in Mexico, being the gateway
to the New World, and the discovery of the Gulf
Stream that made traffic between the Americas and
Europe easier, Santiago lost its position as capital
to the city of Havana in the mid-sixteenth century.
With alternating periods of prosperity, invigorated
by the exploitation of the gold and copper mines,
contraband and the arrival of French fugitives from
Haiti who at the start of the nineteenth century
impetuously began developing coffee plantations,
the region made it into the middle of that century
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7
in rather unsustainable conditions because of the
downfall of the coffee and sugar barons. This is
one of the reasons why the inhabitants of Santiago
became famous for considerably filling the ranks
of independence fighters, like Antonio Maceo, Flor
Crombet, Guillermo Moncada (Guillermón) and
Quintín Bandera.
Santiago was also notably present in the
insurrectional struggle which began in 1953
against the dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista. For
all its contributions to these glorious enterprises,
in 1983 the city received the official distinction of
being called Hero of the Republic of Cuba, the only
city to receive the title until the present day. The
poet Waldo Leyva, born in Villa Clara but a son of
Santiago deep in his heart, would declare in one of
his verses: “Si encuentras alguna piedra / que no
haya sido lanzada contra el enemigo / si descubres
una calle por donde no haya pasado / nunca un
héroe / […] / puedes decir entonces que Santiago
no existe” [Should you ever find some stone that
has never been hurled against the enemy, should
you ever find any street over which no hero has
walked…then and only then can you say that
Santiago does not exist].
Whoever decides to join Santiagueros in the
celebration of the 500 years of the existence
of the city will encounter a renewed town
that has worked long and hard to erase the
devastating effect of Hurricane Sandy that hit
Cuba, particularly Santiago, three years ago.
They will also proudly exhibit the founding areas
around Cáspedes Park (formerly, Plaza de Armas),
flanked by Diego Velázquez’ old headquarters,
which is one of the most ancient buildings of its
kind in the Americas; the cathedral, which was
built and then rebuilt to replace the original that
collapsed in an earthquake, and which acquired
its Neo-Renaissance appearance around the year
1922; the former city hall, today the Palacio de
Gobierno Municipal, built in the 1950s according
to Neoclassical precepts; the eclectic Casa Granda
Hotel; and the bank, which is typical of the Modern
Movement in architecture.
This coexistence of styles is a distinctive feature
of a city that is proud of its splendid fortress San
Pedro de la Roca Castle and the Archeological
Landscape of the First Coffee Plantations in the
South-East of Cuba, both declared UNESCO World
Heritage Sites; of the sloping and crowded streets;
of the cemetery where the remains of José Martí,
Apostle of the Independence of Cuba, and Carlos
Manuel de Céspedes, Cuba’s Founding Father,
repose; of the modern Heredia Theatre; of the
former Moncada Barracks that were attacked by
Fidel Castro and a group of young patriots and
which now house a school complex named Ciudad
Escolar 26 de Julio; of the Bacardi Museum, the
Casa de la Trova, the Alameda…and, especially, the
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8
Santuario de Nuestra Señora de la Caridad del Cobre (The Basilica of Our Lady of Charity of El Cobre),
dedicated to the Patroness of Cuba, at the nearby town of El Cobre and a required pilgrimage site.
Santiago is dubbed “la tierra caliente” [the hot land], but don’t be worried. Your body quickly gets used
to the heat as you wander the streets. And you can always be refreshed by the wares of the lemonadevendors with their juices and other drinks, or stop by the several ice cream parlors. Santiagueros have
their own formula: first drink a glass of rum, listen to the cry of the Chinese cornet and then gently
and rhythmically move those feet as you join any one of a number of congas that start “rolling” through
the streets for no reason whatsoever, at any time of the day or night. It is an excellent formula for
celebrating the 500th birthday of this kid that refuses to get old.
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9
Santiago de Cuba:
500 years of history
by Ricardo Alberto Pérez
Somebody once asked me how I would define
Santiago de Cuba. Not wanting to answer with a glib
phrase, I examined my own personal experience
with the city and ended up saying: “It’s a city that’s
hard to conquer.”
Later on I thought that my words were rather
contradictory because I have always found
Santiago to be incredibly friendly. Nonetheless,
it appears that subconsciously I was referring to
two specific matters: the first is associated with its
geography, the high temperatures, the scorching
sun that seems to mercilessly penetrate deeper
than the layers of skin. The second reason was
always a premonition that on any of the many visits
I had made I would begin to discover, and which
is connected to a more private and secretive city
that is hidden behind the one we can perceive with
our eyes.
I am certainly convinced though that Santiago
de Cuba has a unique soul that has been created
by and has grown up under the influence of an
accumulation of memories and this immediately
infects all who come into contact with the city.
It is July 2015 and Santiago de Cuba is getting
ready to celebrate five hundred years since it was
founded. The founders were headed by Diego
Velazquez but many other actors participated in
this event, such as Hernán Cortés, Bartolomé de
las Casas, Antón de Alaminos and Bernal Díaz del
Castillo, all of whom played an important role in
the conquest of the entire American continent.
Besides being Cuba’s first capital, for a long time
Santiago also represented the departure point for
other places in the Caribbean and on the American
continent, transforming itself into the base for
fresh conquests.
As a child I used to hear (and I think this is true)
that things happen in Santiago in a completely
different way than in Havana. In the street, people
come up to you as if they knew you all your life.
Strangers talk to each other in a manner that is
quite uncommon in other parts of Cuba.
When I was only about eight or nine years old,
my parents decided to fulfill a vow to the Nuestra
Señora de la Caridad del Cobre Sanctuary a few
kilometers away from Santiago. Just my luck, it
was Carnival time. My parents took me to see a
festivity that was unlike any other I had known
in Havana. The experience was so powerful and
genuine that the images recorded in my brain have
never been erased despite all the years that have
gone by since then. It’s as if the city is seasoned
with too much pepper: nothing can extinguish
that intensity and fire.
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PAGE 10
That night full of happy delights was the first time
I had seen a conga. Its rhythms seep into your
very marrow and it affects the most impermeable
of individuals. I identify this as my first contact
with the profound city in whose veins many of
our most beautiful forms of expression have been
synthesized and from whence they erupt.
When you talk about the Santiago congas, you
are talking about a culminating moment in Cuban
identity, a point where the feelings of a people
are laid out naked and transparent like nowhere
else. In this Heroic City (as is is also known given
its active involvement in Cuban independence
wars) congas are born in the neighborhoods and
they spread everywhere with the breath of their
inhabitants..
This scenario, which I, like many other Cubans
and foreigners, have learned to recognize as
an essential place, has become what it is today
from processes—often painful and even violent—
contained in these five centuries that are soon
going to be the object of celebrations.
The people of Santiago are the product of mestizaje
or interbreeding, derived from diverse origins
including the native peoples who were almost
wiped out by the Conquistadors, the Spanish
colonizers, and the African slaves, members of
the Lucumi, Congo, Mino, Carabali, Mandinga and
other ethnic groups. Surrounded by this exuberant
nature where the Sierra Maestra Mountains form
a striking background, different cultures, ethnic
groups and religions have come together. And so
the people, their culture, their customs and habits,
their architecture have come to be formed.
Santiago de Cuba with its Morro Fortress, its
splendid bay, Enramadas and Padre Pico Streets,
the Casa de la Trova, Cuba’s first cathedral,
Céspedes Park and so many other emblematic
sites, and especially with the capacity its people
have for welcoming all visitors, is getting ready to
commemorate five centuries of existence.
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PAGE
11
Baseball in Santiago de Cuba
by Victoria Alcalá
A friend from Brazil said to me once, “Cubans can’t
stand more than sixty seconds without talking
about baseball,” to which I replied, “and you
Brazilians can’t stand more than thirty seconds
without talking about soccer.”
However, I do have to admit that baseball is in the
blood of most Cubans. We become involved with
the game at a very young age—almost as soon as
we are able to take our first steps—and it ends up
being an essential part of our lives. This is why all
Cuban cities and provinces dream of having a great
baseball team and therefore put a lot of effort
into this. And Santiago de Cuba and its people
have numerous reasons to be proud of theirs.
Historically, they are the third most-winning team
in the National Series with eight championships to
their name.
In this Caribbean island, there’s no rivalry between
two baseball teams that is more intense than the
one between the Santiago de Cuba Avispas (Wasps)
and the Havana Industriales, to the point that the
games between the two teams have been labeled
“The Classic of Cuban Baseball.” When these two
teams face each other, both are willing to sweat
blood not to give the other the satisfaction of
winning. It’s a matter of honor. The games are
intense with managers questioning umpires’ calls,
players being aggressive, feelings running high….
And all these things come together to make up a
great show that pleases the fans of both teams.
For years, baseball peñas (fan clubs) have been
proliferating both in Havana and Santiago de
Cuba. Their most heated arguments are generally
engaged into by supporters of the Industriales and
the Avispas. And as it turns out, the wasp, known
for its painful sting, was chosen as the Santiago
team mascot by the people of the Hero City—as
Santiago de Cuba is also referred to. This has led to
a love-hate relationship in which all fans support
their idols while acknowledging the quality of their
opponents.
Now, to be able to understand what baseball
means for the people of Santiago de Cuba, the best
thing you can do is talk to them. Whether young or
old, they will diligently search their memories and
recall numerous feats achieved by Santiaguero
baseball players through history. Pitcher Manuel
Alarcón, one of Cuba’s great baseball heroes, is
remembered fondly by many and is usually at the
top of their list. A few years ago, he was scheduled
to face the Industriales in a game for the National
Championship and, before the game had even
started, he told the people of Santiago to get ready
to celebrate their victory. And he was true to his
promise.
It is an honor to speak about these undaunted
players, a constellation of stars that include
another pitcher, Braudilio Vinent, whom I had the
privilege of meeting at the Latinoamericano Park
back when I was a teenager. Vinent is considered
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PAGE 12
by many the best pitcher in post-1959 baseball. His
numbers were as astonishing as his fastball, which
gained him the nickname of “The Meteorite from
La Maya.”
Supporting their team whether they’re playing
at home, at the Guillermón Moncada Park, or
in another province, the people of Santiago de
Cuba will never forget the roster that shined in
the 1990s. With names such as Orestes Kindelán
(cleanup hitter for both the Santiago and the Cuba
teams, holding the record for more homeruns in
the National Series), second baseman Antonio
Pacheco (usually referred to as a Captain’s Captain,
holding the record for most hits in the National
Series) and third baseman and slugger Gabriel
Pierre, they came to be known as The Steamroller,
instilling fear in the hearts of their opponents.
It is true that today—due to a number of reasons—the
Santiago de Cuba Avispas are not what they used to
be, but we have to acknowledge that they have not
lost an ounce of their characteristic enthusiasm
and fighting spirit. Today’s roster includes names
such as veteran Reutilio Hurtado, who stands out
thanks to his discipline and perseverance; pitcher
Alberto Bicet; the young and talented Luis Yander
La O; and outfielder Alexei Bell, the last two part of
the Cuba Team roster.
And yes, an Industriales-vs-Avispas final is quite
a show, but it pales beside the victory celebration
that takes place after the ninth inning when
Santiago de Cuba has managed to nail down the
win. Santiagueros from all ages gather in central
areas of Santiago de Cuba to share the joy of being
champions and honor their heroes as the team
members parade around the city in the back of a
truck accompanied by musicians. Parties here are
intense and are usually longer than in any other
part of Cuba.
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PAGE 13
July 21-29, 2015
Santiago de Cuba
Carnaval de Santiago de Cuba
The origins of the Santiago Carnival go back to the
end of the seventeenth century when processions
would wind their way through the city streets
celebrating the feast day of Santiago (St. James in
English), the Patron Saint of the city. During the
colonial period, the Spanish authorities granted
permission to the black slaves to have their
festivities on the Epiphany, putting on their typical
music and dances. At the end of the nineteenth
century the festivities were extended to the months
of June and July in order to celebrate the patron
saint days for St. John (June 24), St. Christina (July
24), St. James (July 25), St. Anne (July 26) and St.
Peter (June 29). At the beginning of the twentieth
century, parading comparsas would represent the
different neighborhoods; this tradition is still alive,
just like the dances held in the main areas of the
city.
The carnivals have always given the people of
Santiago a means to release tension, to put aside
their worries and dance to the rhythm of conga
music. This year, like every year, locals and visitors
will keep up the tradition and pour onto the streets
in what is considered the most colorful carnival in
Cuba. This is one of the most important cultural
events in the city: many of its participants spend
the whole year preparing their routines for the
event. And don’t worry, it’s a family event. The
photo by Alex Mene
entire family will either participate in the parade
or at least help make costumes or embellish floats.
One way or another, everyone will do their bit.
Carnival
highlights
include
comparsas
(neighborhood dance groups whose choreographies
are generally related to Caribbean traditions and
the daily life of the people of Santiago) and the
processions of decorated floats that will parade, as
usual, mainly down Avenida Garzón, where a jury
will choose the best. The conga lines are perhaps
the most popular element of the carnival, but they
are meant to join, not watch.
Right at the end of the procession, mamarrachos
(characters in flamboyant, colorful costumes),
muñecones (huge papier mache figures) and
enmascarados (men and women wearing elaborate
masks), accompanied by parranderos who with
their drums, congas, rattles, catchy choruses and
cornetas chinas liven up the event—if that is even
possible. Inserted into carnivals as early as 1916, the
corneta china, or Chinese horn, was introduced in
Cuba by Chinese immigrants, adding another layer
to the festivities.
In recent years, the festivity has extended to other
open areas in the city where live music with son,
salsa, merengue as well as rock, pop, and disco
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PAGE 14
will be played by the most popular bands of the moment. Free of all commercialization, the Santiago
Carnival is truly an opportunity to celebrate this nation’s unique history and culture in a riot of rhythms,
drumming and color.
Although many Cuban towns hold their own carnivals, none attracts the crowds of the Santiago Carnival,
so don’t miss out as the whole city moves to the rhythm of conga lines, the sound of the corneta china,
drums, congas and French drums as well as pots and pans turned into unconventional percussion
instruments, which lead dancing crowds down the steep roads of Santiago de Cuba.
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PAGE 15
photo by Alex Mene
July 26: Anniversary of the attack
on Moncada Barracks
by Victoria Alcalá
On July 26, 1953, a group of young men and two
women led by Fidel Castro attacked the Moncada
Barracks in Santiago de Cuba while another group
attacked the Carlos Manuel de Céspedes Barracks
in the city of Bayamo. Although this was a defeat
for the revolutionaries, this event paved the way
for the insurrection against Batista. It was “the
small engine that ignited the big engine of the
Revolution.”
How many countries commemorate a military
defeat as their national holiday? Cuba does. In fact,
it celebrates the ill-fated events that took place on
July 26, 1953 with three days off.
The events began one year earlier in May 1952
when a group of young people grouped around
Abel and Haydee Santamaría, Melba Hernández
and Fidel Castro began meeting in an apartment
building in Havana to discuss their discontent with
the disruption of the constitutional order imposed
by the military coup launched by the dictator
Fulgencio Batista. All legal channels exhausted,
plans were made to start the armed struggle
and fight the de facto government. Working with
people across the country, they began to obtain
uniforms, guns and ammunition to attack the
Moncada Barracks and other strategic targets.
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PAGE 16
A year later, those who were to participate in the
assault traveled to Santiago de Cuba, which was
celebrating its traditional summer carnival. The
date was chosen so that the authorities would not
suspect the young people who by train, bus and 17
cars were coming into the city with the apparent
purpose of enjoying themselves during the
festivities. The leaders of the attack were hoping
that the relaxed atmosphere, the distance from
the capital, the surprise factor, and the nearby
mountains of the Sierra Maestra would help them
achieve their goal.
Upon their arrival in Santiago, the revolutionaries
gathered together at the small Siboney farm
located near the city. During early morning, the
guns hidden inside a well were distributed. Then,
the details of the attack, which had been kept in
the utmost secrecy by the leaders, were given—
they were going to attack the Moncada and Carlos
Manuel de Céspedes Barracks and take over two
strategic places, the Saturnino Lora Hospital and
the Palace of Justice. The objectives: to disarm
the enemy and summon the people to take armed
revolutionary action that would lead to the
overthrow of Batista.
At 4:00 am on Sunday, July 26, 129 men and two
women left the Siboney farm. The plan was to have
the main body of the inexperienced troops (around
90 men) led by Fidel Castro advance to the army
facility; the two women (Melba Hernández and
Haydee Santamaría) and other fighters led by Abel
Santamaría would take over the hospital; and the
group of around 35 men led by Raul Castro would
seize the Palace of Justice. The last two groups
were able to achieve their goal, but the group
led by Fidel lost the element of surprise—after
reaching one of the posts, an unexpected patrol
that was doing the rounds because of the carnival
came across them. The guards alerted the troops
and a battle ensued outside the garrison.
Given the disadvantage of the assailants, many
were captured alive and killed. The group that
tried to gain the foothills of the Sierra Maestra was
captured several days later.
The assailants and Fidel Castro were held for trial.
Fidel Castro assumed his own defense and he
gave a four-hour speech on October 16 that was
published under the title “History Will Absolve
Me,” which was his concluding sentence. Although
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PAGE 17
sentenced to terms of up to 15 years, many of the
survivors relocated to Mexico after having been
granted an amnesty and released from prison in
1955. In Mexico, they continued their plans to
form a disciplined guerrilla force to overthrow
the dictator Batista and returned to Cuba on the
Granma yacht in December 1956 to begin the
guerrilla struggle that culminated in the victory of
1959.
Since 1959, Cuba has commemorated July 26 with
rallies and speeches. In 1976, July 25, 26 and 27 were
made holidays. As a verse of a song by a popular
Cuban band says, “The 26th is the happiest day in
history.”
About the Cuartel Moncada
The first barracks on this site were built by the Spanish in 1859. Originally named Nuevo Presidio,
it served as the prison for the Department of Santiago de Cuba. Shortly after, a larger barracks was
built and named Reina Mercedes after Queen Mercedes, wife of Alfonso XII. The military construction
changed its name to Cuartel Moncada (after Guillermón Moncada, a hero of the War of Independence)
in February, 1909. An unexplained fire on December 11, 1937, destroyed the old barracks and the House
of Representatives extended a credit for 100,000 pesos for its reconstruction.
After the triumph of the Revolution, on January 28, 1960, anniversary of the birth of Cuba’s National
Hero, José Martí, the barracks was converted into a school and called Ciudad Escolar 26 de Julio. One of
the buildings was turned into the Museo Histórico 26 de Julio, which tells the history of Cuba from the
Spanish conquest to the present, on July, 1967.
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PAGE 18
Santiago de Cuba
AND
ITS
FIESTA DEL FUEGO
The Cuban city that best reminds us of how we
are not just Latin Americans but also Caribbean
peoples is Santiago de Cuba. This is where vigor
and bright colors permeate the atmosphere,
tinting everything from the natural beauty right
to the inhabitants’ customs. The city has its own
unique pace. It is inhabited by unique sounds.
There is no better time to enjoy all this than the
annual summer Caribbean Festival called Fiesta
del Fuego, an extraordinary mixture of cultures,
beliefs and traditions that aims at harmonizing
the identities of the peoples of the region beyond
geographic and linguistic diversity.
of the euphoria that flooded the city and infected
everyone there.
It is a tradition that the Festival del Caribe begins
with the Desfile de la Serpiente, or the Serpent
Parade. Both locals and visitors seem to enter into
a kind of collective trance as they move at conga
pace from Plaza de Marte to Parque Céspedes,
displaying the spiritual richness of the men and
women of the Caribbean, in a colorful display of
contagious rhythm.
The man who inspired this festival (which will
be celebrating its 35 edition in 2015) and is in
charge of running it is the prestigious Santiaguero
intellectual Joel James. As the head of the Casa
del Caribe, James has devoted a great part of his
time and energy to each new edition of the festival
so that it will sparkle with the magic provided by
visitors and the fervor of the hosts.
At each event, the Festival del Caribe has become
more overwhelming with a variety of creative
manifestations taking over center stage and
interacting with each other. Dance groups, for
example, that owe a lot to profound religious
processes, bear the signs that they have not
yet been sullied over the years and they bring a
tremendous load of energy and authenticity to
the event. Peasant folklore also joins this popular
cultural exhibition.
Some years back I had the honor of being a
guest at the celebration. Six intense days that
practically left no time for sleep due to the huge
number of events going on and especially because
One of the ceremonies that is most enjoyed at this
convocation of Caribbean peoples is the Homenaje
al Cimarrón [Homage to the Runaway Slaves]. It
acknowledges the slave rebellion that took place
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PAGE 19
in the town of El Cobre. The monument to el Cimarrón, work of the Santiago sculptor Alberto Lescay,
is near the Basilica of Our lady of Charity; at this site, a ceremony takes place that pays tribute to the
spiritual transcendence of those African slaves who defended their identity under the most terrible
circumstances of oppression, mistreatment and death.
The “El Caribe que nos une” International Colloquium (The Caribbean Sea that Unites Us All) focuses on
issues related to the preservation, development and dissemination of Caribbean cultural diversity, as
well as actions that can contribute to the unity of the region and promote a cultural exchange with the
rest of America and the world.
The Quema del Diablo (The Burning of the Demon) marks the end of the festival when all of its participants
head to the seaside and there burn the Great Demon, which symbolizes all bad things. After it is burned,
it is believed that the way is paved for next year’s meeting.
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Parque Céspedes
heart and soul of Santiago de Cuba
by Lucía Lamadrid
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When the town of Santiago de Cuba was founded
on July 25, 1515, a small area of land was left empty
following the regulations of the Spanish Crown
on building cities in the New World. This empty
lot was surrounded by rudimentary buildings
that held the Town Hall, the Governor’s House,
the church and the homes of the city’s principal
Spanish families.
Soon, the empty lot became Plaza de la Catedral,
and since its founding in the 16th century, it was
successively called Plaza de Armas, Plaza Mayor,
Plaza Principal, Plaza de la Constitución, Plaza
de la Reina and Plaza de Isabel II. The square
received its present name, Plaza Carlos Manuel de
Céspedes (although it is most commonly known
as Parque Céspedes) in the early 20th century and
the bronze bust of Carlos Manuel de Céspedes, the
Father of the Nation, was placed in 1953.
Throughout time, it has been the most important
political, religious, administrative and social site in
the city. One of Santiago de Cuba’s most important
and long-standing traditions takes place here.
The Fiesta de la Bandera, or Festivity of the Flag,
held on December 31, is a one-of-a-kind festivity
in Cuba and the world, for that matter. The flag
is raised and the way it flies in the wind is said to
forebode the fate of the people of Santiago for the
coming year.
The face of the picturesque plaza has changed
many times, whether by the hand of pirates,
governors or the forces of nature, but it continues
to be the major gathering spot for Santiagueros
and non-Santiagueros alike, any time, night or day.
Limited by Aguilera, San Pedro, Heredia and
Santo Tomás Streets, the plaza is surrounded
by emblematic buildings, such as the Town Hall,
the Home of Diego Velázquez, the Cathedral,
the former San Carlos Club and the Casa Granda
Hotel—a treasure trove of Colonial, Eclectic,
Rationalist, Neoclassical and Modern architecture.
The Ayuntamiento, or Town Hall, on the northern
side of the square, was originally built in 1516 and
occupied by the Spanish Conquistador Hernán
Cortés. It was partly destroyed by an earthquake
and reconstructed successively. The present
neoclassical building was built in the 1950s based
on a design from 1783. It was from its central
balcony that Fidel Castro addressed the people of
Santiago on January 1, 1959. It was his first speech
following Batista’s flight from Cuba.
On the west side of the park is the 16th-century Casa
de Diego Velázquez, today the Museo de Ambiente
Histórico Colonial Cubano. Built in 1515 for Cuba’s
first governor, this is the oldest house still standing
in Cuba and arguably the oldest in Latin America.
photos by Ana Lorena
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PAGE 22
The top floor was the living quarters while the
ground floor served as a trading house and gold
foundry. The Andalusian-style façade with fine,
wooden lattice windows and a wonderfully carved
cedar ceiling was extensively restored in the 1960s
after a fire. The museum depicts the varied styles
and eras of colonial life seen through furnishings
and decorations from the 16th to 19th centuries.
Some splendid pieces of French, British, Spanish
and Cuban furniture; Spanish ceramics, carved
chests and French porcelain, as well as dressers
with inlaid designs are on display.
The former San Carlos Club on the square’s eastern
side is considered the most important exponent
of eclectic architecture in Santiago. Built from
1908-1912, it has been home to several institutions,
becoming the Municipal Culture House and the
Esteban Salas Concert Hall in the 1980s. Today, it is
undergoing extensive restoration and will become
home to the Decorative Arts Museum and the
Cuban Fund of Cultural Property in July 2015.
The Catedral de Nuestra Señora de la Asunción
was destroyed by fire only a few years after its
construction in 1524. The buildings that replaced
the original church were later subjected to all types
of calamities from pirate attacks to hurricanes and
earthquakes. The Cathedral of Santiago de Cuba
holds the record for being the building that has
been reconstructed and remodeled the most in
the city. The fourth building was consecrated in
1813 and was given the title of Minor Basilica and
declared National Monument in 1958. The church
you see today combines the surviving 19thcentury features with changes made in the 1920s.
Meticulously restored, the interior is a magnificent
mixture of intricate ceiling frescoes, hand-carved
choir stalls and an altar honoring the venerated
Virgen de la Caridad. It is believed that the first
colonial governor, Diego Velázquez, was buried
here although his remains have never been found.
The Casa Granda Hotel is one of Santiago’s most
notable buildings and was described by Graham
Greene, who used to stay here in the late 1950s, in
his book Our Man in Havana. The Cuban Railroad
Company commissioned the design of this lavish
Eclectic building to architect Carlos Segrera and
it took the Cuban construction company Amigos
& Hermanos only six months to finish the hotel,
which was officially inaugurated on January 10,
1914.
The Casa Granda Hotel has four floors with
majestic, although sober Eclectic façades. The
vanes and balustrade decorations on the second
and third floors are perfectly symmetrical, while
the fourth floor has a larger number of ornamental
elements, with windows that feature semicircular
arches. The Roof Garden on the fifth floor offers a
stunning view of the city. The hotel was completely
refurbished between 1993 and 1995, and is today
part of Santiago’s cultural and historical heritage.
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EL
COBRE
The
Sanctuary at
photo by Alex Mene
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PAGE 24
Photos by Ana Lorena
One of the factors that undoubtedly has enabled
us Cubans to overcome ordeals and difficult
periods in our national history is the relationship
we have built with faith. Beliefs sometimes seem
to define much of our nature and often surpass
the field of religion to become a strong cultural
mark. In this regard, it would be impossible not to
mention and place in the center of Cuban life the
Virgen de la Caridad del Cobre—Our lady of Charity.
The Catholic Church is well aware that while some
people venerate the Marian image of Our Lady of
Charity, others worship Oshun, the Orisha of love
and money, the river Goddess, while still others
manage to worship both the Christian virgin and
the goddess of the Yoruba religion syncretized in
one.
The patroness of Cuba has been present for over
four centuries in the individual and collective
destinies of countless generations of Cubans who
have venerated her in the most picturesque ways
imaginable. The story itself of how the image that is
now venerated at the shrine of El Cobre in Santiago
de Cuba has helped reinforce the combination of
mysticism with myth:
Legend has it that in 1613 a statue of the Virgin was
discovered by three fishermen who had gone out
to the Bay of Nipe for salt. They got caught up in
a violent storm and thought they were about to die
when they spotted a figurine. When they retrieved it
from the water, they were surprise to see that it was
completely dry. The small image, which was carved
in wood, carried the Baby Jesus in her arms and was
fastened to a small board that read: “I am the Virgin
of Charity.”
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PAGE 25
Whatever its origin, it is clear that this was not a
cult imposed by any authority. By the beginning
of the 19th century, the Virgin of Charity prevailed
over all of the other images brought by the Spanish.
Evenduring the wars of independence of the
second half of the 19th century, the “mambises,”
the Cuban guerrillas, carried with them the image
of the Virgin of Charity in every battle. In 1915, the
veterans of the wars of independence wrote to
Pope Benedict XV asking the Virgin to be declared
the Patron Saint of Cuba and in 1916, the Supreme
Pontiff declared September 8 the Feast Day of the
Virgin of Charity and Patron Saint of Cuba.
The image was initially deposited at the Bajaragua
Ranch, then at Real de Minas, near Santiago de
Cuba, and finally, in 1648, in a chapel that was built
in the same place where the Sanctuary rises today,
and which opened on September 8, 1927 after the
first sanctuary collapsed in 1906.
Access to the Sanctuary is through an outside
staircase flanked by a wall with lamps. The statute
of the Virgin is made of gold and can be seen from
anywhere in the main nave. The movable altar is
made of marble and solid silver, and is decorated
with items of great value.
Downstairs from the chapel where the Virgin
is kept is the Capilla de los Milagros (literally,
Chapel of Miracles), a small room that holds from
the humblest of offerings to precious jewels and
votive offerings of gold and precious stones; from
sports trophies to military decorations, including
the Nobel Prize medal for Literature awarded to
Ernest Hemingway, who personally placed it at the
feet of the Patron Saint of Cuba.
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PAGE 26
Photo by Ana Lorena
Castillo San Pedro de la Roca
The Castillo San Pedro de la Roca, or Castillo del
Morro Fortress, is located on a promontory at the
entrance of the bay of the city of Santiago de Cuba.
Its strategic location made it the principal defense
position of the city against pirate attacks, which
had previously and successfully plundered the city
back in 1554.
Designed by Italian military engineer Giovanni
Battista Antonelli (also known as Juan Battista
Antonelli, who also designed La Punta and El Morro
forts in Havana), construction works began in 1638
during the government of Pedro de la Roca, from
whom the fortress gets its name. Construction
works took 62 years to be completed due to
financial constraints.
Due to several earthquakes that occurred in
Santiago between 1675 and 1692, the fortress,
which was built intermittently, was damaged and
reconstruction was carried out for two years. From
1738 to 1749, however, the citadel was enlarged
and several platforms completed. The fortress was
again damaged by earthquake activity between
1757 and 1766.
After pirate activity diminished, part of the
fortress was converted into a prison, while the rest
remained serving as a military base. On July 3, 1898,
the Castillo San Pedro de la Roca witnessed the
Battle of Santiago de Cuba between the Spanish
fleet commanded by Vice Admiral Pascual Cervera
and an American fleet during the Spanish-Cuban-
American War. This historical event ended the
colonial rule of Spain in America.
For years the fort was abandoned, until restoration
works began in 1962 led by Dr. Francisco Prat Puig.
The museum that was opened within the fortress
on July 23, 1978 contains five exhibition halls:
Pirate Activity in the Caribbean, Construction
of the Fortress, the Development of the Defense
System in Colonial Times, the Castillo del Morro
as a Prison, and the Naval Battle of Santiago de
Cuba. Its collection includes 16th- to 19th-century
firearms and bladed weapons, pistols and artillery
pieces, as well as other items of historical value.
The fortress is considered a jewel of military
architecture in the Caribbean and has two
architectural styles: Medieval, seen in the thickness
of the walls, the tightly sealed rooms, few openings
and vaulted ceilings, among other features; and
the Renaissance, visible mainly in the facade which
is sunken and flattened, symmetrical stone blocks¸
the drawbridge and the dry moat. The latter has a
frieze that is decorated in the Moorish style.
The Castillo San Pedro de la Roca Fortress was
declared a National Monument in early 1979, and
in December 6 of that same year, it was listed by
UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. The reasons
cited by the Commission during its 21st Session
held in Naples, Italy, are that it is the best preserved
and most complete example of Spanish-American
military architecture.
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Casa de la Trova
Heredia 206 -210 e/ San Félix
y San Pedro, Santiago de Cuba
Open 11am-3pm & 8:3011pm, Tue-Sun
SANTIAGO DE CUBA’S CASA DE LA TROVA
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by Victoria Alcalá
With a population of nearly half a million
inhabitants, this city has one unique peculiarity. Its
streets always allow you to see things from above
or from below, depending on the point where you
are standing, which will always be on a slope. Its
bay is the impressive background that usually
dominates the photos taken by visitors to the city,
or it simply remains in their memories as a symbol
of welcome. Spanish explorers Hernán Cortés—
Santiago de Cuba’s first mayor—and Pánfilo de
Narvaez both set sail from this bay to conquer new
territories in Mexico.
The town center is located between the Caribbean
Sea and the Sierra Maestra Mountains, which
makes for an exceptional sight. Santiago was
Cuba’s first capital city from 1515 to 1556. Today
it is recognized as Ciudad Héroe (Hero City) since
its streets were once the setting of many actions
of the country’s revolutionary struggles, from the
independence wars of the 19th century to the
more recent Revolution under Fidel Castro, which
began with the assault on the Moncada Barracks
on July 26, 1953.
Many important cultural processes have
developed in Santiago de Cuba, having contributed
significantly to the formation of the Cuban
national identity. This is a city where events take
on a spontaneous and original character unlike
any other region in the island. The musical genres
of son, traditional trova and bolero, plus other
rhythms peppered with Afro and Haitian influences
that have enriched the Cuban musical scene, were
born here. Its colorful carnival, with comparsas
(neighborhood dance groups), conga lines and
decorated floats parading down the streets, is
proof that Santiago is one of the liveliest cities in
Cuba. Although many people sit in the grandstand
or booths to watch the parade, most follow behind
the congas dancing to the rhythm of the Chinese
cornet and the órgano oriental, trademarks of
Santiago’s carnival festivities.
Walking down Heredia St, you come across the
Casa de la Trova. The townhouse marked with
No. 208, which boasts balconies reminiscent of
the New Orleans French Quarter, was the former
home of Rafael Pascual Salcedo de las Cuevas,
eminent musician born on October 23, 1844. .
Today, Casa de la Trova is the town’s principal
music venue, with performances all day and night
long paying tribute to the countless musicians—
like Sindo Garay, Miguelito Cuní, Compay Segundo,
María Teresa Vera, Matamoros Trio, and many
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PAGE 29
others—who nurtured the soul of the city. Perhaps the most outstanding figure of all is Pepe Sánchez,
born in 1856, who is considered the founder of this musical vein and the composer who wrote the first
bolero titled Tristeza.
Old and young trovadores strum their guitars sharing their joys and sorrows converted into memorable
songs at the internationally known Casa de la Trova in Santiago de Cuba. So much so, that on January 14,
2000, Sir Paul McCartney made an unexpected visit to this temple of Cuban traditional music.
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PAGE 30
José Antonio Choy:
an architect of Santiago and Cuba
by Victoria Alcalá
Rescued from the anonymity that plagues
contemporary Cuban architects, the name of
Santiago-born José Antonio Choy shines like a
beacon. Along with his wife and colleague Julia
León he has been responsible for some of the most
respected building in recent decades in Cuba.
After graduating from the School of Architecture
in Havana, Choy returned to his hometown of
Santiago to undertake some important projects,
among them the executive flights terminal (1987)
and the railroad station (1989), the latter finalist
work in the first Mies van der Rohe Award for Latin
America. In both buildings, he established a subtle
dialogue with their milieu without falling into the
facile temptation of succumbing to the “Neo-styles.”
He also worked as urban planner and architect
for the city’s Plaza de la Revolución together with
sculptors Alberto Lescay and Guarionex Ferrer, but
there is no doubt that the principal achievement of
the Choy-León partnership is the Meliá Santiago
de Cuba Hotel (1991).
Although at first quite a few Santiagueros rejected
the new 19-floor building, maybe because they
were expecting something more traditional or
more in tune with the supposed glamour they
were used to seeing in films and magazines, the
nickname they gave the hotel, “the mill,” unwittingly
put the spotlight on one of its merits: interpreting
the traditional codes of industrial and vernacular
architecture in the region from a contemporary
point of view. With the passing of time, the Meliá
Santiago became something like the Eiffel Tower,
which, received at first with reservations and even
open rejection, finally became the symbol of Paris.
Today the hotel designed by Choy and León is an
essential point of reference in the city, just like the
Morro Castle or Céspedes Park. Many tourists look
to it so that they can orient themselves and find
their bearings.
Another remarkable project was the Che Guevara
Studies Center in Nuevo Vedado: “We bypassed
other routes that led to an exaggeration of
architectural forms. We tried to make this a
clean, serene building, sparsely using expressive
elements. Some have categorized this as a
minimalist work but we believe that we have
provided a highly personal interpretation of the
person and philosophy of Che.”
The annex building to the Parque Central Hotel
(2006) is another striking project, which they
respectfully and boldly resolved the complicated
insertion of a building, which although not blending
with the other structures, was not stridently
modernistic, into a traditional Old Havana block
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PAGE 31
Anexo Hotel Parque Central
Choy-León still have a number of dreams to
fulfill such as the future library for the Casa
de las Américas, winner of the institution’s
competition in 2001, and a hotel to be built on
the desolate corner of Prado and Malecón—which
plays with the meaningful proximity of the sea
in its translucent and curved façade—included in
Backstage Architecture 2012, which gathered the
57 most important projects of the year worldwide
to be presented at the 13th Venice Biennale of
Architectural.
Proyecto Hotel Prado y Malecón
Banco Financiero Internacional
As if all that were not enough, Choy, who chairs
the City, Architecture and Heritage Commission of
the Writers’ and Artists’ Union of Cuba (UNEAC),
is a scholar in his field, a tireless promoter of
architecture as the cultural expression of a specific
time and place. He he has defended the importance
that the criteria of professional architects should
have before decision makers in a variety of public
forums. Respected by his contemporaries and
considered a paradigm by the younger generations
of architects, not only for his talent but for his
uprightness and courage, the greatest legacy José
Antonio Choy leaves Cuban culture may very well
be the act of teaching by example, thanks to which
he has stopped being the “lone avant-gardist” as
his colleague Roberto Segre once described him.
VISUAL ARTS
Casa de Asia
OPENS JULY 7
Asia en la plástica cubana
contemporánea is made up
by works based on customs,
traditions and the ethnographic
universe of Asian countries.
Casa Juan Gualberto Gómez
OPENS JULY 8
Palante en verano, a show of
works by caricaturists from
and contributors to the comic
newspaper Palante showcasing
personal caricatures, white, black,
erotic humor and political satire,
among others, reflecting national
and international events.
Edificio de Arte Cubano.
Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes
THROUGH
SEPTEMBER 28
THROUGH
AUGUST 16
Ruidos salvajes show with over
90 pieces (from 1960-2015) from
the permanent collection of The
Bronx Museum, which focus on
identity, city life and community.
THROUGH
SEPTEMBER 6
Los
ardientes,
by
Sergio
Hernández, one of the most
important
visual
artists
in
Mexico, reveals his mastery of
painting and the graphic arts,
manifestations he shares with
sculpture, printmaking, ceramics
and drawing, and his taste for
intense colors.
Factoría Habana
Pintura is the Tomás Sánchez
show including 12 never-before
shown canvases, mainly in large
formats, where he combines
natural landscapes with garbage
dumps. This is a significant
direction taken by this Cuban
painter who has not had a show in
30 years at Bellas Artes.
THROUGH
AUGUST 24
Tramas,
by
Gustavo
Pérez
Monzón who showed at the
historic Volumen I which marked
a milestone in Cuban art of the
1980s, reveals 76 impressive
drawings and installations.
THROUGH
AUGUST 31
El mapa del silencio, a show by
the former Carpintero Alexandre
Arrechea was especially planned
for being shown at Bellas Artes;
it includes two large format
watercolors,
video-projection,
a wall-hanging and a mural
measuring 25 meters on the wall
of the gallery. Curator Corina
Matamoros tells us that it states
what hasn’t yet been said, even
though it is obvious.
THROUGH
JULY 22
Edificio de Arte Universal.
Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes
Ping-pong cuadrícula, Wilfredo
Prieto’s show has both large and
small format works where the
artista insists on using day-to-day
objects in order to communicate
new meanings.
THROUGHOUT Entropía.
JULY
Rodríguez
René
Francisco
exhibits imaginative
artefacts built from set squares, or
triangles.
The Mission, by Rocío García, is a
story made up by large paintings
that give proof of the artist’s
narrative ability and her mastery
at creating environments and
disturbing “characters.”
Deconstrucción del horizonte, by
Carlos Montes de Oca, includes
fragments
from
old
ICAIC
Newsreels, which complement the
installation.
Galería Galiano
THROUGH
JULY 26
Espejismos. Artist Raúl Castro
Camacho (Memo) invites viewers
to discover the images that
are hidden beneath his white
paintings.
Galería Habana
OPENS JULY
10
Pintura fresca. Group show of
works by Yunier Hernández, Niels
Reyes, Agustín Hernández Carlos,
Frank Martínez, Roldán Lauzán,
Darwin Estacio, Antoine Mena and
Palacio del Segundo Cabo
THROUGH
JULY 31
Naturalezas del Art Nouveau,
traveling show sponsored by the
Réseau Art Nouveau Network,
in
charge
of
documenting,
researching and protecting Art
Nouveau heritage worldwide.
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PAGE 33
PHOTOGRAPHY
Castillo de la Real Fuerza
OPENS JULY 6
La última frontera. Placed on the railings of the old fortress, 50 large photographs discover the natural wonders
hidden beneath the sea.
Centro Cultural Bertolt Brecht
THROUGH
JULY 26
Expocuba. Pabellón de la Cultura
Adolfo Izquierdo exhibits photos
taken on the work carried pout
by the Danza Contemporánea de
Cuba company.
THROUGH
SEPTEMBER 1
Miradas reveladoras. An approach
to different moments of the Cuban
Revolution through the work
carried out by a group of excellent
photographers that captured
those moments: Alberto Díaz
Gutiérrez (Korda), Raúl Corrales,
Osvaldo and Roberto Salas, Liborio
Noval, Ernesto Fernández, José
Agraz, Perfecto Romero and Luis
Pierce.
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DANCE
Photo Alex Mene
Blancanieves y los siete enanitos
Sala Avellaneda. Teatro Nacional
July 4, 5pm
Graduation gala of the vocational workshop of the Department of Dance of the National Ballet of Cuba,
with choreography by Marlén Moreno and a group of teachers, of the famous story of Snow White, and
music from the film’s soundtrack. The ballet will be performed by the students who will be graduating
this year, dancers from the National Ballet of Cuba and the Elementary School of Ballet, and a selection
of members of the Dance Department.
Así Somos in concert
Flamenco
Centro Hispano-Americano de Cultura
Teatro Mella
July 18, 5pm
July 24 & 25, 8:30pm; Jult 26, 5pm
Show by the Así Somos dance company and guests.
Flamenco dance show with the excellent Irene
Rodríguez and Company.
Verano flamenco
Centro Hispano-Americano de Cultura
July 28Augist 1, 1:30-4:30pm
Spanish Dance Workshop for students 7 to 29
years old, conducted by the Irene Rodríguez Dance
Company. Enrollment is now open by calling 7866
0775 / 7866 0776
Photo Y. del Monte
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PAGE 35
MUSIC
CONTEMPORARY
FUSION
Club Habana Party
Photo Alex Mene
The contemporary fusion and electronic music
scene has expanded recently as new bars
and clubs have opened party promoters have
organized events in parks and public spaces.
Good live music venues include Bertolt Brecht
(Wed: Interactivo, Sunday: Déjá-vu) and El Sauce
(check out the Sunday afternoon Máquina de la
Melancolía) as well as the newly opened Fábrica
de Arte Cubano which has concerts most nights
Thursday through Sunday as well as impromptu
smaller performances inside.
In Havana’s burgeoning entertainment district
along First Avenue from the Karl Marx theatre to
the aquarium you are spoilt for choice with the
always popular Don Cangreco featuring good live
music (Kelvis Ochoas and David Torrens alternate
Fridays), Las Piedras (insanely busy from 3am) and
El Palio and Melem bar—both featuring different
singers and acts in smaller more intimate venues.
Barbaram Pepito’s Bar
Club Turf
SUNDAYS
Discoteca Onda Retro
5 pm
Le Select
SUNDAYS
WEDNESDAYS Qva Libre
Los Ángeles
5 pm
5pm
Submarino Amarillo
Café Concert El Sauce
5 pm
Djoy
8 pm
Café Cantante, Teatro Nacional
SUNDAYS
JUEVES
La Máquina de la Melancolía, with
Frank Delgado and Luis Alberto
García
SATURDAYS
2 pm
Vieja Escuela, country, blues &
rock’n’roll
Tercera y 8
Gato Tuerto
SATURDAYS
10 pm
MONDAYS
Tenor Bernardo Lichilín and DJ
Eddy Sánchez
Baby Lores
11 pm
Havana Hard Rock
EVERY OTHER
FRIDAY
Soul Train, a show of soul music
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PAGE 36
MUSIC
CONCERT
Johnny Ventura and Elaín
Morales in concert
Karl Marx Theater, July 10 & 11, 2015
8:00 pm
Johnny Ventura, the famous Dominican singer and
band leader of merengue music, will join forces
with Cuban singer Elaín Morales in a concert at
the Karl Marx Theater in Havana.
A fan of Cuban music since he was small, Ventura
will be visiting the island for the first time to take
part in the 35th Caribbean Festival “Fiesta del
Fuego” to be held in Santiago de Cuba from July
2-9, 2015.
Grand concert to kick off the summer!
Isaac Delgado and
his band
Tribuna Antimperialista
On the Malecón
Sunday, July 5, 9pm
Don’t miss2-9, 2015.
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PAGE 37
Photo by Alex Mene
SALSA / TIMBA
Casa de la Música Habana
Casa de la Música de Miramar
MONDAYS
11 pm Havana Show
MONDAYS
TUESDAYS
11 pm Havana Show
WEDNESDAYS
11 pm Sur Caribe
11 pm Adalberto Álvarez y su Son
WEDNESDAYS
11 pm NG La Banda
THURSDAYS
5 pm Manolito Simonet
FRIDAYS
5 pm El Niño y La Verdad
11 pm NG La Banda
SUNDAYS
5 pm Bamboleo
Piano Bar Tun Tun
THURSDAYS
11 pm NG La Banda
SATURDAYS
5 pm Manana Club
Jardines del 1830
FRIDAYS
10 pm
Le Select
FRIDAYS
5 pm
Grupo Moncada and their project
Rueda de Casino
THURSDAYS
Tercera y 8
WEDNESDAYS Alain Daniel
11 pm
Piano Bar Habaneciendo
WEDNESDAYS
Azúcar Negra
5 pm Osaín del Monte
11 pm Kye 2
Salón Rojo del Hotel Capri
SUNDAYS
AND
SUNDAYS
Juan Guillermo
11 pm
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PAGE 38
MUSIC
JAZZ
Jazz Café
Shows: 10:30pm - 2am
Mellow, sophisticated and freezing due to extreme
air conditioning, the Jazz Café is not only an
excellent place to hear some of Cuba’s top jazz
musicians, but the open-plan design also provides
for a good bar atmosphere if you want to chat.
Less intimate than La Zorra y el Cuervo – located
opposite Melia Cohiba Hotel.
Café Jazz Miramar
Shows: 11 pm - 2am
This new jazz club has quickly established itself as
one of the very best places to hear some of Cuba’s
best musicians jamming. Forget about smoke filled
lounges, this is clean, bright—take the fags outside.
While it is difficult to get the exact schedule and in
any case expect a high level of improvisation when
it is good it is very good. A full house is something
of a mixed house since on occasion you will feel
like holding up your own silence please sign!
Nonetheless it gets the thumbs up from us.
Asociación Cubana de Derechos de Autor Musical
JUNE 18
6 pm
Alexis Bosch (pianist) and Proyecto
Jazz Cubano.
Jardines del teatro Mella
JUNE 30
5pm
Zule Guerra (singer & composer)
and Blues D´Havana
UNEAC
JUNE 11
5 pm
Peña La Esquina del Jazz hosted by
showman Bobby Carcassés.
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PAGE 39
MUSIC BOLERO, FOLKLORE, SON & TROVA
Asociación Yoruba de Cuba
SUNDAYS
El Jelengue de Areíto
Los Ibellis (Folkloric group)
4 pm
TUESDAYS
Conjunto Chappottín
5 pm
Elaín Morales
WEDNESDAYS Trovando, a meeting with good
5pm
SATURDAYS
Son del Nene
5 pm
Café Cantante, Teatro Nacional
THURSDAYS
MONDAYS
Waldo Mendoza
5pm
5 pm
trova.
FRIDAYS
Rumberos de Cuba
5 pm
Café Concert El Sauce
JUNE 2, 9, 16,
23, 30
Charly Salgado and guest
8 pm
FRIDAYS
Rafael Espín and guests
4 pm
6 pm
FRIDAYS
4 pm
Peña El Canto de Todos, with
Vicente Feliú
5 pm
SATURDAY
4 pm
Casa de la Cultura Comunitaria Mirta Aguirre
JULY 26
SATURDAYS
Bolero Night
Pabellón Cuba
Eduardo Sosa
5 pm
JULY 16
Hurón Azul, UNEAC
9 pm
Casa del Alba
JULY 3
Ivette Cepeda.
9:30 pm
Café Teatro Bertolt Brecht
JUNE 27
Hotel Telégrafo
Get-together with trovador Ireno
García.
Peña Tres Tazas with trovador
Silvio Alejandro
Peña Participo with trovador Juan
Carlos Pérez
Barbaram Pepito’s Bar
SATURDAYS
Yaima Sáez
10pm
Casa de la Cultura de Plaza
JULY 11
Peña with Marta Campos.
Fresa y Chocolate
TUESDAYS
7 pm
5pm
Trova hosted by Richard Luis and
Eric Méndez
Centro Cultural Habaneciendo
SUNDAYS
Filin with Fausto Durán and guests
3pm
5 pm
Peña La Juntamenta, with trovador
Ángel Quintero.
Casa de la Música Habana
SUNDAYS
Fernando Becquer
10:30pm
Centro Iberoamericano de la Décima
Casa Memorial Salvador Allende
JULY 24
THURSDAYS
JULY 4
Duo Ad Libitum
3 pm
JULY 26
5 pm
El Jardín de la Gorda with trovadors
from every generation.
Yoruba Andabo
5 pm
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PAGE 40
CLASSICAL MUSIC
Photo Y. del Monte
Basílica Menor de San Francisco de Asís
JULY 4
6 pm
JULY 11
6 pm
JULY 18
AND 23
Concert with music by Wagner with the performance of soprano Johana Simón, who
accompanied by the pianist Krank Paredes will sing Wesendonck-Lieder and arias from
Lohengrin, Tannhäuser, Walkyria and Tristan and Isolde.
Performance by the Lecuona trio (Lianne Vega on the piano, Alejandro Martínez on the cello
and Alberto Rosas, flute and director).
Concerts by the Camerata Romeu, conducted by Zenaida Romeu.
6/2 pm
Teatro Martí
SATURDAYS
Concerts by chamber soloists and ensembles.
4 pm
Casa del ALBA Cultural
JULY 3
Concert by the Mariana de Gonitch Singing Academy.
5 pm
JULY 5
Concert by the Nueva Camerata Wind Ensemble conducted by Haskell Armenteros.
5 pm
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PAGE 41
Casa de las Américas
JULY 2
7 pm
JULY 3
6 pm
JULY 17
7 pm
Espacio Sonoro, dedicated to electroacoustic music by composers Juan Blanco (Cuba),
Horacio Vaggione (Argentina), Alfredo del Mónaco (Venezuela), Antonio Russek (Mexico),
Javier Álvarez (Mexico), Alejandro José (Dominican Republic) and Reginaldo Carvalho (Brazil).
Percuba Ensemble, conducted by Damarik Favier, will perform contemporary works
composed for this peculiar instrumental format.
Performance by the Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington, D.C., one of the oldest LGTB choral
organizations in the United States.
Casa Victor Hugo
JULY 11
Concert by guitarist Mabel González.
5 pm
JULY 13
Musical gathering with guitarist Luis Manuel Molina and his Calis Duo.
4 pm
Centro Hispano Americano de Cultura
JULY 11
Concert by Nuestro Tiempo ensemble, conducted by Enrique Pérez Mesa.
5 pm
Oratorio San Felipe Neri
JULY 2
7 pm
JULY 11
4 pm
JULY 13-18
Performance by Javier Zalba (saxophone) and Alejandro Calzadilla (clarinet) along with the
Orquesta de Cámara de La Habana, conducted by Daiana García.
Concert Contemporáneos de Cuba y América, with first violist Anolan González, accompanied
on the piano by Beatriz Batista and soprano Laura Ulloa, and guest string quintet, who will
perform pieces composed especially for the Anolan González as well as classical compositions
from the Latin American repertouire of composers Jorge López Marín, Roberto Valera, Alfredo
Diez Nieto, Juan Piñera, Heitor Villa-Lobos, Alejandro Martínez, Guido López-Gavilán, Astor
Piazzolla and Rafael Hernández.
“Conociendo a Mozart” (Getting to Know Mozart), summer workshops for adolescents
10 am
JULY 18
11 am
Concert by the Ventus Habana wind quintet, accompanied by the Schola Cantorum Coralina
chorus, conducted by Wilmia Verrier.
Sala Covarrubias. Teatro Nacional
JULY 25
8:30pm
JULY 26
Concert Un palco en la Ópera: arias, duos, scenes and overtures from operas of all time,
with Milagros de los Ángeles, Alioska Jiménez, Kirenia Corzo, Laura de Mare, Yilán Sartorio,
Anisley Martínez, Dayana Lorente, Cristina Rodríguez, Dayami Pérez, Marcos Lima, Héctor
Rodríguez, Ramón Centeno, Jorge Temprano and Lesby Bautista.
6 pm
Sala Gonzalo Roig. Palacio del Teatro Lírico Nacional
JULY 26
Cuerda Dominical, with guitarist Luis Manuel Molina.
5 pm
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PAGE 42
CINEMA
Organized by the Cuban Institute of Film Art and
Industry (ICAIC) and the Cinematheque of Cuba,
along with several other cultural institutions,
the Chaplin Festival took off on July 1 with the
presence of Oona Chaplin, granddaughter of
Charles Chaplin.
Besides the screening of short and feature films
by Chaplin, the festival includes—for the first
time in the American continent—an exhibition of
objects and materials that belonged to the English
comedian, from the collection of Paddy McDonald,
one of the most important collectors on Chaplin
memorabilia. The exhibition will occupy the
galleries of the Charles Chaplin cinema, the ICAIC
Cultural Center and the Museo Nacional de Bellas
Artes (Cuban Art Building).
To close the festival, the National Symphony Orchestra will give a concert at the Sala Covarrubias of the
Teatro Nacional on July 12, 5pm. The program includes This Is My Song and Smile by Chaplin, along with
works by his favorite composers, including Leonard Bernstein.
PROGRAM
THU, JULY 2
5PM:
(Shorts) Behind the Screen, 1916, The Floorwalker, 1917, The Fireman, 1916
8PM:
(Shorts) By the Sea, 1915, The Immigrant, 1917, A Night in the Show, 1915
FRI, JULY 3
5PM:
(Shorts) The Adventurer, 1917) Easy Street, 1917, The Cure, 1917
8PM:
(Shorts) The Kid, 1921, The Immigrant, 1917, Behind the Screen, 1916
SAT, JULY 4
5PM:
(Shorts) The Pilgrim, 1923, A Night in the Show, 1915, His New Job, 1915
8PM:
Tillie´s Punctured Romance, 1914 / Mack Sennett
SUN JULY 5
5PM:
A Woman of Paris, 1923
8PM:
The Gold Rush, 1925
TUE, JULY 7
5PM:
The Circus, 1928
8PM:
City Lights, 1931
WED, JULY 8
5PM:
Modern Times, 1935
8PM:
The Great Dictator, 1940
Note: The films will be shown at Cine 23 y 12 & Cine Chaplin.
For more information, call 7833-6906 and 7831-1101, respectively
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PAGE 43
THEATRE
La oveja negra dando leña
Grupos La Oveja Negra & La Leña del Humor
July 10-11, 8:30pm; July 12, 5pm
Teatro Karl Marx
Comedy show by two of the most popular groups
within the genre.
Mecánica
Argos Teatro / Production: Carlos Celdrán
Fri & Sat 8:30pm; Sun 5pm, Argos Teatro
Play written by award-winning Abel González
Melo, which based on Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s
House, turns the conflict around while it deals
with an aspect of that is scarcely dealt with on the
Cuban stage: the world of the nouveau riche.
Muertecita de miedo
Through July 18. Tues, Wed, & Thurs, 8:30pm
Sala Adolfo Llauradó
One-man show with Ernesto González Umpierre
(El Flacomímico).
Decamerón
La octava puerta
Teatro del Caballero / Production: José
Antonio Alonso
Fridays & Saturdays, 8:30pm; Sundays, 5pm
According to Jose Antonio Alonso, in this play
“there is a convergence of several characters
that an actor left in his home when he moved to
Spain. They become the actor’s very essence: a
petulant transvestite who represses him, a rough
peasant, an experimentalist who has spent all his
life experimenting and has become twisted, and
an unfinished Oedipus Rex, who in addition to
being blind, there is a blackout in Havana and he
wants to go to Thebes with a blinThey become the
actor’s very essence: a petulant transvestite who
represses him, a rough peasant, an experimentalist
who has spent all his life experimenting and has
become twisted, and an unfinished Oedipus Rex,
who in addition to being blind, there is a blackout
in Havana and he wants to go to Thebes with a
blind destination. These are four conflicts that we
Cubans have and which are present anywhere in
the world.”
Teatro El Público / Production: Carlos Díaz
Fri & Sat 8:30pm; Sun 5pm
Teatro Trianón
Several stories from Giovanni Boccaccio’s The
Decameron are put onstage with more than a hint
at Cuba today. Those who expect nudity galore
from Carlos Díaz are in for a surprise.
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PAGE 44
FOR KIDS
Mowgli, el mordido por los
lobos
Teatro La Proa
Saturdays & Sundays, 11pm
With a structure that is very close to the story,
this puppet show, based on Rudyard Kipling’s The
Jungle Book, is a call to overcome the difficulties
of life.
La muchachita del mar
Caras blancas
Free adaptation of the fairy tale The Little Mermaid
by the Danish author Hans Christian Andersen.
Show by Teatro Tuyo, directed by Ernesto Parra.
Los payasos olvidados y
enamorados
El tío Coyote y el tío Conejo
Grupo Retablos
July 16 & 17, 5pm
Teatro Nacional de Guiñol
Teatro Papalote
July 31, 5pm
Written and directed by René Fernández, this
is the love story of two clowns, in which the
protagonists, who become involved in complex
but fun situations, dance, sing and act in a play of
theater within the theater.
Teatro Tuyo
July 17, 11am; July 18 & 19, 11am & 5pm
Grupo de teatro El Arca
Fridays, Saturdays & Sundays, 3pm
Teatro de títeres El Arca
Along with puppeteer and actor Adalett Perez,
Uncle Rabbit and Uncle Coyote play pranks in
Mrs. Federica’s orchard until, with the help of the
audience, they discover that you have to respect
what is not yours. The show ends with Cotorrita
Alegría puppet
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PAGE 45
EVENTS IN HAVANA
III Festival Nacional
Creciendo en el Hip Hop
July
Havana
The Cuban Rap Agency and the Cuban Institute of
Music have organized this festival in which Cuban
children and teenagers have the opportunity to
discover their talents in the stylistic elements of
the subculture of rapping, Djing, breakdancing and
graffiti writing.
Cuballet 2015
July 6-31
Centro Prodanza
Under the guidance of the teacher and
choreographer Laura Alonso, and directed by
choreographer Alberto Mendez, creator of
anthological pieces of Cuban ballet, such as
Tarde en la siesta, the event will address the
peculiarities of the Cuban school of ballet through
special courses for students and teachers. The
program includes classes in ballet, pointe work,
adagio, repertoire, physical efficiency, modern
dance, Spanish dance, Cuban dances, acting and
makeup. The Laura Alonso Ballet, along with the
international participants, will stage the original
version of Marius Petipa’s Don Quixote.
Circuba 2015
July 8-13, Karl Marx Theater, Carpa Trompoloco, Cabaret Copa Room
Trapeze, balancing on cylinders, fabrics, ribbons,
net and aerial hoop, and tightrope walking are
some of the acts of traditional and contemporary
circus that will characterize this year’s festival.
Among the participating artists, the Moscowbased Rosgoscirk will return this year with a
juggling act starring Diana Stepanova; Russia will
also bring Ekaterina Malysheva and Andrei Petrov
in aerial silk, while Italy will be represented by
Lucas Marrocchi performing on the pole. From
Germany, the Academy of Acrobatic Arts will
present numbers on the fixed trapeze and hula
hoop. Cuban performers Jorge Perezoff and Zoima
Vázquez, who now live in Spain, will exhibit traditional juggling with hoops. The opening gala will be
held at the Karl Marx Theatre on Wednesday 8, 9pm. The Copa Room of the Riviera Hotel will host
performances from July 10-12. Meanwhile, the competition will take place at the recently renovated
Trompoloco big tent.
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PAGE 46
EVENTS IN HAVANA
Feria de Arte en La Rampa
Opens July 10
Pabellón Cuba
As is customary every summer since the year
2000, the Art at La Rampa Crafts Fair opens its
door at the Pabellón Cuba, emblematic building of
1960s Cuban architecture, with an attractive offer
that includes the sale of serigraphs, footwear,
clothing, costume jewelry, fans, household goods,
furniture, ornaments, and much more. Fashion
shows, concerts and activities for the kiddies will
also take place during the Fair.
AM-PM América por su
Música
July 18-23
Fábrica de Arte Cubano
Musicians and agents from the continent will be
meeting in Havana during the first edition of this
encounter that will deal with the sound scene
in Cuba and Latin America. The event includes
16 mini concerts, from Cuban trova to jazz, with
performances by Harold López-Nussa, Yissy y
Banda Ancha, Kelvis Ochoa, Síntesis and David
Blanco, just to name a few.
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PAGE 47
EVENTS IN HAVANA
Rutas y Andares 2015
The successful, traditional summer tours organized by the City Historian’s Office since 2001 bring the
rich cultural heritage of Havana closer to its people and visitors. This year’s tours are also focused on
family participation.
Tickets on sale at Museo de la Ciudad, Museo de Arte Colonial, Convento de San Francisco de Asís,
Museo Casa Natal de José Martí, and Maqueta del Centro Histórico, Mon-Sun, 9am-5pm. For detailed
information, call 7866 4035 / 7864 4336-37 (ext. 107) at the Centro de Información Cultural, Oficios # 8
e/ Obispo y Obrapía, La Habana Vieja.
Rutas (Routes)
The Animal World
Art in Ethnographic Museums
Animals as constituents of drugs in antiquity and
symbolism in pharmacy; celestial zodiac fauna and
Cuban fish species
Visit to collections of visual and decorative arts,
with an ethnographic view of the manners and
customs of Arab, African, Asian and American
nations.
Tues, July 14/28, Aug 11, 10am
Tues, July 14, Aug 4/18, 10am
Planetario & Aqvarivm
Tues, July 21, Aug 11, 10am
Casa Benito Juárez, Casa Oswaldo Guayasamín &
Casa Simón Bolívar
Museo de la Farmacia Habanera & Farmacia
Taquechel
Tues, July 21, Aug 4/18, 10am
Casa de Asia, Casa de África & Casa de los Árabes
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PAGE 48
Coffee Route:
a culture from the palate
José Martí
on the road to the liberators
Its origin in African, introduction in Europe and
arrival in Cuba (from colonial time to the present
used as theme in Cuban contemporary art)
Dedicated to the 120th anniversary of the start
of the last stage for Cuba’s liberation of Spanish
colonialism led by José Martí and the Cuban
Revolutionary Party
Tues, 10am
Museo de la Ciudad, de Arte Colonial, Numismático,
Napoleónico, Casa de los Árabes, Casa de África &
Palacio de Lombillo. Taller de Papel Artesanal and
Perfumería Habana 1791, only guided tours
Thursdays, 10am
JULY 9
Museo de la Ciudad (Hall of Flags),
includes virtual tour of Museo
Casa Natal de José Martí
JULY 16
JULY 23
Museo Numismático
Tues, July 21, 10am
Museo Napoleónico
Quinta de los Molinos
Plants, animals and the environment
Tuesdays, 10am
José Martí
on the road to the liberators
Dedicated to the 120th anniversary of the start
of the last stage for Cuba’s liberation of Spanish
colonialism led by José Martí and the Cuban
Revolutionary Party
JULY 7
Example of heritage management
JULY 14
History of the Quinta de los
Molinos
JULY 21
Knowing the trees at the Quinta
Thursdays, 10am
JULY 28
Bonsai growing
JULY 9
AUGUST 4
Animals. care and handling
Museo de la Ciudad (Hall of Flags),
includes virtual tour of Museo
Casa Natal de José Martí
AUGUST 11
Pigeons, care and handling
JULY 16
AUGUST 18
Ornamental plants at the Quinta
JULY 23
Museo Numismático
Baroque Art
Alicia Alonso. Orbit of a legend
Fridays, 10am
Tribute to the Cuban prima ballerina assoluta ton
her 95th birthday
JULY 10
The Baroque
Centro Hispano-Americano de Cultura, 2pm
JULY 17
Baroque architecture
JULY 9
JULY 31
Baroque painting
Exhibition Giselle and Carmen,
documentary Alicia Alonso. Órbita
de una leyenda
AUGUST 7
Baroque sculpture
JULY 16
AUGUST 14
The decorative arts in the Baroque
Lecture “Carmen and Alonso” by
Eduardo Heras León
AUGUST 21
Music in the Baroque
JULY 23
Lecture “You are
Roberto Mendez
Giselle“
by
JULY 30
Lecture “You are
Roberto Mendez
Giselle“
by
AUGUST 6
Guided tour to the Museum of
Dance
AUGUST 13
Educational show “An encounter
with dance” by Miguel Cabrera
AUGUST 20
Lecture “Eternal dance” by Ahmed
Piñeiro
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PAGE 49
Andares (Walks)
Virtual walks for the elderly
Walking with the Walkers
Departure: Plaza de Armas or otherwise
indicated, 10am
JULY 8
Pogolotti
neighborhood.
Departure: Calle 51 y 94, Centro
Deportivo
Jesús
Menéndez,
Marianao
JULY 15
Culinary art in Havana
JULY 22
Lithographic art
JULY 29
Clandestine in Havana
AUGUST 5
Image of men. Departure: Plazuela
de Compostela, entre Luz y Acosta
AUGUST 12
Soñaría Habana cartoon story.
Departure: Plaza de la Catedral
AUGUST 19
Havana’s mural heritage in the
Republican era: Hipólito de
Caviedes
Reservations by telephone or in person at the place
where the activity will be held. Free of charge.
Starts at 10am
JULY 6
Quinta de los Molinos: Universal
Heritage
JULY 8
Museo Casa Natal de José Martí:
Martí in Dominican Republic
JULY 9,
AUG 6
Casa de la Poesía: Egypt, the
known and the unknown
JULY 14
Quinta de los Molinos
JULY 15
Museo Casa Natal de José Martí.
Martí in Venezuela
Archivo Histórico de la Oficina
del
Historiador
(Edificio
Santo Domingo, Oficios entre
Mercaderes y San Ignacio, Tel 7869
7386, exts. 38613, 38614 & 38615)
Knowing Cuba from its maps and
drawings. A look at the collection
of the Historical Archives of the
Office of the City Historian.
JULY 16
Fábrica de Arte Cubano: industrial
heritage. Reservations at Casa de
las Tejas Verdes)
Walking with Architecture
Departure: Plaza de Armas, 10am
JULY 9
Courtyards
JULY 16
Facades
JULY 23
Stained-glass windows
JULY 30
Interior design
JULY 15 & 30
AUG 10/20
Casa Victor Hugo, the Palace of
Versailles
AUGUST 6
Architecture in banks
JULY 20
AUGUST 13
Religious architecture
Planetarium: Exploring the solar
system
AUGUST 20
Public civil architecture
JULY 22
Museo Casa Natal de José Martí
Martí: song
AUGUST 17
Casa Victor Hugo: Music in 19thcentury periodicals (Reservations
Tel. 7869 7262, ext. 26205)
AUG 19 & 21
Museo
Napoleónico:
French
Architecture and styles in El
Vedado
Walking with Contemporary Art
Departure: Plaza de Armas, 10am
JULY 10
From paper to celluloid
JULY 17
Design behind closed doors
JULY 31
Multiple originals in visual arts
AUGUST 7
Ceramics
AUGUST 14
Public art site I
AUGUST 21
Public art site II
Open House at the Capitolio
Building
Visit to the restoration project of Havana’s
Capitolio. Given the characteristics of this work
and the safety and protection measures required,
the tour will be reserved by telephone at the
Centro de Información Cultural (7866 4035). The
visits will be free of charge.
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PAGE 50
AROUND CUBA
Fiesta de la Música
Alternativa Ciudad del
Mar
Terry Theater, Tropisur, Cubanísimo, Centro
Cultural Julio Antonio Mella, Jardines de la
UNEAC and Plaza de Actos
Performances include 45 bands and soloists,
such as Karamba, Qva Libre, Arnaldo Rodríguez
y su Talismán, La Charanga Latina, Son del Nene,
Yoruba Andabo, Adrián Berazaín, Buena Fe,
Ernesto & David Blanco, Mayco DÁlma, Pedro
Luis Ferrer, Will Campa, Tanmy López, Waldo
Mendoza, Tania Pantoja and Dayani Gutiérrez,
who will join the Lucas Project and the Piso 6 and
Cuerda viva TV shows. The opening will be held on
July 2 at 9pm at the Theater Terry with the concert
A golpe de sombrero, featuring Karamba, Qva
Libre and Adrián Berazaín, who host the project of
the same name. Qva Libre, Tania Pantoja and the
Lucas Project will perform at the Plaza de Actos at
midnight, while Karamba, Will Campa and David
Blanco have announced a “duel” with different
music styles and three numbers each at Plaza de
Actos, July 5, 11:30pm.
XXXV Festival Internacional del Caribe
July 3-9
Santiago de Cuba
This meeting of cultures of the Caribbean people will be one of the main celebrations for the half
millennium of the founding of the Santiago de Cuba, the Festival’s host city since 1984. Dedicated
this year to the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, the festival will feature more than 1,000 guests from
30 countries around the Caribbean, Latin America and Europe, as well as scholars and exponents of
Cuban traditional popular culture. Dominicans Johnny Ventura and Maridalia Hernandez, founding
member of the 440 band along with Juan Luis Guerra, will be performing at the Heredia Theater on
July 4 and 5, respectively. During the event, the Caribbean Carnival Network will be created under the
auspices of the Association of Caribbean States to heighten this musical and dance expression so deeprooted in the region. International Awards Casa del Caribe will be given to Cuban poet Waldo Leyva,
to founding members of the Festival del Caribe and to the Junkanoo, an autochthonous music and
dance manifestation of the Bahamas. As usual, the Caribbean that Unites Us Colloquium is the principal
theoretical activity, which will include a workshop on popular religiosity, a panel of historians who will
talk about Cuban towns that are 500 years old, the Almas Nuevas meeting of young artists, the Meeting
of Caribbean Poets, the popular and well-liked serpent and fire parades, the Haitian and West Indian
parties, and the tribute to slave rebelliousness
II Festival Filtro de Campaña, Bayamo 2015
July 10-17
Bayamo Theater, Bayamo, Granma Province
This meeting of performing arts in the eastern region will include notable critics of the Cuban stage,
with the participation of specialists from Casa de las Americas, the Tablas Alarcos Magazine and theater
and dance groups y from Granma, Holguín, Las Tunas and Camagüey Provinces.
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PAGE 51
“CUBANOS - ISLAND PORTRAITS”
photographs by Lorenzo DeStefano
THE MUSEUM OF VENTURA COUNTY
July 18–September 13, 2015
Saturday July 18, 10am–12 noon
ARTWALK VENTURA 2015 LAUNCH EVENT
Cuban Breakfast Lecture
Guests include Bill Hendricks, Lorenzo DeStefano,
and visiting Cuban artists Pedro Pulido and Victor Pina Tabio
Saturday July 18, 12:30pm–5:00pm
Exhibition Opening
“CUBANOS-ISLAND PORTRAITS”
w/ photographer Lorenzo DeStefano
In celebration of Artwalk Ventura 2015, the Museum of Ventura County will showcase 16 black & white
photographs by Lorenzo DeStefano, among the hundreds created during his journeys to Cuba. Between
1993 and 1998 DeStefano traversed the island’s urban centers as well as its lesser known rural provinces,
capturing intimate portraits of its inhabitants. Through his photographs we see fresh glimpses of everyday
life, introducing us to people whose faces reaffirm our common humanity.
The Museum of Ventura County
100 E. Main Street, Ventura, Ca. 93001
www.venturamuseum.org / 805 641-1876
Havana’s best places to eat
La Guarida
El Atelier
5
Bella Ciao
4+
Café Bohemia
5
Café Laurent
4+
EXPERIMENTAL FUSION
HOMELY ITALIAN
CAFÉ
SPANISH/MEDITERRANEAN
Interesting décor, interesting
menu.
Great service, good prices. A
real home from home.
Bohemian feel. Great
sandwiches, salads & juices
Attractive penthouse restaurant
with breezy terrace.
Calle 5 e/ Paseo y 2, Vedado
(+53) 7-836-2025
Calle 19 y 72, Playa
(+53) 7-206-1406
Calle San Ignacio #364, Habana
Vieja
Calle M #257, e/ 19 y 21, Vedado
(+53) 7-831-2090
Casa Miglis
El Chanchullero
La California
5
La Casa
5
5
5
CUBAN-CREOLE/INTERNATIONAL
CONTEMPORARY FUSION
SWEDISH-CUBAN FUSION
Beautiful C19 colonial building.
Great fresh pastas.
VIP service. The Robaina family
place. Thurs Sushi night.
Oasis of good food & taste in
Centro Habana
Fabulous value hole in the wall
tapas. Trendy.
Calle Crespo #55 e/ San Lázaro
y Refugio, Centro Habana
(+53) 7-863 7510
Calle 30 #865 e/ 26 y 41, Nuevo
Vedado
(+53) 7-881-7000
Lealtad #120 e/ Ánimas y
Lagunas, Centro Habana
(+53) 7-864-1486
Teniente Rey #457 bajos, Plaza
del Cristo, Habana Vieja
(+53) 7-872-8227
Le Chansonnier
El Cocinero
Corte Príncipe
4
5
5+
Il Divino
4+
CONTEMPORARY FUSION
INTERNATIONAL
ITALIAN
INTERNATIONAL
Stylish & contemporary with
good food. Expensive.
Industrial chic alfresco rooftop
with a buzzing atmosphere
Sergio’s place. Simple décor,
spectacular food.
Set in huge gardens outside
town. Great for the kids.
Calle J #257 e/ Línea y 15,
Vedado
(+53) 7-832-1576
Calle 26, e/ 11 y 13, Vedado.
(+53) 7-832-2355
Calle 9na esq. a 74, Miramar
(+53) 5-255-9091
Calle Raquel, #50 e/ Esperanza
y Lindero, Arroyo Naranjo
(+53) 7-643-7734
D. Eutimia
5+
Esperanza
4+
La Fontana
La Guarida
4
5+
CUBAN/CREOLE
CUBAN FUSION
INTERNATIONAL
INTERNATIONAL
Absolutely charming. Excellent
Cuban/creole food.
Intimate, idiosyncratic &
charming (not cheap).
Consistently good food,
attentive service. Old school.
Justifiably famous. Follow in
the footsteps of Queen of Spain
Callejón del Chorro #60C, Plaza
de la Catedral, Habana Vieja
(+53) 7 861 1332
Calle 16 #105 e/ 1ra y 3ra,
Miramar
(+53) 7-202-4361
Calle 46 #305 esq. a 3ra,
Miramar
(+53) 7-202-8337
Concordia #418 e/ Gervasio y
Escobar, Centro Habana
(+53) 7-866-9047
Habana Mia 7
Iván Chef
5
5+
El Litoral
5+
Nautilus
5
INTERNATIONAL GOURMET
SPANISH
INTERNATIONAL
FRENCH/MEDITERRANEAN
Endless summer nights.
Excellent food and service.
Brilliantly creative and rich
food.
Watch the world go by at the
Malecón’s best restaurant.
Imaginative, tasty and
innovative menu.
Paseo #7 altos e/ 1ra y 3ra.
Vedado
(+53) 7-830-2287
Aguacate #9 esq. a Chacón,
Habana Vieja
(+53) 7-863-9697
Malecón #161 e/ K y L, Vedado
(+53) 7-830-2201
Calle 84 #1116 e/ 11 y 13. Playa
(+53) 5-237-3894
Nazdarovie
5+
Opera
5
Otra Manera
5
Río Mar
5
SOVIET
INTERNATIONAL
INTERNATIONAL
INTERNATIONAL
Well designed Soviet décor,
excellent food & good service.
Homely & intimate
environment. Quality food. By
reservation.
Beautiful modern decor.
Interesting menu and good
service.
Contemporary décor. Great
sea-view. Good food.
Calle 5ta #204 e/ E y F, Vedado
(+53) 5-263-1632
(+53) 8-31-2255
Calle #35 e/ 20 y 41, Playa.
(+53) 7-203-8315
Santy
Starbien
Malecon #25, 3rd floor e Prado
y Carcel, Centro Habana
(+53) 7-860-2947
San Cristóbal
5
5+
Ave. 3raA y Final #11, La Puntilla,
Miramar
(+53) 7-209-4838
5+
VIP Havana
5
CUBAN/CREOLE
SUSHI/ORIENTAL
SPANISH
Deservedly popular.Consistently
great food. Kitsch décor.
Authentic fisherman’s shack
servicing world-class sushi.
Fabulous food and great service
in the heart of Vedado.
Jordi’s place. Fabulous modern
open-plan space.
San Rafael #469 e/ Lealtad y
Campanario, Centro Habana
(+53) 7-860-9109
Calle 240A #3023 esq. a 3ra C,
Jaimanitas
(+53) 5-286-7039
Calle 29 #205 e/ B y C, Vedado
(+53) 7-830-0711
Calle 9na #454 e/ E y F, Vedado
(+53) 7-832-0178
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July 2015
PAGE 53
La Guarida
5+
TOP PICK
Style of food
Contemporary fusion
CostExpensive
www.laguarida.com
Type of place Private (Paladar)
Food
Ambience
Service
Value
Best for Authentic, charming and intimate
atmosphere in Cuba’s best known
restaurant. Great food, professional. Classy.
Don’t Miss Uma Thurman, Beyoncé or the
Queen of Spain if they happen to be dining
next to you.
Concordia #418 e/ Gervasio y Escobar, Centro
Habana.
(+53) 7-866-9047
El Litoral
5+
TOP PICK
Style of food
International
CostExpensive
Food
Ambience
Service
Value
Best for Quality décor, good service and
great food. Best new place recently opened.
Don’t Miss Drinking a cocktail at sunset
watching the world go by on the Malecón
Malecón #161 e/ K y L, Vedado.
(+53) 7-830-2201
Nazdarovie
5+
TOP PICK
Style of food
Soviet
CostModerate
Food
Ambience
Service
Value
Best for Getting a flavor of Cuban-Soviet history along with babuska’s traditional dishes
in a classy locale.
Don’t miss Vodka sundowners on the
gorgeous terrace overlooking the malecon.
Malecon #25 3rd floor e/ Prado y Carcel, Centro
Habana
(+53) 7-860-2947
Santy
5+
TOP PICK
Style of food
Sushi
CostModerate
Food
Ambience
Service
Value
Best for Fabulous sushi, wonderful ambience
overlooking fishing boats heading out to sea.
World class.
Don’t miss Getting a reservation here.
Calle 240A #3023 esq. 3raC, Jaimanitas
(+53) 5-286-7039
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July 2015
PAGE 54
Iván Chef Justo
5+
TOP PICK
Style of food
Spanish
CostExpensive
Food
Ambience
Service
Value
Best for Spectacular innovative food. Light
and airy place where it always seems to feel
like Springtime.
Don’t Miss The lightly spiced grilled mahimahi served with organic tomato relish.
Try the suckling pig and stay for the cuatro
leches.
Aguacate #9, Esq. Chacón, Habana Vieja.
(+53) 7-863-9697 / (+53) 5-343-8540
Casa Miglis
5
TOP PICK
Style of food
Swedish-Cuban fusion
CostExpensive
Food
Ambience
Service
Value
Best for The beautifully designed interior,
warm ambience and Miglis’s personality
create the feeling of an oasis in Central
Havana.
Don’t Miss Chatting with Mr Miglis.
The Skaargan prawns, beef Chilli and
lingonberries.
Lealtad #120 e/ Ánimas y Lagunas, Centro Habana
(+53) 7-864-1486
www.casamiglis.com
Habana Mía 7
5
TOP PICK
Style of food
International gourmet
CostModerate
Food
Ambience
Service
Value
Best for Stylish and fresh décor give a
Mediterranean feel for long endless summer
nights. Excellent food and service.
Don’t miss Watching the world go by on the
lovely terrace overlooking the ocean.
Paseo #7 altos e/ 1ra y 3ra, Vedado
(+53) 7-830-2287
www.habanamia7.com
La California
5
TOP PICK
Style of food
Cuban-Creole/International
CostModerate
Food
Ambience
Service
Value
Best for Beautiful C19 colonial building.
Popular place with quality food and great
service. Love the fresh pastas.
Dont’t Miss The interesting history of the
neighbourhood, where Chano Pozo (legendary Afro-Cuban jazz percussionist) hung out.
Calle Crespo #55 e/ San Lázaro y Refugio,
Centro Habana
(+53) 7-863-7510
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July 2015
PAGE 55
Atelier
5
TOP PICK
Style of food
Experimental fusion
CostExpensive
Food
Ambience
Service
Value
Best for Interesting menu, beautiful building
with great décor and service.
Don’t miss Dinner on the breezy terrace
during summer.
Calle 5ta e/ Paseo y 2, Vedado
(+53) 7-836-2025
[email protected]
La Casa
5
TOP PICK
Style of food
International/sushi
CostExpensive
Food
Ambience
Service
Value
Best for Warm hospitality and openness
from the four generations of the Robaina
family. Quality food.
Don’t miss Thursday night sushi night.
The Piña Colada.
Calle 30 #865 e/ 26 y 41, Nuevo Vedado.
(+53) 7-881-7000
[email protected]
Otramanera
5
TOP PICK
Style of food
International
CostModerate
Food
Ambience
Service
Value
Best for Beautiful modern décor and good
food.
Don’t miss Pork rack of ribs in honey. Sweet
& sour sauce and grilled pineapple
Calle 35 #1810 e/ 20 y 41, Playa
(+53) 7-203-8315
[email protected]
[email protected]
Opera
5
TOP PICK
Style of food
International
CostModerate
Food
Ambience
Service
Value
Best for Best for Homely & Intimate
enviroment Quality food in a beautiful
setting.
Don’t miss Fresh pasta, vegetarian dishes
and quail.
Calle 5ta #204 e/ E y F, Vedado
(+53) 5-263-1632 / (+53) 8-31-2255
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La Guarida
‘This remains the island’s best
restaurant, combining a sophisticated
and hip ambience with solid food
preparation’
Cigar Aficionado
“The greatest and most magical is La Guarida, so magical that
it is tempting to protect it by with holding its address…’
The Guardian
Havana’s legendary paladar just got better with the opening of a new cocktail
terrace that offers fabulous views, a funky vibe and Havana’s best bartenders.
Concordia #418 e/ cuba
Gervasio ’ysEscobar,
Centro Habana
/ (+53) 7-866-9047
digital
destination
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PAGE 57
OPERA
Best for Homely &
Intimate enviroment
Quality food in a
beautiful setting
Don’t miss: Fresh pasta, vegetarian dishes and quail
Dinner: 8:00 PM - 12:00 AM
Address: Calle 5ta No. 204 e/ E y F. Vedado
Lunch by reservation only
Tel: 831 2255 Cel: 52631632
Closed on Tuesday
[email protected]
NAZDAROVIE OFFERS YOU SPECIAL LUNCH MENUS
DURING THE SUMMER SEASON!
Beginning on June 29, Nazdarovie, your Soviet cuisine restaurant in Havana, offers special lunch menus
For only CUC 10, you can enjoy:
One Nazdarovie Shot (frozen vodka with lemon and caviar)
Slavic soup of the day (Borsch / Salianka / Akroshka) with
homemade black bread
One main Dish to choose:
* ”Kotleta Kiev” (breaded chicken with butter inside) and mashed
potatoes
* ”Pollo Tabaka” (chicken Georgian style) with pieces of wild
potatoes, homemade pickles and adzhika sauce
* ”Shaslik” (Armenian style skewers) of meat (pork, chicken,
turkey, beef or mutton) and vegetables, with segments of wild
potatoes, homemade pickles and adzhika sauce
* ”Pescado con crema rusa” (fresh Russian style fish with
smetana cream, dill and fine herbs) served with mashed potatoes
Dessert: Blinchiki with cottage cheese, smetana and wild berry
marmalade
Enjoy the taste of the food from the former republics of the
Soviet Union and the best view of the Malecón in Havana…
For just CUC 10!
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OM is Otramanera: “another way”
Another way of understanding and enjoying gastronomy in a
unique locale where each detail is important.
A restaurant that adapts to market availability and to the
seasons, serving fresh quality products.
Calle 35 #1810 e/ 20 y 41, Playa / (+53) 7-203-8315
[email protected] / [email protected]
Sloppy Joe’s
Havana’s best Bars & Clubs
Traditional Bars
El Floridita
4+
Hemingway’s daiquiri bar.
Touristy but always full of life.
Great cocktails.
Obispo #557 esq. a Monserrate,
Habana Vieja
(+53) 7-867-1299
5
Factoría
Plaza Vieja
Sloppy
Joe’s Bar
4+
ANTIGUO ALMACÉN
MADERA Y EL TABACO
Recently (beautifully)
renovated. Full of history.
Popular. Lacks a little ‘grime’.
Microbrewery. Serves ice
chilled bong of light locally
brewed beer.
Ánimas esq. a Zulueta, Habana
Vieja
(+53) 7-866-7157
San Ignacio esq. a Muralla,
Plaza Vieja, Habana Vieja
(+53) 7-866-4453
Cervecería
5+
DE
LA
Microbrewery located
overlooking the restored docks
Simply brilliant.
Avenida del Puerto y San
Ignacio, La Habana Vieja
Contemporary Bars
El Cocinero
5+
Fabulous rooftop setting, great
service, cool vibe.
Calle 26 e/ 11 y 13, Vedado
(+53) 7-832-2355
Espacios
5-
Laid back contemporary bar
with a real buzz in the back
beer-garden.
TaBARish
5
A comfortable place to chat
/ hang out with your friends.
Great service.
Calle 10 #510, e/ 5ta y 31,
Miramar
(next to the Puente de Hierro)
(+53) 5-329-6325
www.facebook.com/fabrica.
deartecubano
(+53) 7-202-9188
Contemporary bars/clubs
Don Cangrejo
4+
Love it/hate it—this is the
oldest Friday night party
place and is still going strong.
Outdoor by the sea.
Bolabana
5
Trendy new location near Salón
Rosado de la Tropical
Calle 39 esq. 50, Playa
Other
Meliá Sports Bar
Up & Down
5
From the team that brought
you Sangri-La. Attracting
a young party crowd, very
popular. Take a coat.
4
Big-screen sports-bar in
modern outdoor terrace. Good
for sports and live music.
Meliá Habana Hotel
Ave. 3ra e/ 76 y 80, Miramar
(+53) 7-204-8500
El Gato Tuerto
4+
Late night place to hear
fabulous bolero singers. Can
get smoky.
El Tocororo
5
Ave. 21 e/ 36 y 42, Miramar
(+53) 7-264-8343
4+
Expat favorite hangout. Small
indoor bar with live music and
eclectic clientele.
Calle O e/ 17 y 19, Vedado
(+53) 7-833-2224
Sangri-La
For the cool kids. Basement
bar/club which gets packed at
weekends.
Calle 3ra y B, Vedado
Ave. 1ra e/ 16 & 18, Miramar
(+53) 7-204-3837
5+
X Alfonso’s new cultural center.
Great concerts, funky young
scene.
Calle 20 #503, e/ 5ta y 7ma.
(+53) 7-836-3031
Fábrica
de Arte
Calle 18 e/ 3ra y 5ta, Miramar
Bertolt Brecht
5
Think MTV Unplugged. Hip,
funky and unique with an artsy
Cuban crowd.
Calle 13 e/ I y J, Vedado
(+53) 7-830-1354
Gay-friendly
Cabaret
Las Vegas
4
Can get dark and smoky but
great drag show (11pm) from
Divino—one of Cuba’s most
accomplished drag acts.
Infanta #104 e/ 25 y 27, Vedado.
(+53) 7-870-7939
Humboldt 52
5
One of the hottest venues
for gay nightlife in Havana at
present.
Humboldt #52 e/ Infanta y
Hospital, Centro Habana.
(+53) 5-330-2989
Fashion
Bar Havana
A superb example of
queer class meets camp,
accompanied by a fantastic
floor show.
San Juan de Dios, esq. a
Aguacate, Habana Vieja
(+53) 7-867-1676
5
Café Bar
Madrigal
4
Pop décor, fancy cocktails, and
the staff’s supercilious attitude,
this is a gathering spot for all
types of folks.
Calle 17 #809 e/ 2 y 4, Vedado
(+53) 7-831-2433
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July 2015
PAGE 62
Bertolt Brecht
5
TOP PICK
CONTEMPORARY BAR/CLUBS
Ambience
Popularity
Entertainment
Service & drinks
Best for Hanging out with hip & funky
Cubans who like their live music.
Don’t Miss Interactivo playing on a
Wednesday evening.
(+53) 7-830-1354
Espacios
5-
TOP PICK
CONTEMPORARY BAR
Ambience
Popularity
Entertainment
Service & drinks
Best for Laid back lounge atmosphere in
the garden area which often has live music.
Good turnover of people.
Don’t Miss Ray Fernandez, Tony Avila, Yasek
Mazano playing live sets in the garden.
Calle 10 #510 e/ 5ta y 31, Miramar
(+53) 7-202-2921
Sangri-La
5+
TOP PICK
CONTEMPORARY BAR/CLUB
Ambience
Popularity
Entertainment
Service & drinks
Best for Hanging out with the cool kids on
the Havana Farundula in the most popular
bar/club.
Don’t Miss The best gin and tonic in Havana.
Ave. 21 e/ 36 y 42, Miramar
(+53) 5-264-8343
Bolabana
5
TOP PICK
CONTEMPORARY
Ambience
Popularity
Entertainment
Service & drinks
Best for Trendy new location near Salón
Rosado de la Tropical
Don’t Miss Hipsters meet the Havana
Farándula
Calle 39 esq. 50, Playa
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Humboldt 52
5
TOP PICK
GAY FRIENDLY
Ambience
Popularity
Entertainment
Service & drinks
Best for Hot staff, comfortable setting, and
welcoming vibe at Havana’s first full-time,
openly-gay bar
Don’t Miss The disco ball, a talented opera
duo performing Wednesdays and karaoke
and drag performances other days of the
week
Humboldt #52 e/ Infanta y Hospital,
Centro Habana.
(+53) 5-330-2989
Fábrica de Arte
5+
TOP PICK
CONTEMPORARY BAR
Ambience
Popularity
Entertainment
Service & drinks
Best for X Alfonso’s superb new cultural
center has something for everyone
Don’t Miss Ne pas manquer Les meilleurs
musiciens cubains
(next to the Puente de Hierro)
Fashion Bar Havana
5
TOP PICK
GAY-FRIENDLY
Ambience
Popularity
Entertainment
Service & drinks
Best for A superb example of queer class
meets camp, accompanied by a fantastic
floor show.
Don’t Miss The staff performing after 11pm
San Juan de Dios, esq. a Aguacate, Habana Vieja
(+53) 7-867-1676
TaBARish
5
TOP PICK
CONTEMPORARY BAR/CLUB
Ambience
Popularity
Entertainment
Service & drinks
Best for A comfortable place to chat / hang
out with your friends. Great service.
Don’t Miss The homemade Russian soup –
just like Matushka makes it.
Calle 20 #503, e/ 5ta y 7ma.
(+53) 7-202-9188
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Havana’s best live music venues
Concert venues
Karl Marx
Theatre
5
World class musicians perform
prestigious concerts in Cuba’s
best equipped venue.
Calle 1ra esq. a 10, Miramar
(+53) 7-203-0801
Basílica San
Francisco de Asís
5
A truly beautiful church,
which regularly hosts fabulous
classical music concerts.
Fábrica de Arte
5
X Alfonso’s new cultural center.
Great concerts inside (small
and funky) and outside (large
and popular!).
Oficios y Amargura, Plaza de
San Francisco de Asís, Habana
Vieja
Calle 26 e/ 11 y 13, Vedado (next
to the Puente de Hierro)
Jazz Café
Privé Lounge
Sala Covarrubias
5
TEATRO NACIONAL
Recently renovated, one of
Cuba’s most prestigious venues
for a multitude of events.
Paseo y 39, Plaza de la
Revolución.
Jazz
Café Jazz
Miramar
4+
Clean, modern and
atmospheric. Where Cuba’s
best musicians jam and
improvise.
Galerías de Paseo
Ave. 1ra e/ Paseo y A, Vedado
Cine Teatro Miramar
10:30pm – 2am
Ave. 5ta esq. a 94, Miramar
Salsa/Timba
Café Cantante
Mi Habana
4
Attracts the best Cuban
musicians. Recently renovated
with an excellent new sound
system.
Ave. Paseo esq. a 39, Plaza de la
Revolución
(+53) 7-878-4273
Contemporary
Café Teatro
Bertolt Brecht
5
Think MTV Unplugged when
musicians play. Hip, funky and
unique with an artsy Cuban
crowd.
(+53) 7-830-1354
Trova & traditional
Barbaram
Pepito’s Bar
4+
Some of the best Cuban Nueva
Trova musicians perform
in this small and intimate
environment.
Calle 26 esq. a Ave. del
Zoológico. Nuevo Vedado
(+53) 7-881-1808
4
A staple of Havana’s jazz
scene, the best jazz players
perform here. Somewhat cold
atmosphere-wise.
Casa de la
Música
5+
Small and intimate lounge
club with great acoustics and
beautiful decor. Jazz groups
play Sunday night.
Casa de la
Música
CENTRO HABANA
MIRAMAR
A little rough around the edges
but spacious. For better or
worse, this is ground zero for
the best in Cuban salsa.
Smaller and more up-market
than its newer twin in Centro
Habana. An institution in the
Havana salsa scene.
Galiano e/ Neptuno y
Concordia, Centro Habana
(+53) 7-860-8296/4165
Calle 20 esq. a 35, Miramar
(+53) 7-204-0447
Don Cangrejo
4+
Love it/hate it—this is the
oldest Friday night party
place and is still going strong.
Outdoor by the sea.
Ave. 1ra e/ 16 y 18, Miramar
(+53) 7-204-3837
Gato Tuerto
4+
Late night place to hear
fabulous bolero singers. Can
get smoky.
Calle O entre 17 y 19, Vedado
(+53) 7-833-2224
El Sauce
Calle 23 e/ N y O, Vedado
(+53) 7-833-2402
4
5
Ave. 41 esq. a 46, Playa
Times: varies wildly
(+53) 7-203-5322
5-
Ave. 9na #12015 e/ 120 y 130,
Playa
(+53) 7-204-6428
Teatro de
Bellas Artes
4+
Small intimate venue inside
Cuba’s most prestigious arts
museum. Modern.
Trocadero e/ Zulueta y
Monserrate, Habana Vieja.
5
See Buena Vista Social Club
musicians still performing
nightly from 9pm. Touristy but
fabulous.
Zulueta #660 e/ Apodaca y
Gloria, Centro Habana
(+53) 7-861-7761
Salón Rosado
de la Tropical
The legendary beer garden
where Arsenio tore it up. Look
for a salsa/timba gig on a Sat
night and a Sun matinee.
Great outdoor concert venue to
hear the best in contemporary
& Nueva Trova live in concert.
Legendarios
de Guajirito
5
Intimate and atmospheric, this
basement jazz club, which you
enter through a red telephone
box, is Cuba’s most famous.
Calle 88A #306 e/ 3ra y 3raA,
Miramar
(+53) 7-209-2719
4
La Zorra y el
Cuervo
4+
Salón 1930
‘Compay Segundo’
Buena Vista Social Club style
set in the grand Hotel Nacional.
Hotel Nacional
Calle O esq. a 21, Vedado
(+53) 7-835-3896
contents
July 2015
PAGE 65
Havana’s Best Hotels
Hotel Nacional de Cuba
Simply the best…
Iberostar
Parque Central
5+
Santa Isabel
5+
Luxurious historic mansion
facing Plaza de Armas
Luxury hotel overlooking
Parque Central
5
Beautifully restored colonial
house.
5
Cuban baroque meets modern
minimalist
Obispo #252, esq. a Cuba,
Habana Vieja
(+53) 7-862-4127
Oficios #152 esq. a Amargura,
Habana Vieja
Business Hotels
Meliá Cohíba
Palacio del
Marqués...
5
Oasis of polished marble and
professional calm.
Meliá Habana
5
Attractive design & extensive
facilities.
Ave Paseo e/ 1ra y 3ra, Vedado
(+53) 7- 833-3636
4
A must for Hemingway
aficionados
Mercure Sevilla
4
Bosque
On the banks of the Río
Almendares.
Calle 28-A e/ 49-A y 49-B,
Reparto Kohly, Playa
(+53) 7-204-9232
3
Deauville
Lack of pretension, great
location.
Galiano e/ Sán Lázaro y
Malecón, Centro Habana
(+53) 7-866-8812
4+
Hotel Nacional
3
Saint John’s
Lively disco, tiny quirky pool.
Popular.
(+53) 7-833-3740
H10 Habana
Panorama
4+
Cascades of glass. Good wi-fi.
Modern.
Ave. 3ra. y 70, Miramar
(+53) 7 204-0100
5
Riviera
3
Spectacular views over wavelashed Malecón
Calle O esq. a 21, Vedado
(+53) 7-835 3896
Economical/Budget Hotels
5
Mercaderes #202, esq. a
Lamparilla
(+53) 7-862-9293
Eclectic art-deco architecture.
Gorgeous gardens.
Trocadero #55 entre Prado y
Zulueta, Habana Vieja
(+53) 7-860-8560
Conde de
Villanueva
Delightfully small and intimate.
For cigar lovers.
Oficios #53 esq. a Obrapía,
Habana Vieja
(+53) 7-867-1037
Ave. 5ta. e/ 70 y 72, Miramar
(+53) 7-204-3583
Stunning views from the roof
garden restaurant.
Calle Obispo #153 esq. a
Mercaderes, Habana Vieja
(+53) 7- 860-9529
5+
Immensely charming, great
value.
Occidental
Miramar
5
Malecón esq. a Lealtad, Centro
Habana
(+53) 7-862-8061
Good value, large spacious
modern rooms.
Ave. 3ra y 70, Miramar
(+53) 5-204-8500
For a sense of history
Ambos Mundos
Hostal Valencia
Terral
Wonderful ocean front
location. Newly renovated.
Paseo del Prado #603 esq. a
Dragones, Habana Vieja
(+53) 7-860-8201
Boutique Hotels in Old Havana
Florida
5+
Stunning view from roof-top
pool. Beautiful décor.
Narciso López, Habana Vieja
(+53) 7-860-8201
Neptuno e/ Prado y Zulueta,
Habana Vieja
(+53) 7-860-6627
Saratoga
Paseo y Malecón, Vedado
(+53) 7-836-4051
3
Vedado
3
Good budget option with a bit
of a buzz
(+53) 7-836-4072
contents
July 2015
PAGE 66
Cañaveral House
Havana’s
best private
places to stay
For Help reserving any Private Accommodation (Casas Particulares) in Cuba please contact
[email protected]
Mid range - Casa Particular (B&B)
1932
Carlos in cuba
4
5
Gay Friendly BED and
Breakfast in Havana
Visually stunning, historically
fascinating. Welcoming.
Calle 2 #505 e/ 23 y 21, Vedado
(+53) 7-833-1329
(+53) 5-295-4893
[email protected]
www.carlosincuba.com
Campanario #63 e/ San Lázaro
y Laguna, Centro Habana
(+53) 7-863-6203
Habana
5
Beautiful colonial townhouse
with great location.
Julio y Elsa
5
Cluttered bohemian feel.
Hospitable.
Calle Habana #209, e/
Empedrado, y Tejadillo, Habana
Vieja.
(+53) 7-861-0253
Consulado #162 e/ Colón y
Trocadero, Centro Habana
(+53) 7-861-8027
Artedel
Hostal Guanabo
Up-scale B&Bs (Boutique hostals)
Cañaveral House
But undoubtedly the most
beautiful about private homes
in Cuba
5 Vitrales
39A street, #4402, between 44
y 46, Playa, La Habana Cuba
(+53) 295-5700
http://www.cubaguesthouse.
com/canaveral.home.
html?lang=en
5
Hospitable, attractive and
reliable boutique B&B with 9
bedrooms.
5+
Ydalgo Martínez Matos’s
spacious and contemporary
3-bedroom penthouse is
magnificent.
Habana #106 e/ Cuarteles y
Chacón, Habana Vieja
(+53) 7-866-2607
5
Beautiful 4 bedroom seafront villa in sleepy Guanabo.
Excellent food.
Calle 480 #1A04 e/ 1ra y 3ra,
Guanabo
(+53) 7-799-0004
Calle I #260 e/ 15 y 17, Vedado
(+53) 5-830-8727
Apartment rentals
Bohemia Hostal
5+
Gorgeous 1-bedroom
apartment beautifully
decorated apartment
overlooking Plaza Vieja.
5+
Beautifully designed
and spacious 3 bedroom
apartment. Spanish colonial
interiors with cheerful, arty
accents.
San Ignacio #364 e/ Muralla
y Teniente Rey, Plaza Vieja
Habana Vieja
(+53) 5- 403-1 568
(+53) 7-836-6567
www.havanabohemia.com
5
Rent Room elegant and wellequipped. Beautiful wild
garden and great pool.
Calle 17 #1101 e/ 14 y 16, Vedado
(+34) 677525361
(+53) 7-832-1927
(+53) 5-360-0456
Casablanca
Tropicana
Penthouse
5
5
Morro-Cabaña Park. House #29
(+53) 5-294-5397
www.havanacasablanca.com
Michael
and María Elena
This leafy oasis in western
Havana has an attractive
mosaic tiled pool and three
modern bedrooms.
Calle 66 #4507 e/ 45 y Final,
Playa
(+53) 7-209-0084
5
Lamparilla #62 altos e/
Mercaderes y San Ignacio,
Habana Vieja
(+53) 5-829-6524
Galiano #60 Penthouse Apt.10
e/ San Lázaro y Trocadero
(+53) 5-254-5240
www.tropicanapenthouse.com
Elegant well-equipped villa
formerly owned by Fulgencio
Batista. Beautiful wild garden.
Suite Havana
Elegant 2-bedroom apartment
in restored colonial building.
Quality loft style décor.
A luxurious penthouse with
huge roof terrace and breathtaking 360 degree views of
Havana and the ocean.
Concordia #151 apto. 8 esq. a
San Nicolás, Centro Habana
(+53) 5-254-5240
www.casaconcordia.net
Luxury Houses
Villasol
Casa Concordia
5
Residencia
Mariby
5
A sprawling vanilla-hued
mansion with 6 rooms
decorated with colonial-era
lamps, tiles and Louis XV
furniture
Vedado.
(+53) 5-370-5559
contents
July 2015
PAGE 67
Artedel Luxury
5+
TOP PICK
3 BEDROOM PENTHOUSE
Facilities
Rooms
Ambience
Value
Best for Stylish and contemporary furniture
along with a beautiful 360-degree view over
Havana
Don’t Miss Ydalgo – an impeccable host,
discreet or gregarious, as you prefer
Calle I #260, e/ 15 and 17, Vedado
(+53) 7-830-8727
Bohemia Hostal
5+
TOP PICK
GORGEOUS 1 BEDROOM APARTMENT
Facilities
Rooms
Ambience
Value
Best for Independent beautifully decorated
apartment overlooking Plaza Vieja.
Don’t Miss Spending time in Havana’s most
atmospheric Plaza.
San Ignacio #364 e/ Muralla y Teniente Rey, Plaza
Vieja, Habana Vieja
[email protected]
(+53) 5 4031 568: (53) 7 8366 567
www.havanabohemia.com
Cañaveral House
5+
TOP PICK
Facilities
Rooms
Ambience
Value
Best for Large elegant villa away from
downtown Havana. Great for families or
groups of friends.
Don’t Miss Basking in the sun as you stretch
out on the lawn of the
beautifully kept garden.
39A street, #4402, between 44 y 46, Playa, La
Habana Cuba
(+53) 295-5700
http://www.cubaguesthouse.com/canaveral.home.
html?lang=en
Rosa D’Ortega
5+
TOP PICK
BOUTIQUE VILLA
Facilities
Rooms
Ambience
Value
Best for Large elegant villa away from the
bustle of downtown Havana. Gracious hosts,
beautiful rooms.
Don’t Miss Exploring the off-the-beaten
track neighbourhood.
Patrocinio #252 esq. a Juan Bruno Zayas, 10 de
Octubre
(+53) 7-641-43-29 / (+53) 5-263-3302
http://www.larosadeortega.com
contents
July 2015
PAGE 68
THANK YOU
Wishes to thank all of the following entities for their support and
involvement with What’s On Havana.
Center for Cuban Studies /
Cuban Art Space

Santiago de Cuba: 500 years of history

Transcription

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