November 30 – Art and Havana

Our flight from Fort Lauderdale to Havana left mid-morning and was only a couple of hours long.  

At one point we were able to see the Florida Keys and the road that connects all of the islands...

and we got a few photos of Cuba as we flew in.

The airport is small but welcoming.  It didn’t take long to get our luggage but Tara’s had the zipper badly damaged and she spent some time dealing with the airline regarding a claim.

We eventually connected with Irma, our guide, and Henry, our driver and we all piled into the large van.  We were given a bag lunch to eat on the way to our first stop.

The first stop was Fusterlandia.  José Fuster was a Cuban artist who decided his home and area was dull and boring so he started decorating the walls of his compound with mosaics…

and the artwork eventually spilling into the neighborhood where the neighbors also helped with the decorating.  Sort of a combo of Salvador Dali and Antonio Gaudi.  Very fun.

       *************************************
More Fusterland
*************************************

After leaving this fascinating and colorful place we headed into Havana where we spent some time driving around seeing the city.  It has a lovely harbor,

street vendors,

fountains (this one with no water flowing),

an interesting street scene, 

and beautiful architecture.

Unfortunately, some of the beautiful old buildings were hollow with the mold and pealing paint so typical of tropical locations. 

We drove by Revolution Square, that commemorates the several Cuban revolutions that occurred over a couple of centuries as they tried to win their independence.   

We also stopped at the home of artist Andy Gabyili (Googled him.  Full name is Angel Eusebio Rivero Sierra).  Also, very interesting work.  Strong graphic art.  We both really liked his work.

From there we headed to our lovely hotel with views of the harbor.  After some rest and unpacking we headed out for dinner.  Lots and lots of food 

and very eclectic décor. 

Havana was founded in 1519 and over the next centuries became a major Caribbean port and shipping center.  It was the largest port in the region and in order to insure its defenses a large series of fortifications were built around the bay between the 16^th and the 19^th centuries.  And many of them remain in good condition. 

So, we had to take in some of the fortifications so after dinner we headed to the La Cabañna Fortress…

where we watched a cannon ceremony.  The fortress used to fire a cannon at 8:00 to signal that the fort gates were closing.  Now it is a tradition and tourist draw but they fire at 9:00 (they also used to fire it at 6:00am to signal that the gates were opening, but the present day populous didn’t like that so it was discontinued.)

Havana at night.