Havana Day 1b

Fuster1

After the Habana Compas Dance we went to lunch at a community art project driven by the Cuban artist José Fuster. Here is an excerpt from the Wikipedia article: "Fuster has made a major contribution over 10 years of work of rebuilding and decorating the fishing town of Jaimanitas in the outskirts of Havana, where he lives. Jaimanitas is now a unique work of public art where Fuster has decorated over 80 houses with ornate murals and domes to suit the personality of his neighbours, he has built a chess park with giant boards and tables, The Artists’ Wall composed of a quilt of dozens of tiles signed and donated by other Cuban artists, a theatre and public swimming pools.” The neighborhood was amazing because of the art that was on many of the houses and streets in the area. We stopped at his workshop and had a discussion of the project and the art from Fuster’s nephew. Here are a few other photos of the art.


Fuster2 Fuster3

Lunch was several dishes that were emblematic of Cuban cuisine. White rice, black beans, fish, shredded beef, chicken, vegetables and a desert. It was delicious.

After lunch we went back to the hotel for a welcome rest and a shower. Dinner was at a very nice restaurant near Cathedral square. After dinner we took a walk to see the square at night. 

CathedralSquare
Hemingway

Near the square was a bar where Ernst Hemingway used to drink. It was a tourist attraction and there was man outside who was trying to look like Hemingway. One of our group, Mark, actually looked like Hemingway. As we walked around Havana, he was stopped multiple times and told he looks like Hemingway. The picture on the right show Mark and the Hemingway imitator. 

After our walk we headed back to the hotel. We were all ready for bed after our very early start.


© Charles Eklund 2012