Literary Havana V
January 03-10, 2015
Your Itinerary
Sat, 3 January 2015
[2:00 pm] Miami departure
[3:00 pm] - Arrive in Havana
Check-in: Hotel Telégrafo
[6:00 pm] - Barrio Chino walking tour
Contracted Chinese workers, almost all male, came to
Cuba in waves over the decades, working in sugar mills,
in agriculture, and in Havana itself. Many of them married
Cubans, resulting in a culture that today is centered in
Barrio Chino. We are fortunate to have Relga Albarrán,
raised in Barrio Chino, lead us on a walking tour of her
neighborhood pointing out its social centers, historic
churches, theaters, and markets, as well as the senior
citizens home for elderly Chinese.
[7:30 pm] - Decameron Paladar
Paladars are private restaurants located in people’s
homes. With inventive recepies and attentive service, paladars
have become enormously popular with visitors, Decameron
among them.
Sun, 4 January 2015
[7:00 am] – Buffet breakfast at the hotel
We’ll have a buffet breakfast every morning at our hotel.
[9:00 am] - Old Havana Four Plazas
We will tour Old Havana on foot, walking between the
four main plazas that comprise Cuba’s first UNESCO World
Heritage Site. We’ll start at the Plaza de Armas, site of the
oldest Spanish fortress in the Americas, the 1519 locale
of the first mass in Cuba, and the massive Baroque seat of
government, known as Palacio de los Capitanes Generales.
We’ll continue to Plaza de San Francisco de Assis and
Plaza Vieja, where we will visit artist galleries and historic
buildings. The walk, which winds through streets lining
five centuries of historic architecture, gives a clear sense
of the structure of the colonial city. We’ll end at Plaza de la
Catedral and see the Baroque cathedral.
[12:00 pm] - Doña Eutimia – Paladar
Cuba’s paladars have been evaluated in on-line guides.
Doña Eutimia ranks extremely high, or example, among
tripadvisor users for its food and atmosphere.
[2:00 pm] - Callejón de Hammel
This alley, located in the working class Cayo Hueso neighborhood, serves as an open-air Afro-Cuban religion sanctuary, the work of local artist Salvador González. Its walls are adorned with evocative Santería murals paying homage to various religious belief systems of African origin. It hosts the famous Afro-Cuban rumbas that take place every Sunday afternoon. González, a self-trained artist, will be present. In addition to live and lively dancing and drumming, the Callejón hosts an art gallery and art school for neighborhood children. From its inception, González has refused funding from various government cultural institutions, preferring to support his activities from the sale of art work and donations.[7:30 pm] - Dinner on your own; We will recommend a restaurant or paladar.
[3] Monday, 5 January 2015
[7:00 am] – Buffet breakfast at the hotel
[9:30 am] – We’ll take a motorcoach 85 kilometers east
from Havana to Matanzas
[2:00 pm] - Ediciones Vigia in Matanzas
The publishing house Ediciones Vigía, founded in 1985,
produces hand- made, limited run, one-of-a-kind books.
Members of the Vigía cooperative take on egalitarian
roles, printing, cutting, pasting, editing and binding each
book. We will watch them in action as well as engage in
discussion about Cuban publishing. Some copies of their
titles will be available.
[4:30 pm] – Return to Havana.
[7:30 pm] - Dinner on your own; We will recommend a restaurant or paladar.
Tuesday, 6 January 2015
[7:00 am] – Buffet breakfast at the hotel
[9:30 am] - Ferry ride across Havana Bay to the town of Regla
[9:45 am] - Visit Our Lady of Regla Church, a church built
in homage to the Black Virgin, with a breathtaking gilt
altar beneath an arched ceiling. The black Madonna is the
patron saint of sailors. The church, a community, human-
scale affair, serves a neighborhood that includes women
who greet visitors and predict their future.
[10:15 am] - Guanabacoa Museum (Museum - Religious)
This one-of-a-kind museum located in a town adjoining
Havana, comprises objects of the popular Cuban religions
of African origins: Regla de Osha, Reglas Congas and the
Abakuá Secret Religious Societies. A guide will show,
through exhibits and description, the history of Cubans
brought from West Africa to the island, and how these
slaves maintained their beliefs and mixed them with
Catholicism. The result was syncretism, which today
defines the various Afro-Cuban religions.
[12:30 pm] - Doña Carmela - paladar
Excellent food in a garden offering criolla and international
cuisine. Known for its friendly and efficient service, dining
at Doña Carmela takes place in the backyard of a private
residence under trellises designed for the paladar.
[3:00 pm] - Ernest Hemingway's Finca La Vigía, (Museum -
History Museum)
We’ll visit Ernest Hemingway’s Finca La Vigía,, located on
a hilltop in the village of San Francisco de Paula southeast
of Havana. The home has recently been the subject
of a massive effort by the National Trust for Historic
Preservation to arrange the it just as the author left it in
1961. The grounds include the cemetery for Hemingway’s
many cats, a swimming pool, and his famous sport-fishing
boat, the Pilar. Out-buildings on the grounds house the
Hemingway archives, where documents he left behind
still exist. Finca Vigía and the fishing village of Cojímar–
from which the old man left for the sea– are considered
the most significant locales for those interested in
Hemingway’s life and writing.
[7:30 pm] - Dinner on your own; We will recommend a restaurant or paladar.
[5] Wednesday, 7 January 2015
[7:00 am] - Breakfast at the hotel
[9:30 am] - Theater activity
Visit Teatro Bertolt Brecht, where Cuban director Edgar
Estaco and playwright Pedro Ángel Verá will host a
discussion on Cuban theater, contemporary and historical,
followed by a rehearsal for the play in production.
[11:00 am] - La Casa de la Comunidad Hebrea de Cuba
(The Patronato)
We’ll visit La Casa de la Comunidad Hebrea de Cuba (El
Patronato), the Jewish community center that works to
preserve the traditions and pride of Judaism on the island.
This venue is located on the ground floor of a renovated
synagogue that annually hosts High Holy Day services. The
Patronato pharmacy accepts donated over-the-counter
medicines, available to any Cuban who walks in. Adela
Dworin, President of the Patronato, will brief us on the
history of Cuban Jews.
[12:30 pm] - El Aljibe Criolla cuisine Restaurant
This friendly open air restaurant in the Miramar district is known for its classic Criolla food. In mid- 2015, a novel called Sofrito will be published in the States in
which this restaurant, identified as El Ajillo, plays a major role.
[2:30 pm] - Rooftop literary mixer Cuban writers, poets,
A rare and informative event, this literary mixer at
the fifth-floor walk-up Centro Habana rooftop home of
internationally published poet Reina María Rodríguez
offers an opportunity to meet Cuban writers, poets, and
others in the country’s literary world. A bilingual poetry
reading concludes the visit.
[6] Thursday, 8 January 2015
[7:00 am] – Buffet breakfast at the hotel
[9:00 am] - Day trip to Viňales
190 kilometers west of Havana in Pinar del Río province,
Viňales has evolved into a center for backpackers,
independent visitors, and students of limestone formations.
[11:00 am] - Cueva del Indio
Just outside Viňales is The Cueva del Indio, which Cubans
discovered almost a century ago. The cave’s name comes
from the indigenous Guanahatabey people who, during
the Spanish conquest, used it as a refuge and a graveyard.
About one-third of the 5100 foot grotto has been
developed for visitors, like you, walk, then ride on a
motorized boat through remarkable limestone formations.
[12:30 pm] - Finca Rojas
Finca Rojas is a working tobacco farm in Viňales Valley
open to visitors. Tobacco for Cuba's legendary cigars comes
from this region. Before visiting the tobacco drying barn,
we’ll have a home grown lunch served on the grounds of
the finca. Tobacco for Cuba’s legendary cigars comes from
[4:00 pm] Return to Havana.
[7:30 pm] - La Guarida (Restaurant - Paladar
Back in Havana, we’ll dine at the internationally famous La
Guarída. Much of Cuba’s 1996 Academy Award nominated
movie “Strawberry and Chocolate” was filmed here. Both
the film and the restaurant are entirely worthwhile.
[7] Friday, 9 January 2015
[7:00 am] - Breakfast at the hotel
[10:00 am] - Museo de Bellas Artes Cubano/Cuban Fine Art Museum
We’ll visit the Cuban collections in this striking modernist
building which was completed in 1953, and exemplifies
the combination of sculpture with architecture in Cuban
mid-century modernism. The Palace of Fine Arts houses
an elaborate and noteworthy collection of Cuban visual
art that spans four centuries. From pre-colonial art to
the present, Cuba’s artists have reflected the country’s
11:00 am] - Taller experimental de Gráfica
The Taller was established in 1962 by a small group of
artists lead by Orlando Suárez, a muralist whose initiative
also helped found the Superior Art Institute. Mr. Suárez
was supported in this effort by the Chilean Poet Pablo
Neruda and by Che Guevara who applauded his efforts
to create a center where all artists of the City of Havana
could go to produce prints. Today the Taller is more than
a workshop. It is a studio, a school and most of all, an art
institution that preserves and develops the sophisticated
art of print making with relative freedom of spirit and
form. While at the center you will see artworks produced
there and have a conversation with the artists about their
works and about life as an artist in Havana.
[2:30 pm] - Farmers market
Havana enjoys a system of farmers markets that are part
of the food distribution system and a large element of
the country's new foray into small business. Each farmer
can bring fresh products to sell directly to Habaneros.
Cuban produce is 100% organic and has been that way for decades.
[8] Saturday, 10 January 2015
[7:00 am] - Breakfast buffet at the hotel
[9:00 am] - Check out of Hotel
[11:30 am] - Lunch on your own
[12:30 pm] - Transfer from te Telégrafo to the airport
[4:00 pm] - Depart Havana to Miami (Don’t forget your 25
CUC departure tax.)
[5:00 pm] – Arrive Miami, clear customs, connect to
domestic flight.