Letters from Cuba (12) Habana Vieja and greater Havana

Casa Esther, Havana, June 2009

Esther, our host at Casa Esther in Havana, asked us a rhetorical question: How much do you think it would cost to restore Havana? We agreed it would be billions. They have made a start, and in the centre of Havana, there is a series of panels showing spots in Warsaw after the bombing, and then the same spots – with the same people superimposed – after restoration. This is to give courage, I suppose.

These last few days, still unable to eat, I have lived on ice cream – it is good, and, just as in the film, the flavours are chocolat and fresia (strawberry) – plus very nice lemonade and lime fizzy drinks. We did try a little restaurant food, and Bill, a former chef, told the waiting staff that regretfully he had not enjoyed it. I felt sorry for them, as it was not their fault. The Cuban-style Chinese meal included won ton soup that appeared to be hot water with won ton dough but no filling.

We saw long queues of people waiting to buy the big red apples that appeared one day. Bill said it reminded him of wartime Britain: the Government would suddenly allow a shipment of some rarely seen food, and people would queue to buy it.

In the busy Calle Raphael, which we've walked along each day from Casa Esther, we've seen many Habaneros enjoying pizza and other snacks that can be bought on the street. This part of Cuba is rather rough, but full of the sights and sounds of Cuba.

Rather belatedly we discovered the picturesque boulevard, Paseo del Prado, which is lined with restored buildings, and has a wide public space in the centre with cool marble, shady trees, statues of lions, artists selling their work (aimed mostly at tourists; far less interesting than what we saw in Trinidad), and people out and about enjoying themselves. We popped into the historic Hotel Sevilla, which has a gallery of photos of the greats who have stayed and visited here.

In Habana Vieja, we've walked several times along Mercaderes, one of the restored streets. At the Museo de Chocolate we had a cup of hot chocolate with a dipping biscuit.

 

Mercaderes, a street in Habana Vieja.   Photo: Ann Barrie, 2009

Bill Barrie enjoying hot chocolate with a dipping biscuit, Museo de Chocolat, Havana. 2009

We also stumbled across Simon Bolivar House. Simon Bolivar was the great liberator of South American countries. A lovely young woman gave us a tour of the museum, which includes an enchanting series of modelled figures of Bolivar at all stages of his life – some of them interestingly explicit. The guide asked if we would return next day to collect a letter to post to her friend in Masterton. We went to considerable effort to do so, and also brought a cake of soap for her, but she was not there.

 

Small modelled figures in the museum of Simon Bolivar House, Havana. Photo: Ann Barrie, 2009

We gave Bill’s two English-language thrillers to the book seller in Plaza des Armas who had kindly given Bill an ancient little book about the life and times of Scotland. He seemed uncertain about accepting the thrillers, as his usual book stock is classics or revolutionary material.

On our last full day in Cuba we took advantage of the Habana Bus Tour, a series of buses that let you travel round greater Havana from the beaches in the east to the Hemingway Marina. The first bus drove east through the tunnel under the harbour entrance, past the Morro Castle and on to the Playas del Este, where Habaneros with some money go to swim, sunbath and relax on their day off. It was very hot. We bought a cool drink, sought some shade, and I paddled in the warm water. The second bus headed west around the perimeter of the vast Cristobel Colon Cemetery.

 

Playas del Este, Havana, June 2009.  Photo: Ann Barrie

We ended the day by taking the lift to the top of the Hotel Gran Mundo for panoramic views of Havana. From this viewpoint, the massive dome of the Capitolio dominates the scene. People were lounging round the rooftop swimming pool – I think some of them were imagining themselves in Havana back in its heyday.

I am still unwell, and Bill feels ready to leave Cuba, but what a fascinating two weeks we have had.

Bill purchased Cuban cigars to take to our neighbour, Kerry.  Photo: Ann Barrie 2009

Letter 14 – Montreal

Arriving in Montreal direct from Havana required quite an adjustment. We started the day sitting round the table at Casa Esther, eating our usual breakfast of fresh fruit and juice, eggs, and lightly toasted bread (which somehow neither of us could eat); watching Esther’s mother cutting paper napkins in half, because they are expensive; and experiencing the sounds and smells of Cuba that drifted in from outside. And we ended the day at Au Git’ Anne in the heart of the Latin quarter of Montreal. We walked to the grocery store at the end of the street and found it amazingly well-stocked – real milk in many varieties, rows of cheeses, strawberries, raspberries and many other beautiful fruits. In Cuba we seldom saw fruit for sale, although we knew it was grown there, because we saw orange groves and bought little packets of delicious Cuban fruit juice (peach nectar was my favourite).

Our host Anne has been to Cuba twice, because fares are cheap, and she feels the need to escape the harsh Canadian winter, especially since she suffers from arthritis. She heads for the beach at Varadero, finds somewhere self-catering, and bribes the maid to find her some decent food to cook. …

I will blog about Bill’s and my stay in Montreal another time.

Blog by Ann Barrie

Letters from Cuba, June 2009 (11) Casa Esther, Havana

Letter 11. Casa Esther in Havana. June 2009.

The accommodation for our second stay in Havana is Casa Esther in Habana Centro, and it is beautiful. The house was half in ruins when Esther bought it 15 years ago – in stages – from the old lady who lived there alone. The old lady lived out her final years with Esther in the house, and she died with a smile on her face watching a theatrical performance. Esther still feels her presence there, and the old lady's portrait as a young woman, hangs on the wall:

Portrait at Casa Esther, Havana, 2009. Photo: Ann Barrie

Esther, 58, has created a beautiful environment inside the house to counteract the greyness of Havana. Our room has a stud more than twice that of New Zealand houses – for coolness – and the room is filled with artworks, as is the whole house.

Bedroom curtain at Casa Esther, Havana, June 2009.  Photo: Ann Barrie

We admired an art deco lamp, and Esther said she bought it from a family who wished to raise money to go to America to live.

Art deco lamp at Casa Esther, Havana, June 2009. Photo: Ann Barrie

Esther maintains a large household. Her mother and stepfather live with her: he is a small, courtly man, and each morning he offers us his Spanish-language newspaper and recommends interesting articles for us to read.

Esther has four domestics, and two guards ('guard' is not quite the right word). The night time guard is pleasant and sits in a rocking chair all night. We have become very fond of Alex who is there during the day. He is Esther’s right hand man and runs the business side of the casa for her. (Esther rents out five rooms, although officially it is only two). Alex works long hours, six days a week. He told us that he learned a little English at school, and beyond that is self-taught; he adores English language musicals from the 60s and 70s.  Alex watches the Discovery Channel and knows that New Zealand is a beautiful country. He used to work at charting of ships for coastal navigation, and he loves anything maritime.

Esther, a former actress, directs her own theatre company: Gaia theatre de Habana. She pours the profits from her casa particulara into the building she bought to house her theatre. This morning, she took us there – it is in Old Havana, not far away. Esther puts on free weekly performances for children —it is difficult to have money-earning enterprises in Cuba. She would love to have more freedom, but she realises she is more fortunate than most. She is able to travel freely to Toronto, where her son lives, and she freights back items to make life easier at home (for instance, an espresso coffee machine) and for her beloved theatre. 

Esther, proprietor of Casa Esther, Havana, June 2009. Photo: Ann Barrie

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Gaia theatre de Habana, June 2009. Photo: Ann Barrie

Yesterday we bought a book from one of the second hand sellers who set up each day around the beautiful Plaza des Armes. The book contains poems, written in Spanish and translated into English by one of the five Cubans who were imprisoned without due process in Miami. The book seller used to be a Russian-Cuban translator, and he travelled all round Cuba. Now he pays a licence fee to the Government and is able to run his own little private enterprise selling books.

Blog by Ann Barrie