Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Havana, Cuba (If You Can Get There)

“Where all cars are taxis, and all women are whores.” This raucous response to the frequently posed pre-trip question, “So what does Cuba mean to you?” understandably stood out the most. The “cigars” reply was the majority winner. But what do you expect from people whose ex-President, John F. Kennedy, had 1,200 Cuban cigars delivered to him before signing the U.S. embargo papers against Cuba back in 1963? To describe the Cuban capital city — home to a mere 2.4 million inhabitants — in a few words is complicated. It’s one city, but its various worlds will fascinate, seduce, sadden and perplex the visitor all at the same time. It’s too much, to be honest. So let’s start with what the visitor will undoubtedly meet first: the world of tourism.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Cuba thrives on foreigners bringing in money to have the “Cuban experience”: sipping on a world-renowned mojito, smoking on a Cuban cigar, meeting a Cuban girlfriend/boyfriend (this term is used loosely — pun intended), and essentially being in a dream world where everything is at one’s fingertips. This paradise is a verifiable reality, and lives alongside other realities (i.e., worlds) quite effortlessly.

Things to Do. Walk around Havana Vieja (Old Town of Havana) for a day or two – hunt for the best mojito at places like La Bodeguita del Medio, Hemingway’s old hangout, or walk through some stunning architecture amongst decayed structures. Spend a night absorbing the dance show and glamour at the Tropicana Cabaret. Take a tour through the Partagas Cigar Factory and see the mechanics of making this Cuban treasure. Meander around the Museo de la Revolucion to see pictures of Fidel’s revolution that overthrew Batista’s dictatorship in 1959.

Where to Eat. Paladares – private homes that have sectioned off one room as a restaurant – are numerous in Havana. One of the most well known, visited by queens and movie stars, is La Guardia, located on Concordia Street 418, Centro Habana.

Where to Stay. Among a few other quality hotels, Hotel Santa Isabel (hotelsantaisabel.com) offers all a visitor could want and more. Cost: around $130 per night, depending on room and time of year.

Travel Restrictions. Americans are prohibited to spend money in (and effectively prohibited from traveling to) Cuba. Travel is permitted when one is visiting Cuban relatives or is traveling with a general or specific license (these can be obtained for a variety of reasons, including humanitarian travel and freelance journalism).

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Yellowtail show off La Jolla, Big tuna south

Spiny lobster doing well
Next Article

94th Aero Squadron – French farmhouse still works

Try the antinoise –tomatoes with olive oil dressing plus capers, garlic, toasted coriander seeds, basil, spring onions, salted anchovies

“Where all cars are taxis, and all women are whores.” This raucous response to the frequently posed pre-trip question, “So what does Cuba mean to you?” understandably stood out the most. The “cigars” reply was the majority winner. But what do you expect from people whose ex-President, John F. Kennedy, had 1,200 Cuban cigars delivered to him before signing the U.S. embargo papers against Cuba back in 1963? To describe the Cuban capital city — home to a mere 2.4 million inhabitants — in a few words is complicated. It’s one city, but its various worlds will fascinate, seduce, sadden and perplex the visitor all at the same time. It’s too much, to be honest. So let’s start with what the visitor will undoubtedly meet first: the world of tourism.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Cuba thrives on foreigners bringing in money to have the “Cuban experience”: sipping on a world-renowned mojito, smoking on a Cuban cigar, meeting a Cuban girlfriend/boyfriend (this term is used loosely — pun intended), and essentially being in a dream world where everything is at one’s fingertips. This paradise is a verifiable reality, and lives alongside other realities (i.e., worlds) quite effortlessly.

Things to Do. Walk around Havana Vieja (Old Town of Havana) for a day or two – hunt for the best mojito at places like La Bodeguita del Medio, Hemingway’s old hangout, or walk through some stunning architecture amongst decayed structures. Spend a night absorbing the dance show and glamour at the Tropicana Cabaret. Take a tour through the Partagas Cigar Factory and see the mechanics of making this Cuban treasure. Meander around the Museo de la Revolucion to see pictures of Fidel’s revolution that overthrew Batista’s dictatorship in 1959.

Where to Eat. Paladares – private homes that have sectioned off one room as a restaurant – are numerous in Havana. One of the most well known, visited by queens and movie stars, is La Guardia, located on Concordia Street 418, Centro Habana.

Where to Stay. Among a few other quality hotels, Hotel Santa Isabel (hotelsantaisabel.com) offers all a visitor could want and more. Cost: around $130 per night, depending on room and time of year.

Travel Restrictions. Americans are prohibited to spend money in (and effectively prohibited from traveling to) Cuba. Travel is permitted when one is visiting Cuban relatives or is traveling with a general or specific license (these can be obtained for a variety of reasons, including humanitarian travel and freelance journalism).

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Live Five: Andrew Peña, Frankie J, Beat Farmers, Jesse LaMonaca, Puddles Pity Party

Latin, roots rock, and pity parties in Mission Beach, Little Italy, El Cajon
Next Article

The greatest symphonist of them all

Havergal Brian wrote over 30 of them
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader