GO HAVANA:Once you discover the authentic Havana, the city is an immeasurably more rewarding experience than the Disney-fied version you are frequently offered, writes
EDDIE LENNON
THERE ARE two sides to Havana: the iconographic, picture postcard Havana, visually punctuated with rum, cigars and Castro; on the other, a hyperactive cultural city that the exuberant Cubans enjoy with extraordinary relish. This second Havana is the one most tourists never actually connect with. But once you discover the real Havana, the city is an immeasurably more rewarding experience than the Disney-fied version which you are frequently offered.
Music is central to Havana’s cultural DNA like nothing else, a never-ending soundtrack to the soul of the city. Havana offers an astonishingly rich and inexpensive live music scene, with numerous outstanding venues, all of them generously subsidised by the State.
One of these is Teatro América, in central Havana. It attracts the liveliest crowds in the city, capturing the imagination of habaneros (Havana natives) more than any other venue in the city. A multi-faceted cultural centre, it stages a wide variety of shows from plays, circus and comedy acts to operettas and transvestite performances.
Inside this handsome art-deco building is also one of Havana’s legendary venues for salsa and reggaetón, Casa de la Música, with concerts every night. It is an enormously fashionable, rough-and-ready downtown joint, with an uninhibited bohemian vibe and some colourful and sometimes cartoonishly dodgy-looking characters.
The famously rip-roaring performances by Los Van Van, the Grammy award-winning Cuban band, take place here every few weeks. Their concerts are a memorable slice of Havana life, definitely not to be missed if you’re in town.
The spiritual home of Afro-Cuban culture in Havana is an area called Callejón de Hamel, located in Centro Habana. In this quirky little pedestrian district, every Sunday from noon, feverish live rumba sessions are provided free of charge by several leading bands. These events attract huge crowds. Locals, dressed from head to toe in white, (an indication of having converted to the Afro-Cuban Santería religion) add an exotic splash of colour.
The area itself is a very interesting urban art project, with a rich diversity of flamboyantly painted houses, eye-catching street murals, and weird and wonderful shops.
VEDADO IS Havana’s most fascinating neighbourhood. Perched on the city’s most colourful junction, the picturesque Yara cinema is a leading Havana institution. It is the city’s best loved cinema, screening contemporary films (foreign films are shown with Spanish subtitles) and Cuban movies.
On weekends, it morphs into a hugely popular live music venue, with performances by the likes of Cuban classical pianist Magali Santana Lara, troubadour William Vivanco, and popular singer Haila.
Compared with the old town (La Habana Vieja), Vedado has few tourists. The overall ambience is a throwback to the 1970s, the area a cocktail of colour and personality. There are numerous small bars and cafes, peopled for the most part by locals.
Check out the popular sidewalk bar La Rampita, located on 23rd street, the most animated street in Havana. Although the clientele is often quite shifty (as in watch your bag), it’s a super spot for people-watching as night draws in, providing fascinating glimpses of Havana life as the area’s funky, gritty vitality changes shape and colour.
WANT TO PARTY till the wee hours with some real locals? Then forget all the usual haunts downtown, and head west to the outdoor concert area at the Comodoro centre – one of the places to be for atmosphere and good music on Friday nights. Located in Miramar, Havana’s most affluent suburb, the venue is popular among Havana’s burgeoning middle class and artistic/intellectual community.
It’s one of those places in Havana where you never know who you’ll bump into. The last time I was there, a few months ago, I ended up chatting about politics with one of Fidel Castro’s sons. Expect spirited performances by famous Cuban bands including Buena Fé and the singer Haydée Milanés. Entrance is just €4. The party really gets going once the DJs hit the decks.
The setting is wonderful: right beside the sea, with the waves crashing against the wall. The atmosphere is joyous and good-humoured, and the evening goes on till 3am. Be sure to be there before 10pm, however, if you want a good table.
Afterwards, head down the road to Don Cangrejo. Set around a swimming pool overlooking the bay, there’s live Cuban music and DJs till 4am. It is a breathtakingly uplifting event: happy people, few hustlers, very few tourists, and great music.
Arrive before 11pm to secure a table. If you’re lucky you’ll catch the funky, ebullient Kelvis Ochoa performing. He is one of Cuba’s best loved singers, and, live, he is simply brilliant. Entrance is a mere €4.
Get there
Air France (airfrance.com) and KLM (klm.com) fly to Havana via Paris (Charles de Gaulle) and Amsterdam. Virgin Atlantic (virgin-atlantic.com) flies from London Gatwick. Prices for return flights range from €700 to €1,000.
Havana where to . . .
Stay
Value:Rest your head in a private accommodation known as a casa particular. Our favourites are Casa Francisco Rodriquez (Vedado, calle 17, between calles C and D, 00-537-832-5003, €23) and Casa Orquidea (Miramar, calle 36a, between 1st and 3rd avenues, Miramar, 00-537-209-5801, €38). Choose the master bedroom in each house. Prices quoted are per room per night.
Mid-market: The Hotel Habana Libre, Vedado, hotelhabanalibre.com, and the Occidental Miramar, Miramar, occidentalhotels.com, are reasonable mid-price options.
Upmarket: The Saratoga Boutique, Santa Isabel, and NH Parque Central hotels are five-star establishments and come highly recommended for a luxury stay with a colonial atmosphere.
Eat
Value:Doctor Café, calle 28, between 1st and 3rd avenues, Miramar, 00-537-203-4718. Located in a quiet suburban street in the embassy district of Miramar, the consistency, value and atmosphere at this unassuming paladar are reflected in its popularity, especially among the expat community living in Havana. All of the food is prepared on the barbecue outside (unless you specify otherwise). The steaks, seafood, venison, turtle and rabbit are top class. Prices range from €5.50 to €11.50 per main course.
Mid-market: La Fontana, Calle 46, corner of 3rd avenue, Miramar, 00-537-202-8337. In this relaxed, nicely-lit paladar, the menu is extremely varied, with generous and surprisingly cheap portions (main courses average around €9). Specialities include a large variety of good quality seafood and steak dishes, as well as excellent pork and chicken dishes.
Upmarket:La Guarida, calle Concordia, between Escobar and Gervasio, Centro Habana, 00-537-866-9047. Havana's favourite and most famous paladar is located down a back street in Centro Habana, in a building originally owned by a sugar baron. The food is consistently creative and exquisite, and the service is excellent. The candle-lit rooms are cosy and welcoming, and the overall ambience makes it one of the most romantic restaurants in Havana (the best table, if youre a couple, is by the window overlooking the city). Main courses cost about €11.50. The menu is an eclectic affair, and includes shrimp starters, with delicious fish, steak, chicken, rabbit and pork dishes. Make sure to book in advance.
Drink
Don’t limit yourself to La Habana Vieja – there are many more interesting bars to be found in the city, just a little off the beaten track.
Enjoy a mojito or a cuba libre at the highest bar in Havana, La Torre, Edificio Focsa, calle 17, corner of M, Vedado.
In the same building, on the ground floor, is the atmospheric and endearingly kitsch cocktail bar/restaurant El Emperador which has excellent free live instrumental music (Spanish guitar and violin) every night from about 9pm, with some of the best mojitos in Havana.
La Taberna de la Muralla, corner of calles San Ignacio and Muralla, Plaza Vieja, La Habana Vieja. Havanas only micro-brewery bar, is located on the beautiful Plaza Vieja. It is one of the best bars in the old town and the only bar we have found in Havana where you can get draught beer.
One of the best views of the seafront promenade (the Malecón) and the sea is from the elegant terrace garden at the Hotel Nacional, calle O, corner of calle 21, Vedado. The atmosphere is laid-back, colonial and affluent.
When to go
Havana may be visited at any time of the year. Note, however, the soaring temperatures (up to 32 degrees) and stifling humidity in July and August. The cyclone season (June to November) can bring hurricanes and heavy storms. Average temperatures in Havana for November are 21 to 27 degrees and 19 to 26 degrees during December. Christmas is a good time to
visit Havana, not least because the atmosphere then is extremely laid-back and non-commercial.
Visas
Anyone travelling from Ireland to Havana requires an entry visa, which can be obtained from the Cuban Embassy in Dublin, 01-4750899.
Useful websites
Information on Havana can be found at cubaldn.com, the Embassy of Cuba in the UK (there is currently no Irish equivalent). For upcoming events in Havana, check out cuba
absolutely.com.
Eddie Lennon is editor and chief writer of Wonderful Havana, a guide to Havana