I've held some of these pictures for several years, some are from a trip in 2013. I never get tired of coming here, if you ever get the chance you should make the trip ..read more

               I've been gathering pictures for this post for years as I walk along this street at least once on every trip I take to Havana. One of my favourite La Casa del Habano's is located in the Hotel Conde de Villanueva on Mercaderes and it's a must that I visit my friend Reinaldo who runs the place. Mercaderes usually tends to be busy, almost as much as Calle Obispo, and both these streets are devoid of cars as they are pedestrian only thoroughfares. It links two of the major Plazas (Squares) of Havana, Plaza Vieja & Catedral a ..read more

                   For those of you who don't already know, a little piece of history has collapsed recently. The original Partagas Cigar Factory began it's journey in 1860 but was shut down and moved to a different location in 2013 due to the deterioration of the building and the hazardous conditions it created for the workers. There was talk of turning the space into the new Tobacco Museum a few years ago and recently rumours were abound about it becoming another Hotel. However, nothing was done, now they will be forced to decide what to ..read more

                  The area of El Corojo belongs to the municipality of San Luís, it's located approximately 3 kilometers from the "las Cuchillas de Barbacoa" farm (where the late Alejandro Robaina Family Estate is located), 2-3 kilometers south of the town of San Luis. There has been very little written about this area that's known for it's wrapper leaf. However, much has been written about the 'Corojo' strain of tobacco leaf that's widely used in the area of San Luis & San Juan y Martinez. The Corojo strain was created at the famous El Corojo p ..read more

                On May 20, 1853, La Reunion opened for business for the first time on Calle Teniente Rey no. 41. There was a time during the twentieth century when this pharmacy was considered the largest in Cuba and the second largest in the world. It expanded in size between 1882 and 1886, adding warehouse space, office areas & a place for the production of medicines (something they were proficient at). It had become one of the most elegant and prestigious pharmacies in Havana.                 After the Revol ..read more

               As movie theaters expanded outwards to other municipalities they also moved into the Havana neighborhoods creating the local cinema. Believe it or not, just before 1959, Havana City had over 130 cinemas containing an estimated 136,000 movie seats, more than New York city or Paris. Actually, according to statistical data, Havana had more cinemas than any other big cities of the world. You would be hard pressed to believe that seeing the condition (or non-condition) of the existing cinemas today. Only a small fraction of cinemas that were on ..read more

                 On January of 1897, Gabriel Veyre (an early film director and photographer born in France) arrived in Havana from Mexico. He worked for the Casa Lumiere and after introducing movies to the Mexican capital 6 months earlier, he was wanting to do the same in Havana. It all started on the 24th of January, 1897, on Prado #126. What began incorrectly as entertainment rapidly turned into a means of; recreation, culture, education and of course, propaganda. The Prado strip (Havana's most important boulevard at the time) and it's surrounding ..read more

                The Spanish first saw tobacco grown in Cuba in the province of Holguin. Even though tobacco is still grown there centuries later, it's not used in the production of cigars for export. As the settlers moved across the island they realized that tobacco was grown wherever they established themselves and soon picked up the custom of cultivating the plant. Eventually, as they were always on the hunt for a better product, they established themselves in the Pinar del Rio area. It wasn't until the early 1700's but they finally discovered that the ..read more

                 Calle 23 (23rd Steet) is one of the busiest streets in the Vedado district of Havana. It begins at the Malecon and ends at the Almendares river. Starting from the Malecon up to the Hotel Habana Libre & the Yara Cinema (5 streets), this strip is known as La Rampa (The Ramp) because it's all up hill. It's total length is just over 2 kilometers crossed by important avenues such as Avenida de los Presidentes and Paseo and is home or near to; several Hotels (Habana Libre, Nacional & Capri), Restaurants, Casa Rentals, Busines ..read more

             This building was owned by a wealthy Arab immigrant during the 1940's. It's now a museum that displays Arab-Muslim culture. It has spaces showing Arab ways of life, weapons of the past, ceramics, clothing, furniture, textiles, a market and a prayer room. The Prayer room is open Fridays but not to Cuban Muslims, only for tourists and diplomats. Cuban Muslims have always prayed in their homes since there's no Mosque in Havana.              The building the museum is housed in is actually&n ..read more