Havana is the capital city, province, major port, and leading commercial centre of Cuba. The city proper has a population of 2.1 million inhabitants, and it spans a total of 728.26 km2 (281.18 sq mi) − making it the largest city by area, the most populous city, and the third largest metropolitan area in the Caribbean region.
The city extends mostly westward and southward from the bay, which is entered through a narrow inlet and which divides into three main harbours: Marimelena, Guanabacoa and Atarés. The sluggish Almendares River traverses the city from south to north, entering the Straits of Florida a few miles west of the bay.
Contemporary Havana can essentially be described as three cities in one: Old Havana, Vedado, and the newer suburban districts. The city is the center of the Cuban Government, and home to various ministries, headquarters of businesses and over 90 diplomatic offices. The current mayor is Marta Hernández from the Communist Party of Cuba (PCC). In 2009, the city/province had the 3rd highest income in the country.
The city attracts over a million tourists annually, the Official Census for Havana reports that in 2010 the city was visited by 1,176,627 international tourists, a 20.0% increase from 2005. The historic centre was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1982. The city is also noted for its history, culture, architecture and monuments.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Havana)
Follow the list of 10 best places to visit and see in Cuba and Havana:
10OLD HAVANA
Old Havana and one of the 15 municipalities (or boroughs) forming Havana, Cuba, it has the second highest population density in the city and contains the core of the original city of Havana. The positions of the original Havana city walls are the modern boundaries of Old Havana.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Havana)
09TRANSPORTATION
Havana is teeming with fascinating modes of transportation, including public taxis and vintage cars that lend to a colorful atmosphere. The city's public buses are carried out by two divisions, Metrobús and Omnibus Metropolitanos
08EL CAPITOLIO
El Capitolio, or National Capitol Building in Havana, Cuba, was the seat of government in Cuba until after the Cuban Revolution in 1959, and is now home to the Cuban Academy of Sciences. "El Capitolio" has a size of 681 by 300ft. Its design and name recall the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C., but it is only superficially similar. Completed in 1929, it was the tallest building in Havana until the 1950s and houses the world's third largest indoor statue.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/El_Capitolio)
07MUSIC
The music of Cuba, including the instruments and the dances, is influenced mostly by African, European (especially Spanish) and to a lesser extent Chinese music. Most forms of the present day are fusions and mixtures of these sources, mainly the first two. For instance, the son montuno merges the Spanish guitar, melody, harmony, and lyrical traditions with Afro-Cuban percussion and rhythms. Almost nothing remains of the original Indian traditions.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuban_music)
06EL MORRO
Morro Castle is a picturesque fortress guarding the entrance to Havana bay in Havana, Cuba. Juan Bautista Antonelli, an Italian engineer, was commissioned to design the structure. When it was built in 1589, Cuba was under the control of Spain. The castle, named after the biblical Magi, was later captured by the British in 1762.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morro_Castle_(fortress))
05CIGARS
Cuban cigars are rolled from tobacco leaves found throughout the country of Cuba. The filler, binder, and wrapper may come from different portions of the island. All cigar production in Cuba is controlled by the Cuban government, and each brand may be rolled in several different factories in Cuba. Cuban cigar rollers or "torcedores" are claimed by cigar experts to be the most skilled rollers in the world.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuban_cigars#Cuban_cigars)
04SAN CRISTOBAL CATHEDRAL
The Catedral de la Virgen María de la Concepción Inmaculada de La Habana (Cathedral of The Virgin Mary of the Immaculate Conception) is a Roman Catholic Cathedral and is the seat of Jaime Lucas Ortega y Alamino, the Cardinal Archbishop of Havana, Cuba. It is also dedicated to Saint Christopher (San Cristóbal), thus it is sometimes dubbed as Cathedral of Saint Christopher.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Havana_Cathedral)
03REVOLUTION SQUARE
Plaza de la Revolución, "Revolution Square" is a municipality (or borough) and a square in Havana, Cuba. The municipality, one of the 15 forming the city, stretches from the square down to the sea at the Malecón and includes the Vedado district.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plaza_de_la_Revoluci%C3%B3n)
02THE CASTLE OF ROYAL FORCE
The Castillo de la Real Fuerza (Castle of the Royal Force) is a star fort on the western side of the harbour in Havana, Cuba, set back from the entrance, and bordering the Plaza de Armas. Originally built to defend against attack by pirates, it suffered from a poor strategic position, being too far inside the bay. The fort is considered to be the oldest stone fort in the Americas, and was listed in 1982 as part of the UNESCO World Heritage site of "Old Havana and its Fortifications".
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Castillo_de_la_Real_Fuerza)
01MALECON
The Malecón (officially Avenida de Maceo) is a broad esplanade, roadway and seawall which stretches for 8 km (5 miles) along the coast in Havana, Cuba, from the mouth of Havana Harbor in Old Havana, along the north side of the Centro Habana neighborhood, ending in the Vedado neighborhood. New businesses are appearing on the esplanade due to economic reforms in Cuba that now allow Cubans to own private businesses.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malec%C3%B3n,_Havana)
Loading...