Havana

This article is about the Cuban city. For other places named Havana, please see Havana (disambiguation)

Havana

Memorial José Martí, Plaza de la Revolución. This monument dates from the time of Fulgencio Batista

Havana (Spanish in full: San Cristóbal de La Habana, usually shortened to just La Habana; UN/LOCODE: CU HAV) is the capital of Cuba and, with a population of 2.2 million, the largest city of Cuba. It is located at 23°8′N 82°23′W and is just over a 100 miles (160 km) south-southwest of Key West, Florida.

1 History
2 Central Buroughs of Havana and their Sights
3 Other Places in Havana
4 Trivia
5 Further reading
6 Other images
7 See also
8 References
9 External links

History

Conquistador Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar founded Havana in 1515 on the southern coast of the island, near the current town Surgidero de Batabanó. Havana moved to its current location by the then called Carenas bay in 1519.

Havana was originally a trading port, and became the capital of the Spanish colony of Cuba in 1607, and the main port of the Spanish colonies in the New World.

Havana suffered from being burnt by buccaneers in 1538, and looted in 1555 and 1553. Great Britain seized the city in 1762 in the Seven Years' War, when they opened the port to free trade, bringing in thousands of enslaved Africans. When the war was over, they exchanged it for Florida the following year. After regaining the city, the Spanish made it the most heavily fortified city in the Americas.

In the 1920s during Prohibition in the United States, Havana, along with Montreal, became a popular vacation destination for U.S. citizens; the nightclubs and gambling survived Repeal, but most were closed in 1959 after the Cuban Revolution.

On the night of July 8-9, 2005, the city took a direct hit from Hurricane Dennis.

Havana was a candidate to host the 2012 Summer Olympic Games, but was not shortlisted.

Central Buroughs of Havana and their Sights

Listed in order from west to east, along the coast, central Havana is divided into the following boroughs:

Miramar

The border of Miramar and Vedado to the east is the Río Almendares (the Almendares river).

Vedado

Vedado stretches from Miramar to the Calzada de Infanta street, where it meets Centro Habana.

In Vedado lies:

the Hotel Nacional
University of Havana (Universidad de La Habana) - Founded over two hundred years ago, this is Cuba's most famous university.
the Museo Napeléonico, the huge Necrópolis de Colón cemetery, The Plaza de la Revolución with monuments to José Martí and Che Guevara, and the Plaza Anti-Imperialista where the U.S. Special Interests Office lies.
La Rampa is the segment from Calle L (L Street) to Malecón of the 23rd Avenue in which we can find many night-life atractions (clubs, cinemas, hotels, bars). Its terraced slope allows a specatcular view of the sea.

Centro Habana

Centro Habana lies between Calzada de Infanta street and Paseo de Martí, also known as the Prado.

On the estern side, facing the Capitolio, lies the Fábrica de Tobacos Partagás where much of the production of Cubas most prestigious cigars takes place. Tours are given of the cigar production process.

Habana Vieja (Old Havana)

Old Havana preserves a wealth of Spanish Colonial architecture, and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

It is the main tourist area of Havana, containing:

the Plaza de Armas
the Plaza de la Catedral
the Museo de la Revolución
the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes
the Museo Fundación Destilera Havana Club
La Punta, the starting point of Prado Ave., or Paseo del Prado. It is the intersection of Prado with Malecón Ave.

Habana del Este

Habana del Este lies across from Habana Vieja, on the other side of the Canal de Entrada.

Other Places in Havana

Malecón is the avenue that runs along the seawall at the northern shore of Havana, from Habana Vieja to Miramar.
Jacomino is a stretch along the San Miguel road (west-east), between Vírgen del Camino and Ciudad Mar, and between Guardiola and La Fernanda (north-south). Its three major streets are Santa Emilia, Calzada and Beltrán.
Havana's international airport is Jose Marti International Airport. It lies about 10 km south of the city center.

Trivia

Havana is a sister city of Mobile, Alabama and Glasgow, Scotland.

Other images

Havana, Capitol Building	1888 German map of Havana	Old Havana, 2002	Havana, Malecón, 2003
Panoramic view of Havana in 2004	Dusk on Havana's waterfront	The Moro Castle by night	Hotel Nacional de Cuba seen from Malecon
At the Necropolis Colon	Center of La Habana	Vedado district	Malecon at the Hotel Nacional