Havana

Havana (Spanish: La Habana IPA pronunciation: [a'βana]), formerly named Villa de San Cristóbal de La Habana; UN/LOCODE: CU HAV) is the capital of Cuba. The city also forms one of the 14 provinces of Cuba, with the province called "City of Havana" (Ciudad de La Habana).^[1] With a city population of more than 2.3 million, and a metropolitan area population of over 3 million, Havana is the largest city in both Cuba and the Caribbean. It is located just over 144 kilometres (90 miles) south-southwest of Key West, Florida. It is located on the northwest coast of Cuba, facing the Straits of Florida, and is surrounded by Havana Province to the south, east, and west.

[edit] History

1888 German map of Havana

[edit] Foundation

The current Havana area and its natural bay were first visited by Europeans during Sebastián de Ocampo's circumnavigation of the island, in 1509.^[2] Shortly thereafter, in 1510, the first Spanish colonists arrived from La Hispaniola and thus the Conquest of Cuba began.

Conquistador Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar founded Havana on August 25, 1515 on the southern coast of the island, near the present town of Surgidero de Batabanó. Between 1514 and 1519, the city had at least two different establishments. An early map of Cuba drawn up in 1514 places the town in the mouth of the river Onicaxinal, again on the south coast of Cuba. Another establishment was La Chorrera, which is today in the neighbourhood of Puentes Grandes, next to the Almendares River. The last establishment, commemorated by El Templete, was the sixth town founded by the Spanish on the island, called San Cristobal de la Habana by Pánfilo de Narváez: The name combines San Cristóbal, the patron saint of Havana, and Habana, origin obscure, possibly derived from Habaguanex, name of an Indian chief that controlled that area, quoted by Diego Velasquez in his report to the king of Spain. A legend narrates that Habana was the name of Habaguanex's beautiful daughter,^[3] but no known historical source corroborates this version.

Havana moved to its current location next to what was then called Puerto de Carenas (literally, "Careening Bay"), in 1519. The quality of this natural bay, which now hosts Havana's harbor, warranted this change of location. Bartolomé de las Casas wrote:

...one of the ships, or both, had the need of careening, which is to renew or mend the parts that travel under the water, and to put tar and wax in them, and entered the port we now call Havana, and there they careened so the port was called de Carenas. This bay is very good and can host many ships, which I visited few years after the Discovery... few are in Spain, or elsewhere in the world, that are their equal...^[2]

El Morro Castle seen from Havana, built in 1589 by the Spanish to protect the city from pirates attacks and French corsairs.

Shortly after the founding of Cuba's first cities, the island served as little more than a base for the Conquista of other lands. Hernán Cortés organized his expedition to Mexico from here. Cuba, during the first years of the Discovery, provided no immediate wealth to the conquistadores, as it was poor in gold, silver and precious stones, and many of its settlers moved to the more promising lands of Mexico and South America, that were being discovered and colonized at the time. The legends of Eldorado and the Seven Cities of Gold attracted many adventurers from Spain, but also from the adjacent colonies, leaving Havana, and the rest of Cuba, largely unpopulated.

[edit] Pirates and La Flota

Havana was originally a trading port and suffered regular attacks by buccaneers, pirates, and French corsairs. The first attack and burning of the city was by the French corsair Jacques de Sores. The pirate took Havana with only two caravels, plundering the city and murdering 30 elders and blacks who were imprisoned. De Sores left without obtaining the enormous wealth that he was hoping to find in Havana.

Such attacks convinced the Spanish Crown to fund the construction of the first fortresses in the main cities, not only to counteract the pirates and corsairs but also to exert more control on commerce with the West Indies and limit the extensive contrabando (black market) that developed due to the trade restrictions imposed by the Casa de Contratación of Seville, the crown-controlled trading house that owned a monopoly on trade with the New World.

To counteract pirate attacks on Galleon convoys headed for Spain loaded with prized New World treasures, the Spanish crown decided to protect its ships by concentrating them in one large fleet that would traverse the Atlantic Ocean as a group. A single fleet could receive better coverage by the Spanish Armada. Following a king's decree in 1561, all ships headed for Spain were required to join this fleet in the Havana Bay. Ships arrived from May to August, waiting for the best weather conditions, and the fleet departed Havana for Spain by September.

This boosted commerce and development of the adjacent city of Havana (just a humble villa at the time). Goods traded in Havana included gold, silver, alpaca wool from the Andes, emeralds from Colombia, mahoganies from Cuba and Guatemala, leather from the Guajira, spices, sticks of dye from Campeche, corn, manioc, and cocoa. Ships from all over the New World carried products to Havana so that they could be taken by the fleet to Spain. The thousands of ships gathered in the city's bay also fueled Havana's agriculture and manufacture, as they had to be supplied with food, water, and other products in order to traverse the ocean.

In 1563, the Capitán General (the Spanish Governor of the island) moved from Santiago de Cuba to Havana due to that city's newly gained wealth and importance, unofficially sanctioning its status as capital of the island. On December 20, 1592, King Philip II of Spain granted Havana the title of City. Later, the city would be officially designated as "Key to the New World and antemural of the West Indies" by the Spanish crown.

In the meantime, efforts to build or improve the defensive infrastructures of the city were carried on. The San Juan de la Punta castle guarded the west entrance of the bay, while the Castillo de los Tres Reyes Magos del Morro guarded the east entrance. The Castillo de la Real Fuerza defended the city's center, and doubled as the Governor's residence until a more comfortable palace was built. Two more defensive towers, La Chorrera and San Lázaro were built in this period, as well.

[edit] 17th and 18th centuries

The Great Theater of Havana, German neo-baroque theater first opened in 1838.

Havana expanded greatly in the 17th century. New buildings were constructed from the most abundant materials of the island, mainly wood, combining various Iberian architectural styles, as well as borrowing profusely from Canarian characteristics. During this period the city also built civic monuments and religious constructions. The convent of St Augustin, El Morro Castle, the chapel of the Humilladero, the fountain of Dorotea de la Luna in La Chorrera, the church of the Holy Angel, the hospital of San Lazaro, the monastery of Santa Teresa and the convent of San Felipe Neri were all completed in this era.

In 1649 a fatal epidemic brought from Cartagena in Colombia, affected a third of the population of Havana. On November 30, 1665, Queen Mariana of Austria, widow of King Philip IV of Spain, ratified the heraldic shield of Cuba, which took as its symbolic motifs the first three castles of Havana: the Real Fuerza, the Tres Santos Reyes Magos del Morro and San Salvador de la Punta. The shield also displayed a symbolic golden key to represent the title "Key to the Gulf". On 1674, the works for the City Walls were started, as part of the fortification efforts. They would be completed on 1740.

By the middle of the 18th century Havana had more than seventy thousand inhabitants, and was the third largest city in the Americas, ranking behind Lima and Mexico City but ahead of Boston and New York.^[4] The prosperity of Havana brought continued international attention, and the city was unexpectedly seized by the Royal Navy. The episode began on June 6, 1762, when at dawn, an impressive British fleet, containing more than fifty ships and fourteen thousand men, sailed into Cuban waters. The British seized the city as part of the Seven Years' War, opening it to free trade and bringing thousands of enslaved Africans to the island. The city was subsequently governed by Sir George Keppel on behalf of Great Britain. In the middle of 1763, only a year after the invasion, the British returned Havana to the Spanish in exchange for Florida.

Catedral de San Cristóbal

After regaining the city, the Spanish transformed Havana into the most heavily fortified city in the Americas. Construction began on what was to become the Fortress of San Carlos de la Cabaña, the biggest Spanish fortification in the New World. The work extended for eleven years and was enormously costly, but on completion the fort was considered an unassailable bastion and essential to Havana's defence. It was provided with a large number of cannons forged in Barcelona. Other fortifications were constructed, as well: the castle of Atarés defended the Shipyard in the inner bay, while the castle of El Príncipe guarded the city from the west. Several cannon batteries located along the bay's canal (among them the San Nazario and Doce Apóstoles batteries) ensured that no place in the harbor remained undefended.

The Bank of Nova Scotia neoclassical façade.

The Havana cathedral was constructed in 1748 as a Jesuit church, and converted in 1777 into the Parroquial Mayor church, after the Suppression of the Jesuits in Spanish territory in 1767. In 1788, it formally became a Cathedral. Between 1789 and 1790 Cuba was apportioned into an individual diocese by the Roman Catholic Church. On January 15, 1796, the remains of Christopher Columbus were transported to the island from Santo Domingo. They rested here until 1898, when they were transferred to Seville's Cathedral, after Spain's loss of Cuba.

Havana's shipyard (named El Arsenal) was extremely active, thanks to the lumber resources available in the vicinity of the city. The Santísima Trinidad was the largest warship of her time. Launched in 1769, she was about 62 meters long, had three decks and 120 cannons. She was later upgraded to as many as 144 cannons and four decks. She sank following the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805. This ship cost 40.000 pesos fuertes of the time, which gives an idea of the importance of the Arsenal, by comparing its cost to the 26 million pesos fuertes and 109 ships produced during the Arsenal's existence.^[5]

[edit] 19th Century

As trade between Caribbean and North American states increased in the early 19th century, Havana became a flourishing and fashionable city. Havana's theaters featured the most distinguished actors of the age, and prosperity amongst the burgeoning middle-class led to expensive new classical mansions being erected. During this period Havana became known as the Paris of the Antilles.

The 19th century opened with the arrival in Havana of Alexander von Humboldt, who was impressed by the vitality of the port. In 1837, the first railroad was constructed, a 51 km stretch between Havana and Bejucal, which was used for transporting sugar from the valley of Guines to the harbor. With this, Cuba became the fifth country in the world to have a railroad, and the first Spanish-speaking country. Throughout the century, Havana was enriched by the construction of additional cultural facilities, such as the theater Tacon, one of the most luxurious in the world, the Artistic and Literary Liceo (Lyceum) and the theater Coliseo. In 1863, the city walls were knocked down so that the metropolis could be enlarged. At the end of the century, the well-off classes moved to the quarter of El Vedado. Later, they emigrated towards Miramar, and today, evermore to the west, they have settled in Siboney. At the end of the 19th century, Havana witnessed the final moments of Spanish colonialism in America, which ended definitively when the United States warship Maine was sunk in its port, giving that country the pretext to invade the island. The 20th century began with Havana, and therefore Cuba, under occupation by the USA.

Museum of the Revolution, former presidential palace

[edit] Republican Period

Under American influence, the city grew and prospered. Numerous hotels, casinos and nightclubs were constructed in the 1930s to serve Havana's burgeoning tourist industry. Santos Traficante took the roulette wheel at the Sans-Souci, Meyer Lansky directed the Riviera, and Lucky Luciano, the National Casino. At that time Havana became an exotic capital of gambling and corruption where gangsters and stars were known to mix socially. A gallery of black and white portraits from the era still adorns the walls of the bar of the National Hotel, including pictures of Frank Sinatra with Ava Gardner, Marlene Dietrich and Gary Cooper.

[edit] Post-revolution

After the revolution of 1959 efforts were made to improve social services, public housing and official buildings. Nevertheless, shortages that affected Cuba following the revolution and subsequent U.S. embargo hit Havana especially hard; much of the city is crumbling without sufficient resources to preserve the old buildings from the effects of the tropical climate and occasional hurricanes. Following a severe economic downturn after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the government has increasingly turned to tourism for financial support. A major effort has gone into rebuilding Old Havana for tourist purposes and a number of streets and squares have been rehabilitated.Construction is ongoing in Havana

In 1991, the Pan American Games were held in Havana.

[edit] General

El Vedado

Havana City is one of the smallest of the Cuban provinces, but the most populated. There are different architectural styles in the city, from houses of the 17th Century to modern constructions. Havana is the most important destination for tourists in Cuba and one of the most important in Latin America. It is also the center of government, and various ministries are based in the city, as are the head offices of businesses located in Vedado such as Corporacion Cimex. In the late 1990s Vedado represented the principal commercial area of the city, located along the Caribbean waterfront, was developed extensively during the decades between 1930 and 1960, when Havana developed as a major destination for U.S. tourists; high-rise hotels, casinos, restaurants, and upscale commercial establishments, many reflecting the art deco style. The University of Havana is located in Vedado.

Financial district

Miramar lies further west along the coast, and retains Havana's exclusive area; mansions, foreign embassies, diplomatic residences, upscale shops, and facilities for wealthy foreigners are common in the area. Another important distric in the capital it's Centro Havana, the Capitolio Nacional marks the beginning of central Havana, a working class neighborhood, where alot of buildings are almost in a total state of collapse. The Real Fabrica de Tabacos Partagas, one Cuba's oldest cigar factories it's located in the area. The International School of Havana is located in Miramar.

Important health centers include the Hermanos Ameijeiras Hospital, Camilo Cienfuegos Center of Pigmentary Retinosis, International Neurological Restoration Center, Pedro Kouri Institute of Tropical Medicine, Frank Pais International Orthopedic Complex and Surgical-Medical Research Center. International festivals are held in the city every year in the spheres of films, ballet, the guitar, contemporary music and theater. There is also a biennial of art and several important congresses and trade fairs, such as the International Fair of Havana. San Antonio de los Baños is home of the International Film and TV School and home of the Humor Museum (which holds biennials of humor).

The industries in Havana are an important part of the economy of Cuba. Havana’s harbor is the most important in Cuba and through it come and go half of Cuba's imports and exports.

[edit] Climate

Havana's predominant climate is of the warm tropical type, with a rainy season in the summer. As to its geographical location, Havana is in the next latitude to the Tropic of Cancer, which entails the reception of high amounts of solar radiation throughout the year, determining the warm character of its climate. In Havana, temperatures are generally high. The annual means go from 24ºC in the plains to 26ºC.

On the night of July 8-9, 2005, the eastern suburbs of the city took a direct hit from Hurricane Dennis, and in October 2005, the coastal regions suffered severe flooding following Hurricane Wilma. The table below lists temperature averages throughout the year:

**Climate Table based on typical year**
	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Mean daily maximum temperature (°C)	25.8	26.1	27.6	28.6	29.8	30.5	31.3	31.6	31.0	29.2	27.7	26.5
Mean daily minimum temperature (°C)	18.6	18.6	19.7	20.9	22.4	23.4	23.8	24.1	23.8	23.0	21.3	19.5
Days with rain	5.0	5.0	3.0	3.0	6.0	10.0	7.0	9.0	10.0	11.0	6.0	5.0
Source: Hong Kong Observatory

[edit] Culture

Havana contains many cultural places including palaces, public squares, avenues, churches, fortresses and other fortifications (including the largest fortified complex in the Americas dating from the 16th through 18th centuries. There are dozens of theaters and movie theaters and several cigar factories.

[edit] Old Havana

Main article: Old Havana

Old Havana street scene

UNESCO Heritage site Old Havana, (La Habana Vieja in Spanish), is the richest colonial set of Latin America. Havana Vieja was founded by the Spanish in 1515 in the natural harbor of the Bay of Havana. It became a stopping point for the treasure laden Spanish Galleons on the crossing between the New World and the Old World. In the 17th century it was one of the main ship-building centers. The narrow streets of Old Havana contain many buildings of historical and cultural significance, accounting for perhaps as many as one-third of the approximately 3,000 buildings found in Old Havana.

Old Havana is the ancient city formed from the port, the official center and the Plaza de Armas. Alejo Carpentier called Old Havana the place "de las columnas"(of the columns). The Cuban government is taking many steps to preserve and to restore Old Havana, through the Office of the City Historian, directed by Eusebio Leal. Old Havana and its fortifications were added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1982.

[edit] Chinatown

Havana's Chinatown district. The paifang is located on Dragones street.

Havana has an active Chinese community and a number of Chinese restaurants. A lot of Chinese restaurants can be found in Centro Havana at 10 Cuchillo Street. The strip contains many restaurants that serve a full spectrum of Chinese dishes. Unlike that of Argentina and other Latin American countries, the overseas Chinese population of Cuba was once large. Only one Chinese-language newspaper, Kwong Wah Po, remains in Havana. Havana's Chinatown was formerly among the largest in Latin America as the neighborhood was comprised of 44 square blocks during its prime. Chinese immigration to Cuba started in 1847 when Spanish settlers brought in Cantonese contract workers to work in the sugar fields. Hundreds of thousands of Chinese workers were brought in from Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan during the following decades to replace the labor of African slaves. After completing 8-year contracts, the Chinese immigrants generally settled permanently in Havana, where their descendants have since intermarried with local Cubans.

To tie in with the Revolution's economic reliance on tourism, attempts have recently been launched to attract revitalization investment for Chinatown from Mainland Chinese state-run enterprises and overseas Chinese private investors, particularly Chinese Canadians.

[edit] Museums

El Capitolio, Cuban Academy of Science

Havana has around 50 museums. These includes the Museum of Fine Art, the Revolution and Decorative Arts; the National Museum of Music; the Museum of Dance and Rum; the Cigar Museum; the Napoleonic, Colonial and Oricha Museums; the Museum of Antropology; the Ernest Hemingway Museum; the Jose Marti Monument; Museums of Natural Sciences, the City, Archeology Museum, and Gold-and Silverwork. Also the Aircraft, Parfume, Pharmaceutical, Sports, Numismatic and Weapons Museums.

[edit] Nightlife

Some of the nightclubs, restaurants and cabarets found in Havana are world renowned, such as the Tropicana cabaret and nightclub, known as Paradise Under the Stars since it opened in 1939, it has become a shrine to tropical sexuality; 200 dancing queens and heavily choreographed routine is performed to tunes that run the gamut of Cuban musical genres. The Parisien it's another world renowned cabaret, with a show that lasts longer than Tropicana and is of an equivalent standard. Salón Rojo, is a Tropicana-style show with a disco opened until 4 AM. The Club Turquino situated on the 25th floor of the Habana Libre Hotel, has as very sleek New York style bar, its roof opens giving amazing views from the 25th floor. Other clubs includes Habana Cafe, Macumba Habana, La Zorra y el Cuervo (the Fox and the Crow, jazz music), El Gato Tuerto (The One-Eyed Cat, for soul music) and Dos Gardenias (Two Gardenias, for Boleros). Its best known restaurants and bars includes Ernest Hemingway's favorite La Bodeguita del Medio, the Floridita, El Aljibe, El Patio and La Terraza.

[edit] Beaches

Havana has a series of beaches spread out along the Via Blanca highway east of the city. Bacuranao, Megano, Boca Ciega, Santa Maria and Guanabo beaches, the last two are the largest and most popular, are over 8.5 miles (around 14 km) long, white sand of coral origin and clear, warm, green-blue water. There is also the Tarara Marina, which has facilities for scuba diving and other water sports. In the deeper water, turtles can be seen, Blue Marlins (Makaira nigrencans), Tuna (Scombridge) and Sword fish (Xiphias gladius). In general, the city's long shoreline is good for scuba diving, there are more than 70 diving sites in the area, 62 miles (100 km) long and nearly two miles (3 km) wide, including some sunken ships which have been declared a part of Cuba's historic heritage. Four international scuba diving centers serve the capital.

[edit] Landmarks

Galician center

Castillo del Morro, a picturesque fortress guarding the entrance to Havana bay. The construction of the castle Los Tres Reyes del Morro was due to the step along in Havana of the English pirate Sir Francis Drake.
La Cabaña a fortress located on the east side of the Havana bay. La Cabaña is the most impressive fortress from colonial times, particularly its walls constructed (at the same time as El Morro) at the end of the 18th century.
Castillo San Salvador de la Punta - is a small fortress built in the 16th century, at the western entry point to the Havana harbour, played a crucial role in the defence of Havana during the first centuries of colonisation. The fortress still houses some twenty old guns and other military antiques.
Malecón is the avenue that runs along the seawall built along the northern shore of Havana, from Habana Vieja to the Almendares River, forming the southern boundary of Old Havana, Centro Habana and Vedado.

Memorial José Martí, Plaza de la Revolución. This monument dates from the time of Fulgencio Batista
National Capitol, Built in 1929 as the Senate and House of Representatives (and said to be a replica of Washington DC's Capitol), this colossal building is recognizable by its dome which dominates the city's skyline. Inside stands the largest indoor bronze statue in the world representing Pallas Athena. Nowadays, the Museo Nacional de Historia Natural (the National Museum of Natural History) has its venue within the building and contains the largest natural history collection in the country.
The Great Theater of Havana a is famous, particularly for the acclaimed National Ballet of Cuba and its founderAlicia Alonso. It sometimes performs the National Opera. The theater is also known as concert hall, Garcia Lorca, the biggest in Cuba.
The Museum of the Revolution, located in the former Presidential Palace, with the boat Granma on display in front of the museum.
Necrópolis Cristóbal Colón - cemetery and open air museum^[6] It is one of the most famous cemeteries in Latin America, known for its beauty and magnificence. The cemetery was built in 1876 and has nearly a million tombs. Some of the gravestones are decorated with the works of sculptors of the calibre of Ramos Blancos, among others.
Casa de las Américas - is a Cuban institution for Latin American and Carribean culture. The galleries in the main building house one of the finest collections of Latin American art. There are three separate exhibition spaces and a specialised library.
Hotel Nacional de Cuba, or the National Hotel.
Botanical Garden - a garden with beautiful scenery of its Caribbean species, and particularly Cuban. There is a Japanese Garden, with its fountains and waterfalls.
National Acuarium - Cuba’s National Aquarium features a unique exhibit in the world, the Island and the Caribbean’s marine flora and fauna are preserved by the work of the staff that has been encouraged with the Colectivo Vanguardia Nacional acknowledgment during five years.
Centro Wilfredo Lam - This little museum and gallery is dedicated to the memory of Cuba's most treasured modern artist, Wilfredo Lam. The museum houses a sizeable collection of Lam's lithographs and acrylic works, as well as works of art and sculpture from the artist's personal collection.
Convento de Santa Clara de Asis - One of the oldest and best of the Spanish colonial monasteries on the island, this building is now home to the Centro Nacional de Restauración, Conservación y Museología or CENCREM (National Centre for Restoration, Conservation and Museum Studies). Founded in 1644 it has, despite its peaceful history, given rise to many tales and legends of unrequited love and hidden treasure. No evidence has ever been uncovered to back up these stories.
The Christ of Havana - Havana's statue of Christ blesses the city from the other side of the bay, much like the famous Cristo Redentor in Rio de Janeiro. Carved from marble by Jilma Madera, it was erected in 1958 on a platform which makes a good spot from which to watch old Havana and the harbour.
José Martí Memorial - is a museum dedicated to the life of this famous revolutionary writer and poet. The museum displays many of José Martí's personal belongings.

[edit] Transportation

Train in Havana

A decommissioned bus from Seville, now operating in Havana

Further information: Transportation in Cuba

Havana's international airport is José Martí International Airport. It lies about 10 km south of the city center, and is the main hub for Cubana de Aviación. Havana's bus service is well used, and buses are often very crowded. The bus service operates fixed routes. These are trailers transformed into buses, known as camels, so called for their two humps. The "camel buses" usually cover the longer routes to the outskirts. The Colectivos are taxis that operate long and fixed routes, only embarking when complete with passengers. These taxis are cheaper than the buses, and drivers wait in the surroundings of the bus stations. There are several inter-province bus services such as Astro, the regular National public transportation, Astro connects the capital city with all over the island, in 2005 Astro completely replaced its fleet with brand new Yutong buses. The passenger ferry travels to Regla and Casablanca every 10 or 15 minutes from Muelle Luz, on the San Pedro and Santa Clara corner, in the Southeast of Old Havana. Rail service also connects Havana from the Central Rail Station in Old Havana to various Cuban provinces, Cuban railway systems bought French first class airconditioned trains in the mid 2000s.

The Central Highway (Carretera Central) is the most important communication axis. It joins Havana center to the main urban centers and it is connected with other main ways such as the National Freeway, the Monimental, Via Blanca, La Farola. The highway is a narrow way with two lanes and it was built in the 30s. The National Highway, more modern than the central highway, connects Havana City all along to Ciego de Avila, located in the center of the country and near the eastern part of the country. It is most rapid, modern and wide way, provided with several lanes. However, it doesn't get to the eastern provinces of the country. It extends all through the south center of the island. It is a wide way, with 6 and 8 lanes built in the 70s.

Public transportation "camello" routes:

M-1 Alamar - Vedado via Fraternidad
M-2 Fraternidad - Santiago de las Vegas
M-3 Alamar - Ciudad Deportiva
M-4 Fraternidad - San Agustin via Marianao
M-5 Vedado - San Agustin
M-6 Calvario - Vedado
M-7 Parque de la Fraternidad - Alberro via Cotorro

After the upgrading of Seville's public bus fleet to CNG-powered and new vehicles, many of the decommissioned ones were donated to the city of Havana. These bright orange buses still display the name of Transportes Urbanos de Sevilla, S.A.M., their former owner, and Seville's coat of arms as a sign of gratitude.^[7]

[edit] Administration

The city is divided into 15 municipios - municipalities or boroughs.

Arroyo Naranjo
Boyeros
Centro Habana
Cerro
Cotorro
Diez de Octubre
Guanabacoa
La Habana del Este
La Habana Vieja (Old Havana)
La Lisa
Marianao
Playa (includes Miramar, and extends to Santa Fé in the west)
Plaza de la Revolucion (sometimes abbreviated to Plaza; includes Vedado)
Regla
San Miguel del Padrón

[edit] Sister Cities (Twin Cities)

[edit] Sports

Havana was host to the 11th Pan American Games in 1991. Stadiums and facilities for this were built in the relatively unpopulated eastern suburbs.
Havana was a candidate to host the 2012 Summer Olympic Games, but was not shortlisted.

[edit] Other images

La Fuerza fortress

Estación Central de Tren (Central Train Station)

Sunrise in Havana

Malecón

View to Habana from the Hotel Sevilla, 2002

[edit] References

Find more information on Havana by searching Wikipedia's sister projects
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^ Article from Granma, in Spanish
^ ^a ^b Historia de la Construcción Naval en Cuba
^ http://leyendascubanas.wordpress.com/2006/07/10/historia-de-la-india-habana/
^ Thomas, Hugh : Cuba, A pursuit of freedom 2nd Edition p.1
^ http://www.vitruvius.com.br/arquitextos/arq000/esp175e.asp
^ Havana's magnificent necropolis tells a story of wealth and freedom
^ The last lot was delivered in 2006: "Entrega de 16 autobuses de TUSSAM a la Habana como gesto solidario", nota de prensa del Ayuntamiento de Sevilla

The Rough Guide to Cuba (3rd ed.). Rough Guides, May 2005. ISBN 1-84353-409-6.
Barclay, Juliet (1993). Havana: Portrait of a City. London: Cassell. ISBN 1-84403-127-6 (2003 paperback edition). — A comprehensive account of the history of Havana from the early 16th century to the end of the 19th century.
Carpentier, Alejo. La ciudad de las columnas (The city of columns). — A historical review of the city from one of the major authors in the iberoamerican literature, a native of this city.
Cluster, Dick, & Rafael Hernández, History of Havana. New York: Palgrave-MacMillan, 2006. ISBN 1-4039-7107-2. A social history of the city from 1519 to the present, co-authored by a Cuban writer and editor resident in Havana and an American novelist and writer of popular history.
Eguren, Gustavo. La fidelísima Habana (The very faithful Havana). — A fundamental illustrated book for those who wants to know the history of La Habana, includes chronicles, articles from natives and non natives, archives documents, and more.