Destination for the morning is El Cemeterio Santa Ifigenia, where many of Cuba's heroes are buried, and where Fidel will go when he dies. The sidewalks are all polished marble.
Some of the larger buildings (the grey castle in the second pic and green building in the third), contain the bones (not the ashes, too expensive), of
heroes connected with certain battles.
We had another excellent guide (another teacher, also a historian, Jose, if you ever come here, ask for him), who did a great job of putting everything in context, with plenty of repetition on the sequences. He really made the point about the significance of St. de Cuba as the cradle of revolutions, and also of the contribution of so many in addition to the Castro brothers, including Americans, Brits and Canadians.
The most significant memorial is that of Jose Marti, whose name we see the most on streets and plazas etc.
He was a philosopher and poet and it was his words that Pete Seeger added to Guantanamera to make it a hit folk song in the 60s. He also fought in the second revolution (in the mid 19th century) but he was not that great a soldier, and only lasted a few months. Nonetheless, his words, like those of Thomas Paine, probably inspired more than those of any of his countrymen.
His tomb is faithful to his wishes in several respects...
from the light perpetually on it, to the flag and flowers, and even two streams of water that flow around it when it rains. The memorial is a favorite tourist site for the formal changing of the guard.
There were several other points of interest in the cemetery, including the tomb of a member of the Bacardi rum family who was a revolutionary, though wealthy...
and of Compey Segundo, an original member of the Buena Vista Social Club, with 95 metal flowers for the 95 years of his life....
plus the ticket taker's fingernails.
We had walked to the cemetery, and on the way caught a number of street scenes.
On the way back we honored my request to try a horse taxi.
Plus Santiago de Cuba 15
Dana raised holy hell over the driver's insistence that we pay 2 pesos (about 8 cents), rather than the one peso someone on the street had told us was the fare. She relented only when the guy who had told her that said it was okay to pay 2. Hmmmmmmm.
When we got back to the place this very cool lizard was next to the stairs leading to our terrace. It can change color, but is not a chameleon. Can't have him, GEICO - the embargo, remember?
In the afternoon we again indulged D's obsession with musica and bailar, first at the Casa de Trova...
Santiago de Cuba 16....
Santiago de Cuba 17
and then at a corner "pirate bar" bar.
Santiago de Cuba 18
and this time we also indulged mine, on the terrace of the Hotel Casa Granda, behind the Buick.
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Location:Santiago de Cuba
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