ITINERARY

9:30 am ~ Walking Tour of Old Havana and its Four Colonial Plazas with architectural preservationist Ayleen Robaina

Ayleen will speak about the intersection of Jewish history and architecture in La Habana Vieja as we get to know the historic core of Havana, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Here one can find extraordinary Colonial architecture, both well-preserved and decayed, many galleries, contemporary centers, boutique museums, and little shops. Starting at the Plaza Vieja we might see a couple of exhibits of contemporary Cuban art at two of Havana’s most important contemporary art centers, El Centro del Desarollo de Arte Contemporánea and la Fototeca de Cuba. Continue down Calle Los Mercaderes to la Plaza de las Armas, Havana’s first square and origin point of the city’s settlement. We’ll continue to the Plaza de la Catedral where we’ll visit the collective graphic arts workshop, Taller de Gráfica. This public studio for local artists was established by Pablo Neruda and Che Guevara at the beginning of the Revolution as a place where artists living and visiting Havana can work on printmaking. Around the corner we’ll see an exhibit at the Wilfredo Lam Center. As we walk we’ll point out the intersection of Jewish history and architecture in La Habana Vieja. We’ll stop at Hotel Raquel, the Jewish-themed hotel, for a beverage.