THAT CUBAN MYSTIQUEjune/july 2018cruisingworld.com47FOR
our first full day on the island, everyone
participated in a welcome-to-Havana tour. Orga-
nizers broke up rally crews into seven groups, each of which left
the marina aboard modern, comfortable buses. A guide on the bus
pointed out the sights along the way, including the Hotel Nacional
de Cuba and the U.S. Embassy. Once we arrived in Havana, we
met with another guide and took a walking tour of the old city.
So much of Havana was exactly like I expected — from photos
I knew that many buildings would be in disrepair, if not outright
crumbling down, but what I didn’t expect was the art, everywhere.
Statues, murals, sculptures, music, quotes from José Martí — you
name it. Art, be it visual or performing or the written word, is a
big deal in Cuba (although art supplies, such as quality paints and
paper, are scarce).
A highlight of our time in Havana was meeting Solé, an artist
whom David had befriended on a previous trip. We found his col-
orful open-air studio tucked on a side street. With an easy smile
and a look that would fit right in on a California beach, Solé was
happy to show us around his shop and chat about his art. His
pieces ranged from portraits of Che Guevara and Bob Marley to
Cuban flora and fauna.
The next day was the Cruising World Parade of Boats into
Havana harbor, which was something that all rally boats had to
participate in because it was one of the event’s conditions for le-
gal travel to Cuba. We lucked out with the weather — light wind
and a perfectly sunny sky. I’ll admit that I’ve been in boat parades
before (usually the Christmas variety), and was a bit lukewarm at
the thought of spending the day on the water when we could have
been exploring. I couldn’t have been more wrong.
Organizing 60 boats to leave the marina, check out with
customs, line up in a specific order and then cruise down the coast
to enter Havana harbor (then do all that in reverse) must have tak-
en someone hours to orchestrate. It all went off surprisingly well,
with the most challenging part being lining up in order. Commo-
dore Escrich, of the Hemingway International Yacht Club, led
the parade on his Sea Ray, and each boat was decorated with as
many flags as it could fly. I underestimated how cool it would be
to take in Havana from the water as we motored the length of