Havana: expectations vs. reality

My desire to visit Havana came from the most unlikely of travel inspo sources; veteran news reader and TV presenter Sir Trevor McDonald. In around 2009, ITV released him from the shackles of his News at Ten desk to present a documentary series on the Secret Caribbean. One episode placed him in Havana, and teenage me was enchanted by what I saw. It was the first time anyone had explained to me the full raimfications of the US trade embargo, and why Cuba is stuck in its own little timewarp.

Given that I've wanted to go to Havana since foreverrrr then, it's no surprise that I had a few preconceptions and expectations about the Cuban capital. Here's what I anticipated - and how Havana lived up to expectations.


1. Vintage cars everywhere. Along with cigars and rum, retro wheels are part of the holy trinity of Havana. Trevor McD roamed the streets in a vintage red Chevrolet, and a 1950s American car is the cliched Havana photo.

Take note: from now on, my preferred travel method is a pink 1956 Ford Victoria

The truth: In reality, it's somewhere in the middle. Central Havana is chock-full of shiny, colourful Chevvies and Cadillacs, Fords and all manner of other makes that true petrolheads would be able to identify, but I just think are pretty. Cubans are very clever to use their vehicles to cash in on the tourist trade, using them as tour vehicles and taxis, and they often gather in huge numbers at various places around the city; sometimes you turn a corner and it's like walking into the drive-in movie theatre in Grease. 

 That said, there are plenty of modern cars patrolling Havana's streets too, and the further from the city centre you get, the higher the ratio of modern cars to vintage offerings. They all pootle around alongside each other with horses and carts and Coco Taxis thrown into the mix, in some sort of inter-era vehicular harmony.

The reality: vintage cars mix with modern cars and New York-style yellow taxis

2. No big brands: Given Cuba's socialist roots, and limited trade with countries such as America, I expected - and indeed, had been warned - that it's rare to find international brands there, be it food and drink, or clothing and goods.

The truth: The first thing we saw while waiting in the lengthy Passport Control queues at Havana Airport were adverts for Pringles - there goes that theory, then. Admittedly, there is far less advertising in Cuba than anywhere else I've been, the usual billboards replaced with street art and murals praising socialism, Che Guevara and other aspects of Cuban life. The majority of the adverts you do see tend to be for Cuban brands - Havana Club rum is everywhere.

You're more likely to see murals than billboards on Havana's streets

As for getting hold of international brands, it is possible. Coca Cola, for example, is available at many of the major international hotels. If you just ask for Cola, by default, you'll be served Cuba's own brand, Ciego Montero. State 'international Coca Cola' if you want the branded stuff, and expect to pay extra for it - it's imported from Mexico.

Not what I expected to see in Plaza Vieja

What surprised me most was the presence of high-end international fashion stores in the tourist areas. Lacoste and Pepe Jeans make an appearance in Plaza Vieja, one of Havana's main squares, and the likes of Mango can be found in the shopping arcade attached to the Gran Hotel Manzana. These are predominantly for tourists - the majority of Cubans simply can't afford to shop in them.

3. Beautiful colonial buildings: Those cliched classic car photos often have a backdrop of
shabby chic pastel facades - stereotypical Havana architecture.

The truth: Beautiful some of them may be, but others have been allowed to fall so far into disrepair, it's sad to see. Several houses have exposed pipes and wires and this is where you want to watch yourself - don't go leaning back to take a photo, only to electrocute yourself on a wire sticking out of a house. Yeah, I did. Bloomin' hurt too. The streets too are in a terrible state of disrepair, with uneven, cracked and bumpy pavements, and huge potholes in the roads.

Less shabby chic, more plain shabby

Plus two things I didn't expect:

The fumes: Ok, so it's obvious when you think about it, but before I went, I hadn't; with hundreds of cars dating back to the 1950s roaming the streets, Havana's not the most environmentally-friendly city in the world. The petrol fumes are overpowering and unavoidable. When combined with the heat and humidity, the whole atmosphere feels claustrophobic to the point of being toxic. After three days in Havana, I was starting to worry that my lungs had received permanent damage, and at the end of each day, I was desperate to get into the hotel shower and scrub the layer of grime off of me.

It's so green: Yep, completely goes against what I just said. I don't mean 'green' in the environmental sense though, I mean literally green, with plants and trees and bushes. This may be due to the time of year we visited (February) - in hotter months it may be more barren - but I was pleasantly surprised that those dusty, arid streets you see in photographs are interspersed with green parks and squares. The highlight was the Parque Almendares, which we drove through on our tour in a classic American car, and which an air of Jurassic Park to it.

Have you been to Havana? Did it live up to your expectations? Let me know in the comments.

See also:Venice: expectations vs. reality