Travel over Havana, which is known for being Cuba’s carefree capital, and at the same time, popular for its rum and music. Imagine being in Havana right now as you strut along very sunny cobblestone streets as sensuous salsa music plays. There are many layers to this Cuban capital – a place with a history that is very rich.
Guanabacoa is a charming and lively suburb of Havana that will offer you a slice of life that you won’t see in the city center. This small town played an important role in the chronical history of slavery in the “New World,” and it was once the site of forced reservation camps for indigenous people.
Today, Guanabacoa is the center for Havana’s Afro-Cuban religions such as Yoruba. Yoruba‘s traditional practices and spiritual concepts evolved into hearty and robust religious system beliefs that an individual who stops growing spiritually in any aspect of their lives is destined for invisible potsherds.
As you stroll down the colonial streets of Old Havana, you’ll catch on the countrymen’s traditional daily life such as the old style of Cuban music wafting through the streets where the guitar-bearing troubadours will serenade and enchant your soul with its rhythms and move your body to their Latin-African beats. Afro-Cuban music is also influenced by African ethnic groups from the Congo and Arara region. The basic pattern of Afro-Cuban music is Rumba that roots in Afro-Cuban religion, which lyrics are sung in Spanish.
Throughout your explorations of Cuban’s rich culture, your taste buds will come alive with the scents of its hearty and traditional cuisine temptations. Cuban cuisine is a blend of African, Spanish and other Caribbean cuisines. During the colonial period, Cuba was an important port for a trade where some of its traders brought their own culinary traditions with them. But due to its colonization, Spanish was the main influence for their cuisines. The typical cuisine makes wide use of pork, fowl, and rice. Some of the popular dishes include ‘moros y cristianos’, black beans and rice; ‘ajicao’, a stew of meat and vegetables; and ‘lechón asado’ which is a roast pig.
Havana – truly the heart and soul of Cuba. Discover more of these authentic Havana day trips with CubaRealTours.com