Vieille ville de La Havane et son système de fortifications

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NHK World Heritage 100 Series (en anglais)

Texte narratif (en anglais)

The Town Hemingway Loved/Old Havana and its Fortifications

“The most beautiful island in the World”, was the comment made by Columbus when he landed on the island of Cuba in 1492. Ernest Hemingway first came to Havana in 1928 when he was 29 years old. He visited Cuba many times. The bar he used to go to even has a bronze statue of him. That was because he invented a special recipe for their most popular cocktail Daiquiri, a rum-based drink mixed with lime juice.

The Spanish Civil war Hemingway covered as a journalist came to an end in 1939. He moved to Havana soon afterwards and lived in a hotel in the old town. He wrote a novel in this room based on his experiences of the Spanish Civil War called “For Whom The Bell Tolls”.

Cuba has had a turbulent history. This fortress was built during the 16th century when the island was under Spanish rule. Its purpose was to protect the city from European invaders and pirates. Some remarkable buildings were built during Spanish rule. Hemingway often went to the Garcia Lorca theatre. This baroque-style theatre is known as the home of Cuban classical ballet.

Cuba prospered through trade in cigars and sugar and by the late 19th century, Cubans began calling for independence. Events lead to U.S involvement and ultimately ended in the Spanish-American war. The United States won and Cuba was freed from Spanish rule. U.S. influence grew, American cars made during the 1960s are still seen on Havana’s streets ....

Hemingway’s novel “For Whom The Bell Tolls” was a best seller and with the royalties he bought a house with an orchard on the outskirts of Havana. He met a fisherman on the beach in the village near his home whose character inspired him to write “The Old Man and The Sea”. The novel starts with a description of the old fisherman sailing alone in a small boat and not catching any fish for 84 days.

Foreign citizens were forced to leave the island in 1959. As an American, Hemingway had no choice but to leave Cuba. He donated his house and land to the Cuban government and left … never to return.