Last day in Havana: Havana from a bird's-eye view

In the morning, we left the car and walked to the morning activities. First, we passed by Don Quijote and even though I don't like modern art, I really like this artwork and I think it fits well with the Cubans: the constant fight against windmills.

We then went to the university because we wanted to visit the laboratory where my dad used to work at the Physics Institute. The Alma Marter welcomed us with its inviting grand staircase. Upstairs, the different institutes are spread out amidst tropical vegetation. The often academic buildings are in top condition and the Physics Institute, which we wanted to visit, was being renovated so we had to look for the relocated magnetism laboratory. We were disappointed to find out that none of the old colleagues or acquaintances were there. Many of them are also abroad and the only familiar person wasn't there that day.

We then drove to Plaza de la Revolución, the mass rally square where Fidel used to deliver his speeches to thousands of people for hours. The José Martí Monument (literary figure and national hero), the imposing tower, and the two huge outlines of Che Guevara and Camilo Cienfuegos dominate the gigantic concrete plaza. We didn't have high expectations because the highest viewpoint in the city on the tower of the plaza couldn't be visited during our previous visits to Cuba due to a broken elevator. We were pleasantly surprised to find out that there has been a new elevator (from Germany) for two years and it is possible to ride up to the Mirador at 142 meters high. From up there, we had a fantastic view of the whole Havana and its bay. This was definitely the highlight of the day.

After that, we wanted to go to the botanical garden, which is located outside of Havana. Unfortunately, our plans were foiled because the park was already closed. It was barely 4 PM and the park is open until 5 PM, but the park guard told us that since there were no visitors, the staff simply left.

Since we were getting hungry, we decided to have a meal at a cozy restaurant a little further away, in the middle of nowhere. It seems that tourists never get lost here and despite the delicious and abundant typical Cuban food, the prices were incredibly cheap because they were listed in Cuban pesos and not in CUC.

On the way back, we took a detour to my father's former boarding school, "La Lenin," which has the reputation of being the best school in Cuba.

Back in the center of Havana, we decided to walk to Hotel Nacional once again, where we had only been at night the last time. Since you can have a great view of the Malecón from there, we treated ourselves to a cocktail on the terrace and toasted to the last day in Havana.

Finally, we enjoyed the fresh sea breeze sitting right on the Malecón, overlooking el Morro and the beginning of the sunset - the favorite pastime of Cubans.