Living Cheaply in Havana - Real Havana: Explore Cuba Like a Local and Save Money - page 144

con where they can relax in the cool ocean breeze or party with their friends as
they share a bottle of rum. The Malecon is most active where it intersects with La
Rampa (23). On occasion the lower portion of Calle 23 is closed off to car traffic
due to the crowd sizes. Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights, this is the
place to be.
Outdoor Dance Party
Every Sunday afternoon, there is a large, free, outdoor dance party along Calle
Hamel in Central Havana (just south of the corner of San Lazaro and Calle Hos-
pital). Along this street there are also many artistic murals and vendors selling
souvenirs and handcrafted art.
If you are looking for a less touristy atmosphere, you can visit the Gran Palenque
esplanade (Calle 4, between 5 and Calzada, Nuevo Vedado) for the Sábado de
La Rumba dance festivities, held every Saturday from 3pm to 6pm. The music
plays loud and fast. Surrounded by excited locals and a catchy beat, even the
stiffest dancers are guaranteed to find their rhythm.
G Street at Night
If you're searching for something a little less raucous, you can always head over
to Calle G on a weekend night. Despite the crowds of people gathered along the
wide median running the length of this street, the atmosphere is decidedly more
sophisticated than on the Malecon. Most of the revelers are university students or
artists who live in the Vedado neighborhood. The largest crowds gather close to
the corner of 23. There is a cheap, open air bar as well as several cafes, restaur-
ants and state-run cafeterias which ensure everybody has enough to eat and
drink.
Get Lost
The most interesting parts of Havana are well off the beaten path. Break free from
the tourist hot spots and take a break from the relatively upscale downtown
Vedado area. Walking or taking a short taxi ride to any corner of Havana that you
haven't visited yet, putting your map away and letting your curiosity be your guide
is bound to be an enlightening experience. And it's comforting to know that you
will always feel perfectly safe and welcome, no matter how run-down the neigh-
borhood may appear. There are many areas in and around Havana that tourists
rarely venture to but where there is much to see and experience. In Vedado, one
of the least gentrified areas is located north of Linea street, between N and A. In
Central Havana, almost the whole neighborhood is considered underprivileged,
especially the southern sections, stretching into the large El Cerro neighborhood.
Further east, the hilly neighborhood of San Miguel del Padron is always interest-
ing and completely unexplored by tourists. West of Havana, the suburbs of Mari-