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Havana, 1904. "Muelle Paula (Alameda de Paula)." The Cuban capital's first waterfront promenade. 8x10 inch dry plate glass negative, Detroit Photographic Company. View full size.
I have spent a lot of time in this very spot, looking across the dirty waters of the bay towards the white statue of Jesus that today looks down from the hillside in the background. The stubby grey steamship behind the masts, blurred in motion, is probably a lanchita (ferry) crossing the bay to Regla. The lanchitas still leave from that spot; today the ferry terminal is a glass box with a cheap and utilitarian (i.e. typically Cuban) cafe on the upper level. A wonderful spot to sit and watch the port traffic - hulking Vietnamese freighters, the odd yacht or cruise ship (although the latter may have ceased since Trump adopted the hardline Miami expat position).
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