Little Havana

A quiet district of sherbet colored, lowrise buildings and dilapidated houses, Little Havana, Southwest across the river from downtown, is where the vibrant Cuban streak that colors Miami's most vividly seen.  Wandering the streets, it's not unusual to see statues of Cuba's passion Saint, the Virgin Mary, and residential gardens, and rare to find newspaper box on the street to sell English-language Miami Herald rather than El Nuevo Herald. Calle Ocho, the neighborhood's main drag, tiny stores and restaurants with hand-painted signs stand elbow to elbow; the other main thoroughfare, the Cuban Memorial Boulevard, is a quiet residential street riddled with modest bungalows with a collection of monuments to the motherland cluster along its median.  If the weather is cooperating, it's easy to forget you're not in Latin America: salesmen will come into restaurants to pedal videos or CDs, and the neighborhood McDonald's even serves Café cabana alongside its Big Macs and apple pies.  What is now Little Havana only became largely Latin after Fidel Castro took power in 1959, and Cuban refugees-drawn here by the proximity and low rents, soon set about creating a replica of their homeland in America.  They were unofficially fettered by the Miami city Council, which attempted to deny business licenses anywhere north of 8th St to those who didn't speak English, thereby confiding newcomers to Southwest Miami.  Soon, though, upwardly mobile refugees gave an economic foothold in their adopts city-so much so, in fact, that little Havana is increasingly a misnomer, as a successful Cuban community, especially the YUCA's, decamps the wealthier neighborhoods, especially Coral Gables.
That said, this is still heavily Latin residential area, and proper sites are few and far between: most visitors come the authentic human food like Vaca Frita, by a hand-rolled cigar American tobacco grown from Cuban seeds, or just browse the shops.  Take time, though, to Walker on the back streets-at least in daylight hours-for this is where you'll see the real science of transplanted ethnic community, there may be a man selling fruit from his van on a quiet corner or current posters haranguing passerby about the latest political injustice and local government.  The city council is also trying to energize the area through program called cultural Fridays: on last Friday of each month, Calle Ocho between 10th and 15th avenues is transformed into a venue for music and street stalls, in an attempt to turn the neighborhood into more of a destination.

Along the Cuban Memorial Boulevard

The Cuban Memorial Boulevard, SW 13th Ave between Calle Ocho and SW Wall St-close to the house of many former political prisoners and brigade 2506 members-is home to several monuments, often draped in Cuban flags.  The hexagonal Eternal Torch in Honor of Brigade 2506, at the corner of SW 13th Ave in Calle Ocho, is topped with a metal lamp that memorializes one of the fiercest incidents in Cuban exile politics.  Named after the ID number of one of the brigades fallen members, it features the brigade’s crest, commemorating the incident that put JFK below only Castro in many Cuban-American’s esteem.  In April 1961, a ragtag band of US-trained Cuban exiles landed at the Bay of Pigs in an abortive attempt to overthrow Castro's regime.  They were all either captured or killed-hundred and 17 men died fighting or drowned when their ship sank, while 1180 were taken prisoner.  Depending on personal political affiliations, locals will tell you that the reason the invasion failed was either the soldiers’ lack of preparation or JFK's lack of interesting Cuba-he withheld their support that may have changed the battles outcome.  Each year on April 17, a dwindling number of veterans gather here in their fatigues to reaffirm pledges of patriotism in exile to their Cuban Homeland.
A block or so south stands a cluster of other monuments: there's a simple stone column commemorating Jose Martí and a moody bronze busts of Antonio Maceo, both heroes of Cuba's war of independence with Spain.  Notice the doleful statue of the Virgin Mary-she cradles a decapitated baby Jesus, and the state of disrepair underscores the brooding isolation of the monuments-as well as a stark Island of Cuba Memorial featuring a large bronze map.  Looming over the loose group of monuments on the Cuban Memorial Boulevard is a massive kapok tree, holy to the Afro-Cuban religion of Santeria: no frequently see offerings left at its base.

Calle Ocho and around

SW 8th St runs through the whole of Miami, morphing into the Tamiami Trail as it skirts Coral Gables’ northern boundary and shootout into the Everglades.  It's between southwest eighth and 27th avenues, though, where it earns him the moniker of Calle Ocho, as a staunchly Spanish-speaking commercial drag, lined with stores and restaurants plus local landmarks like Maximo Gomez Park and the Tower Theatre.

Maximo Gomez Park

West along Calle Ocho from the brigade 2506 Memorial, Maximo Gomez Park, at the corner of SW 14th Ave, is officially named after hero of the Cuban war of Independence.  This gated concrete hideaways big-game domino Park-despite the clichéd image, old Cuban men really do gather here to play dominoes and spend the day arguing about politics.  In fact, access to the parks open-air tables is quite a legally restricted to men over 55.  Bear in mind that these old timers are camera-fierce rather than camera-shy, and don't take kindly to the attentions of enthusiastic visitors.  The fencing key cards that guard its entrance aren’t geared to prevent tourist intrusion, though-they were installed after a spate of shootings in the 1980s.  He shouldn't have any problems stopping by during the day, though, as the gates will normally be open.

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