Chapter 5 - Havana (English)

 

One afternoon at the end of April, cooler and less muggy than it usually was at that time of the year, Miguel and the captain set sail for the Canary Islands. Mariano went to the dock to say goodbye to them. He became melancholic watching the maneuvers of the sailboat and the raising of the sails. He would have gladly embarked with them to return to his land. Since he had set foot in Cuba, every morning he woke up with fear and pain in his chest. He had mentioned it to Miguel who told him that the same thing had happened to him when he left La Palma.

- It is due to the fear of feeling abandoned and the longing one has for one's family. Don't worry, we've all been there.

- While we were sailing, I didn't notice anything. Now I wake up startled and very anxious, Mariano confessed.

- Of course, on the boat you felt welcomed and protected by all of us,” Miguel told him laughing.

Before the ship detached its anchor from the anchorage, Mariano gave Miguel a letter he wrote to his mother the night before.

Havana April 28, 1873

Dear Mom,

I will be pleased to know that upon receiving this letter you are in perfect health in the company of our family. I'm doing well, thank God.

Mr. Sarrá has been very helpful. I stay in the back room of the Pharmacy and very often he invites me to have lunch with his family. For now, I am working for him, but I would like to work in the commercial field.

Every day I get up when it's light, at half past six in the morning, and go out to have a coffee with milk at an establishment that is on the same block. In Cuba, workers usually eat twice a day: lunch at ten thirty in the morning and dinner at four in the afternoon. After dinner there is not much going on. This is the hottest part of the day and we all take it easy. At six, work starts again until eight. It gets dark suddenly around eight.

Sometimes at dusk I go out for a walk with my old cabin mates Pablo, Pepe, and Pedro. You remember? I told you about them in a prior letter. They are the ones who have opened a grocery store in the city center. Let's hope they do well. Pedro told me that later they will start selling seeds and that if they manage to do so, I will take care of that part of the business. Hopefully!!

As I told you before, I became good friends with Miguel, an officer of the ship and also with the captain. I'm sorry they're embarking tomorrow. I'd gotten used to having dinner with them. You may wonder what they eat in Cuba.

My favorite dish is rice and beans, also called Moors and Christians. The beans are small and black, very tasty, but not as delicate as Malgrat's ganxet fesols. I usually have pork for lunch, prepared in very different ways, other times we eat lobster and shrimp. Mr. Sarrá's cook prepares delicious dishes, such as yuca with mojo (a delicious-tasting root prepared with a garlic and lemon sauce), stuffed avocados, and fried plantains.

I hope that in a few months the political situation in Spain will improve and that I can return home. However, I have already made up my mind that I am going to stay here for a year or at most two. I miss you all very much. How are my brothers? I often think of you and my father, of everything you have taught me. I thank you from the bottom of my heart. How is everything going for Malgrat? Give my regards to the teacher, the priest, and the mayor.

I will not tell you my opinion in regards to Cuba yet, because until now I have barely seen the neighborhood of Old Havana and the port area. Mr. Sarrá wants Felipe, a trusted coachman, to take me for a ride throughout the city and its surroundings. Another day I would like to take the train and go to Güines, a city south of Havana. I'll tell you about it.

I'm going to sleep because I have to get up early tomorrow. I say goodbye to you with great affection.

Your son who loves you very much.

Mariano Defaus Moragas

As the ship receded from sight, Mariano stood up and headed towards the Post Office and Intendant’s Palace located in the Plaza de Armas. He bought stamps and envelopes, and as he left he heard someone calling him from a horse-drawn carriage.

- Mariano! It was Felipe's voice.

- Come on, get in, I'll take you for a ride around the city, offered Felipe.

- Thanks, but aren't you acting as a coach today? Mariano asked.

- I'll do it tomorrow. Today I would like to take a ride with you,” replied Felipe.

- Well, today is my day off! Generally my work at the pharmacy is from Tuesday to Saturday. Today is Monday, my lucky day,  Mariano as he sat next to Felipe where he had a better view of the sorroundings.

- Do you know the history of Havana and the history of this square?

- I have no idea! Mariano responded.

- Well, before starting the tour, it would be best for you to know that this city was founded in 1514 by the Spanish Conquistador Pánfilo de Narváez, but it was moved twice due to mosquito plagues. In 1519, it was located in its current location and according to the legend, the first mass was celebrated under a Ceiba tree in the current Plaza de Armas, which shortly after was called ‘Plaza de la Iglesia’ when the Main Parish was built.

- What is a Ceiba?”

- It is a very tall tree, with a thick trunk and reddish flowers. I will show it to you when I see one.

- Yes, please. I can imagine why it is called Plaza de Armas, they defended the city there, right?

- Don't run ahead Mariano, let's go a step at a time, Felipe replied.

- At first it was a small area next to the bay, occupied with buildings mainly made of wood that served the most basic public functions. It is believed that on one side, this plaza opened towards the bay to facilitate the work of the ships landing and docking. In 1558, the construction of the Castillo de la Real Fuerza began, which included an open space around the castle, a parade ground itself, which would serve to collect residents and property in case of danger. As you mentioned, to defend the city! In the last century, the Parish, losing importance when the Baroque Cathedral of San Cristóbal was built five blocks away, was demolished and in its place the Post Office and Intendance Palace, also called the Second Cape Palace, was built, and finally the Palace of the Captains was built . . . but perhaps I am boring you with all my talk.

- Not at all, I'm very interested! Whose statue is that in the center of the square? And please, let’s not be so formal.

- I feel strange addressing people by their first name, but I'm going to try. It is the statue of King Ferdinand VII of Bourbon. You know who he is, right?

- Of course I know, he was the king of Spain! He reigned at the beginning of the century and was the father of Isabel II.

- Tell me, tell me! I know very little about all that! implored Felipe.

- In 1830, Fernando VII abolished the Salic Law, which did not allow women to ascend the throne, in favor of his newborn daughter Isabel. When Fernando died three years later, Carlos, brother of the deceased king, wanted to take the crown, not accepting Isabel as queen and from there the Carlist Wars began. In 1868, the queen was dethroned after the uprising of the progressive parties, but they were unable to end the monarchy.

-Those damned monarchies always resist, Felipe replied.

- Yes, Spain has always been very monarchical. That is why the new constitution of 1869 maintained the monarchy. In 1870, Amadeus of Savoy, son of King Victor Emmanuel of Italy and related to the Bourbon royal family, was elected king, but the political parties and the nobility never accepted him. Neither did the popular classes who mocked him for being a foreigner. The Carlists took advantage of the political instability to conquer ground. And in 1872, as a result of all this, a real civil war broke out, especially in the north of Spain. In many cities there were workers' revolts and republican uprisings. Faced with so many difficulties, Amadeo I abdicated in February 1873 and thus the first Republic was born. For now, the republican government has neither known how to contain the internal unrest nor come to an agreement with the Carlists. I get sick thinking about those damned wars that lead to so many deaths and that have kept me away from Spain.

- Thanks for recalling your history in such a simple and clear way. We Cubans only receive news of the greatness of the Spanish Crown and not internal disputes.

- I didn't know the history of Spain well either, my family is conservative. They trust the monarchical policy promulgated by the church, and they are not well informed as to what is happening in the country. That's why, when I lived there, I didn't understand the reason for so many disputes. However, on the ship I made friends with a man, referred to by everyone as “teacher,” who lent me a book he had recently written on the contemporary history of Spain. Many afternoons we talked and he confessed to me that he was a confirmed republican, but that lately he had been disillusioned by everything that was happening and that he was fleeing before the Republic fell; the government's days were numbered, according to him.

- I would have liked meeting the teacher. I like him! I would abolish all the dynasties of kings that are on earth. In my humble opinion, the Monarchy is an evil of society. I hope that the world changes and leaves behind all the mistakes it has been making. The worst for me is the inheritance to the throne of monarchs, because that is where wars for power are born - Felipe was silent for a few seconds and then continued, saying, -Well, I don't want you to be disappointed and before it gets dark I want to take you to the other side of the bay, at the mouth of the Gulf of Mexico, so you can see the strategic position of the city.

-I have seen on a map that the sea that laps Havana is called The Florida Strait.”

- Yes, but the Florida Strait is the continuation of the Gulf of Mexico. As I was telling you, the Bay of Havana has always been a magnificent natural port but it has also been very vulnerable. Did you know that the city was sacked several times by pirates and privateers?

- I can imagine! Pirates also arrived in my town!”

- To protect the entrance to the port, at the beginning of the seventeenth century the Castle of the Three Holy Wise Men of Morro was erected. Later, the city was also attacked by the English when Spain went to war with them. In 1762, the English held Havana for eleven months. When the Spanish recovered the enclave in exchange for Florida, the building of the San Carlos de la Cabaña Fortress began and the entire city was walled. Havana became the most fortified city in the New World.

- I am impressed Felipe, you know a lot! Your explanations take me back to that time. I am excited to see the vestiges of Havana.

-Where exactly were you born?

- I was born in Malgrat, a fishing village on the eastern coast of Spain, about fifty kilometers north of Barcelona. It was a town that subsisted thanks to agriculture and fishing, but at the arrival of the railway in 1859, industries and businesses began to develop. There is even a shipyard where quite large ships are built. My town does not have a port. Boats cannot disembark on the beach, they have to do so with small boats.

-The railway arrived in Havana in 1837 and public gas lighting in 1848. I hope that progress will save us as long as we stop mistreating slaves, and making them work like animals. They are the ones who build our railway networks. They nail the telegraph poles and install the streetlights. Without the blacks, Cuba would have nothing, Felipe said.

- Also believe in progress and I hate slavery. When I was little, I saw the boats in my town's shipyard. I dreamed of getting on one of them and going to America. And here I am! Mariano replied.

- One day I'm going to tell you how I got to Cuba, Felipe told him, lighting a cigarette.

- I'm also going to tell you my story another day, Mariano answered sadly.

- Well, let's not be sad. Let's think about positive things. How much has Malgrat prospered? I suppose the telegraph cables also arrived, right?

- Yes, and by the way, last year the telegraph saved my life, but in Malgrat we still do not have public lighting. However, in Barcelona, since 1850, there have been more than 1,500 oil lamps that illuminate the streets. But I see that Cuba is very advanced.

- It is French and English companies that invest in Cuba for their businesses and interests. Don't think that they lose out. By exploiting the slaves, they get rich and we Cubans get nothing.

While Felipe spoke to him he was alert, guiding his horses and in a short time he took Mariano to the other side of the bay, where they admired the beauty of Havana. They got out of the horse carriage, walked around the Castle and when they were driving around the perimeter of the San Carlos de la Cabaña Fortress, night suddenly fell.