Cuba: Day Nine - Hemingway Haunts

Behind Che and Fidel, Cuba’s third Icon is probably Hemingway. Many visitors seem to embark on a Hemingway pilgrimage while in Cuba. He seems to be both a institution and tourist trap.

One can visit his estate, Finca la Vigia, located on the outskirts of the city - Hemingway's home from 1939 to 1960, which is now a museum. He lived there while writing “The Old Man and the Sea” and “Island in the Stream”. We decided to skip the museum, but instead visited the two bars he frequented: “La Bodeguita del Medio” and “Floridita”. I’m not a huge Hemingway fan, but visiting the bars seemed like the tourist thing to do, they were fairly close to our hotel and somewhat Hemingway-esque, they were filled with tourist. When in Cuba everyone should do something Che, Fidel and Hemingway, right?