Cuba - Day 7
Started with a tour of a real live Cuban cigar factory (with ample opportunity to purchase said cigars), a short stop at the national baseball stadium, an early dinner at a real neat restaurant, and then another slate of evening performances.
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| Finally a clear day, view out our hotel room window... |
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Tour of a cigar factory in Havana. We were told that photography inside was strictly forbidden. I think this photo of the tobacco leaf presses was taken by somebody down in the cigar store. |
I found this photo on the Internet. it it pretty accurate in showing the sweat-shop conditions in the factory (probably the reason they did not want us taking photos). |
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| This is the stadium where the Tampa Bay Rays played the Cuban National team earlier this year. Raul Castro and President Obama attended. Angela insisted I purchase a baseball cap, which I did! |
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| An early dinner at yet another great paladar, this one was called La Fontana |
Indoor pond at La Fontana, pretty neat! |
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A view looking back at the balconies ffrom our orchestra seats in the Gran Teatro. |
One more bow for Alicia Alonso... |
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| SFB principal Maria Kochetkova with NYC Ballet principal Joaquin De Luz |
Our final evening was another mixed repertory that included:
- Les Sylphides (National Ballet of Cuba)
- Don Quixote pas de deux (principal dancers from San Francisco Ballet and New York City Ballet)
- Black Milk (Les Grands Ballets Canadiens) (repeat)
- Paquita grand pas (National Ballet of Cuba)
SFB principal was Maria Kochetkova. We had just seen her the week before at the Kennedy Center in Cinderella. And earlier this year we saw her in Romeo and Juliet via the Dance in Cinema program. She obviously gets around...