travels Habana Libre

The hotel was built as the Habana Hilton under the personal auspices of President Fulgencio Batista, as an investment by the pension plan of the Cuban Catering Workers Union, and was operated by the American Hilton Hotels group. The hotel was designed by the well-known Los Angeles architect Welton Becket, who had previously designed the Beverly Hilton for the chain, in collaboration with the Havana-based architects Lin Arroyo and Gabriela Menéndez. Arroyo was the Minister of Public Works under Batista,

Opened on March 22, 1958 with Conrad Hilton himself in attendance, following four days of festivities, the Habana Hilton was Latin America's tallest and largest hotel. Following Fidel Castro's entry into Havana on January 8 1959, the hotel became his headquarters, with Castro residing for three months in suite 2324. The hotel remained in operation as a Hilton for two more unsuccessful years as relations between the US and Cuba worsened, until October 1960, when all American hotels in Cuba were nationalized. The hotel was then renamed the Hotel Habana Libre (Hotel Free Havana).

I realy like how the apparently random angle results in a distinctive and riginal view of what is probably a requent photo target. Despite the lightness and freshness of the tones, I would love to see how it works in B&W.

Thank you for the useful hstorical introduction.

Regards,

ricardo