Finca La Vigía

An entire visit to Cuba could be spent seeing "Hemingway's Havana." The great writer made the island his home for years and vestiges of his experiences are dotted throughout the city and beyond. There is El Floridita, home to Papa's favorite daiquiri, Hotel Ambos Mundos, where he wrote For Whom the Bell Tolls and his beloved home, Finca La Vigía, located about 10 miles south of the city. The house has been kept as Hemingway left it and visitors are permitted only to walk around the exterior and peer in windows, some of which are left open in balmy weather. Favorite nooks include the bathroom wall where he recorded his weight, the living room's bar table and his impressive desk. The garden holds his beloved boat, Pilar, and a small pet cemetery complete with headstones. A visit here is an absolute must for Hemingway fans but also those who'd like to see how ex-pats typically lived in Havana in the early to mid-20^th century.