50
APRIL2016
AMERICANWAY
ItTolls
forHer
ErnestHemingway’s granddaughter,Mariel,
returns toCuba to appear in amovie about the
famouswriter andhis home inHavana
BY
JUDY CANTOR-NAVAS
II
PHOTOGRAPHY BY
MICHAEL SEGAL
ARIEL HEMINGWAY’S
relationshipwithCubabe-
ganbeforeshewasborn.
She isnamedafter the
fishingvillagewestofHavana,whose
portwasonceagateway toCuba for
UnitedStatesvisitorsandwhichwas
thesceneof the1980Marielboatlift,
anexodusof thousandsofCubans to
Miami.Today, it’sAmericanswhoare
traveling toCuba inrecordnumbers,
and theportofMariel ispoised to
becomeoneof themost important
shippinghubs in theCaribbean.
Theactress,writerandproducer,
whofirstvisitedCuba in1999andhas
madehalfadozen trips theresince
then, inheritedher love for the island
fromhergrandfather, the lateErnest
Hemingway.The legendarywriter
calledHavanahome formore than
twodecades, from1939 to1960.
“I feltanaffinity forCubabefore
I’devergone there,”Mariel says.
“Therewasa loreaboutCuba inour
family. Itwasalwaysveryspecial.”
ShemostrecentlyvisitedHavana
during thefilmingof
Papa
, in the-
aters thismonth, aboutErnest
Hemingway’sHavanayears.Shehasa
cameo in thefilm, shotatFincaVigía,
thewriter’s formerhome justout-
sideof thecity,whichhassincebeen
preservedasamuseum.Wecaught
upwithMarielafterher trip forher
thoughtsonvisiting theevocative
isle today.
Yourgrandfather leftFincaVigíamore
thanfivedecades ago, but theHemingway
legacyhasnot faded inHavana.
“He represents aCuba that no longer exists,
but theattraction tohis legend is still so
strong.He truly loved theCubanpeople.
He spentmore time there thanhedid inKey
West or anyof theother places that hewent
in theworld.Most everything in thehouse
—even themagazines— is authentic. It’s as
though it froze in time.”
What isonememory thatyouassociate
withCuba fromwhenyouweregrowingup?
“Riceandbeans.Myparents andmy two
sisters lived thereprior tomebeing in thepic-
ture, whenmygrandfatherwas still living there.
Mymother hadawomanwhohelped them
with thehouse, and she taught her how to
cookbeans and riceproperly inCuban style.”
How is the food inHavana today?
“Thereareamazing restaurants in these cool,
dilapidatedoldbuildings, and they’ve kindof
renovated the insides. Thereareextraordinary
chefs. It’s really changedbecause theyhave
moreaccess to ingredients now. LaGuarida
is oneof those restaurants that they’ve re-
ally transformed. It’s someof thebest food
I’veever hadanywhere. LaEsperanza is in
someone’s house— theguy that owns it has
apictureofmeandhimandmydaughter in
their living room.Andanother great place,
withamazing seafood, super fresh, is called
RioMar.”
Someof themostpopular attractions in
Havanaare tied toErnestHemingway,
including themarina that’snamedafter
him.What is a favorite stop for youon the
Hemingway route?
“What’s funnyabout places that yougo to
because somebodywent there is thatwhen
that somebodywent there, theywere just
little cafés or bars that they loved.Now they
are tourist attractions, likeEl Floridita, where
now you seeabust ofmygrandfather in the
bar. I like thehotelAmbosMundos, wherehe
stayed. Itwas just a small littleplace. You can
seehis little roomwhereheused towrite.”
Whatdoyou recommendoff the
beatenpath?
“Going toawonderful beachwhere the locals
go. Thewater is cleanandgorgeous and there
are so fewpeople. (Ask aroundand you’ll find
it.)Andgetting into the countryside.Havana
ismagical, theart isbeautiful, thepeopleare
extraordinary. But in the country iswhere you
seewho thepeopleareandwhere they come
from. It’s things like that that I think aregoing
tobegems todiscover.”
M
