Out and About

We've been here a week. The weather has been perfect. Not hot not to cold and only one day that was really humid. We've gone to El Quelite, to Centro several times and to the Plazuela Machado to listen to Rafael sing. Sunday night when we left the hotel to go to Machado we were surprised to feel rain drops! But only lasted a few minutes. The cloudy sky as we were driving along the Malecon.  

This building wasn't finished when we went home a year ago. This is quite a mural. All tile. About three or four stories high. 

We took a taxi to the plaza. Rafael didn't start playing until 7 o'clock so we had time to walk around some. This is a theater. The buildings here are really ornate. And most of them in this area have lights around them. 

Some information about the Theater. A lot of the buildings in this area are from the mid 1800's,

Just another artsy fartsy shot of it.  I like playing with my camera. Which by the way is starting to give me problems. Wearing out I guess. Hope it lasts until we get home. And for the first time ever I didn't bring a back up camera. 

We walked down a block to a building that houses an art gallery - Nidart. We've know the owners for years but they are not open on Sunday night. This mural is new. The camera doesn't do it justice. 

A closer look at how it was made. Pieces of tile and glass.

The front of the building, it has been repainted recently. Inside it is amazing. As is the art in there. 

A colorful little market across the street. I love the colors - think I've said that before a few times. 

Bill  speaking with Rafael Rodriquez our friend, the guitar player and singer. He just arrived and needs to get set up. 
Walking around the plaza checking out changes and to see what might be new. This is the Hotel Machado, it was built in the late 1800's. But has been repainted over the summer. And it now has a restaurant in it. Tables outside on the weekends. That is new. 

Another restaurant, it is also a hotel and art gallery. 

This was just sitting along the side of a building.

The Carnaval statue in the plaza at night. See the moon up there. 

While Bill was talking to Rafael I was walking around the surrounding streets. The buildings are lit up and the lights strung over the streets make for a pretty walk and pictures. 

I wish I'd notice the fan coming down from the ceiling, but I just stuck my nose into this bar to take the picture when I saw the mural as I was walking by. Going to try to get a better picture of it some day, it is only open at night. 

This pretty building is not a building at all. It is empty with no roof and used as a parking lot. There are super strict restrictions on what can be done with the old original buildings. The exterior has to remain the same as when it was built. The insides or lack of insides can be anything. See the bushes growing out of the tops of the walls. 

All the lit up buildings of different colors. Cobblestone streets. Like being in a different world or a fairy tale. Music play quietly in the background. 

Advertising a restaurant. Just liked the look of it. 

Had a lot more pictures but tried not to over do it. It was a pleasant evening with friends. Not the restaurant we ate in, but a colorful one. 

A short video of Rafael playing Bill's favorite song. Malaguena.

And that was that evening.