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The bay entrance as seen from La Cabaña fortress.

Among the many symbolic places of Cuba's capital city is its harbor. It's not only part of its geography, but also of its history. It's shaped like a pocket, with a narrow and deep entrance channel. In total, its area covers 5.2 square kilometers. It's curious that, despite not having vast dimensions, I've managed to take here a variety of shots that seem to be from different places.

A cruise ship is docked at the terminal as seen from the town of Casablanca.

Another view from the village of Casablanca, but looking towards the castle of La Punta.

Since the port was founded in 1519, Havana's economic, political and social life has been linked to it. Attacks by corsairs and pirates from the 16th century forced the Spanish Crown to establish a defensive system to protect the city. This is how the fortresses we see today were built, such as El Morro, La Cabaña, La Punta, Castillo de la Real Fuerza and La Chorrera.

In the background the fortress of La Cabaña as seen from Old Havana.

A cruise ship heads out of the bay as seen from one of the streets of Old Havana.

On February 15, 1898, the U.S. battleship Maine exploded in the Port of Havana, an event that marked the beginning of the Spanish-Cuban-American war, which would bring about the end of Spanish colonial rule over Cuba.

The Bay Tunnel crosses the bay underneath to quickly connect the municipalities of Old Havana and East Havana.

The Havana Bay Tunnel is one of the most remarkable civil engineering works in the country. It's submerged under the entrance channel of the bay at a depth of 12 meters and has a length of 733 meters. It was built between 1952 and 1953 and it's possible to drive through it in about 45 seconds at 60 kilometers per hour on a normal traffic day.

Many of my clients love taking photos around the border of the bay area. This one is next to an old restaurant called La Divina Pastora. What a view!