Jazz Cruise 2026

Overview

The Jazz Cruise is a floating jazz festival---seven days of music from about noon until 1am most days. There are four stages with concurrent acts. Two stages at the front of the ship (called forward) and two at the back of the ship (called aft). The ship has 11 floors (called decks). After all these years of being a Star Trek fan, I finally know why the bar on the Enterprise is called 10 Forward! It's on deck 10 at the front of the ship!

We left Port Everglades (in Ft. Lauderdale, FL) on Tuesday January 27th and floated around the Caribbean for 7 days. The ship made two stops, one in the Bahamas (where I didn't bother to get off the ship) and one in Puerto Rico (where I did get off and do some sight-seeing).  But the purpose of this cruise wasn't to have some fun in the sun and swim and play tourist. It was to run around the ship and play jazz fan!

The Jazz Cruise is produced by Signature Cruises. They lease this ship from Celebrity Cruises.

With shows running concurrently, it's not possible to catch every show. But most of the artists have 3 or 4 shows throughout the week, so maybe it's possible to see all the artists. I didn't manage to do that. There were 107 shows total. I saw 40 shows in 7 days! Those 40 shows included 188 different artists. There were probably more artists on the ship that I never got to see.

You probably don't want to hear about 40 shows, so I'll tell you about my favorites. I could just state my preferences, but people don't always know what they really prefer. So economists invented the concept of revealed preference, which is looking at what people do instead of what they say.

Revealed Preferences

I counted up all the artists I did hear in all 40 shows to reveal my true preferences. A few of these surprised me (because they didn't match what I thought my preferences would be). These are the headliners I heard the most:

• Emmet Cohen (8 times)
• John Pizzarelli (7 times)
• Benny Benack III (6 times)
• Anat Cohen (4 times)
• Veronica Swift (3 times)
• Kurt Elling (3 times)
• Camille Thurman (3 times)

Emmet Cohen

Emmet was the "host" of the jazz cruise. Besides being the face of the 2026 Jazz Cruise, he was in a lot the shows, so no surprise that I heard him the most. And I am a huge fan, so this is no surprise to me. I heard his trio (with Philip Norris and Joe Farnsworth); I heard him in duos; I heard him sitting in with other people's shows. I heard him play the organ. I even heard him as a sideman--his trio was the backup band for one of Veronica Swift's shows.

John Pizzarelli

Since I own some guitars and have some vocal cords, I am a big fan of John's singing, guitaring, story-telling and humor. He's just a great entertainer all-around. This revealed preference was no surprise to me, as I sought out all of John's shows and made it a priority to see them. And I didn't hear him repeat a single-song all week! Most shows were with his trio (with Mike Karn and Tyler Henderson). But I also heard him in some duos settings and doing some solo pieces.

Benny Benack III

Although I am a big fan of Benny--both his trumpet playing and his singing--this one was a bit of a surprise to me. He just kept popping up in a different shows all over the ship. As a headliner, as part of the Tower of Trumpets show (7 trumpets!) and sitting in here and there. Benny's energy and positive vibes raise the fun in any show!

Anat Cohen

This one did surprise me a bit. I am a fan, for sure, but didn't realize that I had seen her 4 times. I went to two of her headliner shows, one with her quartet, Quartetino (Vitor Goncalves, Tal Mashiach, James Shipp), and her Duo show with Brazlian guitarist Marcello Goncalves. She said that she likes Choro (the father of Samba and the grandfather of Bossa Nova) because the clarinet is often a featured instrument in Choro. She said she often felt pressure in jazz groups to play saxophone instead of clarinet. I don't think I've ever heard her play the saxophone. She is a master of the clarinet!

Veronica Swift

No surprise here. Even after hearing Veronica a few weeks earlier during my 6 Days in New York, I still sought out all her headliner shows on the cruise. Her passion and creativity always grab me. She did repeat a few songs across shows--songs from her upcoming new album. But it was mostly 3 different shows. She did two Dave Frishberg tunes in one show, "I'm Hip" and "The Sports Page". She likes to always end all her shows with "Sing" by Brian Viglione (drummer/guitarist with the band The Dresden Dolls). It's a moving song that implores the audience and the world to "just sing".

Kurt Elling

This one surprised me because Kurt is so low on the list. Before the cruise started I was most excited about hearing Kurt! But after hearing his first headliner show on Day 2 of the cruise, I apparently had other priorities. His first show was fabulous. His latest album project is the music of Weather Report. He sang a wordless scat on a tune called "Black Market" and got a standing ovation for that in the middle of the set! I really wish I had heard more of him. I did hear him in the "Sing Sing Sing" show with all 6 singers on the cruise together!

Camille Thurman

Another surprise was that I saw Camille 3 times. I'm definitely a fan and have heard her before. I enjoyed both her singing and saxophoning. She did do the same show 3 times. Well, I didn't stay till the end of the 3rd show, so maybe that was different. She did have the honor of being the last show of the cruise!

Stated Preferences

If I were to state what I thought I liked the most, it would be:

• Kurt Elling
• Veronica Swift
• John Pizzarelli
• Emmet Cohen
• Monty Alexander - I heard him twice. Great shows. And I liked his stories too.
• Sullivan Fortner - I heard him once. Powerful. Creative. And he won a grammy during the cruise!
• Jeff Hamilton  - Always fabulous. Love the arrangements and the intensity.
• Benny Benack III
• Bria Skonberg - Another singer/trumpeter - she has two albums coming out later this year, one trumpet album and one vocal album. I'm looking forward to both.
• The "Sing Sing Sing" show with all 6 vocalists.

And that is just headliners. There were some great accompanists (sidemen) worth mentioning:

• Mathis Picard - a great young pianist who accompanied many shows.
• Tyler Henderson - another super talented young pianist - mostly appeared with John Pizzarelli, but heard in a few other contexts also.
• Joe Farnsworth - fabulous drummer, with an intensity that keeps him always in the moment.

Photos

I won't bore you with 40 photos, but I did take at least one picture at every show. Instead I'll share one photo of each stage.

The Theatre - Deck 4 Forward

This was the only permanent stage on the ship, the rest appeared to be pop-up stages just for the Jazz Cruise.  This was also the largest, holding about 1200 people. All the seats were comfortable and had good visibility.

The  "Tower of Trumpets" show

Sky Lounge - Deck 11 Forward

This was the worst stage for visibility. In at least 25% of the room you could barely see the stage at all. But there were some great seats if you got there early.

"John Pizzarelli's Guitar Gathering" show

Cosmopolitan Room - Deck 4 Aft

This is the main dining room. It was reconfigured as a stage in between meals. This stage was sponsored by the New York jazz club, Birdland.

The "Cone and T-Staff" show

Rendezvous Lounge - Deck 4 Aft

This was one of the bars on the ship. Probably the largest bar. Like the Sky Lounge there were a few good seats and lots of obstructed view seats.

The "James Morrison" show

The Forty Shows

For those of you who really want all the details. Read on.

Day 1 - Tuesday

The Jazz Cruise Welcome Show

Artists:

 Anat Cohen

 Catherine Russell

 Emmet Cohen

 Eric Marienthal

 Herlin Riley

 John Clayton

 John Pizzarelli

 Ken Peplowski

 Kurt Elling

 Lewis Nash

 Paquito D'Rivera

 Randy Brecker

 Sean Jones

 Shelly Berg

 Wycliffe Gordon

No notes

Jeff Hamilton Trio

Artists: Jeff Hamilton, Jon Hamar, Tadataka Unno

No notes

Sullivan Fortner Trio

Artists: Sullivan Fortner, Tyrone Allen, Kayvon Gordon

No notes

John Pizzarelli Trio featuring Jessica Molaskey

Artists: John Pizzarelli, Jessica Molaskey, Tyler Henderson (p), Mike Karn (b)

Theme: Songs performed by married couples in jazz

Highlights:

Jackie & Roy (Mountain Greenery)

Les Paul & Mary Ford (How High the Moon?)

Bobby Troupe & Judy London (Route 66?)

Joao Gilberto & Astrud Gilberto

Day 2 - Wednesday

Emmet's Place

Artists: Emmet Cohen, Reuben Rogers, Anat Cohen, Terell Stafford, Joe Farnsworth

Highlights:

Anat - Lullaby of the Leaves

Terrell - Old Folks

trio - Jitterbug Waltz

Monty Alexander

Artists: Monty Alexander, Jason Brown, Luke Sellick

Highlights:

James Bond Theme (He mentioned that "Dr. No", the first James Bond film, was filmed in Jamaica where he grew up.)

House is not a Home

Alfie

We've Only Just Begun 

Deo / God Bless America 

What a friend we have in Jesus / Battle Hymn of the Republic 

Ken Peplowski & Gary Smulyan

Theme: Music from the Silver Screen

Artists: Shelly Berg, Mike Karn, Joe Farnsworth

No notes

Kurt Elling

Artists: Kurt Elling, Julius Rodriguez, Marcus Finnie, Clark Sommers, Troy Roberts

Theme: Music of Weather Report

Black Market (This was a wordless scat and he got a standing ovation in middle of the set after this song)

Time to say goodbye (original instrumental version title: "A Remark You Made")

Bria Skonberg

Artists: Bria Skonberg, Reuben Rogers, Herlin Riley, Mathis Picard

Highlights:

Watch What Happens

In The House

Do You Know What It Means To Miss New Orleans?

Dolly Jones

Beautiful Boy / Lil darlin

Tell Him I Said Hello

Camille Thurman Band

Artists: Camille Thurman, Darrell Green, Matthew Parrish, Lafayette Harris

Highlights:

Evidence

I Think I’m Going Out Of My Head

Detour Ahead

You’d Be So Nice To Come Home To

Benny Benack III

Artists: Benny Benack III, Herlin Riley, Mathis Picard, Philip Norris

Set:

Sunday in New York

I’ll Never Fall In Love Again 

Pure Imagination 

Sugar and Spice (contrafact)

The Gravy Waltz (duo bass/voice)

Crazy She Calls Me (duo piano/voice)

(Some New Orleans tune I didn't recognize) (Julius Rodriguez sitting in on piano)

The Ghosted Blues

Day 3 - Thursday

Emmet Cohen's Hammond B3 Band

Artists: Emmet Cohen, Benny Benack III, Joe Farnsworth, Dan Wilson

Spiral staircase 

More Today Than Yesterday / Old Devil Moon

(first tune is the 1969 hit by Spiral Staircase)

(Old Devil Moon used the Killer Joe bass line and had a Killer Joe vibe. Cool!)

Vamped from that  into.. Old devil moon with Killer Joe bass line/vibe

I Surrender Dear

Short Story (by Kenny Durham)

I've Grown Accustomed To Her Face 

My Little Suede Shoes (by Miles Davis - mambo groove)

Hey Lock / Body & Soul (both of these have the same changes)

"Benny's Corner" Vol. 3 - Benny Green's Solo Piano

Benny sounded great. He did these solo tunes:

Don’t Blame Me

Grooveyard (Carl Perkins)

Here’s That Rainy Day

Virgo (Horace Silver)

Chant (Duke pearson)

Even though it was billed as a solo piano show, he had some guests sit and do piano duets on the same piano. Sometimes switching sides of the piano bench when switching who was comping and who was soloing.

(a Benny original I didn't recognize) (with Matthew Wittaker)

You And The Night And The Music (with Helen Sung)

The Man I Love (with John di Martino)

It Could Happen To You (with Mathias Picard)

This show was one of the highlights for me. Just a piano and some very talented musicians. Very off-the-cuff an in-the-moment. They were having fun making music together more than they were putting on a show for an audience.

Sing, Sing, Sing

Artists:

Dee Dee Bridgewater

Niki Haris

Benny Benack III

Catherine Russell

John Pizzarelli

Kurt Elling

Janis Siegel

Shelly Berg

The band was piano (Shelly Berg) and guitar (John Pizzarelli).

Each vocalist was asked to pick a favorite lyricist and 2 of their songs to perform. There wasn't actually enough time to hear 2 tunes from everyone.

John - Johnny Mercer's "I Got Out of Bed on the Right Side"

Catherine - Andy Razaf's "Porter's Love Song to a Chambermaid"

Benny - Jon Hendrick's "Social Call"

Janis - Dave Frishberg's "You Are There"

Kurt - Kurt Elling's "Did You Call Her Today" (Yes, one of Kurt's favorite lyricists is himself!)

Niki - Alan and Marilyn Bergman's "How Do You Keep The The Music Playing?" 

John - Johnny Mercer's "Jamboree Jones" (Shelly asked John to do a 2nd tune to break up the ballads)

Dee Dee - Billy Strayhorn's "Lush Life"

The most memorable song to me was "Porter's Love Song to a Chambermaid" probably because I had never heard it before and it's a playful lyric using cleaning tools as metaphors for love. Check out this video where Catherine sings it:

Modern Lions

Artists: Tal Ronen, Domo Branch, Mathis Picard, Michael Dease, Godwin Louis

No Notes

John Pizzarelli Trio

Theme: "Dear Mr. Bennett" A Tribute to Tony Bennett

Artists: John Pizzarelli, Jessica Molaskey, Tyler Henderson, Mike Karn

Watch What Happens

The Best Is Yet To Come

It Amazes Me

Firefly

Boulevard of Broken Dreams

Rags to Riches

Put on a Happy Face / Get Happy / I Want to be Happy 

Fly Me to the Moon

Just in Time (with a cool verse I hadn't heard before)

Shadow of your Smile

I Wanna Be Around 

Waltz For Debbie

We’ll Be Together Again

The Touch Of Your Lips

Young And Foolish

When in Rome

Love Scene

It Don’t Mean A Thing

Day 4 - Friday

Wycliffe Gordon & Terell Stafford

Theme: Cone & T-Staff

Cone is supposed to be a nickname for Wycliffe, I'm not sure why. He didn't seem to know either. T-Staff is obviously Terrell Stafford.

Artists: Wycliffe Gordon, Sullivan Fortner, Jon Hamar, Terell Stafford, Joe Farnsworth

Cheeky

Ruth’s Blues

Toast my Bread (ballad by Cone, love song)

I've Never Been In Love Before (trio)

Everything Happens To Me (T-Staff and trio)

Stars Fell on Alabama (Cone and trio)

James Morrison

Artists: Shelly Berg, Mike Karn, Joe Farnsworth, James Morrison

Just The Way You Look Tonight 

The Boy Next Door (in Bb) / Girl Next Door (Eb)

But Beautiful 

I've Never Been In Love Before (trio)

Do you know what it means to miss New Orleans (duo with piano)

Autumn Leaves

I’ll Be Seeing You

John Pizzarelli

Artists: John Pizzarelli, Tyler Henderson, Mike Karn

(I had to chose between John and Kurt. Tough call. I guessed Kurt would do his Weather Report show again and John would probably do something different, which he did. I don't know what Kurt did.)

Three Little words 

Rhode Island si Famous for You

They Can’t Take That Away From Me

I Got Rhythm 

It's Easy To Remember / These Foolish Things / This Will Make You Laugh

Pick Yourself Up

(with Matt Unisteria sitting in on guitar):

- Little Coquette

- Honeysuckle Rose

(Solo guitar tunes):

- This Nearly Was Mine

- You’ve Got To Be Carefully Taught

- Last Train Home (by Pat Metheny)

Oklahoma Suite: Oh what a beautiful morning / I’m Just a Girl Who Can’t Say No / People Will Say We’re in Love / Surrey with the Fringe on Top

Anat Cohen Quartetinho

Artists: Anat Cohen, Vitor Goncalves, Tal Mashiach, James Shipp

Trinkle Tinkle (by Monk)

(on the last tune Matthew Whittaker sat in and they played a blues I didn't recognize)

Dan Wilson Organ Trio

Artists: Ben Paterson (o), Jason Brown (b), Dan Wilson (g)

(Troy Roberts was also in the band on tenor sax, so it was really a quartet)

Highlights:

(a Joey D Franceso tune that I didn’t recognize)

Juggernaut (by Chris Potter)

Blues Walk

Cry Me a River (Organ Feature)

November 15th (by Kenny Garrett)

Day 5

Ron Carter Quartet

Artists: Renee Rosnes, Payton Crossley, Jimmy Greene, Ron Carter

Highlights:

Elegy to a Cactus (Original tune? Sounded like a contrafact to Autumn Leaves. Killer Joe intro and vamp between solos)

All Blues

My Funny Valentine (duo with piano)

(Noticed him plucking open strings with his left hand)

You are my sunshine (solo bass)

You and the night and the music (Swing up tempo)

Emmet Cohen Trio

Artists: Emmet Cohen, Joe Farnsworth, Philip Norris

Our Delight (by Tadd Dameron - Up tempo - lots of hits)

Lion Song (by Emmet - a bit classical)

The Crave (Jellyroll Morton)

Trolly Song (crazy fast!)

Everlasting (by Emmet)

When You’re Smiling (bass feature)

My Favorite Things

(a ragtime piece I didn't recognize)

Anat Cohen Duo

Artists: Anat Cohen, Marcello Goncalves

Marcello Goncalves is a Brazlian guitarist (7-string)

They seemed to be doing set arrangements of Choro songs for guitar and clarinet.

Anat said she likes Choro music because the clarinet often has the melody. She never has to apologize for playing clarinet.

Anat described Choro as the father of Samba and the grandfather of Bossa Nova.

Highlights:

Otra Coiza (Other thing)

Cohelteza (Currents - Jobim & Bonfa)

Waiting for Amalia

Maria, Maria

Spanish Dance #2 in Cm

I like to be in America

Piano Duets

Artists: Emmet Cohen, Shelly Berg, Benny Green, Tyler Henderson, Mathis Picard, John di Martino, Julius Rodriguez

They had 2 pianos on the stage for piano duets.

Benny/Shelly you and the night and the music

Shelly/Tyler Emily

Tyler/John How deep is the ocean

John/Mathis Body and Soul

Mathis/Emmet (Rag) Carolina Shout

Emmet/Sullivan Sweet Lorraine / it might as well be spring 

Sullivan/Benny Phoebe’s Samba

Julius Rodriguez/Benny Something in Common

All - Scrapple from the Apple (trying to have 8 people playing 2 pianos was crazy!)

Nicki Parrott

Artists: Nicki Parrott, Julius Rodriguez,

Marcus Finnie

Her name is pronounced par-ROT. She's Australian, so I'm guessing it's an Asutralian name.

Come Rain or Shine 

Destination Moon (bessie smith 62)

This guys in love with you / Walk on by

Invitation (crazy fast-no vocals just trio)

La Mer (Beyond the Sea)

I Will Wait for You

All I do is think about You (Stevie Wonder)

Misty (instrumental)

New York Winter? (Original)

The Man I Love (up tempo swing)

I am a woman W O M A N (blues) - she changed the words to talk about the cruise and thank her band. Fun tune!

Got started singing because of Les Paul

Veronica Swift

Artists: Joe Farnsworth, Mathis Picard, Philip Norris, Veronica Swift

I think this was the same set she did at Dizzy's in New York. (Link to 6 days in NYC). Except for Social Call, which she didn't do in New York, but did do hear since Benny was on the boat. Benny wrote the arrangement which they recorded a few years ago.

(When I think of) Home

No More Blues

I’m coming, Virginia (Benny on Trumpet)

This House (by David Ross?)

Wishing you were somehow here again

We’ll Be Together Again

Look up look down (that lonesome road)

Someone to watch over me (duet with Shelly Berg)

Led Zeppelin tune (Herbie Hancock groove - Maiden Voyage?) title might be tomorrow or today or it’s not as hard as it seems

Home Blues (from An American in Paris?)

Social Call (with Benny Bennack III & Emmet Cohen)

Sing

Day 6

Monty Alexander

Artists: Monty Alexander, Jason Brown, Luke Sellick

Smile

James Bond Theme

Strangers in the night (on melodica!)

Come Fly With Me 

When Somebody needs you / Wee Small Hours

Fly Me To The Moon

Niki Haris

Artists: Niki Haris, Matt Munisteri, Ben Paterson, Tal Ronen, Domo Branch

Theme: Honor the L.A.D.I.E.S. of Jazz (L=Lena Horne, A=Abbey Lincoln, D=Dinah Washington, I=Irene Kral, E-Ella Fitzgerald, S=Shirley Horn)

Stormy Weather (L)

Music is the Magic (A)

What A Difference A Day Made (D)

Where Is Love (I)

They All Laughed (E)

The Lady’s In Love With You (S)

Save Your Love For Me

Sway

The Good Life

Just in Time

Camille Thurman

Artists: Camille Thurman, Darrell Green, Mathew Parrish, Lafeyette Harris

Evidence (trio only no sax)

Book’s Bossa

I Think I’m Going Out Of My Head (sang)

Walk On By (sang)

Three Views of a Secret (Jaco P) duo with bass (just sang)

The Masquerade is Over (just sang) request

Won’t You Open Up Your Senses (H Silver - sang)

Our Day Will Come

Veronica Swift

Artists: Joe Farnsworth, Mathis Picard, Philip Norris, Veronica Swift

I Miss the Mountains

No More Blues

Things Ain’t What They Used To Be

The Show Must Go On (Queen) with opera aria

Going to California (Zeppelin) Maiden Voyage groove

Look Down…

Dreamer’s Ball (Queen)

Home Blues (from American in Paris)

John Pizzarelli Trio

Theme: "Because of You" The Music of Frank Sinatra, Nat King Cole, Paul Simon & Michael Franks

Artists: John Pizzarelli, Tyler Henderson, Mike Karn

Come Fly With Me

You Make Me Feel So Young

Straighten Up And Fly Right

That Sunday That Summer

Falling In Love With Love (instrumental)

Walk Between The Raindrops (Donald Fagen/Steely Dan)

Eggplant

Rene & Georgette Magrite With Their Dog After The War

Oh How My Heart Beats For You

I Wouldn’t Trade You For The Whole Big Apple

Carolina Wren 

Headed out to Vera’s

Sweet Kentucky Ham

Another Song about Paris

I like Jersey Best

Formal Night Jam hosted by Emmet Cohen

Artists: Emmet Cohen, Bria Skonberg, Benny Benack Ill, Eric Marienthal, Reuben Rogers, Joe Farnsworth, Nicole Glover, Mathis Picard, Michael Dease, Bruce Harris, Godwin Louis

Without a Song

In a Mellow Tone (Benny/Bria singing)

Four (Veronica/Kurt)

Blues (Catherine Russell)

Night in Tunisia

Day 7

John Pizzareli's Guitar Gathering

Artists: John Pizzarelli, Marcos Robinson, Matt Munisteri, Tyler Henderson, Mike Karn, Darrell Green

(blues)

Blue Bossa - Marcos lead with John

Some Of These Days - Matt lead with John

Tea for Two - John sang

Lady Bird - Marcos & trio

Little Heightchair Man - Matt solo: guitaring and sang

Some other time. Solo guitar Piz

Long Ago and Far Away - Piano trio feature

(rhythm changes)

Tower of Trumpets

Artists: Bria Skonberg, Benny Benack III, Sean Jones, Randy Brecker, Herlin Riley, Helen Sung, Tal Ronen, Terell Stafford, James Morrison, Bruce Harris

? All 7

Joy Spring (3)

All Blues (4)

If I were a bell (7)

Someday my Prince will come (4)

Ballad time: My Ideal (James) I Can’t Get Started (Randy), Skylark (Terell)

Mr. P. C. 

Sean Jones, 

Bria Skonberg, 

James Morrison, 

Randy Brecker, 

Terell Stafford, 

Bruce Harris

Benny Benack III,

Nicole Glover Trio

Artists: Tyrone Allen, Kayvon Gordon, Nicole Glover

Cool Eyes

Number Two 

The A Side (by bass player)

One for Amos

You Go To My Head

March (by Miki Yamanaka)

Resilience/ Equanimity

Veronica Swift with Emmet Cohen Trio

Artists: Emmet Cohen, Joe Farnsworth, Philip Norris, Veronica Swift

Getting To Know You

Dat Dere (changed the words to “take a big handkerchief over there)

The Man I Love

Guess Who’s in Town

The Show Must Go On

Lover Come Back to Me - burnin scat solo

A Little Taste 

Prisoner of Love

I’m Hip

The Sports Page (by Dave Frishberg)

As Long As He Needs Me

Twisted 

Janis Siegel

Artists: Janis Siegel, Dan Wilson, John di Martino, Boris Kozlov, Vince Cherico

It’s Always 4 A.M.

Lover

Everything I’ve Got Belongs to You

Last Night When We Were Young

Love Won’t Let Me Wait

Don’t Get Scared

Herlin Riley Quintet

Artists: Emmet Cohen, Herlin Riley, Philip Norris, Bruce Harris, Godwin Louis

Highlights:

Harlem shuffle (By Emmet)

A Time For Love 

Spring Fantasy

All Stars #6

Artists: Benny Benack Ill, Helen Sung, Hannah Marks, Shirazette Tinnin, Matt Munisteri, Ada Rovatti

Highlights:

Up Jumped Spring (trio)

Bye Bye Blackbird

Camille Thurman

Artists: Camille Thurman, Darrell Green, Matthew Parrish, Lafeyette Harris

(same first 3 songs as her earlier sets)

(didn't stay for the whole concert. This was the last show of the week and I was tired! And we had to get up early the next day to get off the ship.)

6 Days in New York

Siren Song

It's been too long since I've been to New York City to soak up the amazing jazz scene. It calls to me. When I found out Kurt Elling would be playing the role of Hermes in Hadestown on Broadway, I knew that was just the excuse I needed to plan a trip to the Big Apple. With my retirement at the end of December 2025 and Kurt on Broadway through January 2026, early January was the obvious time to go.

Day One - Monday

My travel buddy and fellow jazz aficionado, Steve, suggested we stay at the Lotte Palace. (That's pronounced LOH-TEH. It's a Korean company.) Steve is a travel guru, having traveled around the world, so when he recommends a place, I listen. Not a bad view from our room.

Room with a View

That's St. Patrick's Cathedral across the street.

The Lotte Palace is beautiful. It was originally the Villard Mansion, built by railroad magnate, Henry Villard. The mansion was built in the Neo-Renaissance style in 1884. Sadly, Villard went bankrupt around the time he finally moved in and only lived there a few months. This is the ceiling of the Gold Room where we had cocktails. They also serve breakfast here.

The ceiling of the Gold Room in the hotel

Directly above this room is the library. I tried to imagine Villard living here in January 1884. Electric lights came to wealthier homes in Manhattan in 1882, so he might have had indoor lighting. But he was probably burning candles to read by. And the the only indoor heating was the fireplaces.

The library of the original Villard Mansion

One of my former colleagues recommended a jazz club in Tribeca that I hadn't heard of, The Django. So after checking into the hotel we hopped the subway down to The Django for a late set featuring the Jihee Heo trio. Great show. I wasn't familiar with any of the performers, but the music was great, mostly standards including a beautiful rendition of "Lush Life".

Jihee Heo Trio at The Django

• Jihee Heo (piano)
• Eric Willer (bass)
• Chris Beck (drums)

Day Two - Tuesday

In addition to being a world-traveler, Steve is also a foodie, so we had to check out some haute cuisine. Of course we wouldn't want that to interfere with jazz shows, so we had lunch at Le Bernardin.

Outside Le Bernardin dressed like a New Yorker

We had the chef's tasting menu. It was amazing. I don't have the words to describe it. I'll let you read about it in the New York Times: Le Bernardin Holds On to Its Craft

After lunch we walked around midtown and decided to check out St. Patricks Cathedral which was still decorated for Christmas and awash in red poinsettias. 

Altar at St. Patrick's Cathedral 

The Waldorf-Astoria re-opened a few months ago after being closed 8 years for renovations. If 8 years seems like a long time, don't forget to factor in the Covid time warp. The lobby is beautiful and it has a beautiful 1908 Steinway piano that belonged to Cole Porter, who lived in the hotel back in the 1940's.

Cole Porter's piano in the lobby of the Waldorf-Astoria

We found out that they actually have someone playing the piano for the cocktail hour, so we decided to come back for cocktails later in the week.

In the evening we headed out to hear vocalist Dee Dee Bridgewater, who was doing a 5-night run at Birdland with pianist Bill Charlap. Dee Dee can be wild and crazy and Bill definitely shares her taste for musical adventure. They played standards and I mean played. It felt like they were just playing around for the pure joy of it. It was a great show! They did:

1. On A Clear Day
2. Sometimes I’m Happy
3. Just One of Those Things
4. Lush Life
5. I’m Beginning to See the Light
6. S’Wonderful
7. In A Sentimental Mood
8. Honeysuckle Rose
9. Mood Indigo
10. Caravan

Day Three - Wednesday

Before our Hadestown matinee at 2pm, we had time to check out another nice restaurant. Can you guess the name of the restaurant from this picture?

Yes, that's right Le Veau D'Or (Golden Calf). It was another excellent meal.

Then we we're off to the Walter Kerr Theatre.

It was a superb show and Kurt Elling was fabulous as Hermes. Hadestown tells the story of Orpheus, from the Greek myth, who travels to the underworld to rescue Eurydice. It also weaves in the Greek myth of Hades and Persephone.  I would have guessed that Orpheus or Hades had the most songs,  but Hermes narrates the story and has most songs. Kurt was great as Hermes. He's a great storyteller. Hadestown also takes place in the 1930's when jazz was the popular music and the big bands of Duke Ellington and Count Basie were, well, big! I also really enjoyed Jack Wolfe who played Orpheus. I found his performance and his singing very moving.

In the evening Steve and I went our separate ways. Steve wanted to see "Porgy and Bess" at the Metropolitan opera and I wanted to hear some more--you guessed it--jazz! 

I had learned the previous night that Birdland has a theatre in the basement below the club, which is called--drum roll--the Birdland Theatre. And Wednesday is guitar night at the Birdland Theatre, which is hosted by Frank Vignola. And his guests that night were the young phenom, Pasquale Grasso, and Mike Stern who has been on the scene longer than I've been working. And I just retired after 40 years. It was a great show. They weren't too loud, which guitarists can often be, but they did play a lot of up-tempo songs, which guitarists also seem to do quite often. They did a lot of trading off on comping and soloing and even all 3 soloing at once at one point. It was wild and fabulous. They did:

1. There is No Greater Love
2. Equinox
3. I Love You
4. Wing and a Prayer (Mike Stern original)
5. Softly
6. Sunnymoon for Two

Guitar Night at Birdland Theatre

• Mike Stern
• Pasquale Grasso
• Frank Vignola
• Alex Raderman (drums)
• Gary Mazzaroppi (bass)

Day 4 - Thursday

When I booked the trip, I didn't realize there was a two-day festival at Jazz at Lincoln Center on Thursday and Friday. 6:30pm to 12:30am both nights! We decided to go on Thursday. Steve took a nap on Thursday afternoon and I was teasing him about that, but he was gearing up for a long night. I went out in search of a tea house. A few blocks from the hotel I found Tearoom by Calmplex. It's in a basement: you have to walk through a pottery class and a clothing store to get to it. But it's lovely when you get there. You order your Chinese tea and they bring you a gongfu tea set so you can have your own little tea ceremony. I love the ritual of tea. It's very calming, especially at the Calmplex. And they have a tiny model of a tea set by the register. The cups are smaller than a fingernail.

Miniature tea set at Tearoom by Calmplex

We got to Jazz at Lincoln Center around 6pm. There were 10 different shows on for the first night of the Unity Festival, but we couldn't see even half of them. Here's the ones we did see.

Jazz Legacies Fellowship Honors All-Star Concert 2026

The Mellon Foundation created a fellowship to support elder jazz veterans. Twenty musicians received a fellowship grant. You can read about all the recipients at the Jazz Legacies Fellowship.

Seventeen of the recipients were able to participate in this concert. One of the recipients, George Cables, was unable to attend because he had another gig! The concert went by pretty quickly with each participant playing only one or two songs. One of the recipients is Seattle's own Julian Priester, who played with many of the greats over the last 7 decades. Julian is still playing his trombone and Steve got to play with him at a jam session just the week before. It was great to see him on the Rose Theatre stage.

Veronica Swift

At Dizzy's Club we saw Veronica Swift, a super-talented young vocalist. She said she was working on a new album about home and belonging and was singing some of the songs from that upcoming project. I didn't recognize most of the tunes. I think the first tune was "As Soon As I Get Home" from "The Wiz", which is a ballad, but after a chorus she took it up-tempo and started a blistering scat reminiscent of Ella. She also did a really uptempo version of "Chega de Saudade" and an intoxicating rendition of "Don't Rain on My Parade".

Veronica Swift at Dizzy's Club

It was a beautiful set! She closed with "Sing" by the Dresden Dolls, which she closed with when I heard her in Seattle at Jazz Alley two years ago. She was at the Triple Door in Seattle last year and that set had a heavy rock and roll influence. On the Dizzy's stage in New York she has integrated jazz, rock and Broadway into a swinging and soulful good time.

I called it a night after Veronica's set, but Steve's nap paid off and he was able to stay for one more show.

Theme for Akiko: Organ Jam Celebrating Akiko Tsuruga

Sadly, I can't tell you anything about this organ concert, since I was back at the hotel. Steve said I missed Pat Bianchi. Darn!

Day 5 - Friday

Friday we walked along Madison Avenue. And we happened to walk by the Jaeger LeCoultre store. If you aren't a collector of high-end watches, then you probably haven't heard of Jaeger LeCoultre. This was all new to me. Imagine you are walking into their store. Instead of buying that new Toyota Camry you could buy a high-end watch. The watch buying process is quite enjoyable. You are shown to a private room and served excellent espresso and madeleines. And of course, you know the sales rep, as you have purchased a watch from her in the past. Unfortunately, you have to start the conversation by confessing that you have cheated on her and recently bought a watch from one of her colleagues at the LA store. Sorry. But all is quickly forgiven as a tray of 3 watches is brought into the room. You will notice the craftsmanship is impressive, but you narrowly escaped without buying any watches!

We decided to visit the Frick Museum, formerly the Frick mansion built in 1914 in the Beaux-Arts style for Henry Frick. Frick was a dedicated art collector and stipulated in his will that his home and art collection be turned into a museum. The home itself is beautiful and the art collection is impressive--works by Rembrandt, Monet, Manet, Degas, Renoir and 3 Vermeer paintings!

Girl Interrupted at her Music

Officer and Laughing Girl

Mistress and Maid

We had two shows lined up at Mezzrow in Greenwich Village for Friday night. But first, dinner. We decided to take the train down to the Village and find a restaurant there. We found an interesting-looking restaurant called "Moody Tongue" about one block away from Mezzrow. Steve recognized the name as the same as a restaurant in Chicago. We inquire about a table and find out this restaurant has the same owners as the one in Chicago. They can squeeze us in at 5pm, when they open!

Moody Tongue is a sushi place. And they have a chef's tasting menu with beer pairings. Yes, beer, not wine. We both decide to try the tasting menu with the accompanying beers. The sushi was amazing. But I'm not a big beer fan. But I did try every beer and they did pair well with the sushi. I did have some beer left over at the end of the meal.

All the beers at Moody Tongue

The beers:

• Yuzu Lager
• Pressed Asian Pear Saison
• Sudachi Lager
• Orange Blossom Belgian Blonde
• Cherry Oud Bruin
• Cassis
• Cerise
• Bourbon Barrel Aged 12 Layer Cake Imperial Stout

Although I don't like beer in general, I do like a good stout and this bourbon barrel aged stout was delicious. It's the only one of the beers that I finished.

In addition to soaking up the only 365-day a year jazz festival (as Steve calls New York City) and seeing Hadestown, I had a third reason for this trip. To reconnect with some new friends that I met last year during my 5 Days in Cuba.

Geri lives in NYC and Lisa took the train down from Boston and Joe and Monte drove in from New Jersey.  Lisa joined us for the first show, then Geri joined in for the second show, and we all had drinks with Joe and Monte after the show.

Steve and I got a seat up front. Do I look like I'm already excited? Mezzrow broadcasts their concerts on the internet and I have tuned in many times. It was great to be back there in person!

Steve & JD at Mezzrow

Here's the view from my seat.

The Mezzrow stage - close enough to touch!

Vanessa Rubin was moving--soulful and beautiful. It was my first time hearing her live. I'm already looking forward to the next time. She sang:

1. Are You Ready for Me?
2. The Creator Has a Master Plan
3. Once Was Not Enough (original she said she wrote for one of her ex-husbands)
4. You’ve Changed (with Johnny O’Neal sitting in on piano)
5. Now, Baby, or Never
6. Save Your Love for Me
7. I Ain’t Got Nothing But the Blues

Her band:

• Brandon McCune / Piano
• Richie Goods / Bass
• Alvin Atkinson / Drums

We stayed at Mezzrow to hear the next set with Peter Martin. We moved across to the other side of the room and sat next to the drums. I didn't get any photos of Peter. I guess I was too mesmerized by the music. It was a great set of standards with interesting arrangements. They did "Summertime" with a funk bass groove. It was great.  Songs:

1. Blue Monk
2. Summertime (kind of a funk double-feel)
3. Flamenco Sketches
4. I Can’t Help It (someone requested a Stevie Wonder tune, he picked this one)
5. One Finger Snap (with Adam Maness sitting in on piano)
6. Green Dolphin Street

Band:

• Tamir Shmerling / Bass
• Mark Whitfield Jr / Drums

Day 6 - Saturday

The first week of January turns out to be a great time to visit New York City. The Christmas decorations are still up, but there are no big crowds--just the usual crowds when you have 1.6 million people living on an island that is fewer than 23 square miles.

Our hotel was near Rockefeller Center and I have a distant memory of skating at Rockefeller center as a child with my grandfather back in the 60's. My grandfather worked in the city and occasionally took me and my sister into the city. So I decided to go ice skating.

JD on Ice

After skating I went back to the Tearoom by Calmplex. It was quite busy on a Saturday afternoon, but I was able to get a table after a short wait--maybe 15 minutes.

Saturday night was the big night. We had reservations at Smoke to hear Joshua Redmond. He doesn't usually play venues this small. I last saw him in a big auditorium in Montreal at the festival there. We were all together, me, Steve and my Cuba buddies. Smoke doesn't let you take pictures during the show, so I don't have any. 

Joshua did mostly originals. And he had some friends in the audience. Ekep Nkwelle sat in and sang Skylark. She's a great young singer who I had heard before--also at the Montreal jazz festival. And Emmet Cohen sat in and played Scrapple from the Apple. His band:

• Paul Cornish / Piano
• Phillip Norris / Bass
• Nazir Ebo / Drums

It was an awesome show! The crowd loved it. The crowd kept cheering until Joshua played an encore. And it was definitely an unplanned encore. A roadie had already taken Joshua's saxophones off the stage. He had to bring them back to the stage. It was a great night. And special for the Cuba gang to have Emmet Cohen sit in, since we all met in Cuba because of Emmet. And we got a picture with Emmet after the show.

Cuba trip reunion with Emmet

Au revoir, New York! See you again soon--I hope!

5 Days in Cuba

The road to my Cuba adventure begins in March 2020 when a suddenly out of work jazz pianist living in Harlem named Emmet Cohen decided to have a rent party with a few local friends. Fans could tune in online and leave tips for the musicians with PayPal. Every Monday at 7:30pm Eastern, Live from Emmet's Place would stream on Facebook and YouTube. This was a lifeline for a live jazz junkie like me.

In the summer of 2024 Emmet sent an email to his fans asking if anyone was interested in joining him on a trip to Cuba. I pondered it for a few hours before responding to the email that I was interested. I got a reply that the trip was already full. :-( 

A few days later I got another email that they were adding a second tour. Emmet Cohen would do two back-to-back tours in Cuba. I was in!

On March 13th, 2025 I landed in Cuba with a tour group of 36 people for 5 days in Havana.

Day 1 - Thursday

We left Miami in the morning. Americans can fly to Cuba. They just need permission from the US State Department. You can file for permission yourself, but our paperwork was handled by Cuba Rhythm and Views, a tour operator that organizes trips to Cuba. Thank you to Neil and Ry who handled all the logistics and created a great experience for us!

We arrived in time for lunch and since we couldn't check in to our hotel yet, we went straight to a restaurant, called La Guarida. The first new Spanish word I learned was el paladar, which means private restaurant. A ristorante in Cuba is a restaurant run by the government, where you get the official government exchange rate of 150 pesos per US dollar. But at the paladars you get the market rate, which was about 320 pesos per dollar! The only government restaurant I ate at was the in the hotel and the food at the paladars was much better and more varied. The next word I learned was la guarida, which means lair. Yes, as in the villain's lair. And it was quite the lair.

The restaurant was on the 2nd floor. This greeted us on the first floor.

And of course, we had to walk by a Fidel Castro quote on the wall next to the stairs. Are they in every building?

Finally we arrive at the restaurant, correction, paladar. They have a fancy wine room. I think we're in for a treat.

We had a great lunch. Check out this unusual lemon pie. It is not what I expected when I ordered pie de limón con almendras.

La Guarida also had a roof deck that we explored a bit after lunch. It has some nice views of the city. This guy is blocking the view in all my pictures from the roof. Oh, well. You can still see the view.

We thought this would be our only chance to see this place. We didn't know that fate would lead us back here the following day.

After lunch we went to the hotel. But it was too early to check in to our rooms. Not to worry! The tour company arranged a lecture by a local university professor on the history of US-Cuba Relations. I thought it might be a good time to take a nap after that rich dessert, but the lecture was really interesting. I had always wondered how the US wound up with a military base in Cuba. Turns out we signed a 99-year lease on the place back in the 1920s. And that lease is coming due soon. I don't remember exactly when. Maybe I was napping a little bit.

I was aware, of course, that the US doesn't trade with Cuba. What I didn't know was that the US uses its influence with other countries to keep them from trading with Cuba also. I can't think about this without also thinking that both Americas and Cubans would be better off if we ended this trade embargo. But I digress. One country that doesn't bend to US pressure in this regard is Spain. And they are one of Cuba's largest trading partners. The hotel that we are about to check into is owned by a Spanish company. 

Speaking of hotels, the US State Department maintains a list of hotels where Americans are not allowed to stay. The Iberostar Parque Central is on the list. But the hotel expanded a few years ago and built a second tower. They decided to give the new tower its own name and address, so it wouldn't be on the list and could serve Americas. That's where we checked in after the lecture, the Iberostar Marqués del La Torre. 

I wonder what would happen if an American ate dinner in the lobby of the Parque Central hotel. Hmmm.

There was a local band in the lobby on Thursday night that I listened to while having dinner at the bar.

They sounded okay. Fun, but nothing to blog about. But I did meet some cool people in the tour group that I would wind up palling around with for the next 5 days.

After dinner we all went to see the evening canon firing. Yeah, it's about as exciting and deafening as you would guess.

After getting back to the hotel I was ready to check out some live music in Havana, so I asked around about where I could hear some local music. This tour was with the Emmet Cohen Trio. The drummer in the trio was the great Joe Farnsworth, who has been a fixture on the New York City jazz scene for decades. Emmet suggested I ask Joe about the local scene. They had been in Cuba for a week already and Joe was getting to know a few places. Joe recommended a place with a pop band in the old plaza. That's actually what they call it--Plaza Vieja--it sounds much cooler in Spanish. He didn't know the name of the bar, but he said it was on the corner of the square and I couldn't miss it. I didn't. It was called La Vitrola. And they did have a fun band. They looked great too. At least from the back.

I got a seat at an outdoor table in the plaza looking in at the back of the band. Okay, I went inside to get a pic from the front too.

Day 2 - Friday

Although I was hoping to spend every day following Emmet Cohen around listening to concert after concert, the tour was a little more varied than that. On Friday morning we visited a private daycare. Yes, daycare is provided by the government in Cuba, but they don't have enough capacity for everyone, so if you aren't in a high priority role (military, construction, tourism) then you may be on your own for daycare. We visited Padre Usera Daycare (Guarderia Padre Eusera) which was started by Sister Rocío de Jesús. Private daycare is legal in Cuba now, but this place was started back when it was illegal. Sister Rocío was a brave soul! I didn't want to take pictures of the children, but I thought this was cute the way all their backpacks were lined up on this bench.

Next we went to a private performance of the Liszt Alfonso Ballet. I didn't take any pictures, except of this of poster in the lobby that caught my eye.

After a fancy lunch at San Cristóbal, we visited a music school called Conservatorio Amadeo Roldán where we heard a high school jazz band. After the concert Emmet Cohen and his bandmates gave a master class. Rounding out the Emmet Cohen Trio on bass was Reuben Rogers, who is actually from the Caribbean--the Virgin Islands. Emmet wasn't feeling well that day, so Reuben led the master class. The band had played a Duke Ellington arrangement, I think it was Take the "A" Train. Reuben asked them to play it again and think about the dynamics, when they should play softer or louder. After just a little coaching they played the chart again--or least part of it--and it sounded much better. I was amazed what a difference it made.

We were supposed to have dinner on our own again, followed by a performance of the Cuban National Ballet, but The Fates had something else in store for us. (Do you know Bob and Betty Fate? I think they are from Omaha). The ballet had to be rescheduled and we were on our own for the evening. Emmet happened to know a Cuban pianist, Jorge Luis Pacheco, who had a gig that night at La Guarida. Almost everyone from the tour group decided to go. Our tour guides were amazing. They had arranged a bus during the day to shuttle us around. So many of us wanted to go to La Guarida, that they were able to use the bus to take us to dinner. And they arranged a reservation for 25 people too! We were up on the roof this time, enjoying good food and good music! Jorge Luis Pacheco is a singer as well as a pianist and Emmet sat in on piano for a tune with Jorge singing.

In the middle of the show, large parts of Havana suddenly went dark. We learned that Cuba sometimes has scheduled blackouts when they don't have enough fuel to generate electricity. But this blackout didn't seem to be planned. I didn't notice the blackout right away. Because the scheduled blackouts are somewhat common, a lot of places have their own generator. Like the fancy hotels and paladars. So we didn't lose power at La Guarida, but a lot of the city did. Fortunately our hotel also had a generator, or we might have been sleeping in the lobby. Well, I probably could have handled 5 flights of stairs. Maybe.

Back at the hotel after the music, I was revved up. One of the first people I met in the tour group was Ross, back in Miami. We were lining up to check in for the flight when I saw someone with a sax case. I had to introduce myself. There was a piano in the lobby of the hotel and late Friday night, Ross and I had a chance to make a little music!

Photo credit: Geri Fitzgerald

Day 3 - Saturday

Saturday morning we boarded the bus for an art gallery. This one was in the lobby of the Hotel Melia Cohiba. There were multiple hallways off the lobby with lots of art. This one really grabbed my eye, almost literally. I felt like this deer was looking right at me. He's the Mona Lisa of deer.

And this one was so realistic, I wanted to reach out and touch it.

The next stop on the tour was an artist's gallery. This was actually the artist's apartment. They had art all over the walls and jewelry on display. All for sale, of course. It was cool to see what an apartment in Havana looked like. One tiny bedroom, small kitchen, extra small stove. Reasonable living room and a decent outdoor space out back. I didn't take any pictures inside their apartment, though they probably wouldn't have minded. The tour company had told us in advance to bring cash if we wanted to buy art. This was our first opportunity to do that and a lot of people did. I think this artist does pretty well.

Next another fancy lunch, this time on the beach at a place called Vista Mar. It had a strange sequence of raised black boards at the far end of the pool. I didn't figure out what it was supposed to be until Emmet emailed out this pic a few months later.

Photo credit: Emmet Cohen

Does it look like a piano keyboard to you?

After lunch we visited an artist neighborhood called Fusterland. This neighborhood gets its unique character from Jose Fuster. He covered his house in his ceramic art and the ceramic art vibe spread to surrounding houses.

Here's one of the pieces up close.

In the evening the Emmet Cohen Trio was supposed to be performing at the Museo de Bellas Artes, but they were in the dark. Literally, no electricity. The blackout was still ongoing. The tour operator scrambled and convinced the hotel to host the concert in their lobby. So we ended up with a more intimate private performance right in our hotel.

There were local guests, a great trumpet player sat in. And Jorge Luis Pacheco (the pianist we heard Friday night) also sat in. And a number of the students that we heard at the school also sat in. The band coaxed the students up on stage and had them take over their instruments in the middle of a song. I looked up and suddenly it was a trio of talented Cuban high school students. Wow! Great concert.

After that we were on our own for dinner. And I knew a place! So I dragged a few of my new friends to La Vitrola. We sat outside and had a lovely late-night dinner.

Day 4 - Sunday

Sunday morning I decided to skip the planned art museum. I went for a run on the malécon, which is a large stone seawall, like a boardwalk, but without the boards. Turns out our hotel wasn't very far from the water. When I got back to the hotel, I decided I need some water, so took a dip in the rooftop pool.

Then I met up with the tour group at Mishifu for another delicious lunch.

Sunday there was supposed to be a concert with the Emmet Cohen Trio and Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional de Cuba at the National Theatre, but--you guessed it--no power. Once again, the tour guides made lemonade. The Sunday concert was going to be recorded. So the concert was moved to a recording studio and we got to watch and listen as they recorded some tracks!

It was a great show. Another intimate performance. Well, as intimate as you can get with an orchestra.

After that, we still had some daylight and I wanted to see the Hemingway House. (Ernest Hemingway lived in Cuba for many years.) But the Hemingway House wasn't open on Sundays. Hemingway also lived at the Hotel Ambos Mundos (Both Worlds Hotel). And the hotel was open. But we couldn't visit room 511 because... there was still no electricity.

Day 5 - Monday

Monday morning we did a walking tour of Old Havana, which was near the hotel. There was a short street that was paved with wooden bricks! They use a hard wood, but the bricks still don't last forever. There was a guy replacing worn out bricks when we were there. Yes, they really are made of wood.

We had a few minutes on our own and I found coffee shop that had a decent cortado!

As we continued to walk I started to recognize some of the streets. I know this neighborhood. That's the Old Plaza! When we took a break for lunch, I went to a restaurant on the plaza with my new gang of friends. Here's what one end of the plaza looks like.

I feel like I am repeating myself here. After lunch we were supposed to see the Spanish Ballet Company of Cuba, but there was still no electricity at the theatre. But the ballet company invited us to come to their rehearsal space (that did have power) to see them. They set up folding chairs along one wall of the room and performed right in front of us!

After I fell in love with Flamenco Dancing, we had one more touristy thing to do. You may have heard about the old cars in Cuba. There are no US made cars that were manufactured after 1959 in Cuba. I had expected to see old cars everywhere. But no, there a lots of recent model cars from Japan, China and Europe. The old US cars are a hobby for some people, but mostly a tourist attraction. This wasn't an official part of the tour, but our tour guides made it happen because so many of us wanted to do it.

Our driver was a former nurse. He said he made more money on one ride then he made in a whole month as a nurse. So he drives tourists around in old cars so he can make enough money to take care of his family.

That night we had our farewell dinner at L'Atelier, another fabulous paladar. Good food and drink and a live band. And one of the folks on the tour celebrated their 90th birthday that night! I hope I'll still be touring new places when I'm 90!