The following is the last of a series of posts on Rafael Trejo Boxing Gym. Rafael Trejo Boxing Gym (Rafael Trejo Gimnasio al Aire Libre) is, from my understanding, the oldest Western boxing gym in Havana, Cuba. Rafael Trejo was a Cuban who was murdered by police in 1930 during a student protest against the Machado government. Rafael Trejo, a law school student president, became a martyr and a hero for the Castro regime. (Source.) The gym is named in his honour. I only spent two days and no nights in Havana. Finding the gym was my main focus. I had arrived in Havana years earlier, in 2006, to source out a boxing gym to train at. I didn't find one. In 2013, I … [Read more...]
Boxing In Cuba – Training At Rafael Trejo Boxing Gym, Havana
My first impression of Rafael Trejo Boxing Gym (Rafael Trejo Gimnasio al Aire Libre) was that it was beautiful. The pockets in the plaster walls, the cracks in the concrete floor and the shots of red running throughout created warmth within my body. The ring, surrounded by stadium seating on two sides and bags on another, was well maintained. A slight breeze moved within the gym. Air flow. All of this made Rafael Trejo Boxing Gym a desireable location to train. I arrived to find the gym empty but for one woman. I wasn't prepared to train; I made the trip that day from Jibacoa to Havana with two friends, a tour guide and a private driver. I was there to see the facilities, … [Read more...]
Havana – Everything Good, Bad And In Between Will Exist In Another
It's interesting slouching in a hard-backed wooden chair, wearing a black scarf and my roommate's hoodie, surrounded by ivy and white Christmas lights while attempting to conjure memories of my one week stay in Cuba six weeks gone. I'm in Toronto, I'm outside, it's September and the heat of Havana's pavement is so far away. My nose is cold and the sky is black. It's 8:27 pm. Cuba was a last-minute decision and Havana was a weird mix of a focus and an after-thought. This happens sometimes when I travel - I become ambivalent. Riding the present while concurrently possessing some sense of duty to the trip. Thoughts of what I should be doing, of what I may regret if I … [Read more...]