Little Havana Stories by
Dr. Corinna Moebius
Take a memorable, mind-opening journey through Little Havana with the co-author of A History of Little Havana. Enter a world where magic, politics and culture intersect.
If you’re like most people planning a visit to Little Havana (in Miami, Florida), you imagine locals smoking cigars, playing Cuban dominos, and dancing to Cuban beats.
Yet there is so much more to this place.
This website was previously my site for promoting my unique walking tours of Little Havana. I have since decided to make it an archive for sharing my stories about Little Havana and its Calle Ocho district: stories that weave together cultural heritage, history, magic, music, politics and even ecological aspects of this famous neighborhood.
My hope is that like my tours these stories will inspire Aha! moments that will stay with you long afterward you read them, and that they cultivate a deeper awareness of place, people and planet.
Guests on my walking tours included world and grassroots leaders, CEOs, professional and student groups, families, scholars, journalists, and more.
As Mentioned By:
This was by far one of the best tours I have ever been on.
Although I have been familiar with Calle Ocho and Little Havana for a couple decades, Corinna was able to provide a great deal of new information that would be available only to a resident and someone who lived with the local culture daily.
She did so in a way that was not only interesting and vivacious, but was able to explain things to participants at a variety of different levels.
And it was clear that she was liked and respected in the neighborhood.
Tina Bucavales
Director, Florida Cultural Resources, Inc. (Former Director of the Florida Folklife Program of the Florida Department of State)
My husband and I have been able to indulge in a great deal of travel and in those travels we’ve met some amazing tour guides.
These are people who live and breathe the essence of their cities and neighborhoods. Corinna is such an individual.
If you have ever been curious about Little Havana … or if you are just visiting, Corinna is your best bet to truly understand the heartbeat of this community.
Highly, highly recommend her tours!
Vivian Rueda
Chief Marketing Officer, United DermPartners
About Corinna
Writing about Places, Power & Identity-Making
I’m Corinna Moebius, Ph.D., and I teach, write and speak about our relationship to places–from homes to neighborhoods, cities, and the Living Earth.
Currently, I am a Visiting Lecturer with the International Honors Program of SIT (School for International Training), where I teach in a unique multi-city (NYC, Buenos Aires, Barcelona, CapeTown) study abroad program called Cities in the 21st Century: People, Planning and Politics. Offered to undergraduates, this semester-long program explores issues of urbanization, and social and spatial justice.
When I am not traveling with the program, I write and teach my own courses and workshops and lead walkshops and other experiences. I will also be working on this archive of stories from my time living and working in Miami’s Little Havana neighborhood. I co-authored A History of Little Havana and I’m currently finishing my own book on the history and politics behind the planning and development of its Calle Ocho heritage district. My book and my Little Havana tours, which I led for more than a decade, were based on a decade of fieldwork, more than 50 interviews, and extensive archival research.
Local newspaper Calle Ocho News named me a “Community Champion” due to my civic leadership, because I always strived to do right by fellow residents, not just visitors or people who took my tours. I genuinely cared about my neighbors, and still do, although I no longer live in the neighborhood.
“Little Havana: National Treasure”
What is Little Havana?
Little Havana is one of the most famous neighborhoods in the world, designated a U.S. “National Treasure” by the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Sometimes nicknamed the “Latino Ellis Island,” it’s the place where you’ll hear the “Cuban American success story” repeated over and over again.
Yet have you ever wondered how a single neighborhood became such a powerful symbol, nationally and even internationally? Have you ever asked yourself why?
I shed light on the stories that you haven’t already heard.