Calle Martí is the main pedestrian boulevard of Pinar del Río — a shaded arcade of colonial buildings running through the heart of the city. This is where people gather in the evenings, where the provincial government buildings and main churches face each other, and where the daily life of the city is most visible.
The street has the characteristic arcaded pavement that keeps walkers out of the rain and the worst of the midday sun. The buildings range from well-maintained colonial facades to gently crumbling nineteenth-century commercial blocks. There are a handful of restaurants, ice cream parlors, and government-run shops along the route. An evening walk here, when the temperature drops and people come out, gives a sense of the city that any museum visit can't replicate.