My visit to Cuba
First, let me apologize for taking so long to blog about this trip. I visited Cuba in mid- November and here it, January, and I am just writing about my trip. I will be timelier with my blogs in the future. I am just going to give you the highlights of the trip. I visited Cuba in from November 10th – 14th with one of my good girlfriends, Stacey. She is the best travel partner!!! We literally go everywhere together; this time was no different. Forgive me in advance if I lack some details. I did not journal throughout this trip, so some details may be vague.
First, let me apologize for taking so long to blog about this trip. I visited Cuba in mid- November and here it, January, and I am just writing about my trip. I will be timelier with my blogs in the future. I am just going to give you the highlights of the trip. I visited Cuba in from November 10th – 14th with one of my good girlfriends, Stacey. She is the best travel partner!!! We literally go everywhere together; this time was no different. Forgive me in advance if I lack some details. I did not journal throughout this trip, so some details may be vague.
Our Casa
I visited Cuba in from November 10th – 14th
and stayed in Airbnb accommodations. We had the entire place to ourselves. Our
place had a living room, eat in kitchen, bedroom, 1 full bathroom with a shower
and a half bathroom. There was also a rooftop patio, but climbing the stairs to
get to it was a little scary. I only went up one time and that was in the
evening, so I was not able to enjoy the view.
The home is in the heart of Central Havana. At this location you really
got to experience the day to day living on the Cuban people. You can check them out the property here.
Enma was our host and she was the absolute best. She arranged our
transportation from the airport prior to our arrival. Anytime we needed
something she was there to help. She also arranged breakfast for us. Each
morning we walked across the street from our casa to have breakfast. We paid $5
daily for breakfast. Sometimes breakfast was hit or miss.
The Market, The
Capitol, Old Havana, and The Malecon
On our second day In Havana we started our day by visiting
the market. We had this casa with an empty refrigerator, so we figured we would
get snacks and drinks for when we were in the home. The market was a short walk
from the casa. I didn’t realize until we arrived that the market was more so
like a mall where you could purchase any and everything. There were several food
markets, a carniceria (meat market), clothing stores, shoe stores, electronic
stores, appliance stores, a bank, a furniture store, a couple restaurants, food
stalls, and more. We walked the entire market, before grabbing some rum, soda
and snack from the market. We also grabbed some ham and cheese sandwiches from
a food stall. Everything was inexpensive.
After returning home we visited Capitol. Our host Enma
called a friend who was a taxi driver to take us. It was less than a 10 minute ride from out
Casa. The Capitol is Cuba is modeled after the U.S Capitol, which I found to be
very ironic given the relationship between the two countries. After taking in
view of the Capitol our taxi driver took us for a drive around Old Havana. We
stopped at various places and he shared with the us the history or significance
of those places. After this tour, we found ourselves near the Capitol again and
we were hungry. Now, I must admit that we did not plan for this trip as well as
we have planned for others in the past. With proper planning, we would have
known where our next meal was coming from. After a bit of walking, we came upon
the Floridita. This restaurant is known for its popular drinks and it was a
favorite of Ernest Hemingway. We did not eat here though, we visited a
restaurant on the opposite corner which was still had good cocktails and less
expensive meals. There was a bit of a fiasco though. We asked for a bread
basket and we received one, but instead of providing us with butter, they
bought us mayo. Unfortunately, Stacey made this discovery. I don’t know who
spreads mayo on bread, but anyway……
After this meal, we went for a stroll through the city. We
came across some schools ranging from elementary school to high school. There
was also a school for special needs students. The schools were open and there
was a person monitoring each school. We were able to tour one of the schools.
The school architecture, like much of the Cuban architecture, is beautiful but
in need of a lot of repair.
The school houses
We ended our night at the Malecon. The Malecon is a seaside
avenue where you will often find people hanging out, listening to music, and
enjoying rum. Unfortunately for us, our taxi driver did not drop us off at the
part of the Malecon where everyone was hanging out. We did a bit of walking
before we found a group of people hanging out, but they were not on the sea
wall, they were across the street in a park like setting, sitting on benches
and listening to music. We hung here for a bit. They probably weren’t on the
sea wall because the tide was high, and water was splashing over the wall. With
the wind and the water, you would have been very wet. After a while, we took a
taxi home, and as we were driving home, we saw large crowd in another section
of the Malecon at Avenida 23, which is probably where we were supposed. Overall
it was an eventful day.
Vinales
On our 3rd day we visited the town of
Vinales. Our host, contacted yet another
friend and he was there promptly at 9 am to take us on the trip. He was waiting
outside the home as we were leaving breakfast.
Before heading out the country side, he did take us around the city. We
wanted to see where government officials lived. He showed us the area where
Cuban government officials lived as well as several embassies before heading on
the highway. Now, in Cuba you will find horse drawn carts on the highway. I am
not kidding. They drive fast as hell too. Vinales is about 2 hours from Havana,
so this was an all-day trip.
During the trip we stopped at 2 different hotels in the
countryside that had amazing views. During the second stop we enjoyed some Pina
Colada, there was live music, and were able to do a little shopping. After the
short visit, we visited a waterfall next. I believe the admission fee for the
waterfall was $3. If you do visit the waterfall, make sure you have the correct
shoes. It was a bit of a task getting over to the waterfall, but we made it.
Some people were swimming, but I only wanted pictures. There were also people
there selling drinks out of the coconuts and pineapples. Another vendor was
selling souvenirs. We made our way back to the taxi and then we were off to
lunch. We were taken a restaurant that provided a “buffet lunch”. This lunch
consisted of soup, salad, fruit salad, three different types of rice, a choice
of meat, and a drink. I opted out of the salad and fruit salad. The soup was
very good and so were the beans and rice. I ordered chicken and I did not enjoy
it. Unfortunately, I don’t not recall the name of the restaurant.
After lunch, we visited tobacco farm. At the time we visited
the owner was hosting a party for one of his children. We were given like a 5-minute
tour and then asked if we wanted to buy cigars. They also offered horseback
riding which neither one of us was interested in. We took some pictures around the farm before
heading off to visit the cave. The cave
admission was about $5. No one warned us that walking through this cave would
be challenging. You had to duck and walk through narrow walkways before you
reached the boat. There should been some warning about this. There were elderly
people purchasing tickets. Anyway, once on the boat it was just a short ride.
The cave is not as deep as I expected. There was some discussion about the
formations in the cave and in less than 5 minutes we were exiting the cave.
After this we took the long ride back to Havana.
El Museo De
Revolucion
On our 4th day in Cuba we visited El Museo De
Revolucion. The entrance fee was $8. The museum is very imformative, but many
of the exhibits involved a lot of reading. That’s not a bad thing, I just
expected to see more artifacts from the revolution. You will enjoy this museum
if you enjoy history.
We went to the Havana Club Museum gift shop and purchased
rum to take home. The museum was just about to close as we arrived, but if you
get the opportunity you should check it out. Well, on second thought that may
not be possible under Trumps new laws.
Later in the day we visited the hotel that Beyonce and Jay-Z
stayed in during their trip to Cuba. I am a huge Beyonce fan, so visiting the
hotel was a must. It was the Hotel Saratoga and it is located near the Capitol.
We had dinner and drinks while there. It is a very nice upscale hotel. I
encourage you to check it out if you visit. Afterward, we spent the evening
walking the street of Havana one last time.
Overall, this was a good trip. I wish we had been more
prepared as far as the itinerary was concerned. The language barrier was also
challenging from time to time. Over the course of the trip, some of those
middle school and high school Spanish lessons came back to me. Another issue we
had was people trying to overcharge us for things. When I read blogs or post
people always say, “Cuba owes me nothing”. I beg to differ, I feel like that
owe me a good $25 - $30 for all the overcharging they do.
If you do go be sure
to exchange your currency prior to arriving. Most major banks will exchange the
currency if you have an account with them. American dollars are not excepted in
Cuba and you are not able to use your bank cards and credit cards. You can
exchange the currency it Cuba, but it will cost you more. Also make sure you
secure a visa prior to traveling. You should be able to purchase one through
your airline, but double check. We flew Delta, and purchased the visa prior to
boarding the flight.
If you have questions, feel free to contact me.
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