We’re On Our Own

There appeared to be another possibility of meeting Che Guavera’s son at his bar again this morning.  After breakfast we hopped back into cabs to Old Havana.  Some of us explored the streets around the bar while others of us enjoyed an adult beverage.  After Che’s son stood us up, we headed back to our Casa Particulars to pack up and continue on to the next part of our journey. 

Our group met back up with our guide, Tony, from earlier in the trip to return to Santa Clara for their flight home tomorrow morning.  David and I still have another 10 days to explore the city of Havana.  We bid our farewells to Marie who had been a wonderful hostess and caught a cab to our home for the next week.

Our three bedroom apartment was located near the Capital towards the main train station.  Luis, the caretaker, met us at the door and helped us into the apartment.  The three bedrooms were in a row on the way to the bathroom although all the rooms have access to an outdoor walkway with bathroom access.  There’s a living room and also an upstairs.  This is where the apartment really shines with a nice bright kitchen and a large outdoor rooftop deck surrounded by lush plants.  The deck is shared with the one bedroom apartment off the deck but everything else is ours.  The refrigerator was stocked with beer and water and we also had wine and rum if we wanted it.  Another full bathroom upstairs rounds out our quarters.  This was definitely the nicest place we had stayed during the trip.

The owner, Catherine, is French but lives fulltime in Costa Rica.  She travels here every three weeks or so to check on her house, the apartments and several other projects she has going here.  She’s an interior designer by trade which is quite apparent looking at the appointments in our apartment.  I had been communicating with her son who lives in Paris and works for Christian Dior.  Catherine happened to be on one of her visits here so it was nice to meet her.  Three women take care of cleaning the apartments and cooking breakfast each morning.  They also did a load of laundry for us for 1 CUC ($1)!  I could get used to this!

After relaxing a bit on the deck, we decided to wonder back towards the Capital to find dinner.  The bar that we were heading for was completely packed, so we headed towards a neon sign down the street.  This little diversion would change the rest of our trip.  El Dandy’s is a bar that serves tapas and very good drinks.  With all the tables being filled, we took seats at the bar.  We ordered several tapas and a couple of drinks. 

The bartender asked us a few questions about where we were from, if this was our first trip and how we liked his country.  He also asked us about the Presidential election since they were a little concerned that Trump would roll back the changes made by the Obama administration.  After a little chat, he asked what we had planned for the next day.  Having nothing set in stone, he offered to take us on a walking tour of what he called the ‘real’ Cuba.  We agreed to a noon meeting and headed back to our place.

I can’t tell you how much we enjoyed a queen size bed with real pillows and nice linens.  It felt like we were staying at a five star hotel.  We quickly drifted off to sleep to prepare for a big adventure tomorrow.

Tomorrow: Nestor’s world

Back to the Cemetery

A gentleman with the key to an underground crypt was available for us this morning.  We were allowed to roam around the high stacked boxes of remains, some with long dead flowers attached to them, others with lids ajar which allowed us a look in.  Bones and skulls were visible inside.  It was fascinating if a little creepy.

After we left the cemetery we went to the capital where we were free to roam the streets looking for shots.  The capital is under restoration so it is covered in scaffolding.  This building is modeled after the US capital, although it is slightly larger, and was built post WWI by the US backed Dictator Gerardo Machado.  It was built during the sugar boom of the 1920’s.  It now houses the Cuban Academy of Sciences and the National Library of Science and Technology.  The buildings opposite it are in total disrepair with many empty facades with trees growing in them.  It is really one of the biggest examples of rich and poor I’ve seen. 

Small streets radiated out from the square and we broke into small groups to explore.  We ended up at the famous Sloppy Joes Bar for a bite of lunch.  This bar reopened in 2013 after being closed for 40 years.  It served as the haunts for such famous people as Hemingway and Frank Sinatra.  We tried the sloppy joes and beer.  After lunch, we hired a convertible to take four of us back to our lodging.

Our group split up this evening to take shots of the sunset and the rise of the Super Moon.  Four of us took our gear down to the Malecon to take pictures of the moon rising over Fort Moro.  Clouds started moving in which obstructed part of the moon but we still got some good shots.  Doug and Barbara had been invited to a photography school to speak to their students so they missed out. 

After a pleasant dinner at Waoo (Wow!) on the corner, we went back to our rooms to pack up for our departure tomorrow.

Tomorrow:  We say goodbye to the group

Off to Habana

Because we had a long drive to our destination, we got a little earlier start to our day.  We had breakfast again in the large communal dining hall, the typical omelet with cheese and ham (jamon), rotating fruit (depending on when you arrived) and little pancakes with honey.  Some of the other items available were not all that appetizing like the hotdogs cut into small pieces or the vegetables.  There was plenty to eat even if plates were not always available.

To get more of a feel for the Cuban countryside we took a northern route that avoided the major highway to Havana.  Our bus driver said in all his years of driving he had never been on this route.  Leave it to Doug to get off the beaten path.  The countryside was littered with small, square, brightly painted houses with laundry hanging on lines somewhere in the yard.  Chickens and dogs roamed the yards. 

The road was rough in areas and none of it as nicely paved as well as the major highway.  Our bus developed creaks and rattles as the trip progressed.  About midafternoon our guides started looking for a lunch stop since we would not arrive into Havana until dinnertime.  We drove through the largest town we had been in which looked like our best opportunity.  Most of the eating establishments were small, bar like affairs which could not accommodate our size group.  One restaurant towards the outskirts of town seemed to be our best option. 

Since this town was located right on the Caribbean, seafood was the specialty of the house.  I think the majority of our group ordered lobster for $12.  They were split and grilled and were huge!  This was perhaps the best lobster of the trip.  Paper products are in short supply many places, so this restaurant used several squares of toilet paper for our napkins.  This was definitely a first and hopefully last experience for me.

Another feature of the restaurant was the attractive waitress.  Unlike most of her fellow countrymen she was blond and said she enjoyed having her picture taken.  At the end of the meal she agreed to a little photo shoot with a Cuban flag Doug had brought along.

We had to stop at a hotel on the edge of Havana to get vouchers for our accommodations.  This place was beautiful with a lazy river pool and views over the ocean.  It also goes for $400-$500 a night.  We convinced ourselves that we wanted to experience the ‘real’ Cuba and continued on down the road.

We were staying in casa particulars (rooms rented in residences) in the Vedado section of Havana.  This is not the typical tourist section of the city.  We were all within a couple of block area of each other (at the intersection of K and 25, not very creative on street names).  Our casa was on the busier L Street with large windows overlooking the street activity.  We had a private bathroom, a refrigerator and a bed.  Adjoining our room was a small living room and a separate dining area where we would have breakfast.  An Australian also shared the common space with us although we did not see him during our stay.  Marie was our hostess and her 90 something year old mother also lived there.

On the corner was a nice little Italian restaurant willing to rearrange tables for our group.  Cibo had a good variety of dishes and was some of the better food we had eaten on the trip.  After our long journey we were all ready to turn in for the evening.

Tomorrow: The Sites of the City

Exploring the City, Cuba Style

Doug and Jonathon had arranged ‘50s era taxis to take our group exploring today.  Our first stop was for a group picture in front of the newly opened American Embassy. The building dates back to President Carter who wanted to have a presence in Cuba even if it wasn’t a full blown embassy.  Guards were posted at the entrance of the fenced in building but we were able to stand in front of the gate for our photo.  Across the street is the famous Malecon, the street that runs adjacent to the ocean wall where Havanans stroll day and night.  Across to the other side is a large outcropping of flagless flag poles erected in a less friendly time to block the pro-American message board at the consulate.

Back in our cars we made a brief stop at Cathedral de San Cristo but the lines we too long to take a look inside.  A tunnel under the bay led us to the fortress of El Morro.  The Havana harbor is one of the best harbors in the world, being both deep and narrow which opens into a large bay.  This could be easily defended by placing a fort at the entrance of the harbor.  We had time to explore the inside of the fort with its cobblestone paths and brick lined rooms.  A lighthouse stands on the point. 

After a lovely rooftop lunch near the fort, we headed to the Necropolis Cristobel Colon.  This large cemetery houses large marble crypts where families have buried their dead (1.5 million) for centuries.  Strolling through the streets is a lesson in Cuban history.  There is a section for famous baseball umpires, and a memorial to firefighters that died battling a fire in the ‘50’s. Politicians, authors and regular citizens share space here.  A map can be purchased to help you navigate the acreage. 

We met Dale, a Harley enthusiast that Doug met online, who is also a diplomat at the Canadian embassy, and his wife.  After our cemetery tour, he took us to meet a guy who specializes in Harley-Davidson motorcycles.  His repair shop sits below street level and is filled with parts and equipment that he uses in restoring bikes to a rideable condition.  He has an impressive assortment of historic bikes on display.  He explained some of the challenges he has faced over the years.  One of the biggest challenges is finding tires since this is not something you can make in a shop.  Makeshift automobile tires are converted for motorcycle use although they make steering quite difficult since they are not rounded like a motorcycle tire is to assist in turning. 

We also got to see the restoration project of his family home.  He hopes to have it completed before tourist season is in full swing since he will have 9 rooms to rent out.  He said there are many challenges trying to restore the house since many common hardware items can be in short supply.  Even though it was Sunday, there was a full crew working on the project.

The wife of the embassy diplomat spent quite a bit of time describing some of the challenges of living in Cuba.  You really have to be relaxed and go with the flow since there are no certainties here.  For instance, if she wants beef (it is illegal kill a cow in Cuba so all meat must be imported) for the weekend she orders it on Monday and still has no guarantee she’ll receive any by the end of the week.  The people are very poor but they do not have mortgages and the government provides their utilities and coupon books for food.  Her security guard moved to Florida and has had a rough time making it there.

Our next stop was for a drink at a bar owned by Che Guevara’s son.  There was a chance he was going to stop by and meet with us but that never materialized.  The bar was a pleasant stop however and the drinks were good.  We left to go to a restaurant/bar where the views were purported to be good for the sunset.  However, after arriving it became apparent we would be disturbing too many patrons during our shoot and left.  We returned to hotel and had a pleasant dinner before retiring.

Tomorrow: Underground Crypts

Can Someone Pass Me a Cigar?

In case you haven’t heard, Cuba has a reputation of growing and making some of the best cigars in the world.  We happened to be staying in ‘the’ region for this and set out today to explore how they are made and visit a family that makes their living off tobacco.

In the town of Pinar del Rio there is a factory where tobacco brought in from the countryside is rolled into cigars.  This is also a popular tourist spot since everyone wants to see the rolling process.  Typical for Cuba, a place where one day it’s okay to take photos suddenly became a camera free zone the day we visited.  Our group opted to still go in to see the process although David and I enjoyed the free street show outside. 

This street appeared to be the main route for potable water tankers to make their way into the city for their daily deliveries.  The plumbing in the residences and business is very old and tends to not be safe.  Some places have holding tanks where these trucks will pump the water for later use.  There are many infrastructure issues in Cuba that have created a field of work-arounds.

Since our group was unable to photograph the cigar rolling, we decided to go back out into the country to a farm where the tobacco is grown and see a rolling demonstration.  We traveled back through the town of Vinales where we took time to have lunch in one of the oldest houses in town on a veranda overlooking one of the main boulevards.  This was the perfect location to take pictures of the vintage cars passing by while noshing on more of the typical menu of grilled chicken, grilled fish, ropa vieja and rice with a mixture of meats.

After lunch we drove into the country to a farm that plays hosts to tourists wanting to see the whole production process.  The fields were planted in September and the tobacco plants were about 10 inches tall at this point.  The crops will be harvested early in the year and the tobacco leaves will be hung to dry in thatched roofed barns, of which this farm had several.  The dried tobacco leaves are then rolled into the cigars.  A large outer leaf is laid flat on a board across the roller’s lap and then shredded leaves are placed inside to be rolled up.  In a big factory, the workers are expected to roll 4000 cigars a day.  Often a person comes and reads books to the workers to help the day go by faster.

We explored around the farm.  A variety of animals either roamed freely (including walking in and out of the houses) or were kept in a cage like the rabbits and some large rodent looking creatures.  A tom turkey and his ladies were a major attraction since he was more than happy to show off his tail feathers for anyone walking by.  We also had the opportunity to buy unbanded cigars, ten for ten Cuc’s. The farmers had quite an operation going.  They get to keep 10% of the tobacco profits with the rest going to the government.

We drove back through the rolling hills to the setting sun.  It was a fun and informative day.

Tomorrow: To Havana We Go

Vinales

Breakfast is normally included with a night’s stay in Cuba and our hotel was no exception.  However, the big challenge was finding a plate and flatware when you arrived.  We watched the breakfast procession and there seemed to be an ebb and flow to both the plates and the food.  We were lucky and got both with few difficulties.

We boarded our bus for the trek to the Vinales region.  This took us over lush hills before descending to the ocean.  Tobacco is grown in this region in Cuba.  The conditions of the soil and weather make for some of the best tobacco in the world.  Tobacco drying barns dotted the countryside with their thatched roofs.  Oxen drawn carts worked the fields.  Tobacco is planted in September so it was only about 10 inches tall now but it will reach high into the sky by the time it is harvested.

Limestone dominates this region which makes for lots of caves in the cliffs and also underground.  We were to tour one of these caves this morning.  This is a very popular tourist destination and there were already several buses in the parking lot.  Once inside, we did have a little space to take some photos.  There were several smaller chambers we wondered through before reaching our water exit on boats that also gave a very short tour of the caves.  They were interesting but I don’t think they’ll be the highlight of our trip.

Along with tourists comes tourist restaurants which is where we ended up for lunch.  This sprawling diner had several outdoor eating areas butted up against the cliffs.  They served a set menu of grilled chicken, rice and beans, sweet potatoes (not like the ones we have at home but a sweeter white potato) and fruit.  There’s a notable lack of dessert in this country.

We stayed around this area after our meal to see what might happen along to photograph.  Old taxis (classic ‘50s cars) came at regular intervals with horse drawn carriages, bicyclists and trucks mixed in.  There’s also a large population of vultures in this country and we had a chance take some upclose shots of them. 

This region is also known for jutting rock formations called majotes.  They resembled pipe organs reaching into the sky.  We stopped several places to photograph them with the final stop also serving as our sunset shooting destination.  We hiked up a hill which gave us great views over a valley with the mogotes (flat topped hills) off in the distance.  This too was a popular tourist spot with lots of people gathered for the sunset. 

We ate dinner at a place right on the hill.  Men were gathered around a Weber type grill cooking chickens for the dinner crowd.  They also had the typical fish and ropa vieja, a shredded meat dish that could almost be the national dish of Cuba.  Included in our $10 meal was three kinds of rice, beans, sweet potatoes, fruit and salad.  It was delicious and quite a bargain.

Tomorrow: A visit to a cigar factory

The Adventure Begins

I’ll skip the boring, taking several planes, close gate connections part of our first day of the trip and go straight to landing in Santa Clara, Cuba.  Preparing to land, we had a good view of what rural Cuba looks like from the air.  There’s lots of fields that are under cultivation, some even with irrigation.  Roads crisscross the landscape and they even appear to be paved.  It was also apparent this is a tropical region with the occasional palm tree dotting the countryside. 

The airport was not really any different than any other small developing country we’ve visited. Being in the Caribbean, we were not surprised to find a mid-afternoon rain had descended upon us.    Our first surprise of the trip came in the form of 50’s era cabs they had hired to transport us to our hotel, The Santa Clara Libre.  Our cab encountered a street under repair with wet cement filling hole in the concrete.  Somehow our driver didn’t recognize the hazard and drove directly into one of drying ruts which meant we were stuck.  Words were exchanged between our driver and the person in charge of the repairs.  A group of teenage boys came to our rescue and pushed us out of our dilemma. 

The hotel was somewhat what I expected, clean but very Spartan.  Our private bathroom was also plain but would work.  We took a few minutes to freshen up before heading down the street to exchange the Euros we brought into CUCs, the currency for the tourists.  We brought euros because the Cubans impose a 10% penalty when exchanging US dollars.  This is a cash only economy with US credits serving as nothing more than plastic bookmarks. 

We walked down street for a group dinner.  The small diner had a nice variety of foods from ropa vieja, the shredded beef dish I expect to see almost everywhere, to pasta and even pizza.  Cerveza (beer) rounded out our meal.  I can’t wait to see what an entire day brings us!