Blogs from Este, Cuba, Central America Caribbean - page 7

No class today as Clara has a medical appointment. I spent the afternoon at the Hotel Santiago swimming pool. Paula wanted to go to the beach but it would've taken forty minutes to get there and then only one of us could go swimming at a time so there would be one of us watching the bags at all times. Where's the fun in that? Instead I swam, drank lemon daiquiris and talked to another student, Melissa, and her Cuban 'boyfriend', Pedro. Melissa is 28yo and from Switzerland. She's in Santiago for four weeks Spanish college and then two weeks in Havana. I asked her about the setup with Pedro. She said it's only a holiday fling because he's only 21yo and she's already tired of having to pay for everything. She's already met his family ... read more

I had my first dive in Cuba! Two reef dives lasting an hour each. The water was saltier than I've experienced and stung the hell out of my eyes. Some the fish I saw were amazing, one looked like it was made of mother of pearl and another looked like an RHI lightshow. I've never seen so many lizards as I have in Cuba. Bucanero had large iguanas walking around the dining tables, like how you'd see cats and dogs wandering around in Balinese and Thai restaurants. Some were quite big. Tiny lizards often scatter up the walls in my bedroom like you'd see a cockaroach or spider do back home. Driving to Bucanero I saw another sign referring to the five Cubans in US jails. Reference to these men can be seen throughout Cuba. Essentially, ... read more

I survived my first week as a student in Cuba! I've had a good time but I'm ready to leave after one more week. I received an email from Flight Centre telling me they couldn't change my Havana to Mexico City flight so I'll have to change it at Cubana Air on Monday. He said there are vacancies so there shouldn't be any problems. I saw Julia preparing food today and noticed the plantain fritters I like so much are slathered in butter before she fries them. There's no hope in hell of me losing weight in Cuba. I'm enjoying my Salsa lessons with Ramon. The first couple of classes we spent just dancing but now we spend 30 minutes dancing and the other half talking about his life here in Cuba. He tells the students ... read more

My Spanish class is made up for three students - me, Paula (who is Swedish) and Amelia (who is also Swedish). Amelia's father is Chilean. She said when she was growing up, her father spoke to her in Spanish but she replied to him in Swedish so while she can understand Spanish, she can't speak it properly. The other student, Paula, can speak some Spanish so that just leaves me, the idiot, sitting there scratching my head and asking the girls what it means in English. There is a rule that no English is to be spoken during the lesson so when I ask for a translation, I get a dirty look from the teacher. So I find I'm reciting the answers she wants from memory as opposed to actually understanding what I'm saying. There are ... read more

It was a 4am rise to catch my flight to Santiago de Cuba. The plane was so dodgy, I had to carry my hand luggage on my lap because there was no room in the overhead storage or under the seat in front of me. I arrived at my host family's house at 8am after two attempts at the address by the unofficial taxi driver. His passenger door flew open twice on the journey. Good thing I ride in the back. My casa is located near a hotel so I caught up on my emails in the afternoon. This week is Carnival time in SCU (Santiago de Cuba) to mark the anniversary of the Revolution. The streets are closed off with stalls and there are people everywhere. I hate crowds so I'll just have to suck ... read more