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Published: December 16th 2007
I'm back! And let me just say, Cuba isn't as flat as I expected when it comes to cycling.... but it's a wonderful part of the world and I had such a great time!!!! I arrived in Havana late afternoon last Saturday after going through a rather intimidating immigration process which involved locked doors that they buzzed you through once you were permitted entry to the country. Doesn't sound too bad, but the immigration officer in my line kept refusing people entry which scared the life out of me at the time!!! I finally made it through and had a man waiting for me for the transfer to the hotel in Havana city. The transfer pickup was part of the cycling tour that I'd booked, so was very happy to see someone standing there with my name! Mind you, he hardly said a word to me and about 20 mins into the taxi ride, he points the taxi driver to the side of the road and gets out and runs off without a word to me....which was quite offputting to say the least given I actually had no idea where I was going and didn't know if the taxi driver was
First day cycling
Smiling to start with :)actually going to take me to the right place! I finally arrived at the hotel in Havana which was a disappointment to say the least, very, very scummy with the remnants of the previous occupants, no water, and neighbours who could see directly into my shower and toilet. It was a bit of a let down for my first night as I wasn't meeting anyone from the tour that night so unfortunately spent too much time in my room that night, but all that changed the next day! On Sunday I met up with the rest of the cycling group, a mix of aussies, canadians, english and europeans and pretty mixed ages. Some of them looked a lot more serious and even turned up with their own bikes and shaved legs! Bit more serious than I expected!!! But it was quickly established that about half of the group were not cyclists so I was in good company! We had a reconditioned bus to travel in while not cycling, see attached pics, rather amusing to begin with! We headed off in the bus to Las Terrazas the first morning, a couple of hours west of Havana where we arrived in time
Vinales
View from the resort at the top of the hill for a traditional lunch before heading to our hotel to drop our bags and get ready for our first bike ride..... Must say that the hotel we stayed at was fab!!! I had a bath with a view! And apparently Fidel Castro has stayed there in the past.... we actually went to a lot of places he'd visited, but more on that later. Ok... so the first ride. The tour company supplied the bikes and the rest of us were responsible for bringing whatever gear we thought necessary. So after lunch I donned my gloves and helmet and went to pick my bike. The whole episode was rather amusing given there were a number of us who were about the same height and were all doing our best to get the smallest bikes so that we could actually touch our feet to the ground when we stopped. So, all set and off we go down a huge bloody hill to begin with! So me being the wimp was the last one down as I had set my seat too low and had to peddle double as hard to keep up with anyone. We headed off to an old coffee plantation
Vinales
The resort... never had time to jump in the pool :( started by the Spanish centuries ago and then cycled back to visit a local artist who did some amazing artworks of Cuba but were unfortunately a bit out of my price range. We only cycled 15kms the first day, but it almost killed me at the time, especially after a big lunch! That night we kicked back at a local farmhouse for dinner and had a local dish which translates into english as "old clothes", sounds not the best, but was actually very good!!! Day two.... the big ride of 60kms.... most of the girls on the tour weren't really looking forward to this day, or to be honest each morning we all woke up dreading the cycling that day! Bit crazy given we'd all chosen to do this tour for the cycling! To start the day we headed to a cigar factory where some of the most famous cuban cigars are rolled by hand. We were not allowed to take cameras or bags into the factory, so unfortunately I don't have any photos. It was more like a gigantic warehouse set up like a school room with rows of wooden desks and chairs all facing the same direction and
about 150 people sitting there rolling, cutting, sizing and pressing the cigars from gigantic tobacco leaves! Then in the next room people are making the boxes and packaging them and then in the back room are the group of men who grade each cigar. Amazing to see them all in action! We couldn't take bags in because apparently the workers will try to offer you discount cigars for personal profit which are actually the crappy ones, though we couldn't figure out how they could approach us given they were all sitting behind a fence within the factory and it would have been extremely obvious if they approached us. Once outside the cigar factory we saddled up for our first big ride and headed off for what would be a very long day! Starting the ride we had to get through the city area which proved to be the most dangerous part of avoiding traffic, pedestrians and knowing which direction to look when you cycled across a street! They don't have unleaded petrol in Cuba, so unfortunately we also had regular exhaust fumes to try to avoid when trucks passed which sort of ruined the mood a bit! It was also
Looking dangerous...
I'm only smiling for the camera! our first day of actually riding passed locals and having a chat when the opportunity arose. Apparently in Cuba, when a man finds a woman attractive he hisses at her, yes, hisses, which is something each female in the group learnt very quickly. Sometimes it was amusing, other times more annoying than anything, particularly when you are hot, sweaty and dying from bloody cycling and some guy on the street starts hissing because he thinks you are cute! We managed to have a good laugh out of it, but probably also looked like fools by responding to any comment while riding with a happy "hola"! Who knows what they were saying, but I'm sure it wasn't something we needed to learn in Spanish. We stopped in Pinar del Rio for a short break to visit the town centre before beginning the final cycle to Vinales where our hotel was conveniently located at the top of a gigantic hill. But what a gorgeous view once we were there!!! We had actually planned to go dancing in town but after the long day, none of us could be bothered! Shame! I forgot to mention that cuban people cannot stay in the resorts
we stayed at, even if they have the money to pay for it. They can only stay at these resorts as part of a bonus from the government, for example when they get married they can stay in one for three nights, but they can't actually choose which one they want. The government in Cuba has huge control on the daily lives of the people. For example, you can't buy cars or houses as we do. You can exchange them, but buying them requires a large amount of paperwork and requests through the government. They also can't travel like we do. The only way they can leave is to get an invitation from someone overseas and even then it's not easy as the person overseas has to give the government all their employment, pay and tax details before the cuban government even considers allowing the resident to go to another country. We learnt that the cubans learn how to benefit or get around all these systems, but it's amazing what they have to go through..... The next morning we had another early start as we had 50kms to ride between Vinales and Pinar del Rio. We actually cycled directly to
Cayo Jutias which was a crystal blue beach with a lighthouse and little bar/grill on the beach where we had lunch and spent the afternoon lying on the beach... hard work!! 😊 We bused it back to the hotel that night and had another local meal at the restaurant attached. Local meals in Cuba always have beans and rice and piles of it!! Then it's generally a choice of chicken, pork or fish to accompany the beans and rice. It's not the most exciting food, but it was always good! The next day we cycled 56kms to Soroa which is meant to be one of the most beautiful area of Cuba. We also had the opportunity to visit Cueva de los Portales which is a cave where Che Guevara and his army held their headquarters during the Cuban missile crisis in 1962. The whole history of Che Guevara is quite amazing and too large to go into details here, but he is absolutely adored in Cuba. His picture is everywhere, even painted on peoples homes. The cave itself was gigantic and still has some of the furniture etc that Che used while he was there, worth a vist! After lunch
in someones front yard we cycled for the rest of the day over the biggest bloody hills in a headwind, so much for Cuba being flat..... but the landscape was amazing! It's a mix of mountains, rainforest and palm trees, very beautiful! And it was so much fun cycyling on the rural roads where the little kids would literally come running out of their homes to say hello once they heard there were gringos riding past! The cuban people, particularly in the rural areas were extremely friendly and appeared happy. Our guide filled us in on some of the issues the cubans have been through and how they continue to survive... again it's too much to go into here, but it's pretty shocking to hear about, particularly what the US embargo has caused for the cuban people.... Anyway, we finally arrived in Soroa and another cute little resort in the hills where we stayed for two nights. Thankfully the last day of cycling was only 23kms, but involved the biggest hill so far which took ages to get up, but I did it!! We had salsa lessons that night back at the resort, but I certainly can't say that I
can actually salsa, I don't think my legs were working that well! On Friday we headed back into Havana and spent the morning driving around to get a general idea of the city. We stopped at the Havan Club for lunch and had a tour of their rum factory, where of course they handed out free samples and then you end up in the shop. So I've bought some Havana club rum! Not that I usually drink it.... but it was a good idea at the time! We then spent the afternoon walking the streets of the old city of Havana. What a beautiful city!!!! So much history and gorgeous old buildings! A lot of it is falling down, but the government is fixing up areas a bit at a time and the city itself has so much charm. You could easily spend days there and not see it all. All I can say is get to Cuba! Before it all changes, because it will one day soon..... It was so refreshing to visit a country not overrun with tourists, no fast food chains (Yay!) and such a different way of life to what I know and such a beautiful
country! It's definitely on the list for a return visit, though I'm sure it will be a different place when I manage to get back there..... I'm now in Tamarindo in Costa Rica so will update again soon. I don't think I've ever felt so relaxed!!!!!! Hope you are all well! Speak soon, Jack xoxox
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ferg
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count me in on your return trip...it sounds fascinating. I also lookforward to you riding your bike to wello next visit, you pedal queen!!!