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Published: January 3rd 2016
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Our visit to Cuba was the result of a desire to visit before any outside influences began to change this country which exudes colour, warmth, classic cars, sunshine, architecture and, of course, mojitos!
We were not disappointed. Choosing to travel with Rickshaw Travel (based in Brighton), our itinerary was planned. Travelling independently, but with the support of drivers, our accommodation was booked in advance and we were able to focus on Cuba and all that it offered.
Havana - wow, arriving at night to our accommodation just off the Plaza Vieja, we ambled into the square to find the local micro brewery for our first Cuban beer and a chance to soak up the atmosphere and do a bit of people watching - already feeling the benefit of the warmth of the air on this November evening.
A Chevrolet ’51 picked us up the following morning for a tour of the main tourist sights, but my favourite part of the day was the chance to wander the cobbled streets of the city, to be part of the hustle and bustle of everyday life. Havana has some amazing architecture
and in places funding has been provided for the renovation of buildings. There is so much more to do and with a struggling economy and on going deterioration, it is a race against time to save these wonderful buildings. A bite to eat and our first mojita was enjoyed at La Bodeguita del Medio, made famous by the rum swilled exploits of Ernest Hemingway.
Les Terrazas, Hotel La Moka - our bath ran along the outside, fully glazed, wall of the building. A bath or shower was shared by the leafy tree tops and any birds that were in residence - brilliant! We had a full day tour of the eco village , learning about the history of the community and the struggles of Cuba to export, firstly coffee and then sugar, and how weather and economic conditions outside of their control robbed them of these industries. The tourist industry is now one of Cuba’s mainstays. A swim in the natural springs at Banos del San Juan, rounded off by a family cooked meal of rice, chicken, pork, beans and ice cream made this one of best days of our trip.
Vinales, a town of colour.
Casas lined the streets, most offering accommodation and a warm welcome. We felt so at ease in Cuba. Our evenings often took us out and about looking for somewhere to eat, this evening we stopped at a small restaurant on the outskirts of the village, Fernan 2, and once again enjoyed a meal of rice and chicken. The highlight of our visit to Vinales was the horse ride through the tobacco fields. Having never ridden before, we were a little apprehensive, but having been told that the horses would be ‘plodders’ we felt a little more at ease and were quite looking forward to it. It was brilliant!! Thankfully our long sleeves and broad brimmed hats were essential (very sunny and warm). We were educated on the three basic rein actions, tug on the left to turn left, tug on the right to turn right and tug back to stop - couldn’t be easier and it was all we needed. We learnt about the tobacco growing, drying and cigar production on a very local basis. We were deposited, from our horses, directly outside our hotel at the end of our ride 😊. Later in the day dodging direct sunshine we
visited Vinales Botanical Gardens to while away an hour or two.
Cienfuegos, a city known for its French architecture. Our accommodation was outside of the main town at Punta Gorda, but this gave us the opportunity to get a bici taxi into the main square.
Queuing for transport in Cuba is a ritual in its own right. These people are waiting for a bus, nice and simple, but along the main roads, groups and individuals would rely on passers by to stop. Money would be held up as a show of the ability to pay.
Imagine relying on this system to get to and from work each day.
Our Trinidad home was a casa particular (we were lucky enough to stay in the very first casa in Trinidad), our only homestay. Beautifully presented room and a huge breakfast that we couldn’t get through. A town no good for the fashion conscious high heeled clad lady, the old centre is all cobbled streets and not easy to negotiate even in ‘sensible’ shoes! But what a town, so much to see. We were collected by a Guide and bici-taxi and taken on a tour of the
town, mainly outside of the main centre, introduced to the ration system that is still in operation in Cuba and the private enterprise that is now possible. Small beginnings ………… We were told about the education system and accommodation, the difficulty for Cubans to travel as we do. Made us realise how lucky we are to have the freedom and resources to enable us to experience other parts of the world. We rounded the day off with music and mojitos on the sweeping steps of the Casa de la Musica.
Cuba’s history is far from complete without a visit to Santa Clara and the Che Guevara highlights. After our visit to the revolutionary museum in Havana, this was a way of extending our limited knowledge of the beginning of Communism in Cuba. We also visited the Catedral de las Santas Hermanus de Santa Clara de Asis, a small church where groups of young girls were practicing their singing and a group of young boys learning to play the guitar. It was cool and peaceful. Beautiful stained glass windows. A statue of the virgin Mary, having mysteriously disappeared in 1954 was discovered in a ditch in the 1980’s was returned
to the building - it was huge! Saturday evening saw us as part of a gathering in the main square of over 1000 people, just chatting, milling and people watching. Lovely atmosphere.
A couple of days on the beach at Cayo de Santa Maria to relax and enjoy the white sands and turquoise waters. Unfortunately we had one solid day of rain, but it didn’t matter.
Our final night was spent back in Havana. We took a bus tour, which may seem a bit strange at this point of our trip, but we wanted to see as much as possible and this filled in some of the many gaps we had. We finished our trip as we began it, in the Plaza Vieja enjoying a Cuban beer.
Time to pack up and head home, would we return one day? It would be lovely to come back and see more of Cuba, but the world is very large and there are so many places to experience, but never say never. Farewell for now .......
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