Blogs from Cuba, Central America Caribbean - page 41

Cuba La Habana - City of faded splendour, music, history, smoke & revolution - a photographer’s dream

Central America Caribbean » Cuba » Oeste » La Habana February 12th 2014

After a short 1hr flight with Cayman Airways we arrive in Cuba- at last! We’ve been too-ing & fro-ing about coming here for years. The first impression we get from the flight is that the Cubans are very much like Indians with hand luggage; taking on board well over the permitted size or amount & paying no attention to instructions from the Crew – nightmare passengers for them. They also shout loudly to each other – across many rows at times. But they also seem incredibly friendly and exuberant. We arrive at Havana airport after an ok flight and are taken off by bus. Then chaos reigns as other planes with expat Cubans have also arrived from Miami. The system is that you have to check in your hand luggage through a scanning machine – and ... read more

Biking In Cuba

Central America Caribbean » Cuba February 12th 2014

DH Bikes Through Vinales

tdv95

Geo: 22.5823, -83.746Our last stop in Cuba seemed to sit halfway between the beach scene at Veradaro and the much more authentic Cuban experiences we have had so far. In addition to the many bus groups we saw, Vinales attracts a substantial number of hikers and bikers who enjoy the unique vistas surrounding the town. Viñales Valley is an outstanding karst landscape (limestone interacts with underground water and the water dissolves the limestone to form an amalgamation of caves, underground channels, and a rough and bumpy ground surface) in which traditional methods of agriculture (notably tobacco-growing) have survived unchanged for several centuries. Vinales had been virtually destroyed during by Hurricane Gustav in 2008 but with the help of Venezuela it was rebuilt and maybe that's why it didn't seem to fit with the other parts of ... read more

Lots Of Walking

Central America Caribbean » Cuba » Cienfuegos February 10th 2014

Cuban Gov't Still Not U.S. Friendly

tdv95

Geo: 22.1495, -80.4436Cienfuegos looks like the kind of town that most in Cuba will turn into when even a degree of prosperity returns to this island nation. The colonial town of Cienfuegos was founded in 1819 in the Spanish territory but was initially settled by immigrants of French origin and does show French flavour in the architecture- and apparently the only natural blondes in Cuba come from this area as a result. In addition to wandering blondes there are a number of spectacular buildings all through the town and it gives the place an almost un-Cuban feel. Marinas, palaces, casinos, etc don't see to fit with the rest of communist Cuba but they have been carefully restored giving the town a splash of plush (the Marina is already hosting a number of ... read more

Old World Spain

Central America Caribbean » Cuba » Centro » Trinidad February 8th 2014

Street Scene

tdv95

Geo: 21.8, -79.98Have you ever had a desire to experience Colonial Spain but your time machine was in the shop? Trinidad, Cuba, a UNESCO World Heritage site might just bring out your inner Spanish Conquistador. For the non Veradaro/Holguin beach crowd, Trinidad is the second most important stop in Cuba after Havana. And rightly so. Preserving, restoring, and promoting Trinidad actually predates Castro and his band of not-so-merry men. Batiste recognized the historic and tourism value of the city and supported restoration efforts. After a long pause, the Cuban government, realizing the hard currency value of tourism, and with the support of UNESCO dollars, has restarted restoration efforts. The result is a very attractive town centre that eliminates the need for much imagination in order to envision a time in which the Spanish empire had outposts ... read more

Che DH

Central America Caribbean » Cuba » Centro » Santa Clara February 5th 2014

Che DH

tdv95

Geo: 22.4137, -79.9657The Cuban Revolution led by Fidel Castro is a compelling story which is made that much moreso by the ongoing, almost childish, animosity between Cuba and the U.S. It's a part of day-to-day life here and the propaganda is pervasive. We wanted to do our own walk through history and Santa Clara seemed to be as good a spot as any- it's often referred to as the spot of the battle that marked the beginning of the end for the despised Batista regime. Calling it a battle seems a bit of a stretch, and lauding the battlefield strategy of Che Guevara (who was commanding the guerillas in this area) would be a further stretch. The rebels used a bulldozer- which now serves as a memorial- to rip up some tracks and derail a train ... read more

Maleksimista Matanzassa

Central America Caribbean » Cuba » Matanzas February 4th 2014

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arsku

Viimeisen päivän ohjelmassa ei ollut mitään pakollista tekemistä. Lähdin etsimään mäkeä, josta majapaikkani kanadalainen pariskunta oli kertonut, ja löysinkin sen: hienot näköalat. Iltapäivällä satoi jonkin aikaa reippaasti.... read more

Matanzasiin

Central America Caribbean » Cuba » Matanzas February 3rd 2014

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arsku

Siirryin linja-autolla Matanzasin kaupunkiin kahdeksi viimeiseksi yöksi, koska se on lähellä lentokenttää. Matanzas sijaitsee kahden joen suulla. Kävin katsomassa kaupungin pohjoispuolella rautatieasemaa, mutta en jaksanut odottaa junan saapumista. Keskustasta löytyi shakkitalo, jossa kävin pelaamassa pari jakoa.... read more

A Cuban Overview

Central America Caribbean » Cuba » Oeste » La Habana February 3rd 2014

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Caro 1

Its been a fascinating experience, and as some if you may know we have not had access to WiFi until we returned to Havana for the third time at the end of our tour..local Cubans have the Intranet, most have no access to the wider world. Our group was small but perfectly formed , All very interesting, widely travelled with views to match!! I was the only singleton so to speak and all made me feel very comfortable so thank you guys for your support and enclusion. The tour was packed with a variety of different places to visit food to taste people to meet and snipits of knowledge was passed on to us by our fab guide Ellie who turned out to be an accomplished musician ,writer, band leader as well as her guiding skills ... read more

Pass The Cigars

Central America Caribbean » Cuba February 3rd 2014

Street Scene

tdv95

Geo: 23.1168, -82.3886Cuba was a big deal for us while were in this part of the world. At some point soon I would expect that the long-standing dispute between Cuba and the U.S. will end, not with a bang but a whimper, and Americans will pour in here and, as they are prone to do, rearrange the furniture in a very dramatic way. Even the current presence of Canadians and Euro sun-seekers has resulted in carved out and somewhat surreal beach enclaves in Veradaro and Holguin. Forget the beach. Head directly to Havana and prepare to be amazed. This city might be the ultimate mash-up. Weaving in and around classic Spanish colonial architecture are vintage American automobiles (you can almost see Lucky Luciano driving to a meeting with fellow mobsters - during prohibition and beyond, Havana ... read more

Matkamuistoja

Central America Caribbean » Cuba » Oeste » La Habana February 2nd 2014

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arsku

Viimeinen täysi päivä Havannassa. Ideana oli käydä ostamassa matkamuistoja vanhankaupungin rannasta, jossa oli myynnissä kaikenlaista.... read more

Brief history of Cuba

The native Amerindian population of Cuba began to decline after the European discovery of the island by Christopher COLUMBUS in 1492 and following its development as a Spanish colony during the next several centuries. Large numbers of African slaves ...more history

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