Blogs from Cuba, Central America Caribbean - page 56

Days Out In Havana ….And Trips To The Beach Exploring Havana After several days of following my instincts and wandering about soaking up Havana I decide it’s time to explore a bit more purposefully. By now I have teamed up with Iselin, we find that we both want to see the same things, and we tend to spend the afternoons after classes exploring Havana together and with other students from the school or people who are staying at our houses. Exploring the city together seems to reduce the hassle we would both get walking round the city on our own. I had an early experience when I stopped to get some lunch, got talking to a couple of Cubans and before long found that we’d be joined by two young Cuban girls who gave me their ... read more

HABLAMOS EN HABANA or HALFWAY TO HUMMUS or SADLY SEEKING A TOILET SEAT Finding just the right title to start out this blog segment has been too challenging for these sun-soggy minds so we took the cowards' approach and went with three ... one for our language adventures one for Maureen's adoration of a Cuban breakfast dish of delectably soft chickpeas and the last for the ever-present challenge when outside of Cuban resorts for a comodious ring on which to place the pampered (not "Pamper"-ed!) Norteamericano buttock! Week Two has quickly come and gone - Spanish classes continued on with our teacher Xiomara and our class size shrunk to only four of us. Such an interesting and eclectic group: Walter from Switzerland, a pony-tailed retired chemistry teacher who absorbs information like a sponge, but responds to ... read more

Blog Feb 1st DISCLAIMER: THIS POST WAS SUPPOSED TO GO UP TWO WEEKS AGO. WE WILL SPARE YOU THE LIST OF COMPLICATIONS AND EXCUSES. TO AVOID FURTHER DELAYS, REPORTS ABOUT OUR RECENT TRIP EAST, THE WONDERFUL TIME WITH OUR PASTORS KEN AND NANCY AND THE GIRLS ONGOING CUBAN EDUCATION WILL COME LATER (THOUGH YOU WILL SEE A FEW PICTURES). School I have been going to school for a few weeks now. I like it a lot. I have a very nice teacher. Everything she says she says to me another time slowly. Now Joy is going too. I am excited to walk with her every morning. The school is one block down the road. Also, every morning all the students get together and chant three songs about our school and Cuba. I have not done that ... read more

I would have loved to blog about my experience in Cuba while I was travelling, but then again 3 weeks is not a long time and internet access in Cuba is expensive, slow and totally unreliable... Also, now that I'm back in Malta, I have had the time to digest all that happened, meaning that I am able to give a more comprehensive description of my trip... I must admit, I had no idea where to begin, there is so much to say! But since I arrived, family and friends have asked 2 questions primarily: 1) what was your overall impression 2) was it what you expected? So I guess this will be my starting point... Cuba is definitely a unique destination, there is no other word to describe it. It is a country full of ... read more

Two weeks in Havana, Cuba. Internet very slow, limited and expensive there so posting this from Mexico. Very different to anywhere else. Still many pre 1959 American cars on the roads. No traffic jams but air pollution bad as the only cars that dont spew out smoke are the broken ones. People friendly despite having a tough life. Low wages mean some cubans try to earn a little extra from the foreign tourist. Travel very difficult, ended up hiring a bike to get around. Highlight of the holiday was the train to Matanzes. The conducter invited me up to the cab to drive the train, what an experience. Goats and other livestock do the track maintenance, keeping the grass short and only jump out of the way last minute. The headlight is the trains only working ... read more