Blogs from Cuba, Central America Caribbean - page 7

Our first full day in Havana. Rather than explore this city ourselves, we had planned on letting someone else do it for us. We had a free walking tour booked for 2pm. These tours operate on tips only. The guides are usually very knowledgeable about their surroundings, speak excellent English and take you to the things worth seeing. They will also advise you of the ‘dos’ and ‘don’ts’ as well as the scams and bargains. They gratefully accept gratuities at the end of the tour and never question the amount given. These tours last between two to two and a half hours and are highly recommended. Of course, the entire city can’t be covered on fo... read more

We were very excited about our first trip to Havana by ship, and although Havana as it is today is appealing and very interesting to explore on foot, we hoped that at least some vestiges of the city's glamorous past remained, and that overall our visit would be a rewarding learning experience -- we weren't disappointed!! On that first visit in October, 2017, we decided to splurge on a wonderful, but rather expensive excursion --- a Havana city tour in a vintage American car. A good number of like-minded ship passengers, probably many from the U.S.’s “Baby Boom” generation like us, were doing the same. After being transported by bus to a parking lot not far from the Hotel Nacional de Cuba, we found an array of rainbow-colored, vintage cars waiting for us with their drivers/owners ... read more

Until fairly recently, Cuba had remained a forbidden destination to most Americans since the Castro-led revolution changed the political landscape in the mid-20th century. The “Cuban Missile Crisis” of 1962 erupted after it came to light that the Soviet Union, under the leadership of Nikita Khrushchev, was building ballistic/nuclear missile sites and installing troops in Cuba which is only 90 miles off the coast of Florida; these actions brought the US and Soviet Union to the brink of a nuclear war and, among additional more serious consequences, nailed shut the door for normal travel options to Cuba for more than a half a century. In late 2014, with the Cuban thaw taking place under the Obama administration, travel to Cuba became a more tangible possibility although some restrictions remained in place then as they do now. ... read more

Flight from Baracoa to Havana Tuesday 17 & Wednesday 18 July Day 12 & 13 We were to fly back to the other end of the island, back to Havana. The flight itself took about 2 hours. However there are often delays and flight departure times do vary. Initially we were to get to the airport at 12md. Tom and I had gone for a walk to the very eastern tip of Baracoa and then back into the city centre for some wifi. Tom decided to go back to our accommodation before me. Luckily, he did because our guide Camilo was there to tell us that we had to go to the airport immediately - at 11.00am. They took all by bags to the car and then Tom raced down to get me while they drove ... read more

Santiago de Cuba Frid-Sat 13-14 July Day 8,9 I was still trying to change our flights from LAX to Brisbane but still with no luck due to the restricted technology. Immediately after breakfast I went into the nearby Plaza to hook up to the wifi. The only advantage was that I spoke to Kerrie and Gemma who were in the middle of Gemma’s performance in Creative Generation. It was so good to talk to her which was the 1st time since Poppie died. She had also sent us photos of Gemma performing. That was also so good. I also received texts from Sheryl and sister-in-law Kerry who was in Vietnam. So not all was lost. We left Camaguey around 9.00 am and we did not get to Santiago de Cuba until 5.00pm stopping a couple of ... read more