No Moss For Us

After the alarm jolted us from our slumber, we look for Grant’s backpack and realize… OMG, we left it at the museum! We had to check it at the door at the Museo de Belles Artes Cubanos, and were so tired by the time we left, we forgot to pick it up. Grant almost has a heart attack, and stress levels are at an all-trip high. After waiting patiently (or not so patiently, actually) for the museum to open, we run over and explain what happened. After what we think was a wide-eyed “gulp” from the front desk, and nerve-wracking 20 minute wait, our bag is returned with EVERYTHING intact. Upon inspection, we realize we were incredibly, INCREDIBLY lucky, because we find that we had accidentally left our passports in the back pocket of that bag.

Key takeaway: losing your passports while in a country you are not supposed to be in (and the US government does not know you are in) would’ve made for a pretty unpleasant situation.

We were told repeatedly by the security team to check the bag before we leave, but everything is there *YAY!* / *Thank goodness!!*

With our goods and sanity restored, we celebrated with jittery relief over breakfast and then hopped in an classic car cab which took us to Playa del Este for a beach day! We were definitely the only non-locals around, which was refreshing in its own way. We spent the day lazing, sunning, watching Cuban kids get pummeled by shorebreak, swimming in the bathwater-temperature sea, and discussing how sad it is that the beach is so dirty (lots of trash). Luckily, we manage not to get completely fried by the Cuban sun and headed back to the parking lot to meet our driver for our trip back to the city.

Along the way though, we had realized that we would be passing the bar/restaurant where Hemingway spent many hours chatting with an old sea captain. That’s pretty neat, but what was more interesting is that 1) this sea captain was the inspiration for the old man in ‘Old Man & the Sea’ who lived to be nearly 100!; and 2) there’s a table permanently reserved and set in the corner for Ernest himself, should he ever return.

After a quick bite there, while we were serenaded by the house band at our table, we walk a little ways down the street to see the Ernest Hemingway Memorial — this wasn’t visually impressive, but the backstory is: when Hemingway passed, all the fishermen in town donated one brass ring from their boats, which were all melted down and used to create the bust at the Memorial!

From there we finally let our patient driver take us back to Havana, hopped in the shower, and then hustle off to quickly buy postcards and then catch the sunset along the Malecon. However, the universe had other plans for us. On the way to the Malecon, we instead run into a local family (Dad, daughter, mom) in front of the Cuban Revolution Museum. We started chatting, find out that it’s the dad’s birthday, that the mom somehow speaks Italian, and that their daughter is adorably chatty (but only in Spanish, so we only catch one out of every 50 words 🙂 ). Before we know it, we’re sipping drinks at a local bar where Ché used to hang out and learning about their life in Cuba. Even more amazingly, they insist we join them at their home for coffee and of course, some local Cuban rum. So yes, we did unfortunately miss the sunset, but instead had an amazing experience with a lovely, friendly, and fun Cuba family. Definitely a memory that will stick with us longer than another red/orange sun dipping into the sea.

After thanking them profusely and exchanging contact info, we make a made dash out to the Malecon to catch the very last few last whisps of sunset – it is lovely, and we’re amazed that we still were able to catch it for our last night in Havana.

 

 

From there, we walked back towards our casa to finally dine at Donde Lis — this was the spot in Havana where the staff the first time yelled “Hey Piqué!” to Grant, and then the second time greeted us “Hola Piqué, are you joining us for dinner tonight?”, so after that, we felt like the least we could do is check it out. It was a new spot, with great service and great food. Jess enjoyed some killer Pollo Asada and Grant was happily filled by a hearty bowl of Seafood Stew.

After eating, we bid our restaurant friends farewell, and drag ourselves home to finally start the inevitable: packing our things for the last time on this two month adventure. We tidy up, practice our story for border control upon re-entering (hopefully) the US, and of course, bed.

-G & J

We again started the day with breakfast on the rooftop patio. This time around we’re a little bit later to dine than usual and it’s a full house. On the upside, we were lucky enough to share a table with two very nice German girls; on the downside, we proceeded to sweat so much we all need another shower before the day can actually begin…

To start off the day, we head first to the museum of St. Francis, where Grant had been dying to see the Leonardo Da Vinci exhibit we’d heard good things about. Upon arrival we found that… it’s closed for renovations. Bummed but not deterred, we pivoted and headed to Jess’ preferred museum, the Havana History Museum, housed in the Governor’s Mansion at the Plaza de Armas. Even better, we stopped stop for fresh Churros along the way to further soothe Grant (though in all honesty, Jess had been dreaming about them for days at this point!).

We opted to have a guide show us around the entire museum, during which we saw many many paintings of famous personas in Cuban history (some didn’t have any names underneath…why?!). During our time, there’s a notable focus on José Martí, who is famous for being a wise and revered personality in Cuba’s revolutionary history. However, we remain a little puzzle as to why he is the “Apostle of Cuba” with so much historical fame, when several others seemed to have done more for the country (including Grant’s personal vote for MVP: Antonio Maceo — we won’t ramble about Cuba history here for brevity, but those are two figures you should definitely check out on wikipedia!).

Then we moved on to the the incredible “Hall of Flags”, which is home to almost every iteration of the Cuban flag since the beginning, many of them in battle-worn, which made the scene that much more powerful.

We end our tour by exploring the ground floor which held several pristinely preserved carriages, as well as a stroll through several roped off rooms – quite the perk of having a guide!

From there we strolled over to one of the most famous bars in Havana: El Floridita (yes, El Floridita) which is well known as Hemingway’s personal favorite spot to sip daiquiris. We enjoy a daquiri ourselves, listen to some live music, and pose for pictures with a life-sized bronze statue of Ernest Hemingway himself, perched whereelse than at the end of the bar. The drinks were tasty, but pricey, and the A/C was a nice escape, until a power cut politely removed that part of the experience from the equation.

After that, we finally made one of our most important stops: time to buy cigars and rum for our friends back home. In the shop, which by the way, is one of a chain, run specifically by the Cuban government, and therefore the only way to ensure the goods are legitimate, despite the moral unease of directly giving money to a government that we are still trying to size up. Inside the shop, we meet some fellow Americans who are in Cuba building basketball courts for underprivileged kids, which is more or less all kids in Cuba. We have a sudden onset crisis of morality about the fact that our trip is for fun only, but eventually put it behind us…

And the next stop? More museums! We headed over to the Museum of Belles Artes Cubanos (Museum of Cuban Fine Art), in which we look at confusing modern-ish art. Sadly, not only is the museum not air conditioned during midday, but we are not allowed to take pictures. We amuse ourselves with interpretations and personal musings nonetheless, and end with an exhibit on the jailed “Cuba Five” (which are a well known group in Cuba, but which we somehow never heard about in the US).

At this point, we had finally had our fill (and maybe a little more than) of museums and walking, so we strolled back to the Casa for a siesta (Havana is HOT!), then saunter over to our fancy dinner at Chef Ivan Justo’s restaurant for dinner. Grant summits a mountain of Suckling Pig; Jess conquers a giant bowl of Seafood stew, and we split some amazing ceviche and gazpacho. Everything was more than delicious, and it’s no surprise that Ivan had won an Iron chef!

After dinner we walk back (/roll back) home. With our remaining nights in Cuba diminished to only a couple, we considered heading to the roof for a nightcap and cigar, but as we contemplated climbing 3 flights to get to the roof… we quickly decide that is 3 flights too many, and… end scene. Bed.

-G & J

p.s. Here are a few other Havana pictures from the past two days’ wanderings!

Day Two in Havana started out with yet another three story hike to breakfast (we were really loving the patio, but hating the stairs!). Because the Casa was on the larger side, breakfast was full up and we ended up sharing our table, and the direct sunlight, with two very nice girls from Germany who had ALSO booked through Jorge. It’s a small world…

After completely sweating through our initial set of clothes at breakfast, we did a quick change and headed out with Annalise in a purple 1967 Chevy for a driving/walking tour of New Havana, Miramar and the further afield boroughs of Havana.

On our way out, we drove past the Cohiba factory, which has taken over one of the old mansions that was abandoned by rich Cubanos during the revolution. You can’t go in, but it’s cazy to think that the best cigars in the world are made in what used to be someone’s house!

Our first official stop was an avant-garde art museum that started out interesting and then got really weird, really fast. Highlights include some really weird videos of people dunking their faces in wine and then counting to 10 in spanish, a styrafoam man statue built of boats and rafts used in attempts to reach Florida, a suitcase tower draped in the American flag, and many other bits of randomness.

We then drove past what was soon to become the US Embassy in Havana, and Annalise was quick to point out the humor of the parkfull of flagpoles across the street from the Embassy entrance. There were ~50 poles, all of which were taller than the Embassy building, and all were empty but the one directly in front of the main entrance – which was proudly flying a Cuban flag. Apparently construction on the park had begun right after the site had been selected by the Americans as an act of diplomatic one-upmanship.

Our next step was the National Hotel, a sprawling government run hotel that used to be an old fortress and is still home to some of the huge cannons that used to defend the harbor. And MAN are they huge!

Then we were on to the Bacardi building, where we were wow’d by both the amazing art-deco designs and the great 360 degree views of the city.

Our final stop was a beautiful old building in the Jewish quarter, that featured a huge stained glass dome and murals of famous women from the Torah. We also headed up to the roof for another panorama of the city and more even more rocking chairs (Cuba has spoiled us – no more stationary seating!).

After parting from Annalise, we grabbed a quick bite of lunch on the rooftop where we could look out on the old promenade, and then hiked back across the city, determined to start our ungided explorations of the city by learning more about how Communist Cuba came into being.

However, despite the best of intentions, we were thwarted by the Museo Resistance. The amount of detail captured in the museum is staggering (ie: look – here’s a tile from the jail cell where many of the original resistors where held prisoner!), most of the information is in Spanish, and we unfortunately didn’t hablas espanol well enough to pull it off.

 

What was cool and needed no translation was standing on the same balcony from where Fidel announced the revolution’s victory and the beginning of the Cuba we know today.

We also enjoyed the Corner of Crooks, which hosted not one, but four American presidents shown as Cuba’s interpretations of their villainous deeds. This was probably the only few times it felt weird to be an American in Cuba, so we snapped a quick photo and hurried on.

On our way out of the Museo, we got caught up in our first official Cuban scam! While Jess attempted to snap a shot of the historic walls of Cuba, Grant was approached by a gent proclaiming to have been an old history teacher who attempted to “instruct” him on the history of Cuba in a mix of broken English and Spanish. At the end of is lesson came the scam, where he first offered us a “souvenir” of 1 CUP, which would have been cool to have as it isn’t possible to get as a tourist. However, he then asked us to give him a souvenir as well… specifically 1 CUC, which is the Cuban tourist currency. Just for reference, 1 CUC is worth 25 CUP. While it was a brilliant attempt, we had just cut our scammer teeth in Morocco and weren’t having any of it – quickly handing back the CUP with a firm, “No, Gracias”.

We then decided to head to Museo de Ron (Museum of Rum), as the light hearted fare would hopefully be more approachable than the intense history of the Museo, and where we could sample another Cuban staple, but it had unfortunately closed just before we arrived. Determined to get some type of rum into our system, we headed just down the street to another famous Hemmingway watering hole – Dos Hermanos, where we enjoyed more mojitos and watched the cigar scammers ply their trade.

We ultimately also ended up paying for an unrequested serenade by the bar’s band, but considered it fair trade after listening to them serenade everyone else for an hour.

Ultimately, we also got to go behind the bar for photos – mostly because Jess can’t stop taking pictures of anything and everything (her Japanese was REALLY starting to show!).

Siesta, sleep, and sobriety was now the standard order of the day, and we wove our way back to La Casa for a happy mix of all three. Then before we knew it, we were off to dinner in another old car. This one had it’s own charm, as it wouldn’t start after we climbed in, but the owner was unphased and just whistled down the street for a push start from the local boys.

A strong shove later, we were cruising up the Malacón (the Cuban equivalent of a Riva, a waterfront promenade), watching a crazy beautiful sunset and heading back to the Miramar district for dinner at Restaurant Vistamar. Yet another converted mansion, it seemed like during the day it was a swimming club, complete with pool and sea access, but at night it turns into a high-end restaurant. We were given a seat on the patio overlooking the ocean and enjoyed the final minutes of the most beautiful sunset in we’d seen in Cuba. Dinner also lived up to the view, with perfect pork skewers for Jess, Swordfish in a Rojo Sauce for grant and a bomb-diggity lemon tart and wine to round out the meal.

Once our classic car dropped us again, we briefly consider heading up to the roof for a nightcap and a cigar, but 3 flights of stairs were 3 flights too many and we just couldn’t make it happen. Giving up and getting into bed was a great reward, though we did feel a small tug of disappointment while doing it. Perhaps tomorrow we’ll rally like the stars we are!

– J & G

 

Our last morning in Viñales was an early one, as our Casa host was quick to remind us that we had to be at the bus station at 9am sharp for our 9:30 Viazul bus to Havana. Determined to heed his sage advice, we rushed through a delicious Cuban breakfast (seriously, where does all this tasty mango come from!?) and hustled ourselves across town to the bus station… where we promptly waited around for an hour before we were allowed to board. Apparently the Cuban transportation system and the American military have something in common – a “hurry up and wait” mentality!

As we settled into our seats, we also reveled in the cool of the bus’s high-powered AC. That is, until a few hours into the ride when we realized they had no intention of turning down the arctic blasts that were gusting from the AC vents. As we watched the windows condense and pulled on our hoodies, we realized that this was a special moment: the only time we’d ever be cold in Cuba.

After spilling out of our bus-turned-ice house and into the Havana heat, we negotiated a taxi ride into the city, as the bus station is ~25-30 minutes from the main downtown area. When we walked into our 3^rd and final Casa, we were surprised by the size of the doors to our room – they were practically 2 stories tall!

It was later explained to us that the old Cuban houses all had really high ceilings to help keep the air moving and the heat away from the occupants. Nowadays, many of the older buildings have put in a barbacoa (which translates to barbeque) as a mezzanine that splits these huge rooms into more manageable sizes. However, some Casas are resorting these old rooms to better reflect the old style. We loved our room, and managed not to fall down the stairs that lead up to a Juliette style balcony and the bathroom!

As soon as we dropped our bags, we headed upstairs for a quick snack before our walking tour of Havana began. We enjoyed a lime-y ceviché and guacamole with plantain chips – all washed back with some Cristal beer and whipped up with flair by our bartender turned chef, Carlos.

Then it was touring time – we were met at the Casa by our guide Annalise and taken through the most popular spots of Havana, including:

• Mansion Mall – One of our first stops was to a massive, stone mansion, with inner courtyard. It was a beautiful space, and both levels were filled with government-run shop selling art, souvenirs, and the like.
  

  Beautiful courtyard with a Cuban flag

  

  This was nice and cheeky — it’s a dual rocking chair for the Cuban and US presidents to use for discussions. It allows them to work together (both help rock) while not having to see eye to eye (get it?)

• Plaza Vieja, which is where the first water sources for the city were piped in. Back in the 40s it had fallen into disrepair and had been turned into a car park, but today has been restored to it’s former glory. The buildings all have pictures of how badly damaged they’d become so you really appreciate the restoration work that had been done.
  
  

  Plaza Vieja, with several sculptures inside

  

  The plaza is ringed by photos showing how far restoration efforts have come. On the left you can see the sad state of disrepair it was once in!

  

  Crazy statue – it’s a naked woman, holding a giant fork, while riding a giant chicken. Because… why not?

  

  Jess taking a picture of Grant taking a picture.

  

  Recycling in Cuba! Yes!

  
• Plaza de Armas is ringed by the houses of noble Cubanos, and capped by the Spanish Governer’s mansion. The troops used to practice in the plaza outside, so one frustrated governer had wooden cobblestones installed in an attempt to keep the noise down. No guarantee it actually helped at all!
  

  Amazing old stone architecture

  

  and a wooden cobble stone street! Designed to keep things quiet for the folks inside

• Museo Revolution – Housed in what was the old Bautista Palace, this museum also is home to the balcony where Fidel announced the victory of the Revolution and now houses a museum that details the minute details of the revolution and it’s heroes.
  

  Museo de Revolucion, featuring yet another classic car

  

  View from the front, where you can see the balcony where Fidel announced the victory of La Revolucion!

• Ration Store – Popping into another of the neighborhood dispensaries where we learned even more about how the Cuban government ensures everyone has the basics to survive. While everyone in Cuba was quick to note that you wouldn’t get fat, or really survive well, on these government rations, they definitely are enough to keep families on their feet and seem like a great way to mitigate corruption. Not that either of us are advocating communism, but this approach to providing just enough of the basics seemed like a much better alternative to what is currently done in the US!
  

  Chalk board detailing the ration amounts for that month

  

  The counter where cards are presented to obtain rations, some products can also be purchased here but at much higher prices than afforded by the ration card

• Square – Near the old dock is what used to be the main trade square and it’s neighboring St. Francis Church, the old financial building (build in 3 stages, by 3 different people and looks a bit like a layer cake for it) and a statue of the “Parisian Gentleman,” honoring a beloved local character who had some mental issues that caused him to insist and act like he has a nobleman of Paris. Though homeless, he never begged and would exchange words of wisdom, bits of poetry, flowers or compliments for daily sustenance. It’s considered good luck to step on his foot, hold is hand and tug his beard – quite the ceremony!
  

  Creative bollards — old cannons (replicas) placed vertically

  

  View of the plaza in the afternoon, looking upon the church

  

  Line of classic cars parked in front of the old port

  
  Above, our candids with the Parisian Gentleman!

• El Bodeguita Del Medio – Hemingway’s go-to mojito joint. This place is where the old man would pop in for his Mojitos, and is now so popular they don’t serve much besides. It also allows people to sign the walls, so the layers of pen ink are probably helping to hold the building up! It was packed with tourists, so we opted out of a drink at the time, but did pony up to the bar to enjoy the view.
  

  Lots of scribbling, both inside and out!

  

  A line of fresh mojitos being prepped at the bar

• Cigars – Knowing we had to buy cigars as gifts, we also picked up a “flight” of the 3 most famous Cuban cigars for taste testing: A Cohiba, a Montecristo #2 and a recommendation from Annalise – the Hoyo de Monterey.
  

  ?Porque no los tres? (Why not three?)

After 3 and half hours of walking in the heat of the day, we were whipped, and headed back to our casa to relax, prep for dinner, and have a rooftop beverage.

After a brief siesta and even quicker shower, we climbed the 3 stories to our rooftop and and cued up Carlos for a round of drinks. Jess got Carlos’ twist on a chanchacaran (which we discovered in Trinidad) and Grant had the prettiest red, white and blue daiquiri he ever did see.

Then we hopped in a classic car and were taken to dinner at La California. We followed our aperitifs with more mojitos, and Jess settled in for lamb stuffed peppers, while Grant enjoyed fish in a red sauce. We passed on dessert in order to make sure we were ready when our cabbie said to be, but ended up waiting almost 25 minutes for him to show up. At about 10 minutes in, a hearty debate began about how long it was appropriate to wait for a booked car before giving up and hailing your own. Fortunately cooler (aka: Grant’s) heads prevailed and we waited for our very apologetic driver to tool us back home.

Once back, we couldn’t wait to try out a true Cuban cigar, so grabbed the Hoyo de Monterey and headed up to the rooftop to enjoy a nightcap and a puff. In a fun twist of events, we discovered that the Hoyos make Cristal beer taste like… juice!

Completely mellowed out by the beverages, the cigar and the warm night air, we carefully made our way down the 3 flights of stairs to our room and called it a night!

-J & G

We woke up to another huge Cuban breakfast, prepared in front of us by our hostess. Grant ended up having to eat not one, but two eggs fritatas on top of the usual fare of fruit and breads&spreads, because she cooked too quickly for us to point out that Jess doesn’t eat eggs. But once again, we couldn’t let her down – way to take one for the team, Grant!

After breakfast, we took a short drive to St. Thomas cave – another large cavern in a mogote. Our guide was a local Cuban, who’s English was very good, though his humor was an intersesting mix jokes about his father-in-law, bad puns and marijuana. It was a little bizzare, given the surroundings, but also very funny. The rock formations in the cave were also quite interesting, and Jess managed to not brain herself on anyting…thanks, no doubt to the safety helmets they made everyone wear!

A bit of a break around lunch gave us time to explore the town, where we meandered the picturesque streets, and even poped into the local store, only to find SHELVES of coke! Whaaaaa?! We were so surprised to see American goods in Cuba!

And then, we were off again, this time for our horseback riding tour of the local tobacco farms. Vinales is known to produce some of the best tobacco in Cuba, so we were really excited to see the farms!

Our guide looked like a Cuban version of Mario, and didn’t speak much English. Grant’s horse, Lucero, liked to be out in the front, so our guide ended up having to shout directions from the rear. In part this was because the paths we rode were quite narrow, but also because Jess’ horse, Caramello, was not having any of this horse-back riding thing. In fact, the guide explained in Spanish that Jess’ horse had no friends because he bites the other horses, so Jess was to give a sharp tug on the reins if it looked like he was lining up for nibble!

Riding through the fields, we saw mostly yucca and sweet potatos as summer wasn’t the right season in Cuba for tabacco growth, which is generally late fall to late spring. But we did see a lot of the drying houses, built and thatched out of Royal Palm, which is also the national tree of Cuba.

We also eventually stopped to visit another set of caves, this time with a local man who spoke no English. Because our Spanish wasn’t strong enough for deep geological or historical conversations, our tour was basically reduced to simple statements like, “This is called the eagle, as it looks like an eagle,” and so forth. However, we were not disappointed because in addition to our guide were his two dogs, who seemed to have no fear of the caves and the dark and often dashed ahead out of the range of the flash lights, only to double back as if to say, “Hurry, hurry! This way!” As neither of us had never seen spelunking dogs before, this definitely made the limestone caves into something unique!

As we turned the horses back towards home, the sky became ominously dark, and thunder began to roll through the valley. Fortunately, we were near a farm that also doubled as a watering hole, so we were able to wait out the ensuing downpour while sipping a coco loco – a strong cocktail made with Rum, honey and lime, all blended in a freshly cracked coconut. In a word – delicious.

Also, we had plenty of company as this watering hole was also a farm, complete with ~30 chickens and chicks of various age, two cattle dogs and their adorable puppy and a cat. And these were only the animals that were taking shelter – there were also cows and a pig out in the distance, so it started to feel a bit like Noah’s arc!

Once we finished our beverage, one of the locals asked if we wanted to eat the coconut, which we eagerly agreed to. A few quick whacks with a handy machete and we suddenly had what looked like a coconut ice cream cone, heavily drizzled with even more fresh, local honey – yum!

After an hour or so, the rain finally died away, and we were able to finish our ride back into town. After dropping the horses off at our guide’s house, we were treated to yet another Cuban cigar lesson from a tiny, white cowboy-hat-wearing Cuban man who turned out to be our guide’s father. Unable to say no to such a nice man, we ended up buying more cigars and promptly start to worry about how we were going to get these all past border control (eeps!).

Once back at the Casa, we were greeted by our jovial host with a happy, “Horse is good!?” and cold beers. We parked ourselves on the front porch with Lily the wiener dog and the rocking chairs and once again watched the old cars drive by as the sun. Our hostess again provided the dinner, this time amazingly seasoned Pollo Asado – roast chicken with spices, rice and black beans, sliced veggies and avocado, with sliced mangos for dessert. Over dinner, we’d decided to try to see salsa dancing again and so this time forced ourselves to keep active till it was time for us to head out. Unfortunately, when we got to the plaza, it seemed more like tween night. After some serious middle-school people watching, we felt too old to stick it out and wandered home. Where we promptly proved just how old we are by immediately falling into bed. We are SO party people…

– G & J

Our last day in Trinadad started with yet another rooftop breakfast, though only Manuelito made a brief appearance. We also had a bit of a rush through breakfast as we were told our car would be ready at 9:30. However, when we got downstairs, there was another little bit of confusion, but Cesar and Jesus eventually sorted it out and we were whisked away for the very long (8 hours!) drive to Vinales!

Grant and I had just started to contemplate settling in for a long sunny nap when we realized we were slowing down and pulling off the highway. At this point we knew we hadn’t been driving for more than a few hours, so assumed we were stopping for gas. However, when we got to the gas station but didn’t pull up to the pump, we started to get a little worried. We asked our driver and after much gesticulation and broken Spanish/Italian, we realized that we were going to be trading drivers with another tourist couple – they’d go on to Trinadad and we’d take their driver back to Vinales. It was a great Cuban Tourist Swap!

After the handoff as made, we settled in for a long, 7 hour drive by doing all the things one does: Stare out the window, count the turkey buzzards, nap, and try to understand the Cuban music. A few hours later, more gesticulation and broken English resulted in us pulling off the highway and driving up to what initially looked like someone’s house. However, it turned out to be an amazing local restaurant called Don David, where we accidentally ordered WAAAAAAAY too much food and ended up with a feast of fried chicken, roast pork, a whole avocado sliced into bite sized chunks, Christianos Y Morros (black beans and rice) and chicken tostones. At a loss as to what to do, we tried to get our driver to eat some too, but he protested that awesome looking stewed veal was already too much for him, so we were left trying to do it justice by ourselves… which wasn’t a pretty sight.

Full to bursting, we piled back into the car, and back onto the highway. Our driver was quick to tell us that we were very close to Vinales, in fact just over the next set of hills. This was welcome news…until the car suddenly stopped running… and a light drizzle breaks out. So there we are, sitting and sweating on a steep hill, half hidden around a corner of one of those narrow, winding roads that Cuba is apparently infamous for.

As our driver worked away, were forced to just stand there (the tool box was under the back seat, so we couldn’t sit in the car), as neither one of us had any idea how to fix the car. As cars came up the hill, about 1 in three stopped to chat with our driver, and we eventually developed a cadre of 5-6 locals, including our driver, who were all muttering and staring into the open hood. And yes, this does mean that they, too, were now parked in the middle of the narrow winding road. About 30 minutes and many grease stains later, our driver hops in and kicks the car back into life. Grins breakout across our small group and everyone jumps back into their respective vehicles and zoom away, giving us the thumbs up as they go.

Because of our little adventure, by the time we get into Vinales, we’re late for the afternoon tour we’ve booked, so we hustle our things into the new Casa and hop back into the car, now with guide in the front seat.

We set off on what turns into a best of Vinales tour, which included

• The Indian cave – a big limestone cavern in one of the mogotes (giant limestone mounds that are scattered across the valley of Vinales), where the natives of Cuba and escaped slaves used to hide for safety. It’s so large, there’s even a river running through it, and we were able to “sail” the last 3^rd of the cave, seeing amazing rock formations as we went.
• The Prehistoric Mural – After much confusion, we got to the place with the mural and realized that it’s not actually an ancient mural, but a mural of ancient things. It was commissioned by Fidel Castro and is one of the largest outdoor murals in the world. It’s also weirdly hokey and unlike anything else we saw while in Cuba…
• The Mirador view point of much of Vinales valley,
• A local tobacco farm where we watched the farmer handroll a cigar. Apparently, it only takes him about a minute to make one when he’s not stopping to explain each step! (And of course, when offered, we happily bought cigars. Can’t beat that fresh from the farm flavor!)

After our tour, we were all tuckered out so opted for a lazy afternoon of reading and rocking on the front porch of the Casa, as well as chatting with our host, who was an amazingly friendly man who managed to make ever word of his limited vocabulary burst with welcome and good cheer. “Jessica! Grant! Is OK?” was basically his only English, and his voice would boom it out whenever we finished anything. He was awesome. As the sun dipped behind the casa, we headed in for a huge lobster dinner that was cooked by our hostess.

As you can see from the photo, when we say huge, we’re not kidding: a whole lobster each, plus chicken soup to start, cristianos y morros, salad and of course, the obligatory fresh fruit platter! Any one of those dishes would have been more than enough, but we couldn’t let our hostess think we didn’t like her cooking, so we dug deep and did our duty by eating more than we could hold!

Once again stuffed to the gills, we couldn’t do anything but retreat to the rocking chairs again.

After exactly 4 nights in Cuba, we’d come to realize that rocking chairs are a gift from god, and wasted no time rocking, sipping a digestif, and hanging out with Lily, the Casa’s wiener dog. We also realized that our Casa Papa is the happiest (and loudest) man in Cuba.

After rocking for a bit, we intended to head into town for some salsa, but it didn’t start till 10pm, and all the rocking and food wore us down – we were asleep before we realized what hit us…

– J & G

After a solid night’s rest, we took our time waking up and heading up to the terrace for a repeat of yesterday’s breakfast. Unfortunately, there was no reptile telenovela thanks to the laundry drying and swaying in the breeze. Fortunately, breakfast was on-point, as today was a day we (especially Jess) were looking forward to: SCUBA!

There was a little confusion on timing, but eventually our guide, Pedro, and his son, Jose Maria, picked us up and we were off to Gaujimico for diving.

Once we arrived we suited up, after asking us our sizes for wetsuits. Jess asked for a small, but after a pause, was told “You.. are not so small” and gets handed a medium. The result: every dive ended with Jess hauling a kangaroo pouch of salt water onto the boat!

But back to the diving! We did two dives at 34.5 and 27.9 meters for 40 and 43 minutes respectively, and it was awesome. We saw several lionfish, jelly fish, long legged shrimps and got completely enveloped by huge schools of silvery fish. Grant saw a giant barracuda emerge from the deep then dart away, and the best news of all: no one got seasick!

Back on shore, it started raining, then pouring, so we did not really get a chance to enjoy the pool at the vacation resort by the dock. Instead, we headed back to town and realized it’s 3pm and we’ve yet to eat lunch! For convenience, we head to the restaurant that is literally next door to our casa and order a lobster dish to split. We wait patiently, and then more patiently… and end up waiting about an hour but in the middle of that received not one but two plates “on the house”. We don’t know exactly why, but our favorite explanation was that they had run out of lobster so were scrambling to find or catch one for us!

Then it was nap time, as scuba takes quite a bit of enegy. That plus the food coma were the perfect combo for naptime. Then, after some more terrace relaxation, we had dinner on the rooftop, prepared by our host, Jesus, himself. We had a delicious dinner of fish, pork, rice, beans, plantains, and of course, more amazing mango for dessert.

Not only that, but Jesus also checks on us and gave us personalized gifts with his and his wife’s name on them: a wooden folding fan for Jess, and a wooden domino set for Grant. After dinner Jess promptly passed out, while Grant hung out with Cesar and talked more about life in Cuba and got a slew of pointers / recommendations for Havana. Then, of course, sleep!

– G & J

Our first morning in Cuba had a strong of a start as any: full breakfast up on the top terrace.

We enjoyed the view over the neighboring rooftops, filled our bellies with warm bread, fresh eggs, strong coffee, and fruit salad featuring incredibly sweet and juicy mangos – literally plucked from the towering branches over our head on the terrace!

All mangoes aside, as we ate, we were joined by a lizard… then another… then another. Feeling happy and inspired, we of course decided to start narrating a brief lizard telenovela, starring Manuel (with the curly tail), Manuelito (like Manuel, cury tail and all, but smaller), and then dun-dun-DUN! El Jefe (the biggest of them all!).

Fortunately, we were also joined by real personalities – a nice Kiwi couple from New Zealand who ironically, also booked their Cuba arrangements through Jorge. We chatted and they gave us a restaurant review, Restaurant San Jose, for dinner.

After breakfast and socializing, we were picked up and driven to Topes de Collantes (Top of the Hills). We stop to take in the view, get offered the chance to hold a pair of giant crawling tarantulas (we declined, but smiled at the other tourists who took up the offer). We then drove a little further to meet our guy, Uri, who explained the nature walk we’d be going on after serving us piping hot shots of espresso. We were joined on the tour by two Israeli guys who, yes, of course, booked through Jorge! The hike / walk was up, down, and over hills, across streams, through forests and farms, and was littered with wildlife along the way: hummingbirds, cuckoo, National bird of Cuba, chameleons, a teeny tiny frog, some pigs, and even a pygmy owl! The hike also included a steep climb down to a gorgeous 40 meter waterfall. Sadly it had just rained the night before, so the pool at the base just seemed too dirty to take a dip, which left us clean, but very, very sweaty!

After the hike we were of course, a bit hungry, so decided to try Restaurant San Jose (the Kiwis’ recommendation) where we enjoyed plantains with cheese and shrimp, deep fried ham bites, a Cubano especial sandwich and beer. As luck would have it, the clouds that had been building for the past few hours decided to drop their rain as we ate, so we lingered to wait out the storm before heading back to our Casa for a siesta.

Back home we chatted with Cesar and Alejandro about school, and then opted for some rocking chair time on the terrace.

Before we knew it, time for dinner! We strolled over to the center of town to eat on the tiny balconies of Los Conspiradors that overlook the central plaza. Grant got their famous Fisherman’s Rice, and Jess enjoyed a hearty black bean soup. The people watching from the balcony was awesome, thanks to live music, the mix of tourists and locals, and of course, the tasty Chanchacharan drinks we were enjoying (which are made of rum, honey, lime, and ice).

After dinner we went back to our Casas to meet Cesar, who earlier had offered to show us around the local nightlife. We start by heading to Casa de la Musica, which is a series of tall, wide steps right near the central plaza where you pay 1 CUC to enter and get to listen to traditional Cuban island music with cultural dances while paying American prices for beverages. All in all, pretty fun, but felt a little too touristy for us, so we opt to move on. The next stop was really something special. After following Cesar out of town through a series of odd back alleys and dark streets, we emerge at Disco Ayala. Long story short, it was a discoteque UNDERGROUND IN A CAVE. You can’t hear a peep outside, but inside it’s a full on bumpin’ club! We were there a little early, but as we sat surrounded by rock walls and stalactites, it filled up and offered up some great people watching! Before we realized, it was 1am and definitely time to head home!

– J & G