We head for Habana! Nov 10

So we order breakfast for 7:30 AM and Alian picks us up promptly at 8 for our trip back to Habana (not a typo, it’s how they spell it in Cuba). I snap this shot in our Hostal right before we leave. Has anyone heard of any of these camera brands?

Different road signs and sights along the way!

We arrive in Habana and check back into the same apartment as we had our first night! Then we head out in the streets to start checking out this city in depth. We even spot a section of roadway where they have left what’s beneath it for viewing!

We have not a moment to spare as we have a city tour and old classic car tour scheduled. We head out in the direction of the Plaza de San Francisco and we meet our guide, Carlos, under the statue of Father Junipero Serra with a small boy at the San Francisco de Asis Convent. To me, the statue was rather creepy. Please comment if you like!

Carlos takes us around and educates us on a lot of the history of Old Habana and we see a lot of very clean streets of old cobblestone.

An old presidential limousine passes us and we come across the favorite bar of Ernest Hemmingway where we step inside to see a group of live musicians playing very spirited music!

We walk around Capitolito Plaza where tourists (not from the USA) can stay in government owned hotels for a meager $275 per night! (We spent 10 nights in Cuba and barely spent that much total) Parks and statues and lots of Classic American Cars everywhere you look!

And of course, we check out Sloppy Joe’s Bar La Habana!

Finally, it’s time for the fun part of the tour. Carlos brings us to his driver and we get into a 1948 Chevy Convertible for a tour of the rest of Havana. We drive around the Capitol and throughout New Havana past parks and statues. We pass a place called the Agencia Cubana de Rap and wonder what that is about. Before we’re done, I even get photos behind the wheel of this gorgeous old Chevy!

We drive further and end up returning to Capitolito Plaza via the Malecon near sunset. A walk down to the harbor reveals the Cruise Ship business is alive and well here!

Carlos then takes us to a rooftop bar where we are taught how to make a Mojito and we sit and enjoy it. Then we are invited to make our own and Carlos tastes them and rates us on our drinks. We both get a ’10’, but you knew that, right? Sunset photos intact and we bid Carlos adios!

We find an open air restaurant near the harbor in Old Town and sit and enjoy live entertainment during dinner.

It’s been another long day, so we say goodnight. See you tomorrow!

A very old place! Nov 9

We ask for breakfast at 8 AM and our host aims to please! Mariana makes us omelettes, fruit plates, breads, great Cuban coffee and more!

Then we head out into the town to meet up with Gonzalo, our morning tour guide. We have looked at the itinerary for the tour and we suddenly realize that it is the same agenda as Luda’s tour yesterday. As we head into the square to meet up with Gonzalo, we see the same guitar player as yesterday, sitting and playing in the same spot. So we listen for a bit, drop a peso in his cup and find Gonzalo. We explain to Gonzalo our ‘double booking’ mistake and ask him if he can show us something different since we paid in advance for his tour. Gonzalo knows that I am a photographer so he takes us around for some fun photos and we even get a glimpse of Cuban humor (Check out ‘Trump Tower’!). A bar that is a tribute to the Beatles, local transportation, a child learning to ride his bicycle on the cobblestone streets makes me wonder how many skinned knees it takes to become proficient! Another pristine old Chevy and even farmers on horses and a roof repair in progress enters into my camera lens.

Gonzalo takes us to a photographer friend of his and we sit in his house and visit as he shows us one of his recent works where he photographed charcoal makers throughout the night burning charcoal piles. I wish I could show you some of his work, but I respect his copyrights. Let me just say that he is one of the best photographers I have ever seen. His use of lighting and his ability to capture expressions and emotions on faces was extraordinary! After, we walk around some more, finding more fun things to point my camera at. Even a private house that set up a table to sell pizza and drinks to make money! Gonzalo helps us locate our next tour for the afternoon and takes us there. We bid him ‘Adios’ and feel enriched again!

We are ushered into a waiting area where we are shortly met by Leonid (Call him Leo) and he brings us out to his driver and co-host, Yosney (Call him Yosney). They become our tour guides for the next 3 hours and we
depart to a lookout point 112 meters above the Valley of the Sugar Mills, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. As we walk in, we pass by some vibrant and fun tourists coming out! We buy bottles of water and refresh as we look over the valley and even find an old sugar cane press.

Then we make our way to the San Isidro Plantation, and I head up the narrow steep steps for views of the Plantation. Afterwards, we explore an archaeological site where we learn about the darker side of the region’s history. We see what was involved in sugar production, and where alcohol was made to produce rum.

A walk around the ruins and we see the old ovens where the sugar cane juice was boiled and turned into rum. The work was all done by slaves. Rows of furnaces where the juice would flow and boil. I can only try to imagine what it was like for the slaves to work the hot ovens in Cuba’s already hot and humid weather!

We head out again along the rural roads. We see livestock fences where they actually plant live trees to use as fenceposts! A ‘roadblock’ slows us for a moment and then we are on the way again. We make our way to what used to be the family house of the Manaca Iznaga plantation, and I head up its 45-meter tower for views of the area. Because of the steepness and the height, I’m the only one that chooses to climb. (I’ll ALWAYS climb for a view!) I bump into some fun European tourists and take photos for them as I am wont to do. After I come down reluctantly, we get to see the original machine that was used to extract the sugarcane juice.

Views looking out over the area are spectacular!

We drive away and head back towards Trinidad where, at the end of the tour we visit a pottery work-shop. We watch potters in action and end up purchasing a Cuban ashtray to compliment my stash of Vinales cigars!

Leo and Yosney drop us off back near the central square in Old Trinidad and we thank them for the tour. But it is almost mid-afternoon and our tummies are growling. So we go into a recommended restaurant, Taberna La Botija, and sit down for some Cuban Pizza and cold refreshment!

Our ‘friend’, the guitar player is still working his craft as we walk out into the streets and we have the rest of the afternoon to ourselves. So my camera is happy and it finds many sights to capture. Rustic old buildings, horse drawn transportation, and many local faces and musicians that are more than willing to smile for my camera (and a Peso or two!). Even a local drink recipe emblazoned on a wall sign of a bar that goes by the same name and some street art!

We are told that the best place to see the sunset here is a peninsula a few miles south of us called “Playa Ancon”. In talking with locals and our host, we are told it can be very crowded with tourists, one thing that we are trying to avoid on this vacation! We are told to go to “Playa Maria Aguilar” and we will get the same sunset views without all the tourists. So we trust this information and we negotiate with a taxi driver to take us there for 10 CUC ($11 US Dollars). He drops us off and even agrees to come back and get us after the sun drops out of sight and take us back for another 10 CUC. So we hang out on a pretty much deserted beach for a couple hours and our cameras (and toes) are happy!

Back in town, we find a Restaurant recommended to us, “Guitarra Mia” and we sit down to a tasty meal with some live entertainment, which we are finding quite common here in Trinidad. I highly recommend this city if you ever come to Cuba! When we paid our bill, the waitress gave me a hand rolled Cuban cigar!

So armed with full bellies and a fresh cigar, we head out into the streets where we find live music everywhere. We go into a bar where the music sounds good and the skies open up and it rains. The bar is open aire, but we find a table under a roof where we enjoy my latest cigar and drinks while a musical group prepares on a covered stage. After the rain lets up (which we find is a regular occurrence in Cuba), we go back out in the freshly washed air and come across an open air stage that is setting up for a children’s Christmas Play due to begin around 11 PM. We stay for a couple acts and the actors are very much into their craft! But not understanding what they are saying, we get the gist of the play, somewhat, and we are tired so we head back to our Hostal for the night.

Day is done! We’ll see you in the morning!

An afternoon in a new place! Nov 8

Alian drives us into the city and heads for our lodging in the old historic district. As we get closer, I am thrilled that we chose to stay in this part of town! Cobblestone streets, primitive transportation, colorful buildings and skies that make everything look better! These are our first glimpses of Trinidad!

We arrive at our lodging, Hostal Siglo XV, and our new host, Hector Manuel, greets us and helps us get our luggage up to our second floor room. Well, no time to spare as we have a guided tour that starts in about half an hour and we’re hungry. So we head out to orient ourselves to find our tour and there is a great sandwich restaurant on the way. So we fill our bellies with food and another beer and Mojito for cool refreshment in the hot humid Cuban weather while listening to Caribbean Rock and Roll.

One thing we immediately notice is the cleanliness of the streets! Cubans pride themselves in cleanliness! I wish Americans would follow this example! We easily find the main square a couple blocks away and we locate the Museo de Arquitectura Colonial (Museum of Colonial Architecture) where we are scheduled to meet with the Director, Luda, for a personal tour arranged by our Cuban contact as a personal favor! Luda greets us warmly and takes us around the old city, describing all the old buildings and she takes us into several private buildings that only she has access to. How fun is this! We find art displays and pieces of interest galore. We spy something that we will see in many places in Cuba, street blockades to prevent large traffic and restrict the area to foot traffic only. They bury old cannons in the street! We even find a working sundial and pull our clocks out to find it is accurate!

We continue on past a pirate statue, whatever that is there for, and find a colorful character playing guitar. We listen for a couple minutes, drop a Cuban Peso in his bucket and move on. Luda takes us up to a second floor private museum for some photo opportunities of this very colorful place. Then downstairs past an open air clothing store and a gift shop owned by a friend of hers. Of course, like most everybody we meet in this country, everyone needs to make a buck. I do spot a baseball cap that I lament not buying that celebrated who the Cubans think won the World Series!

A fun Panorama of Trinidad!

Luda takes us into a friends restaurant and we watch a brick oven in use, a fancy (for Cuba) table setting, a custom and pristine 55 Chevy and another friends restaurant that is also a museum (a common theme here, we find out). We spy a wine cellar in the restaurant that is a bedroom turned into a museum and I comment that I’d love to have dinner in that room! Luda introduces us to the owner and he is more than happy to arrange it for us!

Before we bid Luda ‘Adios’, she takes us into a religious section of town where the people practice Santeria. Luda tells us about Santeria (Way of the Saints), that it is an Afro-Caribbean religion based on Yoruba beliefs and traditions, with some Roman Catholic elements added. She tells us the religion is also known as La Regla Lucumi and the Rule of Osha. Santeria grew out of the slave trade in Cuba. Initiates in Santería are required to wear white clothing for a year, white clothing is also standard attire for attending Santería religious services. White clothing is considered a default attire for lay worshippers attending Voodoo ceremonies as a sign of purity and modesty. The Period of initiation takes a year and a week. The initial period of seven days in which various ceremonies are carried out, is followed by a year of a very, very strict code of conduct, which includes, the wearing of white and special sacred beads and bangles. They are prohibited from having their photo taken! I am strongly cautioned against taking photos of people wearing all white and I struggle with this concept because I really want to photograph them! After some mental wrestling, I decide that their religion is more important than my camera and I refrain on many occasions from pointing my camera at them.  They are prohibited from partying and have to drink and eat only from a special token bowl and spoon and cup that they must carry around with them at all times. They are supposed to keep themselves very pure and to spend time understanding and studying the advise from the Orisha. They must keep their heads covered at all times. Basically this year is the beginning of their new journey and they are reborn. Every individual Santero has different taboos relating to them as an individual.

Oh well, many photos not taken, we bid ‘Adios’ to Luda and thank her profusely for her time, not to speak of paying her the agreed upon fee! Our money belts lighter, but our minds happier and more educated, we move along and find another location to imbibe in cool refreshment and reflect upon our good fortune. Remember that Pirate Statue I thought we saw? Turns out to be a live action model. I knew there was something up with that!

Okay, our time with Luda complete, it is now time for our next scheduled event, a salsa lesson with Baila Habana Dance School. Music and dance is an essential expression throughout Cuban life. We want to get caught up in this lifestyle and dance with the best teachers from Trinidad. Alas, we have only 20 minute until this lesson and it appears that we are at least 30 minutes from finding this location. Add to that we have been walking and tiring ourselves out with Luda and all we want right now is to sit and relax. So we skip this potentially exciting part of our scheduled day and go back to our Casa Particular for a brief respite from the weather where we crank the air conditioner that we again find in our bedroom. Feeling a bit refreshed, I take a few shots from the rooftop patio of what I can see from there! Notice the Blue Cisterns. The water systems in Cuba are all Cisterns. If you want running water, you’ll need a Cistern on your roof. We never did find out how the water gets up there, probably a low volume pump of some sort.

In our travels around the city with Luda, we spotted bar Paladar El Ci Iollo, that bragged of a rooftop with sunset views. So, being about that time, we seek out this place and sure enough, we go up and are not disappointed. We order a cold beer and a Mojito, our standard refreshment for most of our trip! Storm clouds gather as we sit here and listen to a live Cuban Band play. Now this is relaxing and entertaining! Turn your volume on for the video!

Live Music is the best! Live music, a cold brew and a fantastic sunset is all that you need sometimes!

The day winds down and there is another hour until our reservation for dinner. Suddenly, the storm clouds that made our sunset so beautiful open up and drench the city. Luckily for us, we are in front of the restaurant and we quickly duck inside and the owner greets us. He seats in the Wine Cellar as promised. Notice the wine bottle display on the museum bed! We enjoy a wonderful seafood dinner and in the middle of the meal, the power goes out! The wine cellar goes pitch black, not a hint of light anywhere! So what do traveling troopers do? Well, we pull out our cell phones and turn on that app that shows a lit candle! That’s what we do! We prop our phones up with the app playing, glad we don’t need the internet to run it because since Vinales, there is no internet or WiFi to be found. We continue to enjoy our dinner when the waiter comes in the Cellar with real candles for our table and imagine his surprise when he sees our apps running! After a hearty belly laugh from the waiter, he leaves the real candle and retreats to help other patrons with the darkness. Soon, the power comes back on and everything goes back to normal. Well, normal for Trinidad, Cuba that is.

On our way back to our Casa, we stop and listen to a live trio play and start to experience the nightlife we have been told about. This city comes alive after dark with Salsa Music! A walk through the streets reveals the rustic nature of cobblestones and friendly locals as they revel in the music. We are only 2 blocks from the “Steps” where Salsa Bands play and rotate every hour. I put the camera down and order a cold brew. I find a seat among the revelers and light up a good Cuban cigar that I brought from the Vinales tobacco farms. A bar that sells me the beer gives me a complementary cup of honey for my cigar and I sit and puff on the cigar as I listen to the music and chat with a couple of other tourists. They also have Vinales cigars and I offer them honey. They accept and invite me to join them at their table. Not being one to turn down good company, I pull a chair over and we become friends! Again, if you are reading this and recognize the scenario, please comment and stay in touch! My wife, having been tired from the day, retired before I came to the ‘Steps’ and soon realized that I would need her help to get back to our Casa because we only had one key. so she sought me out and found me. She was enthralled with the lively music and hung out with myself and my new friends and we all had a great evening! Then we walked to 2 blocks back to our Casa and retired for the evening.

Wishing we had more energy to stay up all night and party, we fall asleep listening to the music at the ‘Steps’, only 2 blocks away as we drift off into slumber! See you all in the morning!

Sightseeing on the way to our next city! Nov 8

After a good nights rest, we are up early for breakfast because Alian is picking us up at 8 to move us along. Right on time, Alian pulls up and makes his presence known! We get in his taxi and he announces to us that the air conditioning is fixed! He turns it on and shows us. We are stoked. But it is soon evident that I cannot get good photos shooting through the windshield and windows so we opt for no air conditioning and down go the windows! This morning, we are traveling to a city called “Trinidad”. But on the way, we are going to check out a famous waterfall called, “El Nicho”. So here are some of the sights we see on the way.

So we get here early as we have been advised to. We have the trails in the park almost to ourselves before the afternoon crowds pour in. What a great nature park! Nothing assaults our ears except the distant sound of water and woodland creatures!

We marvel at nature’s beauty for a while and then reluctantly head down the path. We come across another group of tourists that arrived here early like we did. If any of you see this, please comment and let me know!

Back on the road again and sights of the rural countryside greet our eyes again. A roadside stand, farmer, signs celebrating famous people, the shores of the Caribbean and soon, our destination city looms in front of us.

And of course, some of the transport vehicles we saw on the way! And an interesting gateway!

And of course, signs to guide our journey!

So we have arrived in Trinidad, Cuba. Just when we thought we’d seen it all. This is going to be quite the new experience! Alian drives us into the city and we get excited as new eye candy awaits us!

A walk around Punta Gorda today, Nov 7

It’s been too long since I paused our story! So here we go!

That damn alarm clock goes off!  Oh wait, this is a good thing!  We have a new adventure and don’t want to miss it!  This country is so magical.  But I’ve used that word before.  Brace yourself, I’ll use it again!  True to the info I’ve received, breakfast is served to us at the time we request the night before.  Today, we don’t have a scheduled tour so we request breakfast at 8:30 AM.  Our plan is to explore Punta Gorda by foot and by ‘BiciTaxi’, a bicycle powered taxi, very common in this area of the world. So we ride along towards the wealthy part of town, quite the contrast from where we’ve been! Yacht Club, Mansions and well manicured properties.

At the end of the peninsula we come a long a park with magnificent views of the bay. A BiciTaxi Parking Lot, more mansions, and even a run down property for sale! Anyone want oceanfront property for cheap?

So we leave our BiciTaxi behind, 2 or 3 Dollars poorer and hoof it around the neighborhood. More Classic American cars, some pristine, some run down. Most of them act as taxis and commonly try to flag us down to give us a lift. We turn them all down and continue our walk through the streets and along the Malecon.

What is this? A park! But not just any park, and Artist Park! All kinds of strange sculptures made of all kinds of materials.

And then we come across “Villa Netty”, we’re told this was Fidel Castro’s ‘Home Away From Home’!

As any of you that know me, I always find ‘Lovers’ to photograph. And some other fun characters along the way including a man who enjoyed posing for my camera!

Then there was ‘Los Pinitos’, an estate on the water. Parks, Mermaid sculptures and gorgeous water views!

Are we having fun or what?

So we walk back to town where the luxurious properties gradually change back to less that grand, but still spectacular. The streets widen although we don’t know why. Not necessary for traffic, that’s for sure. We watch as all sorts of vehicles, both commercial and private abound. Many BiciTaxis and Horse Drawn Taxis appear.

Sidewalks show their once grand abundance of beauty. We find a restaurant that was recommended to us and we stop for lunch. After lunch, we see a delivery truck parked in front!

We come across an empty Horse Drawn Taxi, and since we haven’t ridden in one of these yet, we flag this guy down and climb aboard after he tells us it will cost 6 dollars to take us to an ancient cemetery that we heard was an interesting place to check out. So 15 minutes of bumpy ride later, we arrive at the entrance to an interesting place!

The front of the cemetery is just the epitome of another run down Cuban building that does not impress. But 6 dollars is 6 dollars and that’s what it cost to get us here (So we think), so inside we go. Ooops, the doorman want a dollar each too. Ok, ok, just another 2 dollars. I chuckle at myself as I continue my miserly ways and think like a poor Cuban! But we step inside and my camera thanks me profusely as eye candy awaits! Even though everything we see is hundreds of years old, it all lends itself to my camera lens for the next hour. This must have been very opulent in its day. Solid marble tombs and even the walls of the entire place are solid marble. Even decaying and crumbling, it is amazing to walk around here. We are soon aware that this is not only an old relic of Cuban history, but it is evident that to this day, people visit and memorialize their loved ones as we see withering wreaths and even a fresh rose lying on a tomb. One of the tombs is referred to “Sleeping Beauty” by people in town and is one of the reasons we were told to visit here. So this has been an interesting old cemetery to visit, but what’s that? Vultures circling overhead? What’s up with that? We never did find out the answer, but if this cemetery is that old, why are vultures circling?

We walk out, our eyes buzzing with excitement at the sights we have seen and our minds craving more. This is becoming quite the journey. Oh little do we know! We see our Horse Chauffeur still waiting for us and I swear I see dollar signs in his eyes. It occurs to me that his price of 6 dollars was to take us here, not to take us back. I estimate it was 2-3 miles to get here. We could walk that in an hour. An Hour??? I’m sure we can find better things to do with our hour than to walk through the same neighborhood we rode through to get here! So of course! Give us a ride back! After all, it’s only money! Hey, stop a moment, will you? I see some old trains and want to take a picture! No problem says the driver! Is that dollar signs rolling in his eyes again? Ok, got my shots. Take us back to the Historic District, will you please?

Ok, we’re back! How much do I owe you? Ok, sure. WAIT!!! 20 Bucks??? This is Highway Robbery!!! (Calm down Don, you’ll give yourself a coronary!) I feel like I’m being taken for a ride. Literally! Ok, what am I going to do, tick off a local that probably knows every other local and cab driver in a 5 mile radius? I pay the guy and pull out another dollar as a tip. Cheapskate Don! But wait, we were told that anything more than 5% is flaunting your wealth! I protest to the driver only a little and most of my consternation was in my own mind. He is not only appreciative, but truly thankful for our business! He should be, he just took us for a ride! Ok, I settle down and think about how long the guy spent with us and I am sort of ok with it. The most part of 2 to 2 1/2 hours. Is that worth $20? In Cuba? Oh stop it Don, in the States, you’d pay $120 for that same ride! Oh. Right. But this is Cuba! Am I ranting? Hope you got a chuckle out of my rant, I’m just kidding. It was worth every penny I spent!

So we’re back in the Historic District that we visited in the storm yesterday. And there was a tower to climb! I wish I could have climbed it at sunset last night with that beautiful sky! But it was closed when we got there. But it’s open now! And it is elevation and something to climb! The little boy comes out in me as if it were a tree with climbing branches. So up I go with all my cameras hanging around my neck!

Hmmm, so I thought the cemetery was photogenic! The views of the city amaze as I find the highest spot to climb to, a cupola with steep stairs that were thankfully not busy with other tourists for it was a one person climb descend. Two people could not pass here! Eye candy photographed, check. Old Cemetery visited, check. Punta Gorda, check. More Classic Cars, check. Hot and still humid, check. A cold beer, not check. Huh? Wait, got to get that check! So we find a bar in the square and we sit down for some cold refreshment. Beer, check. Mojito, check. friendly tourists to chat with, check. We sit next to this couple, one from Portugal, one from France. we wonder at the long distance relationship. Hey, who are we to judge? We all hit it off and they join us at out table and we chat and kibitz about our lives, Cuba and life in general. All is good. I give them the address of this Blog. I hope they see it. If you guys do, please comment so we can stay in touch! Excuse me new friends, I’ll be right back! Is that a 1956 Chevy out front? Yes, it is! I not only recognize the make and model, I used to own one. I was the second owner of it. (I’ve also owned every year Chevy from 1955 through 1969 except for a 1965 but that is a different story) So I take my camera, ever by my side, and I get a few views of a pristine 56 before returning to our table. So we are sitting there in the excruciating humidity and heat, staying cool with a couple drinks each (Hey don’t judge us, we weren’t driving, LOL!), and suddenly, this local Cuban approaches me and hands me a caricature of myself that he had been drawing off to the side, much to my surprise! And it was very good! I asked him how much he wanted and he said 5 CUC ($5). I said great and I paid him 6 CUC. A happy camper with new European friends and a new portrait of myself, I sit and order another beer. Wait! Take my temperature! I didn’t even haggle? I could have got that picture for 3 CUC! Where is that guy? (Slow down Don, be happy!) I chuckle out loud this time and my wife and new friends pick on me for my miserly ways! But at least, the man let me photograph him before I bought the picture! That makes it all worth it for he was a very photogenic character.

Ok, got to walk off the beers. Our new friends are missing out on their vacation and need to move along also. I find a couple more photogenic buildings to shoot before we return to our Casa. We find another Paladar for dinner and retire to our Casa where we have a view of Sunset over the Bay as I enjoy another Cuban Cigar. Later, I manage to capture the Milky Way over the city and its sparse street lights! I hope you enjoy!

Another night comes to a close. See you in the morning!