Family & Friends,
Alas, amid some big life changes, I finally have had the time to sit down and write about my trip to Cuba from waaaayyyy back in November. For the sake of brevity, I will not get into the tiny details, but the photos and videos should make up for it.
My first stop in Cuba was Habana. I was there for three days, then went to Viñales, then back to Habana, then to Trinidad, then back to Habana to fly home. So this blog entry is a culmination of the three separate chunks of time when I was in Habana.
Even as I write this, Camila Cabello's Havana song plays in my head, as it did for most of my time in Cuba. It's just so damn catchy.
It was a two-hour flight from Mexico City to Habana. Once in Cuba, customs was a shitshow that involved filling out a blue form and then getting into a "line" to hand the form over to an official-looking woman who didn't even look at the form. I put "line" in quotes because Cubans don't believe in queueing. When someone new joins the "line," they say, "I'm after him/her" and then go stand wherever they want. So if people forget the order or try to cut in "line," it becomes a matter of he-said/she-said. I know because a woman tried to cut in front of me in "line" at the bank when I was trying to get cash on my first day. Luckily, Cubans are very noble people (no doubt having to do with the very strict punishments for breaking the law in their Communist government), so others in "line" stood up for me and that cutting woman was put in her place. Anywayyyyy...
I arrived late and took a taxi to my casa particular, which is the term for homes that rent out spare rooms to travelers. Casas have a specific sign with a symbol to indicate that one can inquire about vacancies. I, however, chose to book my casas online ahead of time through Airbnb. This is still a dubious area when it comes to legality because, although U.S. sanctions on Cuba have been lifted, there are limitations as to what kind of economic activity can occur between the two countries. An important thing to note here is that I used my Italian passport to enter Cuba and primarily identified as an Italian citizen in order to avoid any issues. When I did confess to being an American while traveling from Habana to Viñales, one man said, "Ohhh, money!" and then would not leave me alone.
Speaking of money, the reason I booked my casas ahead of time was not only for peace of mind, but because I could use my credit card. Cash is not allowed to be passed between Cuba and other countries. One must exchange cash upon arriving in Cuba (there are no ATM's) and technically, must exchange any leftover cash before leaving. So I cut out a good amount of cash to carry by booking my accommodations online prior to arriving. Now, I exchanged to CUC (the Cuban currency used with tourists) from Mexican pesos, instead of from American dollars, because there is a 10% fee for American cash. One CUC is approximately equal to $1 USD, so that's easy. I recommend only exchanging the amount that you absolutely need to get from the airport to your casa or hotel (also, keep in mind that Americans are not supposed to stay at hotels because they are owned by and support the Communist government). That is because, like most everywhere else, the airport exchange rates are inflated. There are banks, but I suggest exchanging cash at designated CADECA's instead.
So. I arrived to my casa in the Vedado neighborhood, which was hosted by a very hospitable mother-daughter duo. "Vedado" means "forbidden" and is called such because it used to be a protected area for rich people. It was late, but I was hungry and ventured out to find food. The area looked really run down and there wasn't much street lighting, but I didn't feel unsafe because there were plenty of people walking around trying to escape the heat and humidity. Much of what I saw of Cuba fits this same description.
I ended up at a paladar (a restaurant run out of a home) called Locos for Cuba and got a bistec empanado for less than 5 CUC. I ate it outside at Parque de los Martires Universitares, where groups of teenagers were hanging out. I quickly realized that this was a wifi spot because everyone had their phones out. This is an interesting sight throughout Cuba; I could always tell where to find wifi by seeing groups of people on their phones. More about internet access in my "End of Journey Report" to come later.
I'll go day by day for the rest of this entry...
DAY 1:
I walked to a gas station to meet up for a bike/food tour I booked through Airbnb Experiences. If booking casas through Airbnb is questionable, booking experiences is completely illegal. But Cubans find ways to re-route the money. This tour was fantastic and you can easily find it by searching on Airbnb.
While I was waiting at the gas station, a man and woman approached me. It took me a minute to realize that he thought I was a man and was propositioning me to hire the woman for her "services." Once he realized I was a woman, he apologized profusely and embarrassingly. I later made friends with a French tourist who told me that he was constantly being propositioned by prostitutes in Cuba.
Anyway, the bike tour was really great and I met a man from Florida, as well as a Columbia student from China in the group. The highlights were:
- Fresh guanabana juice.
- Sampled fruits from a Vedado market. I learned that no Cuban fruits are called "papaya" because "papaya" means "lady parts."
- Plaza de la Revolución.
- A yummy lunch at a paladar called Don PP Cafetería that included huevos fritos, pan, avocado, yuca, smashed plantains, queso, jamón... all for very little CUP.
- Biking through Old Havana.
- Biking along the Malecón (the shoreline of Northern Habana) and getting splashed by the waves.
The Floridian guy from the tour invited me to a music tour that night (another Airbnb experience you can look up). That tour was also a blast and included:
- Taking a Soviet truck taxi to Miramar to go to Casa de la Música. There was a live band with what Andrew (the Florida guy) called "dancing boys." See video below.
- Learning how to salsa.
- Taking the taxi to Old Havana to go to Patio Amarillo, a more intimate music venue. I got doooown, but unfortunately, did not get any video evidence of it.
- Tasting canchanchara, a specialty Cuban cocktail.
After the tour, Andrew and I continued to hang out with two guys who knew our tour guide. We tried the Conga Room, but it was closed, so we went to King Bar in Vedado instead. This bar supposedly is gay on Tuesdays and Fridays. The name is a pun because "quimbar" means "to fuck." It had a very clever logo.
And then I experienced my first taxi scammer. Taxi drivers will often say that they don't have change, or after you hand them cash, they'll switch the bills and say that you "mistakenly" paid the wrong amount. Look out for this! Read more in my "End of Journey Report."
DAY 2:
Casas will often offer you a hospitable fresh juice, "on the casa" (ba dum bum). I could not get over how good these damn juices were. Most casas also offer cheap, homemade breakfasts. I highly recommend trying these.
Day 2 was a big walking day. Habana is not very large, so one can accomplish a lot in one day. Here are the sights:
- Callejón de Hamel: A short alleyway full of art. I found it a bit underwhelming.
- Walked along the Malecón.
- Hotel Nacional. I walked through the bunker exhibit about the Cuban Missile Crisis (Cueva Taganana). I also chilled and drank a daiquiri.
- A souvenir market on Avenida 23.
- Castillo del Principe.
- Capitolio.
- Parque Central.
- Parque Cristo.
- El Dandy restaurant for dinner.
- Museo de la Revolución and Monumento de José Martí.
- Castillo de la Punta.
Along my urban hike, I experienced a scammer. He did not get my money, but I did fall for it a little. He was very friendly and trying to talk to me, asking me where I was from (I always said Italy). He then insisted I try a cigar from his family's factory as a gift. That's when he pressed me to buy a box of cigars. When I said "no, thanks," he demanded that I give him some money for the "gifted" cigar. I said no. Then, he created a sob story about how he has kids and his family is hungry. The New Yorker in me had no problem ignoring him and moving on. But I can see how this could be a successful tactic with tourists.
Later that night, I went to the Fábrica de Arte Cubano (Art Factory). This place is impressive. It's like a nightclub-slash-museum-slash-restaurant. Beware that they have a really stupid way of paying that involves a card that you have to pay off at one end of the huge building, and then exit at the complete opposite end of the building. Doesn't make sense to me. When I got back to the casa, the power was out, which happens often.
***
The next day was when I left for Viñales, which I will write about soon. But after Viñales, I returned to Habana for one night before heading to Trinidad. I stayed at a different casa, which had a very cute terrace. Here's what I did on that day:
- Walked through Plaza Viejo.
- Walked through Plaza de San Francisco.
- Walked along the water near the ports.
- Saw Iglesia de San Francisco de Paula.
- Tried to go to the Rafael Trejo boxing gym (a famous gym), but it was closed.
- Had dinner at San Ignacio 214 in Old Havana, which was overpriced and meh.
I noticed on this day that I did not experience any catcalling in Cuba, which was great. Instead, I was pretty much constantly harassed for money (eg "Hey, lady, hey!", "Happy holiday!").
***
After Trinidad, I again returned to Habana for one night before flying home. This time, I stayed in a "casa" in a high rise building with a cool view. The host woman was very chatty and overbearing. By this time, I was ready to come home.
By the way, be careful about the water that casa hosts provide. Make sure the cap is sealed! Some hosts will refill bottles from the sink and try to sell them to guests. This casa woman kept insisting that her water was safe, but I didn't want to take any chances, so I went out and bought bottled water.
On my last night in Cuba, I returned to Locos por Cuba, the paladar I went to on my first night. There, I had a beer on the balcony and listened as some random dude played a serenade on the street below.
The next day, I departed on my journey home. Going through customs at the Atlanta airport was surprisingly quick and easy, considering I was coming from Cuba.
***
In conclusion, Cuba was definitely a trip to remember! I wanted to make sure I experienced the island before it really takes off in tourism (which is already happening). I'll explain more of what I learned and what to look out for in my aforementioned "End of Journey Report."
Stay tuned for my entries about Viñales and Trinidad...
Onward,
Chris
Alas, amid some big life changes, I finally have had the time to sit down and write about my trip to Cuba from waaaayyyy back in November. For the sake of brevity, I will not get into the tiny details, but the photos and videos should make up for it.
My first stop in Cuba was Habana. I was there for three days, then went to Viñales, then back to Habana, then to Trinidad, then back to Habana to fly home. So this blog entry is a culmination of the three separate chunks of time when I was in Habana.
Even as I write this, Camila Cabello's Havana song plays in my head, as it did for most of my time in Cuba. It's just so damn catchy.
It was a two-hour flight from Mexico City to Habana. Once in Cuba, customs was a shitshow that involved filling out a blue form and then getting into a "line" to hand the form over to an official-looking woman who didn't even look at the form. I put "line" in quotes because Cubans don't believe in queueing. When someone new joins the "line," they say, "I'm after him/her" and then go stand wherever they want. So if people forget the order or try to cut in "line," it becomes a matter of he-said/she-said. I know because a woman tried to cut in front of me in "line" at the bank when I was trying to get cash on my first day. Luckily, Cubans are very noble people (no doubt having to do with the very strict punishments for breaking the law in their Communist government), so others in "line" stood up for me and that cutting woman was put in her place. Anywayyyyy...
I arrived late and took a taxi to my casa particular, which is the term for homes that rent out spare rooms to travelers. Casas have a specific sign with a symbol to indicate that one can inquire about vacancies. I, however, chose to book my casas online ahead of time through Airbnb. This is still a dubious area when it comes to legality because, although U.S. sanctions on Cuba have been lifted, there are limitations as to what kind of economic activity can occur between the two countries. An important thing to note here is that I used my Italian passport to enter Cuba and primarily identified as an Italian citizen in order to avoid any issues. When I did confess to being an American while traveling from Habana to Viñales, one man said, "Ohhh, money!" and then would not leave me alone.
Speaking of money, the reason I booked my casas ahead of time was not only for peace of mind, but because I could use my credit card. Cash is not allowed to be passed between Cuba and other countries. One must exchange cash upon arriving in Cuba (there are no ATM's) and technically, must exchange any leftover cash before leaving. So I cut out a good amount of cash to carry by booking my accommodations online prior to arriving. Now, I exchanged to CUC (the Cuban currency used with tourists) from Mexican pesos, instead of from American dollars, because there is a 10% fee for American cash. One CUC is approximately equal to $1 USD, so that's easy. I recommend only exchanging the amount that you absolutely need to get from the airport to your casa or hotel (also, keep in mind that Americans are not supposed to stay at hotels because they are owned by and support the Communist government). That is because, like most everywhere else, the airport exchange rates are inflated. There are banks, but I suggest exchanging cash at designated CADECA's instead.
So. I arrived to my casa in the Vedado neighborhood, which was hosted by a very hospitable mother-daughter duo. "Vedado" means "forbidden" and is called such because it used to be a protected area for rich people. It was late, but I was hungry and ventured out to find food. The area looked really run down and there wasn't much street lighting, but I didn't feel unsafe because there were plenty of people walking around trying to escape the heat and humidity. Much of what I saw of Cuba fits this same description.
I ended up at a paladar (a restaurant run out of a home) called Locos for Cuba and got a bistec empanado for less than 5 CUC. I ate it outside at Parque de los Martires Universitares, where groups of teenagers were hanging out. I quickly realized that this was a wifi spot because everyone had their phones out. This is an interesting sight throughout Cuba; I could always tell where to find wifi by seeing groups of people on their phones. More about internet access in my "End of Journey Report" to come later.
I'll go day by day for the rest of this entry...
DAY 1:
I walked to a gas station to meet up for a bike/food tour I booked through Airbnb Experiences. If booking casas through Airbnb is questionable, booking experiences is completely illegal. But Cubans find ways to re-route the money. This tour was fantastic and you can easily find it by searching on Airbnb.
While I was waiting at the gas station, a man and woman approached me. It took me a minute to realize that he thought I was a man and was propositioning me to hire the woman for her "services." Once he realized I was a woman, he apologized profusely and embarrassingly. I later made friends with a French tourist who told me that he was constantly being propositioned by prostitutes in Cuba.
Anyway, the bike tour was really great and I met a man from Florida, as well as a Columbia student from China in the group. The highlights were:
- Fresh guanabana juice.
- Sampled fruits from a Vedado market. I learned that no Cuban fruits are called "papaya" because "papaya" means "lady parts."
- Plaza de la Revolución.
- A yummy lunch at a paladar called Don PP Cafetería that included huevos fritos, pan, avocado, yuca, smashed plantains, queso, jamón... all for very little CUP.
- Biking through Old Havana.
- Biking along the Malecón (the shoreline of Northern Habana) and getting splashed by the waves.
The Floridian guy from the tour invited me to a music tour that night (another Airbnb experience you can look up). That tour was also a blast and included:
- Taking a Soviet truck taxi to Miramar to go to Casa de la Música. There was a live band with what Andrew (the Florida guy) called "dancing boys." See video below.
- Learning how to salsa.
- Taking the taxi to Old Havana to go to Patio Amarillo, a more intimate music venue. I got doooown, but unfortunately, did not get any video evidence of it.
- Tasting canchanchara, a specialty Cuban cocktail.
After the tour, Andrew and I continued to hang out with two guys who knew our tour guide. We tried the Conga Room, but it was closed, so we went to King Bar in Vedado instead. This bar supposedly is gay on Tuesdays and Fridays. The name is a pun because "quimbar" means "to fuck." It had a very clever logo.
And then I experienced my first taxi scammer. Taxi drivers will often say that they don't have change, or after you hand them cash, they'll switch the bills and say that you "mistakenly" paid the wrong amount. Look out for this! Read more in my "End of Journey Report."
DAY 2:
Casas will often offer you a hospitable fresh juice, "on the casa" (ba dum bum). I could not get over how good these damn juices were. Most casas also offer cheap, homemade breakfasts. I highly recommend trying these.
Day 2 was a big walking day. Habana is not very large, so one can accomplish a lot in one day. Here are the sights:
- Callejón de Hamel: A short alleyway full of art. I found it a bit underwhelming.
- Walked along the Malecón.
- Hotel Nacional. I walked through the bunker exhibit about the Cuban Missile Crisis (Cueva Taganana). I also chilled and drank a daiquiri.
- A souvenir market on Avenida 23.
- Castillo del Principe.
- Capitolio.
- Parque Central.
- Parque Cristo.
- El Dandy restaurant for dinner.
- Museo de la Revolución and Monumento de José Martí.
- Castillo de la Punta.
Along my urban hike, I experienced a scammer. He did not get my money, but I did fall for it a little. He was very friendly and trying to talk to me, asking me where I was from (I always said Italy). He then insisted I try a cigar from his family's factory as a gift. That's when he pressed me to buy a box of cigars. When I said "no, thanks," he demanded that I give him some money for the "gifted" cigar. I said no. Then, he created a sob story about how he has kids and his family is hungry. The New Yorker in me had no problem ignoring him and moving on. But I can see how this could be a successful tactic with tourists.
Later that night, I went to the Fábrica de Arte Cubano (Art Factory). This place is impressive. It's like a nightclub-slash-museum-slash-restaurant. Beware that they have a really stupid way of paying that involves a card that you have to pay off at one end of the huge building, and then exit at the complete opposite end of the building. Doesn't make sense to me. When I got back to the casa, the power was out, which happens often.
***
The next day was when I left for Viñales, which I will write about soon. But after Viñales, I returned to Habana for one night before heading to Trinidad. I stayed at a different casa, which had a very cute terrace. Here's what I did on that day:
- Walked through Plaza Viejo.
- Walked through Plaza de San Francisco.
- Walked along the water near the ports.
- Saw Iglesia de San Francisco de Paula.
- Tried to go to the Rafael Trejo boxing gym (a famous gym), but it was closed.
- Had dinner at San Ignacio 214 in Old Havana, which was overpriced and meh.
I noticed on this day that I did not experience any catcalling in Cuba, which was great. Instead, I was pretty much constantly harassed for money (eg "Hey, lady, hey!", "Happy holiday!").
***
After Trinidad, I again returned to Habana for one night before flying home. This time, I stayed in a "casa" in a high rise building with a cool view. The host woman was very chatty and overbearing. By this time, I was ready to come home.
By the way, be careful about the water that casa hosts provide. Make sure the cap is sealed! Some hosts will refill bottles from the sink and try to sell them to guests. This casa woman kept insisting that her water was safe, but I didn't want to take any chances, so I went out and bought bottled water.
On my last night in Cuba, I returned to Locos por Cuba, the paladar I went to on my first night. There, I had a beer on the balcony and listened as some random dude played a serenade on the street below.
The next day, I departed on my journey home. Going through customs at the Atlanta airport was surprisingly quick and easy, considering I was coming from Cuba.
***
In conclusion, Cuba was definitely a trip to remember! I wanted to make sure I experienced the island before it really takes off in tourism (which is already happening). I'll explain more of what I learned and what to look out for in my aforementioned "End of Journey Report."
Stay tuned for my entries about Viñales and Trinidad...
Onward,
Chris