March 21
Nice morning and same breakie…..decided to skip going to Hemingway’s house in the country ….bus ride seemed rather impractical and the taxi service was a little expensive given that you cannot go into the house but only look through the windows.
Our casa owner Yali showed up and we made arrangements for a Collectivo Taxi to Trinidad for tomorrow morning…..the lady was quite business minded and spoke good English……Cuba is definitely a country where some Spanish language skills are a huge help……otherwise one is reduced to sign language!
Walked through the “hood” our destination: the Parque Central where we could board the hop/off bus for a tour of Havana…..
……a bit “woosie”, but it is an effective way of covering a lot of ground where the ony alternatives are to walk or take a taxi . The bus was 10 CUC each for all day travel. Ended up doing it twice because there were so many people on board that we basically saw very little first time around….we even had to stop and turn off the bus as the driver refused to carry on unless people standing up on the upper deck would come down…all a bit silly but the tour company should not let on more people than there are seats. Anyways, went to have lunch in Habana Viejo and then took a second tour this time with good seats on the upper deck.
Passed through a variety of districts: the Vedado, mostly shopping, restos and bars;
the Nacional Hotel a Habana landmark buit for and by Americans in 1930, and post the 1959 revolution catering to the friends of the revolution….
next up, the Necropolis……a vast cemetery, considered the most important in the Caribbean
…and the Plaza de Revolucion with its massive tower commemorating the revolution…as well as other buildings featuring heroes of the Revolution:
It was a nice day for a ride and we got a good overview of the city. Overall we felt that Habana Viejo offers the most interest, the Vedado mainly a shopping/entertainment area with the Malecon probably the most disappointing, as there are few restos/cafes with historical apartment blocks looking more like ruins than attractions…..it does have tons of potential but it will take time and a ton of money. It really does remind me of my trips to the Soviet Union 40 years ago….save for the tropical setting. As for the touts, we feel the guide books over exaggerate this aspect…a gracias no, smile and a subtle shake of ones hand is sufficient to get the message across that no sale is forthcoming.
Best for last…..for all you car buffs, head to Cuba and buy some cars…..there are some incredible looking rides around:
For dinner we went to the Paladar san Cristobal
………..figuring if it was good enough for President Obama, it should work for us ! It was a nice dinner at a decent price point and a pleasant way to end our stay in Habana…….actually only a 3 minute walk from the Casa…..very funky setting, waiters in monkey suits and well prepared dishes: Annie had a wonderful oven baked white fish in a wine/garlic sauce and I had tasty, well marinated pork brochettes with Cuban country potatoes……with 2 glasses of Chilean white, 2 Cuba Libres and a mineral water this set us back 45 CUC > 57 CAD.
….and our day is done:
