We went to the buffet for dinner, the above picture was my "appetizer" for breakfast, lunch and dinner every day. Well, not the prawn, I don't eat things that still have their eyes attached, but I did plan on trying one the day I took this picture. The tomato was on top of cucumber and then the dressing was an oil & vinegar with spices and onions. I tossed on some crumbled feta and added a hunk of soft, creamy cheese and a piece of fresh baguette. mmmm, so good.

The drinks were all included, and contrary to what I had heard, all drinks were free. We had been told that it was only the local beers and a few hard liquors, rum and rye. But, any drink you could think of was gratis. It's a shame that we don't really drink. We did try a few (to us) exotic drinks. Above is a Tequila Sunrise (left) and a Brandy Alexander (right) and below is a Strawberry Daquiri. We had some champagne one night, and of course some Mojito's and Pina Colada's.

There were 4 or 5 bars scattered around the resort, including a nice one in a little straw hut right on the beach. There were restaurants galore as well, three fancy ones that you needed to make reservations for (free, but quite la-di-dah) and a huge buffet as well as various ice cream bars and hamburger type cafes. You couldn't go hungry, that's for sure.

I can see how this would be a good vacation for families with young kids. I remember how my kids would eat a huge breakfast, be "starving" two hours later, and when you bought them lunch they were suddenly not hungry at all, until it was mid-afternoon, then they were "dying of hunger" and you had to spend another $20 on snacks to tide them over the two hours until dinner. And of course they needed an evening snack and a before bedtime snack as well. These all inclusive resorts would be great for that.

There was also entertainment every night, a different sort of show each evening, a troupe of singers and dancers. One night was movie themes, one night was classic Cuban blues type, they were all "OK". Nothing to really write home about, but a fun way to spend an evening.

There was a hop-on, hop off bus that left every half hour or so and took you to the other resorts and then town of Varadero. Our resort was at the end of the peninsula so it was a longish ride, about 45 minutes I think, but it was interesting to see the other resorts. They all looked quite similar to ours (the Iberostar Playa Alameda). And, I imagine, similar to any resorts at any Caribbean island anywhere.

Do I sound jaded? I don't think I am, I can see why an All-Inclusive would work for some people, it's just not for me. It's relaxing, you don't have to worry about food, drink, travel arrangements, there are a multitude of tourist package day trip to do, but it's all in an insulated tourist bubble. You only see what they want you to see.

It's better than seeing nothing at all, by far, but then again, you don't know if you're in Mexico, Barbados, Bahamas, or Jamaica. It's all ticky-tacky. (youtube has the original ticky-tacky song, if you're so inclined to check it out.)

So, we passed on the day excursions, they didn't really interest us. There was snorkeling and catamaran trips, a swimming with dolphins thing, a booze-cruise, a boat trip to a small nearby island for a BBQ and a few other things of that nature.

Part 30. The "leap"

The middle balcony on the left was our room. When we first were checking out our room, I noticed that the balcony didn't lock. I was a little concerned about it, but not overly so. I mean, who is going to climb up the side of the building, or rappel down from the roof?

I went outside to scope out the view and shut the door behind me, to keep the cool air-conditioning in, and "surprise", the door locks automatically when you are outside. Luckily Steven was inside to let me in. Whew...that was close, and a normal person would remember this bit of info for future balcony outings.

Next day we headed out to the beach to enjoy some sun and surf. It was glorious, the water was warm and we swam for a long time, then relaxed on our lounge chairs, had a pina colada or three, read and dozed...really a wonderful way to spend a day.

Later in the afternoon, Steven decided to head back to the room to have a bath and get rid of the salty deposit all over him, and I was happy to stay and snooze in the sun.

After about an hour, I woke up and groggily decided to head back down the path to our room and get ready for dinner. Half way to our room, what did my mind think it was seeing? Steven, running down the path towards me...ummmm....in his underwear??

"What? What are you doing? Are you in your underwear?" I blinked my eyes, thinking it must be a pina colada dream.

"I locked myself out of the room!" His eyes were as wild as mine were confused.

"What? How? Why didn't you just wait for me? What's the rush?"

"I was on the balcony...the I shut the damn sliding door and then I couldn't get back in."

"Well, you must have gotten back in, because how are you HERE? And what were you doing out there in your underwear anyhow?"

"I went out to have a cigar and I shut the door....and when I couldn't get back in I had to jump off!"

"Again...what?"

"I dangled off the ledge, but there was too many sharp stones to drop on, so I shimmied over to the bushes, to drop there, but there were thorns on them, so I managed to pull my self up again, and balanced on the edge and leaped towards the grass!"

"You have to run to the lobby and get another key...quickly!"

"Calm down, it's bloody a thousand degrees, I'm not running anywhere (the lobby is a LONG walk from our room) What's the rush? Your underwear can sort of, almost pass for swim trunks, and there's no one around anyhow." I heaved a huge sigh of annoyance.

"I left the bathtub running!" he wailed.

"Jaysus Murphy" I snapped, and off I ran...

I huffed and puffed my way to the lobby, gasped out an explanation to the girl at the desk, got a new key and prayed it would work, ran back (and it was a thousand degrees out there) ran up to the room and flung open the door, to find the bathtub within centimetres of overflowing.

Then I started to laugh..."You looked so funny running down the path in your underwear" I snorted.

"I banged on all the neighbour's doors and no one would open up."

"Geez..do you wonder why?" I gasped out, in near hysterics, "Would you open the door to a half naked, sweaty man with wild eyes?"

"It's not that funny...I could hardly hang on to the balcony when I was dangling over the rocks, I'd have cut my feet to shreds."

"No, no, you're right, " I managed to gasp out between belly laughs, "it would have been awful. I'm only sorry that I wasn't here to see you dangling....to help you I mean..."

Anyhow. A lesson was learned and we kept a small stone in the track of the balcony door so that it couldn't shut all the way anymore.

And if that wasn't enough, the next day Steven threw a coconut at the maid....more on that event later.

Part 29. From our balcony

Our building was at the edge of the resort, so no noisy (or nosy) neighbours. This was how close we were to the beach, we could sneak down this back path and relax under a straw umbrella. It's a really good thing we were close, because, oh, I have a story.......(coming soon)

Part 28. The beach.

The first thing we did was to drop the luggage and head down to scope out the beach. I honestly didn't expect the water to be as blue as all the pictures always show, but it was. We walked about a half mile one way, checking out the other resorts, and then a half mile the other way. All the beaches in front of each resort looked the same....and by "the same", I do mean perfect.

When we were looking at the brochures, prior to the trip, all the beaches had different star ratings, some would be a 3 and some would be a 5, yet the resorts themselves would be beside each other. I couldn't figure that out...how can a beach change so much within a matter of a few feet? Answer: It doesn't. We walked a long way, and the sand was white and pristine the entire way.

The resorts all had the same little straw umbrellas, the same beach chairs, (albeit different colours) the same bars and snack stands, and the same locals selling the same crappy souviners from the same little portable stands. Remember this song?

Little boxes on the hillside
Little boxes made of ticky-tacky
Little boxes on the hillside
Little boxes all the same.
There's a green one and a pink one
And a blue one and a yellow one.
And they're all made out of ticky tacky
And they all look just the same.

That's the beaches of Varadero. Beautiful, and I mean seriously stunning, but ticky tacky none-the-less.

Part 27. The Resort.

 

 

 

 

Our resort was the Iberostar Playa Alameda, and it was very impressive. The lobby was wonderfully air-conditioned and the check-in was really speedy. We were shown a map and our building was pointed out to us, quite close (or so it seemed) and when asked if we needed a ride to our room, we shook our heads "no". Until we walked outside and were instantly turned around and lost, and realized that it was probably +35 degrees outside. An abrupt about-face brought us directly back to the desk, where the girl just waggled her fingers and a fellow appeared, and led us to a cart, and whisked us to our room.

Part 26 Off to Varadero

After the Cigar factory tour, we took a taxi back to the hotel and packed up. I was sort of sad to leave the Nacional de Cuba, it's such a great place, and I do love hotels at the best of times!!


We checked out, which took all of 2 minutes, to my surprise, as I had heard nothing but horror stories about the checking out process at this hotel. So much for all the Trip Advisor advice. As a matter of fact, the reviews of this hotel on Trip Advisor weren't all that great either...sometimes I think people expect everything to be "like at home." I don't expect much when I travel, if I have a clean bed, hot water and a bathroom of my own, then everything else is gravy.


Anyhow, Cuba Time is like Tanzania Time, and for that matter, Italian Time also. In other words, be prepared for things to NOT be on time.


Our ride to Varadero was supposed to pick us up at 2:00 PM and it was much closer to 3:00 when it arrived. We hopped on, got comfortable and headed off to Part Two of our holiday.


Because Havana and Varadero are so incredibly, totally different, I'll give my review of Cuba here.


Cuba is a contradiction. For myself, growing up in a "free" country (with "free" being in quotations because nowhere is really free) I had preconceived notions as to what Communism really was.

It is Equality Among Citizens. That being said, it could be the same definition of Democracy. Neither of them, Communism OR Democracy work when in their purest form, but both have good ideas and good intentions...as well as not so good.

For example, in Cuba everyone has free schooling, and that includes University. But you might not have a way to get there...you probably won't have a car...or gas to put in it. Everyone has the same food. Citizens get a ration booklet, called a "supplies booklet" and you get all the food you need to survive...not enough to have leftovers or to waste. Our guide in Havana showed us her booklet, what you receive depends on the size of your family, gender etc. For example, children under 7, pregnant women and the elderly get a litre of milk a day.

You food is distributed at your local "bogeda", or convenience store that specializes in distribution. You always have to go to the same store, if you move, you need to apply for a new booklet.

The laws are very specific, and the penalties for misuse are severe.The Cuban government states this method of distribution serves to ensure each citizen a minimum intake of food, regardless of the person’s social and economical status. It also stresses that the booklet is not the only means of acquiring goods available to a Cuban citizen, as these and other products are freely available in the free market by themselves.

The government also says that rations are not used for political leverage, and distributes the subsidized food equally to all citizens, regardless of their political views or judicial status.

The medical care is fantastic there, and again, all free. The scientists are brilliant and are leaders in the development of drugs to help HIV/Aids as well as high cholesterol (thus the offers on the street to buy "black market" cholesterol medications) Why don;t we know this? Oh, because of the US Embargo...other countries are quite well informed.

That's also why the medical care and knowledge might be the best in Latin America, but you can't find Tylenol: the US Embargo. However, what the US often seems to not mention, is that Cuba does trade with Russia and China, as well as Spain, Germany and many other European countries.

People say that you can't have a classless society, there will always be "haves" and "have-nots", there will always be the rich and the poor, and I guess that's true, but it's not like we don't have horrendous poverty, homelessness and lack of decent schools and medical care in Canada and the US.

It's six of one and half dozen of the other.

I spoke to people who love it the way it is, and don't want to become "Americanized" and I spoke to people who would like to be able to travel more freely, and to be less "under the thumb" of the government. Some people wouldn't discuss it at all, and others just wanted to talk for hours.

I guess it's like anywhere, some folks are happy, and some are not. Myself? I found it fascinating and amazing and quite comfortable.

Mid Cuba Interruption

Just a quick photo of Gypsy and Chino...visiting for a "summer holiday". Chino sleeps at the top of the stairs so that no one can leave without him knowing (he hasn't clued in yet that there are other exits in the house.) Gypsy is older and tired now, and sleeps a lot.

Part 25. Off to the cigar factory.

This morning is our last day in Havana, and we are finally off to the cigar factory. We have been there twice, but missed the tour each time. They have tours all day, every 15 minutes, however they close at random times...sometimes noon, sometimes 3 PM or 4 PM...you never really know.

Since we leave for Varadero this afternoon, we got up and headed down (via Coco Taxi!) to the Partagas Cigar Factory, which is right behind the Capitol Building. Luckily we were right on time and headed straight in for our tour. It was $10 CUC each, which I thought was a bit high, but well worth it.

The building is quite beautiful and smells wonderful...I've always liked the smell of fresh tobacco. It's 4 stories high, and each floor is reached by steep wooden stairs. Pictures are not allowed, other than of the main entrance. The top picture is taken inside the "foyer".

The process is like an assembly line, very efficient and quick, but no machines are used at all, everything is handmade. We saw each stage of how a cigar is made, from the unbinding of the tobacco to the final stickers being placed on the boxes. In an automated world, I found this to be really fascinating. There are many more steps than I had realized and it's quite an intricate procedure.

There is a large training room, where employees are tested on the various aspects of cigar making, from picking out the best leaves to use as the final wrap on the cigar, to the actual rolling (not done on a Cuban woman's thighs any more, much to the dismay of most of the men on our tour) to the measuring, putting in boxes and so on. Once your area of expertise has been determined, that is your job for the duration of your employment. There is no advancement at all...ever. The employers want the employees to become experts at their jobs.

Some jobs are more highly coveted than others, putting on the final large tobacco leaf that holds the whole cigar together is the highest paid job, and the hardest to do.



Each employee gets three cigars a day and can also smoke as many as they want while at work.

They save up their three and then try and sell them to people in the tour group...discreetly of course, with the international signals like raising of eyebrows, and chin movement and head nods towards their pockets where they quickly show you a handful of cigars, and the raising of fingers to let you know how many pesos they are worth. It all depends on what brand of cigar is being made at that time.

If a deal is made, and God knows I couldn't figure it out, then the employee walks by you and the exchange is quickly made while the employee heads off into the washroom.

I wouldn't let Steven do it, he was just dying to, but I didn't want anyone to get in trouble. I found out later that a blind eye is generally turned during these transactions, so I should have let him. A very pretty girl also gave him "the eye" and kept gesturing to him to meet her in the hallway. He sadly shrugged and we wandered on.

Each floor has a raised platform at the end of the room where a "reader" sits and reads the newspaper to the employees, music is also played. In the past, novels were read and the employees enjoyed some of the Shakespeare and other classics so much that some of cigars were named after some of the plays (Romeo y Julietta, and Monte Cristo )

It was really interesting and I had no idea that it was done in such an old fashioned way, each employee has their own table and their own supplies and they work at their particular job as fast as they can, and get paid by the amount they do, so a great deal of money can be made by an experienced cigar roller. They do get regular breaks and don't work more than 8 hours a day.

I would be curious as to the amount of cases of lung cancer though, it was quite smokey inside, even though fans were blowing constantly. No air conditioning though, it was fairly hot in there.

I'd recommend that you definitely take a tour if you are ever in Havana.

Part 24 An evening walk.

We went for a long walk along the Malecon, the full 7 kilometers. There were all sorts of people out and about, families, fishermen, groups of young and old alike. Everyone was just meandering along the seaside promenade and enjoying the warm weather. Most of the buildings are apartments that are in various stages of repair, but every now and then you come across something new and amazing, like this modern looking restaurant tucked in between two decrepit buildings.

Before we knew it we had wandered all the way to the Castillo del Morro. It was built in 1589 to protect the bay from invaders and it's pretty impressive even today. By the time we got to this end of the city we were exhausted, so we hailed the wonderful Coco Taxi and headed back for our last night in Havana.

Part 23 Vinales Valle

Wow. This was such a gorgeous part of Cuba. The Vinales Valle is so scenic, filled with these huge "clumps" of mountains, called "mogotes." We drove up a pass and stood and gazed at the scenery. You could turn in a complete circle and see the valle below you. Pretty spectacular.

I realized that I know very little about World Heritage sites, and what constitutes one, so I have been reading their web site. I'm surprised at how many I've seen, some without even realizing it.

I love the little tobacco farm down below.

Part 23 More Vinales.

One of the buildings in the process of restoration.

In the middle of town is a small central square, Parque Martí, and in the middle is a very modest church, Iglesia del Sagrado Corazó, which looks like it could have been the perfect setting for a shoot-out in one of Clint Eastwood’s old spaghetti Westerns . Next door, the arcades of an old Colonial mansion, once the diplomatic headquarters of the Spanish gentry, have been turned into folk-art flea market, selling hand-made instruments—claves and guiros—and other Cuban souvenirs in front of what is now the Casa de la Cultura. It was SO hot that I just couldn't think, and nothing appealed to me. We walked down the street and found a small store that sold ice cold beer, so we purchased one each. I've never drank so many beer in my life.

Part 23 Vinales

After leaving the caves, we stopped for a typical Cuban lunch at a roadside cafe. Chicken, pork, black beans & rice and beer. It was really good, but it was crowded, and in the Cuban fashion, you share a table with others (about 14 others I think) and I was too embarrassed to take a picture of the food. I may be a tourist geek, but even I have my limits.

Vinales is a World Heritage Site, which I didn't know. Both the valle and the town. It's spelled "valle" and not "valley" here. Just so you know. The town is considered a perfectly preserved colonial town. There is a lot of restoration going on, but eventually all the buildings will be beautiful pastel colours, as they were in the 1600's. You can rent the rooms, and how I'd love to come back some time and do so.

Coffee Break.