Pilote's Blog No. 5 - La Havana

We got picked up in front of our hotel at 8:30 a.m. 

the last to get on the bus and discovered it was filled with French-Canadians, the tour was to be conducted in French which was great.  The guide was extremely proficient in the language,much better in fact than with a lot of other English guided tours we’ve had in the past.  In Cuba there are only 3 tour operators and Transgaviota the one we had booked is by far the biggest and most common.  All the prices are fixed and the same regardless of who you book with as there is no competition.

Two and a half hours later and after a pretty thorough history lesson, we arrived in old Havana.  The buses, all Chinese make by the way, park on the outskirts and then you walk.  Old Havana is delightful.  If you’ve seen documentaries of Havana that’s pretty well the way it looks.  Candy colored mansions, old Colonial buildings some crumbling, some restored, cobblestone streets, little parks, it’s a lovely little city to walk in.  It’s not congested with traffic because there are not very many cars around, it’s a pedestrian heaven.  We headed for the main museum in Cuba, it’s the repository of so much Cuban history and it’s a grand old building with sweeping staircases and an inner courtyard.  We spent some time in the flag room which has tattered and beaten up flags from a lot of different countries which have tried to put their stamp on Cuba. As with any guided tour time is of the essence and we couldn’t spend as much as we might have liked.  We continued on to a store where cigars and rum are sold, a little café was upstairs.  Rum flows like water in Cuba they are extremely liberal with it, if you love rum Cuba is the place to be.  

Once our tour of old Havana was over we made our way to new Havana which is what you would expect, buildings of a more modern nature, broader streets, boulevards but also some old mansions with impossibly large acreage which have been recuperated by the government for various offices.  Some of these old houses which housed only one family in the days of the U.S. supported Batista regime, have been broken up into apartments with many different tenant families.  Rent is “free” in Cuba but you have to pay the cost of electricity which can be quite high. I’m still unclear about how homes are attributed if rent is free, couldn’t really get a clear answer from our guide.  In addition to free rent, education is free up to and including university, health care is provided as well as medicines.   Cuba fulfills the most important U.N. mandate in terms of providing for its people but like all political systems it’s far from perfect.  With respect to the second economy the one involving Cuban convertible pesos the government has relaxed the rules somewhat and Cubans who can get their hands on these can now use them in so-called tourist stores, with the attendant tourist prices but stocked with goods which are not necessarily available in other regular stores.

Another little known fact about Cuba, GUNS ARE ILLEGAL and the crime rate is extremely low and mostly consists of burglary, petty theft and crimes of opportunities involving property.  There aren’t too many inmates in Cuban jails.  It’s not a military dictatorship in the way we understand that to be, there are way more military and police in Mexico than can be found in all of Cuba, that’s refreshing.  

We finished with a nice lunch in one of the more modern buildings in Havana.  We also tasted a really excellent pina colada along the way, one of the best I’ve had so far in my travels.  We bid Havana adieu but not before a visit to the greatest craft market in all of Cuba.  Most of the stands sold the same things which is quite typical of these kinds of places.  We scored a few items none of them for us, we have enough souvenirs from other travels and frankly the quality of the work just isn’t there.  Tired but happy with our day we got back to the hotel around 7:30 p.m.

Pilote's Travel Blog no. 4 - Pre- La Havana

Stating the days won’t be helpful since I will be posting these on my blog upon my return, if nobody reads them so be it.  They will be a memento for me, memory gets very spotty as one ages.  A few days ago I was finally able to hit the pool, completed 15 laps but the water was very cold.  Swimming in the ocean was a no go as the waves were still too big and the wind too powerful.  Not an ideal day but we made time as best we could and the Russians kept on coming.  There seems to be two somewhat distinct groups, a younger set with the girls all willowy and the guys all fairly muscled up or skinny as well.  The second set is older and of the more paunchy variety for both sexes.  They pretty well stick to themselves which is understandable, the linguistic barrier is a hard one to overcome and they’re not all that friendly in any case.  

The weather improved remarkably after my pool expedition and we were finally able to lounge on beach chairs in the sand and play in the ocean which is basically what a tropical vacation is mostly about.  The water in Varadero is the nicest we have ever had the pleasure of swimming in.  It’s warm, the waves are gentle, there’s no garbage and the color is unbelievable.  The sand is white but not as powdery and fine as the one in the Yucatan, here nature hasn’t quite finished pulverizing the rocks and the shells which can be painful to walk on if you’re not careful.

A few words about the food.  This all inclusive is probably on the lower rung of the echelon of all inclusives the quality of the food being a dead give away.  No croissants, no bacon, no sausages, no French toast for breakfast but the usual eggs (plain) and omelettes with an assortment of recycled whatever food is left over from the dinner of the night before such as macaroni, yes they serve it  for breakfast!  This particular macaroni has been reincarnated many many times in a variety of fashions with a variety of sauces none of which are remotely appetizing.  Generally food which is grey and black and semi-gelatinous looking is not appealing to the taste buds, we did have a dish which fits this description.  The lunch and dinner don’t vary too much from each other except at dinner you can expect something grilled like fish or a big ham or turkey. The salads are non descript, the cheese is wafer thin and we saw a mouse jump out from the ornamental bread display. O.K. that wasn’t pleasant but hey take it in stride, I’m sure the 4 and 5 stars outfits have mice too they just keep theirs better hidden.  The resort employs a lot of people although it's difficult to figure out what they really do.  They walk around and fill out a lot of forms and appear very busy or not depending on the time of day.  They’re all working for the government since there are no huge corporations or mega enterprises here. A recent article on Cuba in the National Geographic had this telling quote: "We pretend to work and they pretend to pay us".  The state is definitely in charge nevertheless small c capitalism has made some in roads in mom and pop type businesses which is a good thing.  There are two types of economies and currencies in Cuba.  There is the regular economy for ordinary Cubans who get paid and buy their stuff with the Cuban peso and then there is the peso Cubano convertible which is the currency all foreigners use.  Cubans can also use this currency if they can get their hands on it.  Since the average wage is very low about 300 pesos a month mas o menos there is a definite advantage to scoring those convertible pesos which allow you greater buying power and access to better goods but more on that later.  Tomorrow we’ve booked a trip to La Havana so breaking down this post into two. See you in Havana tomorrow, Cuban style.

Before tackling Havana wanted to add a few more comments about the food.  Came back from another excellent dining adventure (chuckle, chuckle) actually there was rice and fresh fish, the tablecloths even looked fresh and we risked having another glass of white wine which was a tiny bit better than the last time we had it.  It’s either a different batch or our taste buds are adjusting.  The mood was very convivial which is the plus side of being in a smallish place, it’s not very formal at all which we like.  A couple of guys with guitars and strong voices show up almost every evening to sing classics like Besame, Guantanamera, La Bamba and by personal request Hotel California, yes that song has “legs”, it’s made it all around the world more than once and it just keeps on going.  Listening to news of snow in Quebec on CTV, very very shitty reception but caught enough of the weather forecast to make us feel happy that we’re here and not there.

La Havana:

Pilote's Travel Blog no. 3 - The Great Internet Caper

The Great Internet Caper

The day progressed rather uneventfully.  The weather was still crappy with lots of wind although the sun did start appearing here and there.  We walked all the way into Varadero and back, approximately 10 kms.

Our quest was for an elusive internet connection at calle (street) no. 30. We found it stocked with 4 computers, only 3 were working. I had to buy a card, 6 pesos for one hour.  We get 95 centavos for every Canadian dollar, the cost therefore was about $7.50 an hour that’s the most I’ve ever paid for an internet connection.  It’s all dial up and exceedingly slow, we also had to wait about 1 hour for a computer to become available.  Cuba is not an easy place to manoeuvre from that point of view.  There is a satellite provided by the Russians but because of the U.S. embargo the wireless connection is very difficult to have (border issues) not sure I understood when it was explained to me in Spanish.  Sent an email to the family, should have no problem getting there.

Some observations:

It’s generally clean, much less options to buy therefore less plastic crap on the street.

Crime rate is very low here, higher in a bigger city like Havana but there are no cops, only security outfits which are not very visible.

No soldiers either which is a big change from Mexico and other Latin American countries.

The t.v. reception is abominable, barely watchable.

There are no book exchanges which are common in most of the small hotels we’ve been in during our travels.

The food is very very bland.

It’s very quiet, no hustle and bustle, no street music at least not where we are.  Heard a band today in Varadero centro.

Of course we are hoping for better weather tomorrow so we can go swimming or attempt sunbathing but for the moment Cuba Si is more like Cuba NO.

Pilote's travel Blog no. 2, Varadero, Cuba

I haven’t talked about the sea yet, it is the Caribbean and it does have the brilliant turquoise color we have come to associate with it. Unfortunately the weather has been really crappy, huge wind, big scary waves with lots of foam. We haven’t been able to go swimming yet which is a total drag. This weather is expected to last till Tuesday with a gradual improvement on Monday.  Today we started walking towards Varadero center, the town is like one long strip without too many curves. There isn’t much of a center, a few restaurants, a few mercados nothing too interesting in terms of crafts. I think Cuba is mostly about the rum and the cigars with the odd wooden sculpture or leather item thrown in. It does not have the cultural craft richness of Mexico.  We ended up hopping on a double decker bus, 10$ for the two of us but you can get off and on at will.  We rode it all the way to the end where the big 4 and 5 stars all inclusive are, mostly with security gates and difficult to view from the vantage of the bus.  I’m sure the rooms are more luxurious and the food is probably better, with more a la carte restaurants to choose from. We only have one restaurant a la carte at Club Karey and you have to reserve otherwise it’s buffet style, plentiful but rather bland, they make little use of pepper or spices.  The all inclusive advantage, you don’t have to go running around for a place to eat but I know we’ll be very bored with the menu after 2 weeks in the same place.  The one interesting thing most of the guests here are Russian, yes the place is crawling with them.  Maybe they still have a fondness in their hearts leftover for Cuba from their Communist days.  In so far as the internet is concerned our search has come up empty.  We keep being told there’s internet at this hotel or that hotel but it never pans out.  Tomorrow we will try to find the one and only internet café in Varadero, 4 computers and it’s the old dial up so it’s going to be very slow going.  We’ve decided on two excursions we’re going to do, they’re not cheap, we must choose wisely but Havana is a definite.  Some Canadians arrived today and they thought Club Karey was heavenly. They had the all inclusive from hell near the airport, dirty and NO WATER. They complained so much that the company had to move them. No water is an absolute deal breaker, don’t blame them at all.  

Pilote's travel blog no. 1 - Cuba, Varadero

Pilote’s Travel Blog no. 1 - Varadero, Cuba


Left a snowy Montreal at 3:30 a.m.  Arrival at the airport was uneventful, not a lot of traffic at that time of the night although I was surprised to see city buses already running at that time, that’s dedication for the late night workers who don’t have access to a car or choose to go green.  The line up at the ticket counter was impressive and we thought we were early!  We were unable to secure side by side seats but there’s never much talking going on when we’re flying therefore not much of a difference in that respect.  The flight took a little longer than advertised more like 4 and a half hours than the 3 hours we expected.
The airport was quiet and orderly, a big change from the usual chaotic mess of Mexico.  You go through the customs area one at a time, you also get your picture taken and then you walk through the “magical” door to the other side, welcome to Cuba.  A parade of buses await the new arrivals.  We found our bus easily onward to our “resort” Club Carey.  Club Carey is given 3 stars in the brochure I think it’s more on the 2 star range.  The bus was full and we were the only two passengers to get off at that destination. Haha.  The hotel itself is quite spread out, some buildings are too old and will be “shortly” replaced with new ones, for the moment they sit forlorn and empty.  No high-rises here, the buildings are all squat and rectangular with no distinctive features. We registered at the front desk which has the nicest building around and the one which was featured in the brochure, you can never trust those pictures.  We were able to change 40$ at the reception but didn’t get a very good rate.  First major disappointment, no internet connection and none available nearby.  I’m typing this blog into works and will transfer it time permitting which is a real drag because I like to make it available in real time.  Our room is big and faces the ocean which is really nice, you can hear the constant roar of the waves through the closed windows. The windows must remain closed, there are mosquitoes around, they’re tiny but they still sting.  There are two beds, both comfortable and the pillows are rock hard like in so many hotels in Mexico.  For our first ever all inclusive it’s a little disappointing I thought it would be more luxurious with more bells and whistles.  Nevertheless, in the end, this suits us better.  We can’t complain about the food, it’s very plentiful and the booze is also free.  Most people we talked to seem to just hang around the complex and not venture out too much. It’s not that easy to get around. Varadero, the town, is further away than we thought, we’ll explore tomorrow.  We were very tired today, took some time to rest and when we woke up again discovered there was no water. Luckily we had taken showers earlier but the situation needed fixing.  The staff was very amenable but everything was poco a poco and it took a little while before water gurgled through the pipes again.  The weather is humid and it won’t be that great for the next three days, Sunday should even be quite chilly but the following weeks should be hot and sunny. I’m too tired to make a lot of pithy observations right now. First impression, a little rugged, friendly staff, their Spanish has a lot of rough edges. We still plan on going to Havana but without internet connections we will have to rely on a tour since I won’t be able to do a lot of research to find a B&B etc…Oh well it’s our first time, a voyage of exploration and discovery. Hasta luego.

Originally this blog was intended as a travel blog but I'm going through a bit of a transformational experience and would like to veer away from strictly travelling to exploring the concept of change and how difficult it is to change,not only location but oneself.  Not sure if there's an appetite for this kind of reading.  I might end up just writing this for myself as a way of venting or an avenue to explore whatever little remnants of creativity I have left within myself.  A sort of free flowing, with some context, flow of consciousness blog, not even sure if I can let my consciousness flow that easily. It seems pretty rigidly fixed at the moment.

Edward Copeland on Film...and more: Boardwalk Empire No. 24: To the Lost Part II

Edward Copeland on Film...and more: Boardwalk Empire No. 24: To the Lost Part II