Saturday, April 13th and Sunday April 14th, 2019 - End of Our People to People Experience

Sadly, this first trip was coming to an end. It had been a bit more of a 'rush' than Fran and I had anticipated. Normally the tour company we used, Intrepid, gives plenty of 'on one's own' time, but this one had been highly structured and scheduled, even including meals. I want to believe it is because the American State Department doesn't want people just lolling around in Cuba!

Oh well, we were down to the last full day and we had a long day of travel back to Havana. It was through the mountains, which was lovely - almost like some Australian mountain roads I've been on, even down to the eucalyptus trees.

Our first stop was a lookout toward Trinidad and the ocean to the south. It was hazy, so it was tough to get anything worth having, but here you go!

You can see Trinidad to the left of the yucca spike and the ocean where we swam between the two spikes. 

The other direction shows the mountains we are headed into. It was quite a lovely drive.

The next stop was another scenic view - also hazy! It was pretty, but what's a photographer to do with it!

Maybe photograph the huge tree fern fiddle-heads?

Or how about the people in our group, or the bus we were riding in?

Our itinerary said we would have lunch in a small family farm near Santa Clara. It was very modest as you see here. But these resourceful people put on a most notable spread for us.

While the outside was unfinished, the interior was clean and had a most delightful breeze blowing through it. Our guide told us that since the tour company began stopping here for meals, they have been gradually improving their place, taking it from bare wooden walls to this lovely space. This is an example of 'responsible tourism' that Intrepid promotes - finding ways to put money in the pockets of locals to help improve their lives.

Now, if you're vegetarian or vegan, you may want to skip this bit. We could see the pigs in the pen and the chicken (photograph by Fran) was looking nervous and staying close to the woods!

The cassava was boiling.........

....tomatoes, onions and garlic ready to go.......... 

.......oh, and here's the answer...........the chicken can relax!!! (Again, photo credit to Fran)

While lunch was cooking, we headed across the road to a small waterfall which was being enjoyed by some locals. We also appreciated the peaceful, bucolic scene of the cow on the hill.

Finally, all was ready. It was fresh, locally grown and one of the most delicious meals we had. It was a fairly typical spread. We had tomato salad at every meal, (except breakfast)  very often with cucumber, less often with cabbage as shown here. There was also always some form of plantain - either chips or tostones. This spread had very delicious plantain garlic flavored chips which many declared the best we've had. This meal was unusual in that it had both potatoes and cassava. The other ubiquitous dish is rice with either black or red beans. The type of meat is the primary variation at each meal. I was happy with the food. It was generally tasty.

Dessert today was guava jam with cheese, a common offering. The other common dessert was flan - yum!

As you can imagine after this amazing spread, it was hard to get on the road, but press on, we did!

Ernesto Che Guevara Mausoleum near Santa Clara 

I have not mentioned much about the adulation of the heroes of the revolution so far. The second week of our time in Eastern Cuba exposed us to more of that. Near Santa Clara, we stopped at the Che Guevara Mausoleum where he is honored. Photos inside the mausoleum were not permitted. It was tastefully done and was a well kept memorial. I found myself conflicted about these souls - Che, Fidel, Raoul, Cienfuegos. Without internet to check accuracy, it was hard to filter the information that was presented. Very simply, Che's image was more ubiquitous as one of the major heroes, with Cienfuegos as a runner up. There was not as much presented visually about Fidel. 

All that was left was a couple more hours back to the big smoke. Throughout our travels, there was very little traffic. You can see here a lovely divided highway that was built with assistance from the Russians. It was still in quite good condition, but there was very little traffic of any kind. The smaller roads had horse carts, ox-carts, pedestrians, bike riders, but these roads mainly held only cars or buses. 

These photos were snapped from the bus window, taken near the Malecon in Havana.

The view from our Casa in Havana

It had been a rushed week. We had enjoyed our fellow-travelers and had some lovely experiences that helped us learn a lot more about this place so close to our home, yet so far in terms of history and development. Sometimes it had felt as if we had taken a trip back to the splendors of Europe. Other times I felt as if I was in South-East Asia. In reality, I was an hour from Miami. Our guide and driver had been excellent, but we had little time to process our experiences, so Fran and I were glad to know that we would head back to the Fort Lauderdale the following day for a cultural and plumbing reprieve. It was only going to be a brief reprieve, because, our journey was not over yet. We had made arrangements to return immediately to Eastern Cuba, which is less often visited by tourists. So stay tuned........we're not done yet!

Thursday April 11th through Saturday April 13th, 2019 - Trinidad, Cuba

We left Cienfuegos around noon and after a lunch and about 2 hours drive, we arrived in lovely Trinidad. It was much older than Cienfuegos, having been settled in 1514, the same year as Havana. It was located about 12 kilometers inland to reduce it's vulnerability to pirates and corsairs. It was also built with roads running at different angles - our guide said this was another strategy to confuse  potential invaders. It is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site, which will not surprise you at all when you get the flavor of the place.

One definitely felt one was in another world and time - the feeling that one really was back in Spain about 100 years ago, or more.

I start you off with this iconic picture. Why iconic?, you say. I choose it because it seems to me that wherever one is in the world, women are out in the early morning sweeping their stoops, and Trinidad was no different. It also shows the cobbled streets and the way that the house fronts drop immediately to the pavement - no porches, just big wooden doors opening onto the street. I also like the indifferent way the man is looking at me with his cigarette hanging out of his mouth! It also shows the hilliness and the curvature that was common in the streets. I also appreciate that it was too early for tourists, which were very abundant here!

This early morning photo also shows the charm of this city. You can see on the left the metal bars that allow people to have security, while still being able to watch events on the street and visit with people as they pass by. Like the man you see slightly to the left of center, it was very common to see people sitting on their stoops. In spite of the cobbled streets, there were cars and horse drawn carts. You can also see the Escambray Mountains in the background.

Many of the houses were painted in different colors - very Caribbean style. Again, notice the man sitting on his stoop and the metal window bars. If one took out the motor bike, electric pole and blue water tanks, it would be an ageless scene.

Not all was in good repair. There were many places that could have used a coat of paint.

 However, some of the places that were in disrepair had a beauty that would be ruined by paint.

 The casa particulare we stayed in was very colorful and had a beautiful courtyard and roof garden........

 .......but the door leading into it was very unremarkable. This is one aspect of Cuban life I most enjoyed - the incredible contrast that sometimes existed between the public and the private.

Both afternoons we were in the casa, I noticed abuela - the grandmother - sitting in the window, watching the world pass. At that time of day the heat had dissipated and the curtain could be removed. At times, people stopped and chatted to her. Again, it felt like a timeless event.

The openness of the barred windows allowed me to glimpse into the lives of others as I walked around. This toy was near the window. The sign says 'For Sale', so e-Bay is not even needed! Because of the bars, it was secure.

It was common to see people chatting. Throughout Cuba, once outside the big cities, I had the sense that a lot of visiting goes on. It is worth noting, however, that one does not see phones in hands. Many people have phones, but it was often land lines ringing in the homes where we stayed.

I loved this scene of the children playing games on the street. It is possible they are there because it is cooler than inside, but they are supervised and it was a lovely sight.

Now Trinidad has a truly beautiful Plaza. Called Plaza Mayor, you can see that the world flocks to see it. By the time we arrived here, it was mid-afternoon and the thought that kept going through my head was 'only mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun'. It was crowded, Both Fran and I were hot and quite tired after trekking around Cienfuegos that morning. Because of the lack of vegetation and the heat reflecting off the cobbled streets and buildings, it was unrelenting. This was the one time on the trip that we bailed out on the activity and skipped a museum visit. This was a bit of an issue, as we had signed an affidavit that we would participate in everything to satisfy the American State Department requirements for the People to People licensing, but happily we called it heat exhaustion and all was OK. A nap and quiet dinner, along with finding a restaurant that actually supplied wi-fi, set things right!

Here's another glimpse of the plaza in the early morning. I particularly liked the ceramic 'urns' it had.

We spent two nights in Trinidad, but the second day, we left town to dip in a nearby waterfall and after lunch spend the afternoon at the beach.

There's no denying the coolness of the waterfall was appreciated. There were a number of other groups there, but it was easy to access. It is called El Cubano. We saw wasp nests and a traditional 'bohio campesino' (farmer's hut), which served as the ranger's accommodation.

 The beach, in contrast, was at a government-run hotel. Our guide told us that very often these are not maintained well and have not been updated, so they are dated and not very nice. Happily, we didn't need to go into the hotel, but a nice coconut and mojito on the beach, as well as a swim removed the last remnants from the fatigue from the day prior.

You can tell I really liked Trinidad. I will leave you with a few more random images.

He was not crying out that they were for sale

I noticed this guy leave his home with his garlic and onions.

He must have had a regular route. I was quite pleased when I saw him later at a home where it looked like he'd made a sale.

In spite of the cobbled roads, Trinidad, like every other Cuban town we visited used horse carts to carry on the work of the day. The rubber tires certainly helped cut down noise.

I'll leave you with this night time scene. It was in the heart of the tourist center, but the splash of bougainvillea, along with the yellow of the building and lights was very appealing. It was right next to where we ate. There was live music all around and even though getting on for 11 pm, it was still very crowded and active.

Tomorrow, sadly, back to Havana. Our trip was nearly over.