My last couple of days in Cuba were better, in fact, I was almost sorry to leave with so much of Havana unexplored. I think once I had been there a bit longer, was less pasty white and had lost the scared bunny look on my face, less people approached me looking for handouts/salsa dates. Plus, to be fair, 99.5 percent of Cubans pretty much ignored me. I liked those people - alot. The Cuban people live much of their lives on the stoops and in the street. Those grand old houses have very little light. They may have 20 foot ceilings but they don't have any windows except the one facing the street, and that is only for the upper floor apartments. With all of my walking around, I got to see lots of Cuban living. I keep wanting to compare Havana to a crazy girlfriend (it has to be a girlfriend, not a boyfriend, because Havana is clearly female in looks, personality and character). You meet her, she is beautiful and exciting but you just don't know what to expect from her moods from one minute to the next. You know the relationship is going to have to end because it is crazy making but when it does, you look back fondly and remember the life and beauty but not so much the unpredictable personality. I actually found myself defending the 'milk people' tonight and it has only been one day. By next week, I will be calling Havana begging her to take me back.
Plus, in retrospect, I just wasn't getting enough sleep and therefore, my patience was not up to snuff. That is the excuse I am going with today, anyway.
So my last couple of days. I believe I last wrote on my last full day in Havana. After I left you, I walked back to my Italian restaurant. I really wanted some flan. But they didn't have any so I ended up with a concoction called Cuban dessert. It was fairly awful, some sort of fruit (I think) mush with a slice of white cheese on top. It was the same mush that I got with my breakfast each morning. I used it as jam but maybe I was supposed to eat it like applesauce??
I got up the next morning, went out to find a cardboard box to use to protect the little etchings I had bought. Then I packed up my stuff, now in two bags (but I am proud to say, I did not have to use my extra reserve large bag. I knew that the rum would mean I had to check my backpack so I put anything that might be damaged if the rum broke or the beer cans exploded into my carry on, so that ended up quite heavy. As it turned out, nothing broke or exploded on the flight home.
I arrived by bus in Varadera at around 3pm. I walked to my hotel and was given a room in another building, which I couldn't find. I walked around for a while with my two heavy bags until I finally broke down and had to ask someone, assuming the info would cost me some milk. But it turns out the people of Varadero will actually speak and point you in the right direction without payment. That was nice. Eventually, I found my building and my room. When I entered I found two unmade beds that looked like they had seen much better days. They were both so droopy the each had one side where the bottom of the mattress touched the floor. But I didn't really care. I made one of the beds. Just as I was completing this task, a maid arrived and said something in Spanish that I didn't understand. To make my life easier, I said I didn't speak Spanish. She then picked up the phone and started madly dialing but apparently, no one would pick up so she left. I had arrived about 15 minutes before official check in so I assumed she was mad because I arrived before she had finished the room. Once she left, so did I.
After dinner I walked back to my hotel. When I entered my room, first I discovered that my made bed had been unmade. Then I realized that the hall light had been removed from the wall, leaving only the desk lamp as a functioning light source, under which I found a note. It told me to go to the front desk because there had been an error and I had to change rooms. signed "The Maid". By now, I had been walking for many hours and I did not relish having to walk back to the lobby with my heavy bags. So I called the front desk and explained that if they wanted me to move, they would have to send someone to carry my bags. But the front desk lady didn't know what I was talking about. When I explained about the note, she said to ignore it and stay where I was. As I mentioned, it was a crappy room, now even crappier with its missing light, but I was determined not to have to move. So I stayed. Only after this did I realize that the bathroom had not been cleaned and there was no towel. No worries, I just used the unused pillow case from the second bed as the bathmat and my extra sheet as a towel. I'm glad I wasn't around when 'The Maid' found that later the next day.
I walked around for a few hours but by 6 pm, I really needed some dinner. Lonely Planet listed a restaurant called Barracudas that served seafood. It turned out it was 30+ blocks from my hotel but when I finally arrive it was totally worth it. The dining room is under a thatched roof and it right on the beach. By chance, I arrived just as the sun was setting so it was very picturesque. I order shrimp flamed in rum. Delish!! It came with rice and cut veggies (and potatoes which I tasted but didn't eat). Then, once the sun had finished its show, a band came out and played. Cuban restaurant bands all sound pretty similar but they are all enjoyable.
I think my time in Varadero made me appreciate Havana. Varadero was nice and predictable and the people were pleasant but didn't have the zing of Havana. Havana has life, and even if that life is annoying at times, it wouldn't be Havana without it. And yes, if given the chance, I would go back. But I think a travelling companion is a definite requirement. There is so much that is different from Canada, one needs another person around with whom to discuss and laugh about it all.
The flight was long and I didn't have enough water (side story: As tourists leave, they have to cash out their Cuban money, and why not, you can't exchange it back in Canada. So I went to the exchange on my way into the airport. I was left with $3 CUC. But then a man came up to me and had a twoonie. I showed him my $3 and was willing to give it to him, but he left and came back with an additional loonie. So I made the trade. I didn't realize until too late, that I had left myself with no money to buy water once I was through the screening so I started the day at a hydration disadvantage). Then my earphones broke with four and a half hours left in the flight (half way though Rise of the Planet of the Apes but fortunately, not before I watched all of Hangover II - very funny).
Plus, in retrospect, I just wasn't getting enough sleep and therefore, my patience was not up to snuff. That is the excuse I am going with today, anyway.
So my last couple of days. I believe I last wrote on my last full day in Havana. After I left you, I walked back to my Italian restaurant. I really wanted some flan. But they didn't have any so I ended up with a concoction called Cuban dessert. It was fairly awful, some sort of fruit (I think) mush with a slice of white cheese on top. It was the same mush that I got with my breakfast each morning. I used it as jam but maybe I was supposed to eat it like applesauce??
I got up the next morning, went out to find a cardboard box to use to protect the little etchings I had bought. Then I packed up my stuff, now in two bags (but I am proud to say, I did not have to use my extra reserve large bag. I knew that the rum would mean I had to check my backpack so I put anything that might be damaged if the rum broke or the beer cans exploded into my carry on, so that ended up quite heavy. As it turned out, nothing broke or exploded on the flight home.
the artist of my sketches.
After dinner I walked back to my hotel. When I entered my room, first I discovered that my made bed had been unmade. Then I realized that the hall light had been removed from the wall, leaving only the desk lamp as a functioning light source, under which I found a note. It told me to go to the front desk because there had been an error and I had to change rooms. signed "The Maid". By now, I had been walking for many hours and I did not relish having to walk back to the lobby with my heavy bags. So I called the front desk and explained that if they wanted me to move, they would have to send someone to carry my bags. But the front desk lady didn't know what I was talking about. When I explained about the note, she said to ignore it and stay where I was. As I mentioned, it was a crappy room, now even crappier with its missing light, but I was determined not to have to move. So I stayed. Only after this did I realize that the bathroom had not been cleaned and there was no towel. No worries, I just used the unused pillow case from the second bed as the bathmat and my extra sheet as a towel. I'm glad I wasn't around when 'The Maid' found that later the next day.
The Room in Veradero
Can you see the awesome slope on that unmade bed
After Havana, Varadero seemed so ugly and boring. Yes, the beach is lovely but so are lots of beaches. It could have been any small Mexican tourist town. The main street is just a long line of stalls selling tourists junk.
Varadero beach
I walked around for a few hours but by 6 pm, I really needed some dinner. Lonely Planet listed a restaurant called Barracudas that served seafood. It turned out it was 30+ blocks from my hotel but when I finally arrive it was totally worth it. The dining room is under a thatched roof and it right on the beach. By chance, I arrived just as the sun was setting so it was very picturesque. I order shrimp flamed in rum. Delish!! It came with rice and cut veggies (and potatoes which I tasted but didn't eat). Then, once the sun had finished its show, a band came out and played. Cuban restaurant bands all sound pretty similar but they are all enjoyable.
Baracudas
view from my table (left)
view from my table (right)
my mojito
My Shrimp in Rum dinner
The band.
I think my time in Varadero made me appreciate Havana. Varadero was nice and predictable and the people were pleasant but didn't have the zing of Havana. Havana has life, and even if that life is annoying at times, it wouldn't be Havana without it. And yes, if given the chance, I would go back. But I think a travelling companion is a definite requirement. There is so much that is different from Canada, one needs another person around with whom to discuss and laugh about it all.
Apparently these are the only two things on Veradero's main drag worth a photo
After 2 nights of almost normal sleep, my last night in Cuba was very not good. I had to get up very early (4am) so I had multiple forms of alarm. I had bought a travel alarm but I didn't know how to set it properly and I wasn't certain it was going to work. Plus, my watch alarm but I don't always hear it. And I also requested a wake up call, but those can never be trusted at the best of times, and this hotel was not the best of times. As it turned out, the hotel was very good at wake up calls. In fact, from what I could tell, every person who requested a call, got a call everytime anyone on the list got a call. So my phone rang at least three times in the night, before my 4 am call, which eventually came through at 4:20. But I had gotten up at 3:30 anyway. My flight was at 7:15 so I figured I would be at the airport by 5:15. I got there at 4:45 and I was literally the last person on my flight to arrive. I was a bit worried standing there at the end of a very long line. I know that those charter flights sometimes overbook and it you haven't confirmed (how do you confirm in a foreign country) you may be out of luck. But, once I finally made it to the agent, I was fine. Got an aisle seat to boot (I had expected a middle seat since I was getting the dregs).
Anyway, whine, whine, long flight. Melissa met me at the airport and poured water and coffee into me for a while, listened to my stories and drove me to the ferry. Once the ferry left dock, I fell instantly asleep and didn't wake up until the narrows. By that time, my headache was gone and I was good as new. Chris picked me up on the Victoria side and here I am home. Laundry done and DEET smell mostly removed. Non-poisonous medicine available and my own bed with only my cats to wake me up.
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