Gran Caribe Hotel Saint John's Havana

... to Santa Clara. This gives me not only another view of Cuba, but also a different route back to Havana, so as to avoid backtracking. It certainly doesn't have the charm of Trinidad, but compensates with diversity, lots of local theatre, and I even manage to catch a concert. At least neither's got the bombed-out feel of much of Havana. Comparisons to Hanoi are okay; comparisons to Phnom Penh are not. Only problem is that buses stop through on ...

... or not, then obviously was a clear sign of encouragement that they stood a chance and that they should proceed with their feeble attempts at chatting you up. We soon learnt that no reaction was the only way we were going to get by without getting too worked up about it.

I still don't quite understand their objectives though. Is it purely something to while the time away? Are they looking for sex, a marriage proposal? Either way... after some time, this ...

Dulce m´a emmenée chez Maria puisque sa maison était en réparation. je me rappelle très bien d´être entrée chez Maria, le salon était sombre, j'ai immediatement eu des papillons dans le ventre en apercevant la vue au fond... 9ème étage d´un immeuble dans Centro Havana avec une vue à couper le souffle plein nord sur la ville et l'océan.. que de bonnes soirées passées sur ces terrasses chez Maria amicales et tranquilles, chez Papi ...

... where we were staying. Two were connected with the Baptist church and the third with the Episcopal church. I stayed at the Martin Luther King Center in the municipality of Marianao in the city of Havana. We were met at the center by many community members who offered us gladiola flowers and there were banners welcoming us. We then ate a filling dinner in a dining room decorated with ...

... up and opened the door to his classic '57 Chevy convertible. It wasn't in the best shape but it was still pretty cool nonetheless. I asked him if he has trouble maintaining the car given it's age. He quickly replied, "ma meno". "Ma meno" has become a common phrase that Angela and I have grown accustom to during our stay here. It's really pronounced "Mas o Menos" - which means more or less. But for the locals, they drop the "s ...

... People here ride horses or bikes so seeing a car here was a novelty. We headed to the beach for a couple of days and lay on deck chairs while people brought us drinks and food. After a few days in Trinidad we headed back to Havana. The trip back to Havana was heaps of fun - imagine 11 people crammed in a minibus stopping every 10 minutes to go around someone driving a horse and carriage or to dodge all the pot holes in the road.

... to Trinidad. I'm sitting alone in a wooden train carriage, on a bench with my professional Nikon digital camera stowed away in my backpack. No more pictures for the duration of the return trip. Leaning back, with my legs draped over the wooden seatback in front of me; my mouth is enjoying the last piece of sugar cane. I'm chewing and spitting out over the window rail. Gentle people, strong coffee, beautiful women, angry pigs, delicious rum, and sugarcane have impressed me so far. TO BE CONTINUED...

Great to speak Spanish again! People are so friendly and outgoing, you get into conversations everywhere. The people were generally well educated, knowledgeable about the outside world and well taken care of, in terms of basic necessities. There is an obvious lack of 'extras', though. They get basic food rations and medical care and education but don't have money for much else. Youth express the view that Fidel & Co. have done great things for ...

We were pretty stoked to get flights to Havana, Cuba for a week, especially as Fidle Castro had recently re-emerged with his first public appearance in over a year. Highlights - The cars!! Of course everyone has seen the photos of the old 50s American hulks that still cruise the streets of Havana, but it was still wonderful to see them- and they are everywhere too. Many a photo was taken, and we even had a ride in a ...

... its Karma or whatever but the next day we said we'd head to the bus ststion and hunt a bus there instead. There was no buses and a que of 10 waitin to go to Camaguey, so the 26th celebrations were out. However we did manage to bump into one of the staff in the waiting area who offered a taxi, then told us we could get a bus to Trinidad at that moment, so off we went.