Havana ooh naa naa.....

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I have to start by saying how excited I was to book this trip! I had a lot going on in my life at the time and knew it would only become more challenging. I read up on Cuba the year prior with intents on visiting to perform community service. The idea kind of slipped into the "later" category because life events were happening. So when Southwest Airlines had a fare special of $159 roundtrip out of Fort Lauderdale I was sold! I was (still am) living in IL at the time and ORD was my main departure airport. However, I knew travel to Cuba from the States would require a layover anyways so purchasing a separate ticket to/from FLL wasn't a big deal.

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The ticket was bought in the middle of October with a travel date over NYE (going into 2017). While debating dates a few other people I knew decided to make this a group trip/birthday celebration (which is how we arrived to the end of the year). Once everyone was on board we created a Facebook group so we could add and store all the information in one location for everyone to access and add onto in the future. If you do a search on FB there are now tons of resources for travel there. We concluded our travel would be under "people to people" because we planned to do community service activities while there. There are many different acts that fall under "service" when planning your itinerary. We planned to visit a school- to pass out supplies, do a book discussion at one of their popular book stores (with a Cuban author), take a cooking class, participate in an art lesson, and salsa dancing class. Creating an itinerary dated, with names, addresses, any contact numbers is important because you could be asked while traveling to or from Cuba for it (to verify the visit).

 

 I won't get into details on preparation (I'll list important info under "Know B4 you go). 

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I chose to be team carry on- I packed all my clothes in one carry on suitcase and brought a small carry on duffle full of the donation items. I figured it could be used for any goods I decide to bring back with me (or help create the space in my suitcase for liquor). When I arrived at FLL, I had to purchase my Visa. This was easy and cost $50 (price varies based on airline- this is the cheapest). The kiosk was across from the designated check-in desk for people Cuba bound (there was a special section set up for Cuba travelers). You are asked a few questions regarding the purpose of travel and I showed my itinerary because they asked about my accommodations. Once the process concluded I went to the boarding gate. The flight from take off to landing was under an hour.

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I arrived late in the day- to the airport. Since I didn't have to wait for luggage (which can take hours since it's one person vs all the bags). I proceeded to exchange some money before a line grew. I didn't change over all that I brought with me because I paid in advance for housing and tours. Rule of thumb is bring $100USD per day in Cuba (but you don't have to convert it all). I believe I received $87CUC in return per hundred (yeah it's like a 13% loss on converting). I then made my way over to the counter to buy an internet card (7.50CUC for 5 hours). That is considered high but for me I wanted to be sure I had a way to make contact with family back home. You can get internet cards cheaper in town but you run the risk of them being all out with no knowledge on when they will get more...I wasn't chancing it. Besides, part of the reason you go to Cuba is to disconnect! The Wifi card provides mins for internet use, but you will still need to find a designated location to use it.

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Since my friends came a couple days earlier they arranged a driver to pick me up from the airport to take me to my Airbnb (the cost ranges between $25-$30) and CUC is preferred for payment. The ride was about 45-50mins into town so keep that in mind for when it's time to leave (you will want to arrive 2.5-3 hours early to the airport- No Joke!). The location of our apartment was right by the University and almost centrally located. We were next door to a hotel and park (which helped with getting an internet signal). You will see tons of people in the park hanging out using the Wifi signal. The hotel was a great spot to grab waters or have breakfast. Which we did just about everyday because the cost was reasonable. Please note that due to the limitations of goods being brought into Cuba that once they are out of an item- that's it for the day. Some mornings they would run out of eggs right away or other food items so be sure to ask if there is anything they can't make (this goes for most restaurants).

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I spent my first day doing the Hop on/Hop off bus. I highly recommend it because you get to travel all around Havana stopping at different landmarks for one low price. I've included pictures in the gallery above from that tour. The following day was spent on a day tour to Vinales to visit the Rum Factory (it was closed), Walk through the Vinales Valley, declared Cultural Landscape Protected by UNESCO and National Natural Monument. Visit to Casa del Veguero, tasting a welcome cocktail and visit to the tobacco plantations. We also visited Mirador de Los Jazmines, place that offers a beautiful overview of the Vinales Valley. We continued on to lunch at a local restaurant and then visited the Cave of the Indio with boat ride along the river that runs inside. We ended the tour at the Mural of the Prehistory that shows the process of evolution of life in the Mountain range of Organs , from mollusk to the first indigenous inhabitants of the place.  The drive was almost 3 hours one way so 6 hours of traveling was a bit much. I would recommend staying the night in Vinales and doing two days of tours. I would have liked to horse back ride in the valley and spend time at the coffee farm. The visit to the tobacco farm was informative and you had the opportunity to buy cigars straight from the farmers (many unmarked). I was disappointed that the cigar rolling was not taking place that day. The caves were cool, you took a boat ride and learned some history surrounding the ships and sea-life that were captured in stone/rock that made up the cave.

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Due to the Vinales Tour arriving back late- many of us skipped or missed out on the Cuba Libro English Book Store Discussion with the guest author. I strongly suggest making arrangements to visit and sit in on discussion. I heard it touched on colorism and culture of the Cuban people. 

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The third day in Cuba was spent visiting Regal in the morning- we took a short ferry over and checked out the Catholic Church. I have included pictures in the gallery up top. The church housed many saints and the black Madonna and white baby Jesus. The Catholic Church wasn't the same as we know it in the States- it was connected to a religious practice of Santeria. The story basically goes: Santeria incorporates elements of several faiths with Yoruba and Catholic origins. Many of the saints mirror Catholic saints (and used to mask the practice of the religion). We did a self tour- most of the information was posted. We also walked around the city taking pictures of street art. In the afternoon we met up with everyone for lunch at Aijco Restaurant in Cojimar! The restaurant focuses on gastronomy presenting many of the dishes with their own flare. The only thing was we had to have our Taxi driver hang around because the area wasn't transportation friendly. We continued from there to Santa Maria Beach, which is about 20mins west of old Havana. It was on the chilly side and the sun was setting pretty quickly. We were able to take pictures next to vintage cars (you can't go to Cuba and not ride and take pics with one). We did Dinner on the beach at the restaurant  there. 

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The rest of our trip (NYE and New years day) was spent sight-seeing on our own and preparing for the New years day block party for the kids. The NYE custom in Cuba is not so much about partying like in the States but rather they bring in the New Year with family and friends. Our connect in Cuba- Linet welcomed us into her home on NYE along with other guests from all over the world that either stayed with her at one point or she knew them on some level. There was a big fest prepared that consisted of a cooked pig, traditional sides like rice, beans, salad etc... we learned about a few superstitions (and saw them in action outside). For example: we saw someone toss dirty mop water out the window or their doorway- which came from cleaning their floors. The water represents the "bad juju" from the past year and tossing it in a dramatic fashion shows being "done" with all the bad stuff. We saw people walking down the street (we had balcony view) with suitcases. This is to generate travel in the new year. Another tradition was burning the effigy of the past in the streets- all we saw were flames! This too is to be rid of all the awful from the last year. We danced, ate, sang, celebrated and truly enjoyed the evening with a small group of strangers who became friends. I provided pictures in the gallery. 

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New Years day was the block party/community service event with the neighborhood kids. I discuss this experience in a separate post that you can find here: Cuba: Serve the People

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I will also include our full itinerary which has a couple links to the activities we took part in. Please be mindful that it is possible the tours listed (and websites) are outdated since this was 2016/2017. The sources should still show options but possibly under a different tour name. Be sure to read the "Know B4 you Go" section below to get all the important information necessary to help avoid being caught off guard by the way of life there.

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Leaving Cuba...

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Allow enough time to get to the airport because traffic is unpredictable. It took us about 45mins roughly. Once there we had to wait in line for someone to begin the check in process. They had one laptop to work from and the woman wrote down in marker my boarding group number. I then had to stand in another line just to be asked if I would be checking bags and to look at my "boarding pass". I was then directed over to another line for security. The wait time for each line was about 15mins or so except security- that was a little longer. The terminal isn't that big and a lot of people were leaving at the same time. Once we got through security the gate is literally at a doorway leading outside. There is a stand next to it stating the airline. There are a few shops there for last min souvenirs. You can also purchase alcohol (the line was super long) at the little duty free. There is a catch! Many in my group found out the hard way that just because it was in the duty free bag- doesn't mean it will pass through clearance in the states during your layover to connecting flight. You will have to check your bag (carry on) once in the States because they won't let you shimmy over from the International terminal to Domestic and get through TSA with a large bottle (or multiple) of liquor. So make room in your suitcase in advance and plan on checking the bag when you land for a connecting flight.

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We ended up being delayed three hours from leaving Cuba. Apparently, there was an electricity outage at the airport and it prevented several flights from taking off or landing. So we ended up trying to kill time for a total of 4 hours! This may just be one of those random events but I would suggest you keep an hour on your internet card for use at the airport. You will be able to stay occupied while you're waiting to board your flight!

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Final Thoughts...

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The Country is beautiful and so are the people. It is a different type of experience so leave your 1st world way of thinking and expectations at the airport before take off! I suggest doing your homework and research before deciding on travel to Cuba. The people are generous, and humble and love to share information about their Country and way of life. I felt safe there (even walking at 2am home from the NYE celebration). People will be helpful (it is polite to tip for information, directions, or any assistance). You want to make sure prices are discussed up front to avoid a bad interaction- most transportation options are on the lower end for cost (within proximity). Utilize the Hop on and off bus tour to see Havana and plan your own self guided tour.

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If you have any specific questions or need some suggestions on Airbnb options just shoot me an email (address at the bottom of the page). I will share with you privately some additional resources and recommendations that have been vetted and approved.

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