It is impossible to cut this story short as it is well, not short. Besides that, it carries way to big of an emotional charge and includes too many twists and turns to make it short. However long I make it, I probably won't give it enough credit anyway.
The story begins somewhere in May 2019 when by older brother approached me with a rough idea about a surprise present for our parents' 70th anniversary of birth that they both are celebrating this year. The rough idea was to surprise them with a journey to a place which they would never visit by themselves, no matter how much they love to travel. Their usual way of travelling is by a travel agency with every single detailed planned, or pack their motor home and head off to a country where they get by with their basic knowledge of Slavic languages.
The seed was planted.
And in the following weeks with just enough water it started to sprout. My younger brother, my older brother with his spouse and my wife and I brainstormed it over and over. My parents received the first message from a newly created e-mail address in the end of May. It contained the information that at first looked like scam and they discarded it as such. The following messages with tasks like listening to a radio programme where they got another bit of information followed. While our parents tried to separate the wheat from the chaff we finalised the destination and the timeframe of the journey. We have also added the pinnacle of the surprise - all three sons with their spouses are travelling with them and this is going to be our first journey together in more than 25 years. The plane tickets were bought in June and the adventure was sealed. Now we had to make sure nobody is going to spill the beans. The only way possible to do that in such a small town is not to tell anyone. And we managed to do it. We managed to keep it a secret even though we had to get visas for our parents, doctor's certificates for my father's medicines, arrange the maintenance of their house, organise their transport to the airport and many other things important to them.
The destination chosen for our adventure was a place they talked about a lot, but didn't wan't to visit travel agency style and unable to visit by themselves. It was a place I would have never chosen for my core family trip. However, it was perfect for this kind of adventure. So Cuba it was. My older brother has already visited Cuba three years ago, so he had a rough idea what we are up to and he has also made some connections there. I've on the other hand set off unprepared as never before. The only thing I did before the take off was to print out some travel blogs of photographers visiting Cuba in the last years. I have read them in the air. It was not my usual routine, but it wasn't a mistake.
After two stops and app. 17 hours in the air we have finally landed at the Havana airport.
The visa check-up went well and we were officially in Cuba. The accommodation for nights in La Habana were booked in advance so we just needed a drive to the Cuarteles street. As it was after midnight on Saturday we didn't get much desired sleep. It looks like Habaneros spend weekend nights out partying 'till early mornings. A usual routine of mine is an early morning walk and the time spent in Cuba was no different. You get to experience the place in a totally different perspective. Besides the accommodation for the days in La Habana, the only thing we arranged in advance was the meeting with a Slovene guy who has been living in Cuba for 20 years now and knows the place and the people there.
He was our guide for the afternoon and we totally enjoyed it.
He explained many of the mysteries we encountered upon landing in Cuba. That way we've learned about the two currencies Cubans have (one for Cubans - Moneda national and one for tourists - CUC), the size of Capitolio which is a meter wider, longer and taller than the Washington Capitol, about the revolution with Fidel and Che as the masterminds, about everyday life in Cuba and many many other very interesting stories. He even invited us to his place on the outskirts of the capitol with a nice patio on top of the building with a gorgeous view of the see and La Habana. He also organised a Ford heavy duty van with a driver for us for the next few days. Sunday in La Habana in the off season period with very little American tourists is a godsend. No crowded streets, no huge cruisers in the bay. More or less just another Cuban day.
Walking among the Habaneros sightseeing, trying to avoid locals offering who knows what for god knows the price.
More you try to talk your way out of buying their service more they got you where they want. And sooner or later you are going to succumb to their charms. One of those examples is us buying tickets for a gig at the famous Buena Vista Social Club. However, we all wanted to see the gig so it was a win win situation. It proved to be a great choice. The night was well spent with the rhythms of Cuban music 'till midnight.
Leaving La Habana, never easy (reference to R.E.M. Leaving New York).
Our rough plan was to circle around the North Eastern part of the island. The first stop was the Viñales Valley. On our way to Viñales we stopped to visit the waterfall and orchid park Soroa with a much needed coconut cocktail. The weather in Cuba at the end of October tends to be really hot with very high relative humidity, so every kind of drink was much appreciated. Soroa was a great site and a useful stop as the drive to the valley wasn't short in time not the distance. Just for your understanding what Cuban roads look like here is a little inside information. My watch counts steps and floors I do in a day and during a three hours drive rocking and bumping in the back seat I've climbed 80 floors. Now you can image what it feels like driving on Cuban roads. Our first dinner after leaving La Habana was our driver Fredy's recommendation and we weren't disappointed. Now, Cubans are no French people when it come to food, but what they prepare is good. The usual price for a meal is 10-15 CUCs per person which is quite fair considering it was besides breakfast our only food for the day.
After arriving to Viñales we visited a tobacco farm first.
There we heard all about cigar production and even smoked some and it was a real treat. We continued the afternoon with a bike ride through the valley to another farm, this time it was coffee. We were all ears when a man was telling us about growing coffee, but it isn't just coffee they produce there. They also gather honey from wild bees and they mix rum with this honey. We've finished the day by a return ride to our cassas in Viñales for a good night's sleep.
Another fantastic morning walk and breakfast as the reward and off we were to Playa Larga.
Playa Larga is a town in the Bay of Pigs. On our way we had to stop to stretch our legs and have a breat from the AC running wild in the van. We stopped at Finca Vigía which was Ernest Hemingway's home for more than 20 years when he was living in Cuba. Passing opened windows left us with the impression that the house is exactly the way Hemingway left it when he died. It felt like he is going to step on porch any second now. Hemingway's spirit definitely lives there, still.
Bay of Pigs is known for the failed attempt by US-sponsored Cuban exiles to reverse the Cuban revolution led by Fidel.
Playa Larga has got a very nice beach and far less tourists than popular resorts. We have spent the afternoon and the morning there to witness sunset and a sunrise of epic proportions. Our heavy duty van was waiting for us after another abundant breakfast. Our next destination was Trinidad, but since it is a long drive there we arranged a couple of sites to see along the way. The first was another place in the Bay of Pigs on the outskirts Cienaga de Zapata - Zapata Swamp.
We had a short stop there at Playa Girón and had a glance at the museum of Bay of Pigs invasion which shows the invasion from Cuban’s point of view.
Half way from Playa Larga to Trinidad lies a city often called La Perla del Sur - Pearl of the South officially named Cienfuegos meaning a hundred fires. Cienfuegos is put on UNESCO’s World Heritage List as the best example of early 19th century Spanish Enlightenment implementation in urban planning. It contains a remarkable cluster of Neoclassical structures. And it was a totally different experience than the one in La Habana. Here the streets are bright, clean and nice compared to La Habana’s dark, dirty and decaying streets.
After another push we have finally reached Trinidad.
Trinidad is another Cuban town on the UNESCO’s World Heritage List. Not long ago it celebrated its 500-year anniversary. The part of town closed for traffic is just gorgeous with its colourful houses and stone paved roads. However, if you happen to wander just a block away you encounter a run down part of the city which is not nice to walk through. We have spent three nights there and enjoyed them all. Another attraction of Trinidad are the music houses or Casa del Musica. We visited one called Casa de la Trova famous for its great musicians and salsa dancers. One of the days spent in Trinidad happened to be my birthday which we celebrated with Havana Club Anejo Reserva. Thank you Cuba. As Trinidad lies just a stone’s throw from the Caribbean coast we took a taxi to the beach one day and enjoyed it.
The one we reached was Playa Boca.
After saying goodbye to Laura Y Ruben, the owners of our casa and thanks for great dinners and breakfasts, we’ve head off towards Santa Clara.
The sole purpose of us stopping there and spending the night wasn’t the beauty of the city, but rather the remnants of the decisive victory for Che and Fidel fighting against Batista.
Che outwitted Batista’s commanders and more than 10 times bigger army by derailing their train. It was a nice walk to the place with streets full of people playing volleyball, baseball or just hanging around.
Since we were in Santa Clara we for sure wanted to visit Che’s mausoleum, but as it was on the other side of the city we took a taxi in a form of a horse carriage.
It was an insane ride when on our way back one of the wheels lost the tyre while we were heading down the street full speed. It turned out that it must happen a lot to the driver as he was totally cool with it.
The mausoleum of Ernesto Guevara is placed strategically on top of a little hill.
The museum was unfortunately closed for the day as it was a bit late already. Our walk back from the city centre to our casa was in a way goodbye.
The next day we all set off for our last drive together in Cuba.
Together to Varadero where me and my wife dropped off the rest of the team who were able to get more free days at work, and then straight to La Habana. On our last part of the journey we experienced what we were warned ahead of travelling to Cuba, the shortage of gasoline. Our driver stopped at the petrol station and no luck. Then we stopped at the next where we had to wait half an hour until they filled the tanks. In that time we had lunch which turned out to be the most expensive one in Cuba as we couldn’t look for alternatives. After arriving to the airport we started to reflect on the last ten days. We had plenty of time for that. It was an experience of a lifetime for sure. However, we were done with adventures. After more than half of the passengers boarded the pilot explained that we have to be patient and wait for 25 minutes for some passengers were held by the customs. After that another announcement came. This time our pilot explained that the people held by the customs aren’t travelling with us and we have to wait another 25 minutes to unload their baggage. However, we are going to use this time to add some extra fuel so that we can travel faster and there won’t be any delay at the next stop. Jesus, this was an interesting information. On the other hand, as the pilot said, we didn’t miss our flight from Amsterdam to Zagreb and that is the most important thing since by now we were in a need of our own beds. Just the last drive from Zagreb to our home, sweet home.
