Treasures of Trinidad

Things to Do and Places to Eat in Trinidad, Cuba

Homestay

To continue with the Valentine’s Day theme from last night, our hosts’ two-year old son picked some flowers in the courtyard and proudly presented them to me at breakfast…so cute! We enjoyed our breakfast on the veranda outside our room which was decorated in pottery. The house was home to grandma, grandpa, mom, dad, and their little one. Our room may have been the largest we’ve stay in on the trip thus far. It included to queen size beds, a large wardrobe with many hangers, coat hooks, and even Cuban shampoo and shower gel, not to mention cups wrapped in plastic like a US hotel. Continue reading “Treasures of Trinidad” →

Korimakao Cultural Project and the Bay of Pigs Invasion

Road Trip Across Cuba

Our evening ended early, and we planned to awake at 6:30 for breakfast and our 8am departure. The loud diesel trucks were the first alarm, and the barking dogs and rooster were the second. Page’s phone alarm was the third. Our bus drove us back toward Havana past fog covered farm land to our next stops: a break at rest stop, lunch at a paladar, a cultural visit to an arts project, a swim in a sink hole, and history lesson at a museum about the Bay of Pigs. Continue reading “Korimakao Cultural Project and the Bay of Pigs Invasion” →

Cuban Farms…How to Roll a Habano!

Things to Do in Viñales

Mirta prepared our breakfast for 7am. It included a variety of fruits, eggs made to order, coffee and homemade juice. We didn’t have to leave until 9am today, so I took advantage of the late start and went for a run. I aimed to go off the beaten path and succeeded. I climbed up the small hill as I left town toward the northeast. The concrete roads turned to a combination of crumbled asphalt and dirt. I got to the highest point I could for a nice view before I dropped down just slightly to run on a dirt road past small horse farms before I ended up on a busy road as children walked to school in their red uniforms. At this point, I didn’t know where I was and was surprised to feel lost in a three road town! Continue reading “Cuban Farms…How to Roll a Habano!” →

Las Terrazas and Viñales…A Treat for Nature Lovers

Places to Visit at Las Terrazas

We ate our final breakfast at Casa Obrapía before loading on the bus to drive west for 1.5 hours to Las Terrazas, a very interesting community. A reforestation project was designed around the community which provided countless jobs and government housing to many. The hills, once full of trees were left almost barren after timber logging by the Spanish and Cubans, and coffee planting by the French. Only 14% of the forest remained in 1957. A 12,000 acre reserve was created in the Sierra del Rosario Mountains where trees were replanted and in 1984 it was named a biosphere Reserve by UNESCO. Continue reading “Las Terrazas and Viñales…A Treat for Nature Lovers” →

LOVED the Streets of Habana Vieja and Fusterlandia

A Walking Tour of the Streets of Havana

Our morning began at 7:15 when we walked over to the main house, which had much more charm than our apartment, for breakfast.  The owners served us a variety of fruit; bananas, papaya, passion fruit and pine apple along with eggs, tea and coffee.  The breakfast area on the roof top was quite nice, and we enjoyed a leisurely meal before Valeri our guide and Michael our bus driver picked us up at 8 to begin our exploration of La Habana Vieja. Continue reading “LOVED the Streets of Habana Vieja and Fusterlandia” →

Old Car in Havana

An American in Cuba!

Traveling to Cuba

Cuba…a place I’ve wanted to go probably because it has been off limits to Americans and from what I have seen on TV, the culture seems interesting.  As such, I googled a variety of trips…cruises, dive trips and others.  I was somewhat interested in a photography trip, but I didn’t find one and instead stumbled across a vacation offered by Intrepid Travel.

While I had never heard of this travel company, I really liked the activities offered on their “people-to-people” exchange, one of the restricted ways Americans are able to travel to Cuba.  It was one of the few itineraries I found that didn’t require us to go to the University to listen to a lecture.  In addition, the trip included home stays which intrigued me. Continue reading “An American in Cuba!” →