| After my walk through the Vedado | | | | some of Toronto's fine restaurants and we |
| neighbourhood, my friend Pedro came to pick | | | | decided to head back to the Barrio Chino |
| me up since I had suggested a little | | | | since they also serve pasta.There we tried to |
| excursion with a rental car to get to know | | | | park the rental car, but in doing so, we had |
| the countryside. His wife and sister-in-law | | | | a little encounter with the local traffic |
| unfortunately coulnd't make it since their | | | | police. They alleged that my friend was not |
| cousin was coming to town. La Habana can feel | | | | wearing his seatbelt (although he was) and |
| a little claustrophobic since the | | | | they ended up giving him a fine of 10 local |
| transportation options are limited and even a | | | | pesos (about 40 Cents or so). Apparently it |
| basic taxi ride to the Eastern Beaches | | | | can happen very easily that a local Cuban |
| (Playas del Este) is quite costly.And it's | | | | gets stopped and the police impose a fine and |
| also nice to get away from the city, which | | | | there are not too many things you can |
| can get rather congested and contaminated | | | | do.After a very filling pasta dinner (for |
| with car exhaust fumes from all the old | | | | less than $7 for 2 people) we headed back to |
| vehicles. I can't imagine what the air must | | | | the hotel which is very close to the |
| be like here in the summer when it is 35, 40 | | | | University. There was a big concert on in |
| degrees Celsius with 80, 90 percent humidity. | | | | front of the university's steps and there |
| All the locals talk about the extreme heat in | | | | were thousands and thousands of young people |
| the summer and it's better to visit outside | | | | singing and chanting to the sound of a pretty |
| of the months of June to September, even | | | | famous Cuban pop group ("Moneda Dura") which |
| October.In addition, August and September are | | | | plays very popular music for young people |
| very prone to hurricanes which are an | | | | with sociocritical undertones. The atmosphere |
| additional complication, that's why many | | | | among the people, singing and dancing in the |
| buildings have crosses of thick adhesive tape | | | | street, was amazing. I ended up heading to |
| attached to the glass. The tape prevents the | | | | bed at about 12 or so and the music from the |
| glass from shattering when the hurricanes hit | | | | concert stopped at about 12:20 am and the |
| town.Renting a car is always an interesting | | | | huge crowd dispersed.Early this morning I |
| experience. I rented a small skoda at the | | | | awoke to the smell of exhaust fumes from some |
| Hotel Havana Libre for about $46CUC for 24 | | | | of the buses and old cars passing through. |
| hours. If there were no damages and the gas | | | | Since I had to take the rental car back at 11 |
| tank was full upon return, there would be an | | | | am today, my friend came to the hotel early |
| additional $30CUC for the insurance and an | | | | and we decided to visit the area of Miramar, |
| additional driver. Being in the rental car | | | | also called "Playas" on the western side of |
| felt strangly liberating because all of a | | | | Havana, past the Rio Almendares. Miramar is a |
| sudden it was possible to overcome all the | | | | very upscale area with many foreign |
| limitations of Havana's public transport and | | | | embassies, upscale hotels and congress |
| you could go where you wanted.My friend Pedro | | | | centres. "Marina Hemingway", a nautical |
| is an experienced driver and loves driving, | | | | centre with canals, boats slips for yachts |
| so he drove and off we went eastwards along | | | | and private residences, is also located in |
| the coast. We passed by Cojimar, Playas de | | | | Miramar.It is so strange, but Miramar |
| Este, Playa Guanabo and stopped at the Puente | | | | actually reminded me a bit of Fort |
| Bacunayagua bridge which forms the border | | | | Lauderdale. In general, Miramar, due to its |
| between the provinces of La Habana and | | | | more modern architecture, some of which is in |
| Matanzas. The bridge is more than 100 m high | | | | very good condition, reminded me quite a bit |
| and the view extends through forests to the | | | | of Florida. We visited a public sandy beach |
| ocean in the north and inland there is a | | | | in Miramar which is surrounded by a range of |
| valley with lush vegetation (Valle de Yumuri) | | | | public recreational buildings, most of which |
| with a chain of medium-size mountains in the | | | | have been abandoned and are in dire condition |
| background. At the bridge there is a little | | | | due to the lack of public funds for upkeep. |
| basic restaurant and a shop for tourists and | | | | It is a real shame to see so much of the |
| we stopped for an hour or so. We also saw a | | | | beautiful architecture around here collapsing |
| really oversized iguana, apparently it was | | | | and my professor said that in the future it |
| the offspring of the mother iguana which | | | | may be cheaper to tear down a lot of the old |
| apparently is twice the size. The animal must | | | | architecture and rebuild from scratch than to |
| have been almost 10, 15 inches long, | | | | try to preserve the old architecture, |
| including tail.We then proceeded eastwards, | | | | particularly in Habana Vieja.As I had to |
| past Santa Cruz del Mar, where there is a big | | | | return the rental car at 11 am today, we |
| rum factory, to Matanzas, the capital of the | | | | filled up the tank and although we had only |
| province of the same name. We just took a | | | | gone about 250 km, the cost of the gasoline |
| little drive around town and didn't stop, but | | | | was $36 CUC (which is equivalent to about |
| the town has a couple of nice squares with | | | | Can$45 or so), which was quite a bit more |
| monuments and statues. The architecture is | | | | than I had expected. We took a brief tour |
| definitely much less stunning than in La | | | | through Nuevo Vedado, then past the Centro de |
| Habana. After Matanzas we drove inland to a | | | | Deporte Nacional, past the Comite Central |
| small mountaineous area called "Escaleras de | | | | (the Cuban government) and punctually |
| Jaruco", from where we had a beautiful view | | | | returned the car at 11 am without any |
| inland and towards the sea.On the way back we | | | | problems.This afternoon I have been invited |
| briefly stopped at Playas del Este to capture | | | | by my friend to come and meet his family at a |
| the sunset and then we headed off towards | | | | private dinner. I am really looking forward |
| Cojimar, a town famous for its connection to | | | | to the experience of spending time with a |
| Ernest Hemingway. The town apparently still | | | | Cuban family and from what I have experienced |
| houses a very old man who was the inspiration | | | | so far, Cuban hospitality is truly amazing. |
| for the novel "The Old Man and the Sea". | | | | I'll try to pick up a few flowers from the |
| Apparently the old man is still alive, | | | | market and bring along some of the Canadian |
| probably around 100 years old or so and he | | | | souvenirs that I brought from Toronto to |
| used to receive visitors (for a small fee), | | | | reciprocate the favour. It'll be interesting |
| but his health has deteriorated over the last | | | | to see Cuban life from inside a Cuban |
| few years and he no longer receives visitors. | | | | home...Susanne Pacher is the publisher of a |
| We wanted to have a nice dinner in a Paladar | | | | website called Travel and Transitions( Travel |
| in Cojimar, but one was completely full, and | | | | and Transitions deals with unconventional |
| the other one so expensive that we decided to | | | | travel and is chock full of advice, tips, |
| continue on.After our arrival back in La | | | | real life travel experiences, interviews with |
| Havana we decided to go to a pizzeria near | | | | travellers and travel experts, insights and |
| the Parque Central since I had a real craving | | | | reflections, cross-cultural issues, contests |
| for pasta. The food here can get a bit | | | | and many other features. You will also find |
| monotonous and I love Italian food, so we | | | | stories about life and the transitions that |
| headed into a freezing, over-air-conditioned | | | | we face as we go through our own personal |
| pizza parlour, where they had just run out of | | | | life-long journeys.Submit your own travel |
| spagetthi. We tried another upscale Italian | | | | stories in our first travel story contest( |
| restaurant on the other side of the square, | | | | and have a chance to win an amazing adventure |
| but it had prices that were higher than in | | | | cruise on the Amazon River. |