I just came back from a few days in Cuba! I had a great time there with some friends while visiting the capital Havana (La Habana) and the tobacco plantations in Viñales. Come join us throughout this trip!
Cuba is a country of charming decline. This small island located in the Caribbean Sea is only 90 miles away from the southern tip of Florida. Cuba’s government is a Marxixt-Leninist single party state that has been headed by a member of the Castro family for many decades. As a matter of fact, the country is full of propaganda.
Day 1
Our day started off very early to catch a taxi to Baltimore and then fly from there to Ft Lauderdale and off to Havana. After passing the lengthy passport line at the José Martí airport, we caught another taxi to the Cathedral square (plaza de la Catedral) of the capital (25 CUC). We walked around the beautiful colonial square and headed for lunch. After that, we started hunting for an accommodation in La Habana Vieja until we found a place to stay for the next couple of days. Given the uniqueness and isolation of Cuba, Internet and the usual online booking system for hotels don’t really work there. That’s why the best option is to look for people’s ‘casas particulares‘ (private houses), where they will warmly welcome you and offer you a bed & breakfast kind of service.
After accommodating ourselves, we got ready to explore the port area at night. We walked along the Paseo del Puerto, passing by the Customs building, the Habana Club museum and the plaza San Francisco.
Day 2
We explored quite a lot during our second day in Havana. We first headed to Plaza Vieja, which is currently one of the most important and popular in the city. All the buildings that surround this square were former residence of the aristocracy in colonial times and have been rescued and restored. We strolled around Old Havana and saw the imposing Capitolio and the Gran Teatro Alicia Alonso. Then we returned to Plaza Vieja to meet a friend and exchange some money. After that, we caught a vintage car to the famous Plaza de la Revolución with communist buildings representing the faces of Che Guevara and Camilo Cienfuegos.
Following this, we started a long walk including Quinta de los Molinos, the University of Havana, the ice-cream parlor Coppelia, a street market (where I bought my cute Cuban ‘maracas’), the well-known Malecón, the Museo de la Revolución, plaza de la Catedral, plaza de Armas and finally, the beautifully preserved Calle de los Oficios.
On the day after we headed to Viñales and then came back to Havana to spend half a day before catching our flight back to the US.
Day 5
During our last day in Havana, we entered (but didn’t visit) the Museo de la Revolución and saw the Granma yacht that transported Fidel and other revolutionaries from Mexico to Cuba in 1956 to overthrow Batista’s regime. We also walked along Paseo del Prado until the Capitolio and strolled around Havana’s Chinatown (Barrio Chino). This was a surreal mix! To wrap up our stay in the Cuban capital, we toured Plaza Vieja, Plaza de San Francisco, Plaza de Armas and Plaza de la Catedral one last time before catching a taxi to the José Martí airport.
On our way back, Spirit canceled our flight to Baltimore, so we had to spend the night in Ft Lauderdale. The next day, we got to lay at the beach for a few hours before returning to Baltimore and then to DC.
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