Cuba.....from Baracoa to Santiago de Cuba and Bayamo (to climb a mountain)

Baracoa is a small city near the eastern tip of Cuba.  Before the Cuban Revolution the only access (to Baracoa) was by sea, but in the 1960s a 120 km long road from Guantánamo named La Farola was built through the mountains, which was one of the showcases of the revolution.(Wikipedia)
Because Baracoa was an isolated city for nearly 500 years, it has developed its own culture, cuisine and lifestyle.  Certainly a good reason to take a lousy 5 1/2 hour bumpy journey to get here!!

And so, here is the full bay where Baracoa sits... wow!


Our first meal at our Casa was fabulous again for $8 pp.  It consisted of a tomato/bean/noodle soup, salad, fish cooked in coconut milk, rice and ice cream for dessert.  So good!  Another dessert item we have tried is 
Cucurucho which is coconut combined with sugar, orange, guava and pineapple wrapped in a
palm leaf.



After dinner we headed into the lovely downtown and pedestrian walkway of Baracoa...




Catedral de Nuestra Senora built in 1833

The music scene is vibrant here - especially after 9 pm  when everyone comes out to stroll the streets. We followed our ears and ended up at the Casa de la Trova club (found in many towns in Cuba) where a local
band was playing.  




The next day we walked around more with the focus being climbing a hill to La Cueva del Paraiso 
- the Taino (aboriginal) burial chambers that now house remains and artifacts.  The access point goes 
through remote roads where we were certainly the focus of attention.  Several boys attached themselves
to us, giggling and chatting as they showed us the way to the site...Very very few tourists come 
to Baracoa because of its remoteness... just what we like. 









And what a view from the site!!!!




Our Casa was just in front of the tall buildings in the middle. 


Street scene

 
 A construction site


The famed table mountain - El Yunque at 575 metres

FYI - Baracoa is well known on the island for its chocolate and cocoa. Another
unique aspect of this city.

View from the seaside malecon or walkway.  The Baracoa airport is in the distance.


And now it's off west to Santiago de Cuba via Guantanamo... by bus on a very very windy
mountainous road called La Farola.  This road was not for the faint of stomach but it sure
was a beautiful ride!!




What a large part of the road consisted of.



A typical house of the area.


Our bus driver quickly stopped to get some food that he had obviously pre-ordered.




Very dry in areas - similar to the Okanagan Valley in BC.






Farming visible everywhere.


Santiago de Cuba - population of about half a million.

Our Casa owner,Yuri, picked us up at the bus depot as planned.


Once we got settled in our room, she brought us up to the 3rd floor terrace and gave us
a light snack and drinks.  Soon after, we heard lots of noise/music in the streets only to find
a random parade of some sort.  When we went to look, one of the women grabbed Yvonne
by the hand and dragged her into the group to join in with the dancing.  So much fun!  

The next day we went to the Centro where musicians practice their craft and families wander.  There were

lots of hustlers everywhere.  

Managed to hit a street festival in the Tivoli section of town ....Part fall fair, home hardware and flea market, roasting pigs on spits, street food, music and no other touristy faces, except us.... the place was wall to wall people in the evening.


Pig on a spit!!!!

THEN we HIT the rum museum for a little walk through...ended there with a few shots of rum Yum! and downstairs to a Speakeasy bar where managed to party the next few hours with Cubans and 6 English ladies who all thought we were their mom-dad.






This same evening we had reserved tickets for a dance show at the Tropicana.  Took a cab there
because it was a fair way out of town.  This was a very disappointing show even though it was
really hyped up.  Hardly anybody was there and low energy.  Maybe cause it was low season!

Returned to our casa and just in time for a dance party in their kitchen. Husband shared his vast collection of Bee Gees, Boney M, Queen, Air Supply and Beatles. S and Y danced with everyone..wife, cook, husband ...even the old father next door came in to watch....thank goodness, the Konars can dance.....

Next day off to a Cuban beach to recover and cool off..... took a 45 min. cab ride to this gated private Cuban
beach that Yuri (our Casa owner) recommended.  Our entrance fee gave us drinks and snacks too.
A few people spoke to us but most just looked at these two tourists.


Yvonne's waving in the middle of the picture.


This section of the beach was somehow carved out or created as an outdoor swimming
pool in the ocean.

While we were waiting to get a cab to the bus station to move on to Bayamo our Casa owner was determined to have Y´s nails look good... so she proceeded to give Yvonne a French style nail look. It only took
10 minutes.... Voila!  Haha.




Cuban women are all groomed very well... high heels, lacy stockings, jewelery and nails done...

Our 2 1/2 hour bus ride to Bayamo went through lush pineapple and sugarcane farms with rice fields and
ground crops visible everywhere. Water buffalo and oxen were working in the fields.









The inside of our bus...  roomy, comfortable, AC good with Enrique Iglesias videos showing for one hour.


Our Casa owner in Bayamo was a former lawyer.  He, like most Casa owners, are  university trained
but have found that they can earn a better living by working in the tourist industry.  Our first dinner was
chicken cordon bleu!!


This lovely colonial city is clean and friendly with cobblestone streets... and hardly anyone in sight.

Dinner # 2 - tomato/cheese soup, fish, salad, rice and pot stew
Dinner # 3 - soup, pork chops, potatoes, salad

Our Casa meals in Cuba are absolutely HUGE.  For two people they always serve enough for at
least 4!!!  Really!!  Always for $8.

The main reason we came to Bayamo was to try to scale the mountain hideway in a neighbouring
town where Fidel Castro started his revolution.  The 1 1/2 hour drive with Carlos in his new Kia was very comfortable but over some rough roads and through lovely mountainous scenery.




The road in the distance was where we were heading...

Due to the severe rain we were prevented from leaving base camp in the small town of Santo Domingo.






They will not allow the jeeps to drive the 45 degree drive up the mountain and do not open the buildings at the top of the mountain due to the high humidity. Oh well, we can always come back another year.....

Instead of climbing the mountain, we joined another group to visit an old Cuban village in the mountains. We followed our guide along a stream with animals grazing and eventually came to his summer house where he lives with his wife and family during the guiding season. They have 3 bedrooms with sheets hanging in the doorways,an old sewing machine, old radio blaring tunes, electricity, outhouse, lots of pigs and chickens,
turkeys and goats.


Looks just like BC.




Entering his yard.


Main living space on right.


The outhouse.



His wife ground up freshly picked coffee crushing it in a mortar and pestle log-stump.  She then boiled water on an open fire filtered the coffee through a sieve bag and then served the coffee in tin a mug and into our glasses.  The kitchen had a dirt floor.   Was amazing to see their home and taste such delicious, strong coffee!

  

Continued to be impressed with all the Cubans we meet, gracious and kind....

Off on a 5 hr bus trip tomorrow to the central part of Cuba to a city called Camaguey.  

Will check the beach options from there!

Cuban Road to Hell........

Hi everyone!  

Our adventures carry on from Guardalavca to Baracoa... on the north coast of Cuba.


Bridge view entering the resort town of Guardalavaca.

We arrived at our new Casa in Guardalavaca with our friend Oscar, in the 1941 Ford.  Casa Sr. Carlos is a beautiful home on a small hill about 1 km from the beach.  We have 2 beds, bathroom, dining room and a huge balcony all for $25/night.



Our bedroom

Local scenery

Guardalavaca was fabulous with beaches to die for, clear blue water, lots of fish, great calm waters to swim at least 45 min. daily.  Gorgeous sites and sights. Have a look...

Unique limestone formations...

There's a lovely walkway along the shoreline that you can follow for possibly hours... we didn't get to the end.

Along the walkway you come across smaller beaches to lay your towel or pull up a chair.  This one is

Playa Pirata where Christopher Columbus supposedly landed.  An armless statue of the man is on the 
left of the picture which still needs repairs after the 2008 storm that devastated this shoreline. 

On two of our days here we boarded a local bus so we could explore some of the other local beaches...

View from the bus

Playa Pesquero

Many many bikers everywhere from all over the world.  Seem to have their own bikes and touring at least a 100 km a day. 

  

The Casas are fantastic places to stay with way too much food and good sleeps.  Lots of fish - yesterday was fish cooked in coconut milk - was great.  We didn't take a picture of that meal, but this was our chicken meal
for $8 pp.

It's still very hot  at  41 C.  

Cubans are very affectionate, loving, sexy people. 


Goodbye from Guardalavaca!!! ..(No, it's not the Corona beer commercial!)

Guardalavaca to Baracoa  took 5 1/2 hrs to travel 300 km in this jeep with drivers Pedro and Eddie. The first 3 hours were on good roads through beautiful countryside with lots of banana and pineapple plantations and rice fields.  This area seems well groomed with fencing, cattle, goats and horses grazing and many more oxen as the main means of animal labour rather than horses.  There are not many horse carriages.  The mountains are rolling and lush. 

The last 2 hrs of our 5 1/2 hr journey covered 60 km along the coast along very rough roads,

and the road to hell...

These 'hellish' roads made for a very uncomfortable ride,,, yikes!

Thankfully we stopped a few times for a break.  One such time, we bought a traditional sweet

from this street vendor.  It was compressed nuts, chocolate and honey.  So good!!!

The river on the outskirts of Baracoa... we were getting close. 

Keep reading to find out about Baracoa and more of our journey.

Y & S

Cuba Blog and Road Trip......what else should one do after you retire??

Welcome all to our Cuban blog.....happy to have you along on our journey through this strange and mysterious country........Enjoy our blogs, send us a comment...now, on with retirement......



Hola everyone!  

We have arrived safe and sound, happy and healthy with our two little backpacks in Holguin, a town in the eastern section of Cuba. See map above.




Airport in Holguin


.....a quick map review of Cuba. The country is about 1200km/700 miles from east to west (or about British Columbia's (Canada) width from the Pacific Ocean to the Rocky Mountains. 

Cuba is about 2.5 hrs wide (by car) from the Atlantic to the Caribbean...so, as you can figure out already....the warm waters are always close by......

Our plan is to start in Cuba's eastern region, and work our way around the area and then west....going where ever we want.....happy reading!

Holguin is a large city with wonderful people, horse and carriages abound and much to see.  Our first 4 days in Cuba started with Daniel and Marcia's 'Casa de Particular" or B&B called Casa La Roca.  What a find this was on the internet.



Our private balcony.

What made this stay so special, was that Daniel gave us names for all the Casas we would need
for every location in Cuba, if we wanted to use them.  What a lot of work that was hand writing all
this information.  He said each Casa owner would just call the next Casa on the list and ask if there
was availability.  We thought we would definitely give that a try since we have not booked a single
hotel or Casa for our entire journey.


Every day in Holguin was started by going to the horse carriage 'taxi' stand to get our trip to town.  Was great!
Costs about 20 cents for 2 for a 15 minute ride.

We wanted a view of the city so headed to the highest mountain of 275 m to start climbing the 465 steps!!



The view was worth it!!



Stumbled upon a boxing match that was hosting the National Finals.  One of the 52 kg contestants
was sitting in front of us...  great hair!





On one of the days, our host, Daniel, took us to a 'new' ladies gym.  He was very proud of it and said that many
women use it now.  Most of the equipment seemed to be made out of old re-used parts from cars, bikes and?
Such resourcefulness!  Nothing is thrown away here!






Here are some random shots around Holguin ...


Interesting stairs we see everywhere.


Streets scene.

At Parque de las Flores is this interesting mural ...


This is a small shop for locals only.  They purchase their weekly supply of rice (5 lbs) plus other items
that are part of their government allowance. The shop keeper writes down how much he received so that

there is a record and no discrepancy.

Our $8 pp dinner... chicken, potatoes, rice, tomatoes, cucumber.  Beer was extra. Another evening we had
fried pork (slaughtered that day), onions, rice, yams, tomatoes, cucumber, cooked carrots and homemade
flan.  The flan was cooked in the cut off bottom of a beer can and baked in a toaster oven at the neighbours.

Every night there are cool breezes, music can be heard in homes and vendors are on the street calling out
their wares that are available - ie bread, fruit, water, bleach, vegetables...


After several great days in Holguin we headed north to the beach town of Gibara, on the Atlantic, 33 km from Holguin.  Our taxi was a 1941 Ford!!  This ride was organized by our Casa owner, Daniel.






The journey to Gibara was through beautiful mountainous roads and groomed sugar cane fields


Look closely at the above picture... with the different modes of transportation


Sugar cane fields.

FYI - When you register at a Casa in Cuba, you have to sign papers and show your passport.  The
government randomly checks the Casas at least twice a month to ensure all the paperwork is
complete.

Street pizza is 7 cents per person.  Temp has dropped in the last 2 days to about 30 C and lower humidity.  Packs are working great.


Dinner tonight at the Casa consisted of HUGE creole shrimp the size of your big toe, black rice and
black beans, salad, green beans, fried bananas (like potato chips but not sweet , like plantain), fresh baby
bananas and pound cake served with jam.  Delicious!  $8 pp.

Gibara has an amazing cave system that we wanted to visit 150 m down.  Darwin, our mandatory
guide gave us helmets and flashlights.  We then took a 20 minute walk on a mountain trail to get to this cave.


Caverna de Panaderos with our guide, Darwin.



4 types of bats were evident - mainly fruit and insect eaters.  We could hear their sound regularly.  We came
to many very large caves that were 10-30 m high, some very low with many stalagmites and stalactites.
Magnesium and iron was everywhere.  Artifacts of bowls and shells have been found there.  It was quite
humid and slippery in the cave.  We eventually went down a very crude ladder to an underground salty lake
150 m above sea level but 150 m below the mountain top. We washed our faces in this natural underground lake that is supposed to make us younger... Shayne´s hair is already turning darker... Ha.  Darwin told us that when a major hurricane occurs, most of the villagers enter the caves for shelter.


Went back to Holguin with our same taxi driver, Oscar.  He came all the way back to pick us up because it was
a good fare for him..

This was the inside of the 1941 Ford.  The horn was crumpled up paper.


While we were in Holguin we booked private Spanish lessons with a university English professor who came to our Casa for 4 two hour sessions at a cost of $10 /hr.  This was well worth it for us.  Weaare now finished and we feel much better about getting around... it´s all about the practise... yahoo.

The internet speed is much faster than we thought - almost like home...  but, you usually have to go to government internet buildings in order to get service.  You buy a card for $6  for one hour.  It's very expensive
for the Cubans!  This card gives you a password that you type in, then as soon as you are on-line, a clock shows up on the screen and counts down the number of minutes you have left in your hour.  You can use the
card in any town in Cuba.

Tomorrow we will be heading to the resort area of Guardalavaca, east of Holguin. It is similar to Varadero, but way smaller, with only a handful of resort hotels on the beaches.

When we leave Guardalavaca, we will be taking a scenic route along the coast to Moa; an ugly mining town where we will trade cars for a sturdy jeep heading to Baracoa.  75 km will take us 2 and a half hours along a bumpy scenic road.  Should be interesting.  It is a funky, hippy town near the eastern tip of Cuba.  

Our casa owner is helping us out and giving us great trip advice. 

Ciao ninos y ninas

... feel free to email us if you like...no we are not lonely... hope all is well...until the next time...

Yvonne / Shayne