Travels with Pat

     Before we actually arrived in Viñales, our group went down some steep stairs into a cave where we boarded boats and floated to the other end.  Then we had lunch at an organic farm complete with a Cuban rhythm band and proceeded to take a walking tour of the town which had been severely damaged by the last hurricane. 
     Viñales is filled with typical small one room brightly painted homes with verandas.  There are only louvered shutters in open windows (no glass) to permit ventilation.
     Back in Havana we passed large apartment complexes with free housing for occupants.  It’s very common to have 3 generations sharing one 2 bedroom apartment ( the same as in Russia, except that the apartments aren’t free).

     Before we actually arrived in Viales, our group went down some steep stairs into a cave where we boarded boats and floated to the other end.  Then we had lunch at an organic farm complete with a Cuban rhythm band and proceeded to take a walking tour of the town which had been severely damaged by the last hurricane. 
     Viales is filled with typical small one room brightly painted homes with verandas.  There are only louvered shutters in open windows (no glass) to permit ventilation.
     Back in Havana we passed large apartment complexes with free housing for occupants.  It’s very common to have 3 generations sharing one 2 bedroom apartment ( the same as in Russia, except that the apartments aren’t free).

     As we were traveling along the bumpy freeway I started thinking about the differences between California and Cuba – less deciduous trees except eucalyptus; palm trees; sugar cane farms; tobacco fields; many pedestrians and bicyclists; some horse-drawn carts; people waiting in the shade of the overpass for transportation in overcrowded buses or standing in truck beds; plus the government billboard propaganda.
     We took a winding back road to Viñales, which has been designated as a World Heritage Site because of the many Mogotis (rounded mountains only 1,312 feet high) formed in the Jurassic period when the area was covered in water.
   In fact, on our last stop of the day, we saw a Diego Rivera inspired mural done in 1939 which depicts dinosaurs.

     As we were traveling along the bumpy freeway I started thinking about the differences between California and Cuba – less deciduous trees except eucalyptus; palm trees; sugar cane farms; tobacco fields; many pedestrians and bicyclists; some horse-drawn carts; people waiting in the shade of the overpass for transportation in overcrowded buses or standing in truck beds; plus the government billboard propaganda.
     We took a winding back road to Viales, which has been designated as a World Heritage Site because of the many Mogotis (rounded mountains only 1,312 feet high) formed in the Jurassic period when the area was covered in water.
   In fact, on our last stop of the day, we saw a Diego Rivera inspired mural done in 1939 which depicts dinosaurs.

     On our way to Viales we visited a small cigar factory where everything is done by hand.  Approximately 50 workers are each able to turn out 100 cigars a day as they sit at tables and wrap treated tobacco leaves while a reader sits at a lectern and reads the newspaper or other literature.  No photos were allowed.
     I saw the play, “Anna in the Tropics,” in New York where the “reader” read “Anna Karenina.”  A more famous example of a cigar factory worker is found in the opera, “Carmen.”
     After cigars are rolled and put into presses, they go through quality control, are grouped according to size and boxed.
     In the gift shop I bought a small replica of a typical tobacco worker’s one room bamboo thatched home and took a photo of the different sizes of cigars.

     When Paula and I took a day trip to Vinales, our van contained a mini UN – 2 Catalonians from the Canary Islands, 2 students from Ecuador, a student from Germany, an embassy official from Brazil who worked in Germany and our Cuban driver and guide.
     On our way out of Havana, we drove by the Malecon (waterfront) with its historic fort; through the Miramar with large 2 story colonial homes and down palm lined boulevards into the countryside.
     As we traversed the very bumpy freeway, we were reminded with  government signs which proclaimed “Revolution is an historic moment” and “Unity, Strength and Victory”  that  2009 was the 50th Anniversary when Fidel Castro overthrew Batista.

     Glad we took a taxi to the Tropicana Nightclub since the traffic was very heavy.  Passed a HUMUNGUS cemetery – the largest in Latin America on our way.
     There were many tables under the stars; however, we were seated right in front of the stage.  Each place had a small bottle of rum, can of Coke and a glass of champagne plus crackers and cheese.  A large neon sign proclaimed “Tropicana – 1939 – 2009”
     Between 9 – 10 a string ensemble played.  Besame Mucho was the only familiar tune for me.
     From 10 – midnight we were entertained by scantily clad high kicking dancers with large feather headdresses followed by an all red production with dancing couples and red boas which segued into bull fights with Senoritas, lace mantillas – all choreographed to “Granada.”
    During the extravaganza, 4 men very cleverly imitated drums and different orchestral instruments over the mike.
      Even though the couple across the table from us was from Argentina and only spoke Spanish, we were able to bridge the language barrier. 
     Too soon our taxi returned for us at the end of an entertaining evening.

     Hotel Raquel had VERY high ceilings with marble columns from 1908.  In the past, the building also served as a government office(the Cuban government owns all the property) and was a cigar warehouse before the renovation.  Their restaurant “Jardin del Eden” (Garden of Eden) served Kosher cuisine and the rooms were named after the 12 sons of Jacob – ours was Reuben.
     We knew that we were in old Havana with our iron framed single beds, a single mattress on springs and one pillow as opposed to 6 or 7 in 5 star hotels; an antique wardrobe for our clothes, tall louvered windows; a small marble balcony;  and a charming single elevator surrounded by iron grating (which reminded me of the “cage” elevators with an elevator attendant that my Dad used at 7 S. Dearborn, Chicago, in the 1940’s).

     When Paula lived in Grand Cayman, she made reservations with her travel agent for us to fly to Cuba for a nominal sum.
     Observations from our taxi ride from the airport to Hotel Raquel in “Old Town”:  MANY signs noting “Felelidad a la Revolucion” (Loyalty to the Revolution); vintage Pontiacs, Fords, Chevies  and others; numerous motorcycles with double riders and side cars; pastel colored homes; high rise buildings in the “new” part of Havana gradually leading to colonial covered walkways which were similar to those I’ve seen in Spain and Mexico.
     Our driver dropped us off 1/2 block away from our hotel since iron blockades mandated foot traffic. 

     I really was  “Putting on the  Ritz” when I visited my daughter, Paula, while she was working as the concierge in the Ritz Hotel Spa on Grand Cayman Island.  I was esconced  in the best room in the hotel with a 180 degree view of the Caribbean complete with a glorious  sunset.
     When Paula took me on a tour of the island, we visited Hell, a post office stop which has a landscape of volcanic formations that resemble the flames of Hell.  Then we stopped at Barker’s National Park to see Silver Thatched Palms, Coconut Orchids, some iguanas and several caymen(alligators which Columbus saw and the reason for the island’s name).