Day 20 Trinidad to Havana via Cienfuegos and The Bay of Pigs 5 April 2015 Cuba Day 7

Today we left the hotel at 9:30am for the long trip back to Havana. But this time we are taking the coast road. As we drove along the road by the Caribbean Sea we saw that there were lots of crabs crossing the road. Apparently at this time of year they migrate from the ocean to inland to breed. There were thousands of them crushed by the cars on the road. We saw many scurrying for safety, some were pretty big, but apparently they are not good for eating. We stopped along the way at a small coastal resort so Deb and I could put our hands in the Caribbean Sea, we have this thing about new expanses of water and a need to touch them. Well, I got into the swing of it up to the top of my runners. It took about the next 5 hours for them to dry out!!!! Our first stop was at Cienfuegos about 1 1/2hrs away from Trinidad. It is a port city characterised by its French Colonial architecture, the town has had money spent on the buildings and infrastructure, it is in a much better condition than anywhere else we have visited, it is like we are in a different country here. We visited the Tomas terry Theatre, where Caruso used to sing. It has an amazing ceiling fresco and a four tiered stage hall. It was an amazing theatre, it would be great to see any production there. This evening the “Ballet Nacional de Cuba is performing Giselle to a sell-out audience, and at 10 CUC ($AUD15)a seat, why not!! We walked around the main square where a lot of old buildings were and the Provincial Capital building. We called into the main church in the square, as we do. Deb lit a candle for those we know that need some thoughts. We also took a walk to look down a shopping mall, Deb stopped to look at some silver boots on the footpath next to a statue, when the statue came to life and scarred the bejesus out of her. So funny, it’s cost me a bit in tips though.  Eventually we drove down to what the locals call the “half island” (really just a very skinny peninsula) Punta Gordo with its “Moorish” Placido del Valle and typical wooden mansions of the area. We had a cocktail on the rooftop of an old mansion and took in the views. In the distance you can see a big concrete dome structure near the entrance to the bay. It is a partially constructed Nuclear Reactor, it is now used to store waste from the local oil refinery. Lunch today was at Restaurante “Villa Lagarto”, on the waterfront almost at the end of the peninsula. We both had roast pork, we skipped the soup and dessert, there is way too much food offered here. There have been no Cuban people eating in any of the restaurants we have had lunch or dinner at while here in Cuba. I don’t ever remember being in a country where this has happened. The locals can not afford to eat out in the better restaurants. It has not been to our liking, our preference is to be the only tourist in a restaurant full of locals. But I think if we had eaten in the locals restaurants we would have found the food very bland and full of carbs. Our drive back to Havana took us up the Peninsula de Zapata, and the Bay of Pigs. An area steeped in history and now a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. Victor gave us a very good concise History (he was a history teacher before becoming a guide) of the Bay of Pigs and Missile Crisis times in Cuban history. On reflection we could have just had the history discussion and a much easier drive back to Havana, there isn’t anything really to see to go with the stories. Just a lovely beach and lots of families enjoying it. Again there were lots of horse and buggies on the roads, they really are a major source of transport in the areas away from the main cities. One highlight, well for me anyway, Deb wasn’t impressed, we drove through a small town called “Australia”. Apparently some Australians had helped them with their sugar industry in that area. Small world. We arrived back in Havana at around 5:45pm and checked-in again to the hotel we were at before. Our room isn’t as nice as before, 2 floors down and on the side street, and it’s a smoking room! We are glad we only have it for one night. Dinner by the Rooftop pool and a final Cuban sunset, for us tonight. Tomorrow we maybe be doing a tour of a Cigar factory, or not. And then we head off to Mexico. (Deb here – It has been quite an education for us in Cuba. In the last 55 years of Communist rule there has been a degradation of the towns. With the odd exception the buildings and infrastructure mostly look like they have had no money spent on them in that time. The people are quite poor. There are not many cars on the road, they are too expensive (hence the horses out in the country! Tourism is expected to double over the coming years with the opening up of the country to the USA. There is no way the current facilities will cope with such an increase. Currently most tourists come from Canada, Germany and the UK. I imagine in 20 years Cuba will be a vastly different place, will be interesting to observe what if any changes are made to the Politics in Cuba during this time. We are glad we came, we did not know what to expect, but it has been a very different experience from any idea we might have had. On another note, how ironic is this, 2 days ago I found the hand sanitizer in the bottom of my bag and have been using it and today I have a sore throat and a cold!!)