On life and love after 50 newsletter
Tom P Blake
Seniors
explore Cuba Feb 14 - 22 2016
Dateline – Havana, Cuba
Greta, my life partner, and I traveled to Cuba for one
week on a people-to-people educational exchange tour.
Day
1
Greta and I departed LAX on Valentine’s Day and flew to
Miami. That night, the tour group gathered in a Crowne Plaza Hotel conference room
for an initial briefing by a representative of HIA Travel (Chicago-based), the
company that organized the trip.
There were 43 alumni in our group from colleges across
the USA, including 14 who booked reservations through five different University
of California campuses. Greta, a graduate of UC Irvine, was the only person
from her school.
Other universities represented were Rutgers, Michigan, Purdue, Miami,
DePauw, Cornell, Indiana, Kansas and Colorado College.
Traveling with us: Vivian, a bi-lingual Cuban guide, Simona,
a tri-lingual guide from Italy, and Ernesto, a wonderful Cuban bus driver. Four
of the women shared rooms; one traveled alone. There were 39 couples in the
group and five single women (no single men). Other than their spouses, most
people did not know each other beforehand.
All of us were seniors age 60 to mid-80, except for one
younger couple, who were traveling with the wife’s parents. Most were retired. All
had interesting backgrounds and histories. There were two scientists, five
doctors, a dentist, teachers, nurses, and one guy who used to own a deli.
Day
2
On Monday, February 15, group members had to arrive at
the airport four hours before departure because processing of visas and
paperwork for travel to Cuba—even with an educational group-- takes time. We
flew on a chartered American Airlines 737 from Miami to Santa Clara, Cuba,
which is located in the central part of the country.
After landing, bus driver Ernesto drove us for three
hours to the Hotel Memories Paraiso Azul, a huge resort on Cuba’s north shore. The
resort reminded me of the old Club Med’s of 40-50 years ago. The members of our
group were gradually getting to know each other.
At the hotel, currency was exchanged for the Cuban tourist
peso, called the CUC. Credit cards are still not accepted in most places in
Cuba. There is a 12% fee for exchanging American money. The Cuban people are
required to use a different peso, called a PUC, which is valued at only 4% of
the CUC. The dual currency system there is screwy and confusing.
For the first three days, we were on the bus a lot: day
one, 3 hours (after 5 hours getting to Cuba); days two and three, 8 hours each.
Day 3
On day three, our bus passed through farmlands and
small towns to the historic city of Trinidad, a UNESCO World Heritage site.
There, we were invited into the private home of Mata, a well-known Cuban
painter. He and his wife served coffee as we viewed his paintings. One woman
purchased two of Mata’s paintings.
Also in Trinidad, we were entertained by an Afro-Cuban
band in a club. Afro-Cuban music is popular in Cuba, mixing the African
heritage of Cuba with the Latin America heritage. Many of our group danced
onstage with the band’s vocalists.
That night, we arrived in the city of Cienfuegos,
located on the south coast of Cuba. Dinner was served at a private home that
had been converted into a restaurant. For all of our lunches and dinners, the
first item served was the Cuban drink, Mojito, a popular rum concoction with sugar,
lime and mint leaves.
When Greta and I went to our room at the Hotel Jagua, we
had difficulty getting the door to unlock.
Our guide Simona came up to help and
pointed out to us that we were occupying the room in which Fidel Castro had
slept on August 18, 1960, which indicates how old the hotel was. The ghost of
Fidel Castro, who is still living, didn’t appear that night, but in the
morning, the shower doors were wet as if someone had taken a shower during the
night (and it wasn’t either one of us).
Day 4
The following day, on the anticipated five-hour bus
ride to Havana, the bus got a flat tire. Luckily, we were near a truck stop
that served ice cream, soft drinks, beer, and rum. It took three hours to
change the tire. Three young, shirtless, Cuban men appeared out of the night,
and were able to help get a replacement tire on. They did not want tips but
were given some anyway. Not one person complained about the wait. In fact, the
group made the best of the inconvenience. A couple of bottles of Havana Club rum were shared, which, of
course, helped the cause.
An interesting thing happened to me during the stay at
the truck stop. A few of us struck up a conversation with a Cuban man. He said
he was born during the Cuban Missile Crisis in September, 1962, and that his
mother could see the U.S. Navy warships from the hospital room in Havana.
I told him I had been in the Cuban Missile Crisis, also
in September, assigned to a Naval warship, but had spent most of my time in San
Juan, Puerto Rico. So there we were 53 years later, meeting at a truck stop,
both having been on opposite sides of the standoff, not too many miles apart.
We bonded like brothers. We exchanged email addresses. When he said good-bye,
he had tears in his eyes. (OK, I admit, I did also).
Five days later, in Miami, I received an email from
him.
The bus made it to Havana, but was whisked away for
servicing.
Day
5
Our hotel in Havana for five nights was the majestic,
21-story Melia Cohiba, which was opened in 1995. We were 100 yards from the
ocean. There were other high-rise hotels nearby. The room assigned to Greta and
me was on the 13th floor. Each morning, between 4:45 a.m. and 6
a.m., I could hear a rooster crow from the neighborhood down below.
That rooster crowing among big hotels represented Cuba
to me: relatively new buildings mixed in with the old neighborhoods, side-by-side.
Hens and roosters roaming free. As Havana grows with tourism and new hotels,
the locals want the old buildings to be renovated, retained, but not torn down.
Keeping the charm of historical Havana is a top priority to the locals.
Guides Simona and Vivian surprised the group the next
morning by having 11 old American convertibles, each a different color and make
of car, and all with tops down, pick us up at the hotel and drive us around Old
Havana. Our caravan turned many heads around town.
Tom and Greta in a 1956 Buick Special
During lunch, driver Ernesto appeared and gave us the
thumbs- up—the bus was repaired and ready to go. The group applauded him. He
had become an important part of the cameraradie that had grown among us. He was
a very careful driver. I can’t tell you the number of times he had to stop or
slow down for cows, dogs, goats, people, horse and buggies, bicycles and motor
scooters.
The meals on this trip were incredible.
Everything was
fresh—tropical fruit, black beans, rice, chicken, seafood, and pork. Most wines
were from Chile. Cuban beer was great. Bottled water was served with all meals
and was always available on the bus. You even brushed your teeth with bottled
water. I have to give lots of credit to HIA travel for putting together such a
fascinating itinerary with exceptional guides.
That afternoon, we were driven to the home of Ernest
Hemingway, about 40 minutes outside of Havana. Doors and windows of the house
were open but tourists are not allowed inside. However, one could see nearly
the entire home by peeking in the openings. Hemingway is considered a hero in
Cuba. On the grounds, we observed juice being compressed through a wringer by
two young men out of sugar cane sticks.
Day 6
On day six, we had a tour of a cigar factory where
17,000 cigars are hand-made daily. We were told, “Absolutely no photos
in the factory.” However, before we left the floor where the cigars were
rolled, our factory guide winked at us and suggested a quick picture with our
cell phone camera would be overlooked. Here is the photo:
Cigar Factory
Each U.S. citizen can bring a combination of Cuban
cigars and rum worth $100 into the states. Greta and I spent about half of our
allotment on both in the cigar factory gift shop. By the way, Cuban souvenirs
and trinkets are very inexpensive in Cuba.
Our group, being on an educational tour, enjoyed
lectures by two college professors and other experts. We learned about Cuban
history, the revolution and overthrow of Batista, and how Cuba is embracing the
free world, but faces many challenges along the way. We learned about the
heroes and villains; Jose Marti, Che Guevara, and Fidel Castro are highly
regarded here. Batista is despised.
Places visited: elementary school, senior nursing home,
eco-friendly community and two highly-regarded Cuban dance studios. Some members
of our group brought gifts and essentials with them for school children and
seniors. Items like pencils, pens, toilet paper, are greatly appreciated. One
night, we enjoyed Cuba Libres (rum and Coke) and a one-hour salsa lesson from
six young men and women atop a hotel overlooking Havana.
Speaking of toilet paper, it is in short supply in
Cuba. Some restrooms along the highways have no toilet paper so locals carry
their own. Even Simona carried extra in case any of our group needed some. And
many toilets in public places have no toilet seats---you can visualize for
yourself.
At the University of Havana, one young student gave us
an informative talk and a walking tour of the campus. Education in Cuba is paid
for by the government, all the way through college, including medical, law, and
engineering schools.
Day
7
On the day before we departed, we took a 1 ½ hour bus
ride from Havana to the Pinar Del Rio, the most western province to an
eco-friendly socialist community called Las Terrazas, established in the 1980s,
that provides housing, food, and medical care to more than 1200 people. All of
the food for the people is organic, grown on the land, which was replanted
after the forests were depleted by logging 50 years ago.
A five-course lunch was served at a vegetarian
restaurant at the community with unique entrees like banana soup, black-bean
soup and fruit/vegetable soup.
Day
8
After the group members checked out of the Melia Cohiba
Hotel at 8 a.m., the bus headed back to the arrival city of Santa Clara. On the
way, we passed sugar cane fields and fields of corn. But much of the land
between Havana and Santa Clara, while having a rich, fertile soil, has not been
developed. Our guide explained that because there are no communities where
farmers could live, this land goes uncultivated. You see no John Deere farm
equipment in Cuba, only old tractors left behind by the Russians when they
departed in 1998.
Our final stops before going to the airport were at the
Che Guevara memorial and just a couple of miles from there, the actual train
wreck and bulldozer that Che used to dislodge the tracks, causing the
derailment in 1958, of the train carrying 400 loyal Batista soldiers who were
onboard. (This is the story our group was told by our tour leaders; I've have heard other versions). Guevara’s loyal band of 20 revolutionaries either killed or took
prisoner all of the soldiers.
The train derailment was the catalyst for Batista to
flee the country two days later.
And then, within one mile from the airport, the engine
of the bus starting making a noise that sounded like something had blown: a
tire, muffler, gasket, or piston rod. We all looked at each other and said, “Oh
no.” But, Ernesto was able to ease the bus to the airport.
By the end of the eight days together, many friendships
had been formed among our group. A few (12 or so) became ill on the trip with
gastro-intestinal problems, lasting for a day or two.
Tour guide Vivian took advantage of time on the bus to
educate us on all aspects of Cuban culture and history. Her English was near
perfect and her demeanor friendly. And tour guide Simona always looked out for
our well-being and reminded us to recycle everything. And while rare, she told
us to be careful in a couple of locations for pickpockets. As always while
traveling, being vigilant is important.
Greta and I found the beautiful people of Cuba very
welcoming of Americans. They seemed to be thrilled that we were in Cuba and
that relations between our two countries are warming. And in the rest of our
group, all seemed to feel the same way.
It was truly a wonderful learning experience. We all
hoped that Ernesto was able to get back to his family in Havana that night.
For more in-depth coverage, and lots of photos, go to this website and click on the yellow 'Cuba 2016' box.
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