The news of Fidel Castro's death was heard around the world. The socialist/communist regime that Cuba had become thanks to Castro greived with this news. With his brother taking over, Cuba opened up its borders to the United States while requiring a Visa to any American traveler. I was to learn later on that Castro and Josip Broz Tito (The ex-president of no-longer-existing Yugoslavia, a.k.a. my family's home country) were great friends and my capability to travel to Cuba had existed all along -- with my Serbian passport, of course. Turns out Serbia is one of four countries of former Yugoslavia that allows a 90 day stay in Cuba without a Visa so my father and I decided to take advantage of this opportunity with our Serbian passports and visit the country of Cuba.
Upon arrival in Manzanilla, the air smelled of overcooked smoked salmon and the mosquitos were already trying to make us their victims. This wasn't our destination as we were transfering to a different flight but the feel of Cuba was already hitting. The airport resemebled of what I'd picture an 80s business office to look like with wooden pillars holding up the ceiling over a chipped simple-patterned tile floor. We waited for about half an hour when we heard an annoucement for a trip back to Toronto (we had to book our flight through Toronto because there were no direct flights from Chicago) and this flight would land in Varadero to drop off the incoming visitors.
It was close to midnight when we landed in Varadero. We took a bus to our resort and during the bus ride, the bus tour giude kept us entertained with facts about Cuba. He quizzed us on Cuban drinks and Cuban songs, like Mojito and Guatanamera. We actually ran into a Serbian couple who has visited Cuba 10+ times in their life and he was describing to us, my dad and I, about the different aspects of Cuba. My mind was a little exhausted from all the flying sp I retained very little of what he said.
At the resort I discovered Cuba has internet censorship. Through my phone, certain apps like Snapchat and Netflix don't work. I wasn't too upset about the netflix but I was unhappy to know I would lose all my Snapchat streaks. Very tragic. All of that subsided as I imagined my next week relaxing in Cuba.
The next morning my dad and I booked three different types of trips: A Catamaran boat ride, a trip to Havana, the capital of Cuba, and a Jeep Safari tour. We scheduled these every other day so we could spend some time relaxing on the beach in between the exciting excursions. That same day we visited an outdoor market in a town not too far away from the resort and it was very interesting to see the different Cuban trinkets up for sale.
Our catamaran trip reminded me of when my family took a catamaran boat trip in Jamaica. The nets in the front of he scared me at first since you could look through net as stare at the rushing sea water beneath you.
I had never felt such joy watching the dolphin swim around and squeal with what I'm assuming was delight as we witnessed her beautiful nature. Later that day we took a trip to small island where we ate lunch. There was a small group of musicians singing Guantanamera and the Cuban feeling was emanating around us.
As we boarded back onto the Catamaran, there was a large storm cloud hovering n the distance and we soon realized this cloud was coming straight for us. The rain came down harder than ever and we were still in the poorly shaded Catamaran as it washed us away. I was afraid we wouldn't be able to dock but I shouldn't have been so quick to judge Cuban boat sailing skills. We docked safely and rushed to the bus back safely. We got back still soaking wet but that didn't bother me because I had a fantastic day.
In our trip to Havana, we took a two and a half hour bus trip to the city from Varadero. I learned from the tour guide that the entire island of Cuba is in fact made of volcanic rock. This worried some people at the mention of a volcano but the tour guide added that it's no longer active.
Our first stop was at a plaza with buildings of metal outlines of Fidel Castro and Che Guevara, the two heroes that brought revolution to Cuba.
We made a stop at an old prison from the 1500s where there was a shop for those who wanted to buy Havana Club liquor or Cuban cigars. My dad and I bought neither so we spent our time with photo ops.
Our next stop was the center of old Havana where, in just like any other place in Cuba, the streets were filled with 50s American cars. That combined with the ancient experience of the buildings threw us back in time to a place that had stone architecture and Chevrolets -- a place unlike any other.
The Jeep Safari was an interesting experience . The Jeep was stick-shift and luckily my dad had that kind of experience from driving stick-shift in Serbia. We were accompanied by a Canadian couple on their honeymoon and in fact first vacation ever and during the ride we had interesting conversations about healthcare and public education.
The Jeep Safari consisted of us driving across Cuba to a snorkeling destination where I literally swam with the fishes. I was scared at first but soon I got used to the company. After this place we took a bumpy ride to our next destination -- lunch! The food in Cuba isn't so great but the stray dogs sure love it:
After lunch a few of us went horseback riding.
In a small house were served coffee with sugar cane sticks. We fed some tree rats the sugar cane sticks and they scurried around the house like little pets -- it was adorable. After this we finished up we drove a little down the road to a farmer's market where my dad and I bought a mango, some bananas, and sugar cane juice!
After the market we then drove to a cave a pool of water waiting to be jumping into. The water was so refreshing that I didn't want to leave but the Jeep guide told us it was time to go and I had to say goodbye to the magical place.
As I'm sitting here at the computer station at my hotel already reminiscing about my experience here in Cuba I will never forget how nice the locals were to us. Every time we drove through a town, be it on a bus or in a car, little kids would wave from the ground and every time it would make me smile to wave back. Who knows when my next trip to Cuba will be. Will I come to a resort again or will I rent out a room in Matanzas and live like a local? Maybe I won't even come at all. Only time will tell but the time already spent here has been a journey I will never forget.
