Cuba!

We're back from our great Cuba adventure. We flew into the airport in Santa Clara and spent three nights at a funny little hotel in an area outside of the town. We had our own cabin, and there were palm trees, wild chickens and peacocks roaming around. When we first arrived, we felt disoriented and tired (Will slept for only one hour the night before we left, and I slept for three).  Our first days of cycling in Santa Clara were a bit hit and miss. The town itself was overwhelming, and we spent our time there trying to figure out how to exchange money. On another day, our hunt for quieter cycling roads led us to unpaved tracks in the hot countryside- which at least ended in a very nice picnic. We were so happy to be away from the cold, and Ben and Clara absolutely loved the swimming pool. Will and I loved the pina coladas!

On day 4 of our trip, we arranged for a taxi to take us about 40 kms south of Santa Clara, to shorten what would have been 80kms of cycling. Our diver, Juan, had fairly good english and a great sense of humour, and it was nice to be on the road. He somehow managed to fit all our luggage, two bikes, a bike trailer, and all of us, into his tiny white Lada. We made it into our next town, Sancti Spiritus, at about 2:30 in the afternoon. Will's back had been bothering him, so we decided to stay in Sancti Spiritus for a few nights. On our rest day, we discovered a relatively nice zoo (to Will's amusement, there was a "perro domesticus", domestic dog, a few cages down from the more traditional zoo animals). We also found an activity centre with ride on cars and animals for the kids. There was a beautiful central square in Sancti Spiritus, and Clara danced to Classical music there one evening. The bed and breakfast where we stayed had a nice front patio- we could sit out and watch all the street activity that is so much more vibrant in Cuba than in Canada.  

Day 5 was our biggest challenge, and my favourite day of the trip. We left by 7am, with a goal of cycling 70km to get to Trinidad. We did the first 50kms by 1pm, with a stop in a wonderful wild west town for water and peso ice-cream, and two stops in Cuban bus shelters to eat snacks. Towards the end, we were passed by a group of British cycle tourists. They shared some of their water and fruit, and kept our spirits up. We spent the hottest part of the day by a giant tower in a town that used to be a sugar plantation. Ben climbed the whole tower himself- talking about how much he liked Cuba. There was a giant hill going into Trinidad- we passed two men on horses who actually said "Hola Amigos" when we passed, and a family of four riding an oxcart who were as interested in us as we were in them. We heard a lot of "mira- dos minos", look-two children, as we cycled past. 

We spent three nights in Trinidad, two at a bed and breakfast in an enormous room in an old colonial house across from bar (great music in the evenings, so Will and I could pretend we were going out). The town had cobbled streets and a nice square. One day, we took a trip into the nearby mountains, riding on a giant truck that Ben loved. We saw coffee plantations and a beautiful waterfall. Ben walked the whole hike as quickly as the adults. 

 

For the next 3 days, we stayed at a small 3-star all inclusive resort. It was next to a nice beach, and had a pool that both kids really enjoyed. We cycled and swam, and Will and I were able to read together outside the cabin when the kids napped.

Juan, the taxi driver, drove down to bring us back to Santa Clara, showing us sites along the way. Our flight home was a typical experience for us- racing to the airport, not realizing we had to pay for a travel visa we didn't have money for (thank goodness the mastercard worked), not sure whether Canada would let Will back in with an expired permanent resident card, barely time to eat).

By the time we returned to the same hotel we had started at, near Santa Clara, the place felt familiar and we felt much more confident in our spanish and travel skills. The trip was good for us for a lot of reasons. Even on the last day, the kids were happy, because we were working things through as a group, and spending time with them instead of distracted by everyday tasks. Clara managed well with strange sleep schedules, and it was great to be with her at a time when she is learning so many new things. She talked so much in Cuba- "Here you go dada!"- "Cuba shoes"- "Naughty mama" (guess who taught her that one!), "Dinner- chicken, rice, tato!". We didn't watch TV or check the internet for 2 weeks, and really enjoyed the sun and the exercise. I was reading "wild" (about a women hiking the pacific coast trail in the US) in the evenings, and kept thinking about how to get more adventuring into our lives… whether at home or away. 

Right after the trip, Ben suggested that we go to Cuba every year. We're so glad that he and Clara enjoyed themselves, and hope that we can figure out how to bring a bit of a "cuba-like" travel attitude into our everyday lives at home (to see the video below, and in previous posts, log on to http://flanaganadventures.blogspot.ca/?zx=4f645596f097176d).