Ahhh, England

Had a lovely few days in Havana with my friend from Camaguey, Alexander, and rather unsurprisingly (as he seems to know half of cuba) we bumped into some friends of his so had a fab night out at the Casa de la Musica listening to, apparently, one of the best bands in Cuba at the moment, which was nice! Also managed to bully Alexander into going to the beach for my last day (he works in a beach resort as a promoter/Dj so isnt that bothered about the beach anymore!) as I was worried about my fading tan! So left Havana for the airport in a blissed out sun-drenched haze. This was despite the best efforts of the senora in our casa who seemed during our entire time there to be completely crazy and confirmed this as I was leaving by wandering into my room and picking up anything left unpacked and asking if she could have it as a present!!!

Unfortunately had a horrid experience with the police as I was arriving at the airport which kind of took the shine off the day, but as Alexander said, this is Cuba after all! All happened because we took a private car rather than a state run taxi to the airport. This is illegal (for the taxi driver, not me) so when the police spotted us appearing from the car park with luggage they immediately started whistling at A and me. Then to my horror we were separated, they took my passport and started asking us questions! I was terrified and whilst logically I knew they couldn't do anything, I was really scared of getting anyone into trouble! So took the nice easy tourist route of pretending not to speak much spanish! This despite saying Alexander was my husband (not quite sure why, but had been told I had to say this!). Sure the police didn't believe me, but eventually they let us go on our way (with a rather lovely smile and a sorry for inconveniencing us!!)

Anyway trip after that was relatively uneventful (despite me managing to leave my wallet with 200 dollars) in the toilets and it is now lovely being back in the welcoming bosom of my family (or something!) Figure, just for completeness I have to write something about first impressions back in the UK, so here you go with my top 3:
1) Had rather amusing incident in the toilet in Madrid where i spent a short time looking for a bin to put my toilet paper in before realising I was now allowed to flush it
2) Rather overwhelmed by the number of mobile phones in evidence
3) There are a lot of cars

And while I'm thinking about it, things I love about being home
1) Hairdryers
2) Chocolate
3) Heat magazine

seems it didn't take me long to get back into the swing of UK life as all three are now back in my life with a vengence! Chocolate bought at Madrid airport, Hairdryer used this morning and Dad conned into buying Heat for me at a morning trip to the shops!

Now all I have to do is try to fit into the bridesmaid dress this afternoon then try to come up with a plan for the rest of my year...somehow I already know it wont involve staying in the UK!

La Lucha

Pretty much means the daily struggle or fight, and I feel it pretty accurately describes what I have been through to try to leave Baracoa! After spending the best part of my time here in the travel agents office, he finally arranged for me to get a minibus-bus combo which meant i could get to Havana by Thursday without spending the rest of my life on a bus. Anyway, turned up today to pick up my ticket (for some reason this couldn´t be done the day before when he told me of his plans) I find out this has all been organised for tommorrow, when i need to leave today! So then had to spend a mad half hour trying to arrange the buses to get out of here. Which i managed relatively easily and wished i had done first off! At least i have had my first real experience of cuban uselessness! But I do now get to spend the best part of the next 24hours on a bus (oh joy). However, on the bright side, I then dont have to set foot on another bus and have a nice long weekend to enjoy Havana and its nightlife and beaches (need a final top up of tan!).

So, cant believe I leave next week....seems like no time at all since my early morning new years day flight into the unknown and whilst I am really excited to be coming home and seeing everyone, its also a little strange to think i wont have to speak spanish or move every 3 days or deal with any of the mad and funny things I have been dealing with for the last 4 months. I have been reflecting a bit and whilst I now have a killer tan and blonde (if rather straw like) hair and have learnt to live without cadburys chocolate and a hairdryer (handily improvising with fans when the desire for straight hair gets too much) not sure if i have yet found out what i should be doing with my life.....guess the only answer is to head off again after the wedding of the year!!!

Many hours on a bus

I am now well acquainted with the lovely Viazul buses (buses put on for tourists here) after a v long 7 hours to Santiago followed by 5 hours to Baracoa (where i am now). Stayed one day in Santiago as I felt I should see it, but wasn't all that impressed, it was so big, dirty and polluted (especially after lovely Camaguey) and the people weren't especially pleasant. Rescued from being a completely wasted day by a nice trip out to this fort where I also got a quick lesson in the Cuban method of unemployment reduction. I was the only visitor at the fort and yet the govt felt the need for their to be approx 15 v bored looking women standing around "working". Not sure if they were meant to be guards or guides as they were doing little of either but was fun to watch! Also met up with a couple i had met earlier in my trip so went to watch a cool band in the eve (composed entirely of men who looked like they were about to have heart attacks!) and rather randomly also met one of my cuban friends from Camaaguey, which was a lovely surprise.

Anyway, then another v early start (not helped by me oversleeping and having to be woken buy my casa owner when the taxi turned up!) for the rather overhyped (by lonely planet) journey to Baracoa. Am glad I have come to Baracoa as it has a really nice feel, very laid back and rural but am getting frustrated as i am trying to arrange my transport back to Havana and the tourist agency is way too laid back! So far I have wated yesterday afternoon waiting for them and then today have missed a trip as he was being useless! Ah well! Thats Cuba for you

Slight delay

So, as the lonely planet states, Camaguey is the kind of town that disrupts your travel plans and so it did with me! Was only meant to be staying for one night to break up a hellish 12hour bus journey, but have ended up staying until, well, tommorrow!

Its a really cute town with some beautiful plazas but most importantly, it is seriously hustle free which makes it a v relaxing place to be. Have also been really lucky as have made some great friends with some tourists who are also staying here for a bit and a group of cubans who are all really good fun. Its nice to stay in one place and not have to keep moving as I learning loads about cuba, but more importantly i am having a whole lot of fun...and causing a whole lot of hilarity amongst my cuban girlfriends here with their attempts to teach me how to dance "cuban". They just will not give up despite my protestations that at the age of 27 I am just not able to dance like a hooker (and to be quite honest, dont really want to learn!) but hey...

The highlight here though has been one of the guys had a birthday party on Tuesday to which we were all invited and it was so mad. He lives on the top floor of this house with a little balcony so he had a hired massive sound system up there and the lucky few (ie us guests!) were up there with him whilst the rest of the neighbourhood within a 3mile radius got to enjoy the music! Was really fun watching everyone dancing in the street and generally being part of a neighbours-type party. Then for the piece de resistnace, a whole roast pig (cooked in the bakery no less!) was brought out and devoured by all....a crazy night!

But despite all this fun, have decided it really is time to leave camaguey tomorrow and face the 7 hour journey to santiago (urgh) for some live music. The only down side of camaguey is that there is one club with dreadful music!

music and dancing in Trinidad

Ooh, am such a bad blogger....just have so much to say that whenever i get to the internet i cant bring myself to start. But am determined today to write something, so here you are, a potted resume of my last week!

After Santa Clara it was off to Trinidad for the weekend with lots of beautiful colonial buildings and music. Was a little sceptical as I figured it would be full of tourists on bus trips, but the actual old centre was surprisingly dead. Beautiful but with no atmosphere at all really. Luckily i was staying in casa near where all the cubans live so lots of cheap pizza places (my new favourite food, they sell it from their fronts rooms and is 20cents for a pizza, fab), music blaring out and general energy. Didn't really do much here, just hung out with a couple of slovenians i met, and naturally made it to the beach one day (trying to get rid of strap marks for the much anticipated wedding of the year - vic, hope you appreciate all this effort!!!). Did hear some amazing music though, one band in particular were playing on the street and we ended up listening to them for ages...naturally ended up buying their cd, so expect much listening when i get home....one way to lose friends v quickly. Have also tried to salsa lots (its impossible to sit there and listen to music without one cuban after another asking you to dance...its nice and all but tiring) Anyway, i thought i could just about salsa but it turns out i cant!! Am learning quickly (theres no option, you are going to dance so you might as well try to not kill your partner or others whilst doing it!) but have a looooong way to go. Watching the cubans is just incredible....in particular a guy will dance with 2 girls, or a group will dance in circles together swapping partners and generally being way too co-ordinated for a little brit to comprehend. i think its just rude showing off quite so much, but they insist. I just sit in awe and wonder hows its possible that EVERYONE is so good....but then they start early...see loads of 2 / 3 yr olds shaking their thing in the street

Also had a surprisingly fab sunday afternoon there. The Slovenians had left so I was wandering around (as is my way) when i heard all this music coming from a building. So obviously i wander in and find this huge salsa party in full swing, mostly populated by slightly inebriated old people! So stayed for a couple of hours adn had a fab time dancing with old men and watching in awe as 60 year old women went for it shaking their thing and generally being way too amazing on the dance floor. You've got to give them respect!

Eek, money about to run out, camaguey will have to be a separate entry

All things Che

So am now in a place called Santa Clara, made famous by various Che-related doings in the revolutionary war so have spent a rather pleasant afternoon wandering around admiring huge statues of Che, the box with his ashes in, guns/books/hats he used once and the bulldozer his group used to derail a train (yep, its there on a plinth by a reconstruction of the train it caused to crash with some symbolic crash-type sculpture) not to mention looking at a million photos of Che as a boy, Che relaxing in the moutnains, CHe reading a book, Che smoking a cigar, Che holding a small child..........you get the picture! Apart from (despite!) all the Che-hysteria, its also really lovely town though with a rather surprising lack of tourists...I had kind of imagined hoards of day trippers from Varadero (the big resort place) or Trinidad (another tourist hot spot). And tonight, to celebrate the end of the pope-related mourning, I am off to a roof top bar I have been recommended.....just have to try not to fall off, Cuba doesnt really seem to go for safety

Spent yesterday at the beach which was lovely but also a little strange. Had been staying in Cienfuegos (horrid town, nasty atmosphere, enough said!) So the beach itself was just gorgeous, white sand, crystal clear blue water......but the best bits had been commendered by big resort hotels which (get this) Cubans arent allowed to even walk through the doors off....so naturally they are banned from the beach as well. This happens at loads of other of the nicest beaches too (ie cubans arent allowed, even if married to foreigners) and it strikes me as being completely loopy that in a society like this where everyone is entitled to the same opportunities, the government then denies its people the ability to spend time in some of the most gorgeous bits. Its also really sad that obviously lots of tourists like that kind of environment (but then who needs to actually talk to the locals, as long as they are there to serve the drinks and clean the rooms!!!) I^m sure its probably way more complex than I am getting, but theres my philosphical ramblings for today! Ill get off my soapbox now and try to find some peso ice-cream....my new favourite treat, a cone of icecream for about 3p yum yum

Dancing in the rain

Yep, it had the audacity to rain the other day, but am forgiving the country as am still having a fab time and not even a day of rain can put me off! So escaped Havana after a couple of days for some pottering around in the countryside, 3 hours west of Havana in a place called Vinales. Its an amazingly relaxed place in the middle of these incredible ¨pin cushion¨ (to paraphrase a certain guidebook) mountains and have spent a great deal of time enjoying the countryside and meeting a surprisingly large number of lovely old men! One in particular accosted me when i was having a rest after getting a bit lost on my day long wander! After a bit of chat, the marriage question of course came up and he then spent the next 15mins or so trying to convince me to marry him! Unfortunately I had to turn him down but promised if i was still single in three years (and, unspokenly if he was still alive) I would come back for him! Quite an adventurous walk one way and another as I also came across my first (and last) cock fight....that will teach me for being too curious....and there i was thinking it was a footie match in the middle of nowhere!

Unfortunately the pope´s rather inconsiderate death on Saturday put an end tp the festivities (no music for 3 nights...how inconvenient) but still managed to meet quite a few lovely locals, including some girls for a change, and had a great time chatting with them and trying out my consistently awful spanish (you would have thought by now that it would get better, but no, my brain constantly refuses to retain any new words)

Loads more to write but am at risk of boring you stupid....so heres my ¨things I love about cuba¨ list
1) theres music everywhere (except when important religious leaders die)
2) guava a newly discovered (by me at any rate) and delicious fruit
3) the men only shout at you, they dont hiss (its a sad day when the lack of hissing is considered a virtue)
4) chocoilltas (a cuban version of the oreo, mmmmmm)
5) friendly, mad old men
6) cajitas (a meal in a box....quite literally)
7) the apparent necessity for 3 men to fix a car (there should be a joke)
8) cuba libres
9) men think its ok to dance

more next week....

Dancing in the rain

Yep, it had the audacity to rain the other day, but am forgiving the country as am still having a fab time and not even a day of rain can put me off! So escaped Havana after a couple of days for some pottering around in the countryside, 3 hours west of Havana in a place called Vinales. Its an amazingly relaxed place in the middle of these incredible ¨pin cushion¨ (to paraphrase a certain guidebook) mountains and have spent a great deal of time enjoying the countryside and meeting a surprisingly large number of lovely old men! One in particular accosted me when i was having a rest after getting a bit lost on my day long wander! After a bit of chat, the marriage question of course came up and he then spent the next 15mins or so trying to convince me to marry him! Unfortunately I had to turn him down but promised if i was still single in three years (and, unspokenly if he was still alive) I would come back for him! Quite an adventurous walk one way and another as I also came across my first (and last) cock fight....that will teach me for being too curious....and there i was thinking it was a footie match in the middle of nowhere!

Unfortunately the pope´s rather inconsiderate death on Saturday put an end tp the festivities (no music for 3 nights...how inconvenient) but still managed to meet quite a few lovely locals, including some girls for a change, and had a great time chatting with them and trying out my consistently awful spanish (you would have thought by now that it would get better, but no, my brain constantly refuses to retain any new words)

Loads more to write but am at risk of boring you stupid....so heres my ¨things I love about cuba¨ list
1) theres music everywhere (except when important religious leaders die)
2) guava a newly discovered (by me at any rate) and delicious fruit
3) the men only shout at you, they dont hiss (its a sad day when the lack of hissing is considered a virtue)
4) chocoilltas (a cuban version of the oreo, mmmmmm)
5) friendly, mad old men
6) cajitas (a meal in a box....quite literally)
7) the apparent necessity for 3 men to fix a car (there should be a joke)
8) cuba libres
9) men think its ok to dance

more next week....