Cuba Part 2

For 6 days we hired a car and headed west; with some in trepidation as every car we saw was scratched and damaged in some way - fortunately we returned the car without any more dents and scratches than when we took it - though it was not without incident as we went over potholes, muddy rutted roads and on one occasion went part way off the edge of a road.

Here are some of our pictures to show where we went.


One of the best things about travelling is meeting other travelers here is Steve and Yvaana with the gorgeous azure sea as a backdrop.




We stopped many times along the road - here Suri is shaded under one of Cuba's enormous and very old trees that seemed to be everywhere.





A great find was Villa Soroa which had a welcoming swimming pool and was set beautifully and caringly in what remains of the Cuban Jungle (tropical forest really as all of the jungle has been chopped down and replaced with faster growing tropical trees), here we had lovely chalet - it was so good we stayed for 2 nights.







Close by was a magnificent Orchiderio ( Orchid garden) which was really a not to be missed place.





In the morning we woke up to find the whole place covered in mist - it was quite magical.





Close by we checked out the waterfall, it was suffering from a lack of water as we only had 1 downpour during the 2 week stay.











A familiar sight as we drove along was rice being dried out on the road - fortunately there were very few cars where we were travelling so most of the times cars drove around it - though there was one occasion when a lorry drove over part of it as it approached us.


Local farmers offer their fruit and vegetables that they have grown by the side of the road, we stopped to buy fruit at these - on this occasion the farmer took us in to his home and showed us around whilst his wife cut up and prepared the pineapple that we had bought from him - this was typical of the Cuban people in the countryside - always helpful and smiling.

Another place we stopped at was the Hotel Islazul El Mirador in San Diego de Los Banos - a quite old building which was in need of some repair - probably due to the lack of tourists - I believe we were the only tourists staying here. Part of the problem stems from the hurricane 2 years before which swept away the main bridge, but also the closure to tourists of the Spa next door due H & S reasons - though the locals were still using it.



In the town we came across this tobacco factory where leaves were being processed for making into big fat Cuban cigars.









On our drive we headed for Cayo Levisa a small island off the North Coast - but it took us so long to get to the jetty where the ferry left, that it was too late and so we decided not to go, all around this area were Banana Plantations - here Suri compares herself to a leaf.








In Vinales we visited the Jardin Botanico - a garden maintained by 2 elderly sisters - with help from friends and family - here in this large garden where so many varieties of plants and trees - even this unusual tin can tree.

The lady who showed us around was determined to tell us the name of every plant growing there.

The west of Cuba is well known for growing tobacco - here I inspect the inside of a traditional barn used for drying the leaves, as expected the smell was quite strong.





In the countryside towns old hotel reception areas are used as shops - this one is typical both in look and the fact that the shelves were almost bare.






The views over the Sierra del Rosario were impressive, the way the mountains rose up reminded us both of Guilin in China.





Our 3rd stopover was the Hotel El Ranch San Vicenti - just north of Vinales - another lovely place with cabins set in beautiful scenic woods, spoilt only slightly by a few minor things like no hot water, but with the heat this really was not a problem.




A bit out of the way and a tad difficult to find was the Cueva de Los Portales - the HQ of the Western revolutionary army under the leadership of Che Guuevara during the 1962 Missile Crisis. This is now part of a campsite. Whilst we were there I guess this was the hottest day of the trip.


Finally we headed out to the Playas Del Este - just a few miles east of Havana where the 10 miles of beach were fabulous and as it was Sunday there were lots of local people from Havana.