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Outside of our building, we met an Afro-Cuban man who was very nice to not only point us in the right direction (not hustling us), but walked and chatted with Guildia more about where she is from (Guatemala), where myself (New York) and Farah (Haiti) were from, and learning more about black people being in other countries. Nice gentleman, who realized after showing us available spots to eat, he had to go to continue with his day of selling whatever products he had for sale.
We end up getting the basic breakfast sandwich, where the bread itself is flat on the bottom, round on the top, and shaped in a circle. We each had ours cooked with an egg, with what ever toppings we liked. For all 3, we paid 5CUC. We were too hyped about finding this deal. Felt like we hit the jackpot as well as, the information my brother told me prior about affordable food, was finally found (he was in Cuba in November and speaks fluent Spanish). Looking at the pricing on the board, we actually pulled out all this cash, and she only took 5CUC. I’ll explain in my next post, what was really going on. We were also fortunate to get an egg on our sandwhich's, as there was a mandatory rule put in place by the government that restricted/limited the sale of chicken and eggs due to the damage done by Hurricane Irma. To get the supply back up, more chickens needed to be hatched, to create more chicken and eggs for consumption. Kinda scary!
When we returned to our building to wait to be picked up, our tour guide was already there! Early no less. His name was Ernesto and he was only 29 I believe. His driver did not speak English, so luckily he had Ernesto to translate everything for him. We set out on our tour!
How close I had my GoPro to my forehead cracks me up everytime! Sigh!
Now, solely because I cannot remember the name of the location for most of the places we visited, enjoy the photos taken 😂. Those I can remember, have a caption attached. So much to take in!
There is so much history in Cuba. I mean from its origin, to its capture and release, to how it became a Latin island, to the beef they had with the US, to seeing parts of history that were kept on display to let visitors know that if they “don’t start none, wont be none”, to hearing stories about the famous figures that once lived on the island. Fascinating. Please note, that is just the history that is in Havana alone. Can you imagine the other parts of Cuba?
We stopped by the Havana Rainforest. It is not what we would call a rainforest however, this is how its referred to. It is more of a park, however, not a place where you can easily walk through and sit and relax. As beautiful as it may appear, sadly it has been polluted. The river that runs through, used to be a source of drinking water however, due pollution by the local people, the water is not even safe to be in. The scenery however, is beautiful.
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We continued our drive and we managed to pass a massive building. This building was huge, probably bigger, rather long and wide, compaired to the others that seemed like top secret, parliament esq type of buildings. It was the US Embassy.
We headed towards Chinatown, where there were not many Chinese people, and were told if we did see a few, more than likely they were tourists.
We suddenly make a stop, no idea where we were going. We enter inside and I was in my happy place again!
I was on a mission in particular, to get THE rum of Cuba, Santiago! WWHOOOO BABY! Apparently this rum has been the talk of every travel group I was apart of online, and even talked heavily by our tour guide. Unfortunately, there was none available. We later find out upon leaving Cuba, the liquor is in low supply, as the factory had not been producing as much. No one had it in stock😞. On the other side of the room, CIGARS!
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| From top to bottom, smoked by Fidel, Winston Churchill, Robina?, and Che Chavez. |
We were pooped. We needed to freshen up, upload what pictures we had to our clouds with the apartments WiFi, and head back out. It was only 1pm, we hadn’t eaten, and we decided to find food. We continued to walk through the neighborhood blocks, trying to find the spot that was suggested to us by our tour guide, named Adriana, where the locals go to eat and prices were super low. His directions were terrible and, as mentioned by previous visitors, most Cubans do not know where things are, or at least that’s the game played. There are no real street signs so, you have no idea where the hell you are! But we discovered an awesome hidden gem 5 blocks from our apartment, that clearly looked like it did not belong and was more of our style.
Glory to God, because we were burning up! Their Sangria had a unique twist in ingredients.
For what we received, it was a definite that we would return again. The service was phenomenal, and the Executive Chef himself came out to greet us as we were eating. A definite spot to visit again!
We end up going over our limited time, because we had to have at least 2 Sangria’s before our Drink Tour 😌. If you are with me, it’s only right! We headed to Old Havana, to meet our host for our 1st Airbnb Experience.
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| Andy |
What I realized was, the car tour drove us pass and around some of these places, and with Andy, we were now going to be IN some of these places, getting more detailed information. Please note, the price of this tour includes the drinks!Our first stop, the famous Floridita which is known for it's Daiquiri.
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| Ernest Hemingway, Lover of the Daquiri |
So fun fact, there is one in Harlem, NY. I am usually there for Mojitos. The owner I believe is Cuban, but the food has a more Dominican flare. Prior to the location it is at now, it used to be on 125th and Broadway. Back in that day, the food was the BOMB! Tasted like genuine Cuban food! No liquor was served however, their fresh squeezed juices, and Garlic chicken was to die for! At Floridita in Cuba, we were going to learn about the origination of the Daquiri, which was created in Daquiri, Cuba, a small village outside of Santiago, Cuba.
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| Yes, it is served in a Martini glass (for us in the US) |
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| Obispo Street |
Our next stop was for the famous, my fave fave FAAAVVVEEEE, Mojito. Chile! Even though we had this drink at another restaurant the night before, we did not get a history lesson. La Bodegita del Medio is packed, but we managed to get a small table on rooftop floor.
The energy was nice, or at least because I was already feeling nice😎 . Then a performance started.
Unlike the crappy one we got the night before (yup, still a hater and mad), this performance with this mans voice was phenomenal, no mic needed. The video I have, I wasn't close enough to capture the rich tone of his voice, that was loud and full, however, he sounded so good and had his CD for sale!
We pass more historical sites in Old Havana, where one set of buildings were from the 15th, 17th, 16th, and 18th Century!
Of course with some upkeep, still standing! We get more of a history lesson on the surrounding area. Cuba is a place you have to see in person! My photos and lack of description, does not do it any justice.
We finally make it to our last stop, Dos Hermanos, and have our last drink, the famous Cuba Libre (Rum and Coke).
Yes, this originated in Cuba, as well. We learn the origination of the drink, and how Coca Cola was later incorporated in the original beverage and its special ingredient. This spot was quiet and perfect for a wind down, since we had been moving all day, literally. This is also where we found out that Andy, does not drink! MAN! We were lit, and he was just smiling at how giggly we were, how Farah and I finished Guildia's drink, how we at this point, didn't care. We definitely enjoyed this tour.
We try to find a taxi leaving the bar, but that was a little tough. Then a man, with a woman in this sorta beat up work truck that may have been owned by a hotel in the past, asked us if we needed a ride. We told him where, asked how much, and in that moment we realized, we were risking it all for this ride for only 5CUC. HAHA! We got home safe.
After again, checking in, resting up at the apartment for a little, it is now time for dinner. We remembered the name of a second restaurant Ernesto referred to us. We had bike taxi's owned by a few Afro-Cuban fellas outside who, were helpful with since our arrival, so we said, lets support and take one. Yet again, we risk it all LOL. Once we arrive, Jose made it very clear, we were to not take another taxi back, he would be back for us in 1.5 hours.
We decide to continue to drink, of course! These Pina Coladas were scrumptuos.
I ordered the Garlic Chicken with Morro. Sadly, moving too fast and trying to upload pictures from my phone to my cloud, the pictures I had of my meal, were deleted by accident. SO MAD! Just know, all three of us, while eating, were all saying "mmmm, mmm, MMMMM". This food was so good. Flavorful, with plenty left over to enjoy again, at home. Their prices are really low and the portions are family style. We saw everyone leaving with to-go boxes.
The look of the restaurant was very clean, with an upscale feel in this part of Havana that again, had a run down look on the exterior. Wonderful place to eat, a definite must to return to. Please note, staff speaks limited English.
We exit and Jose and his boy were there waiting for us!
The plan was to nap and then go out to party. However, our nap, turned into deep sleep, with Guildia waking up at 2am realizing it's too late to go out. Before we knew it, it was time to wake up for our Afro-Cuban Religious tour.
If your interested in visiting any other parts of the world, and want to get booked (payment plan options available), along with further information, e-mail me at ChristinaCtravels@gmail.com
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