Captivating Cuba

Hello! I can't believe its November already! This year seems to have flown past, and it only seems like yesterday that I was saying 'I can't believe it's November already!' ... last year!

Anyhow, it got me thinking about this time a few years ago when I was in Havana myself for a much-needed break. It is my favourite time of the year in Cuba. Hotels and business are quieter than summer and the island has a different feel to it. But in November there is one amazing event that turns Havana into a massive race track and brings people from all over the world. It's called the Marabana and it's Cuba's answer to the New York Marathon! It actually finishes off a week of athletic events that take place in Havana, but the race itself, held on the third Sunday of every November for the past twenty years, is the main attraction.

Picture flickr - Josiah McKenzie

Over a thousand people from all different levels compete every year. Some are professional international runners, but some are just are normal everyday people, who come from all over Cuba to take part. It has been said that it's not the destination, but the journey itself which makes the Marabana so special. I have to agree. There is so much camaraderie between the runners and even language is not a barrier. There are also a lot of handicapped competitors who take part, and it is a really wonderful sight to see the able-bodied helping them out too. Anyhow, as I was there at the right time a few years ago, I decided it would be an amazing thing to do and so me and my friends signed up for the race!

It honestly has to be one of the best experiences I have ever had. There is such a buzz in the city as everyone gathers to begin. The race starts and finishes in the Old Town but you don't have to complete the full 21km as there is also a half marathon route. The circuit takes you through the streets of Havana and past many well-known sights of Cuba. Hotels and businesses right on the circuit provide 'pit stops' with loads of volunteers giving out oranges and water. I felt like I was on a high-speed tour of Havana, with all the familiar and famous sights flashing by me as I whizzed past! Well, jogged anyhow! We also ran along the sea wall of Havana ' the Malecon ' which has some amazing views and gave us an opportunity to catch a cool breeze too.

Picture flickr - neijs

I managed to complete the half circuit (no records broken I'm afraid!) although at times I wasn't sure my legs would hold out. I felt like I'd run right around Cuba! Hotels, hot showers and beds were the order of the day for me and my friends! Next time my goal is to return fit enough to complete the entire marathon.

The best moment came at the end of the race as people were crossing the finish line. Many of the foreign runners took off their shoes and gave them to the Cuban locals who had run the entire course barefoot. It's turned into a tradition for them to do this and it was such a lovely sight it really made me proud. And even though it meant handing over my favourite trainers - I too became a part of the wonderful tradition of the Marabana.

Till next time
Peter

posted at: 11:55 | path: /peter | permanent link to this entry | 0 comments

Hello again! Every time I go to Cuba I get loads of people asking me to bring them back some cigars for their dad or themselves! Personally I don't smoke, but I have to admit even I have a sneaky one when I'm in Havana. In Cuba, hotels have both smoking and non-smoking rooms, but it's almost a tradition to find an authentic old bar down a side street of the city and indulge in a Mojito and one of Cuba's finest hand rolled cigars.

Whether you're a smoker or not though, I highly recommend a visit to one of the cigar factories in Havana. I've been to the Partagas one a few times and it is an amazing place to visit. Built in 1845, it is the oldest one in Havana. It is housed in an impressive old Colonial style building and I just love the moment when you walk in, because the aroma of the tobacco is so sweet and strong. It really hits you, and the scent will remain with you even when you've returned to your hotel. Cuba's cigars are world-famous and although I'm no connoisseur I think they smell the best in the world!

You can take a guided tour of the factory, they are really well organised with guides speaking all different languages. Absolutely every thing is done by hand. Some workers are weighing the tobacco, some counting and sorting all the wrapper leaves and then there is the actual rolling of the cigar and the sticking on of each individual cigar label. Even though there are 700 workers in the factory, it is still amazing to think that over 25,000 cigars are produced every day! Cigar rolling is quite an art and part of the factory is devoted to a training workshop to teach new rollers their craft.

There is one tradition in the factory which I really love. There is someone called the Tobacco Reader, and their job is to read aloud to the workers everyday! He reads the newspapers, books and anything else of interest. The workers love it - especially when he gets to the sports pages! If you feel inspired to stock up before you head back to your hotel, Cuba's most famous export is available for sale from the factory store. Although they aren't cheap, once you have seen the process you can understand why. Cigar smoking is definitely not everyone's cup of tea, but I think that when in Cuba you should definitely give it a try!

Talk soon
Peter

posted at: 11:45 | path: /peter | permanent link to this entry | 0 comments

Hi there. Not everyone who first goes to Cuba knows it was the adopted home of one of the most famous writers of our time - Ernest Hemmingway. But once they get to Havana it soon becomes obvious! There are lots of tributes around the city pointing out his favourite haunts and points of interest relating to him. As I have always been a huge fan, one of the things I really wanted to do when I was there was to visit his former house - which is now a museum.

It is a little out of the way being about 15 km out of town, but it will only take about half an hour to get their from your Havana hotel. It is known as Finca Vigia which apparently is Spanish for 'Lookout Farm' and you can see why, because the views are really spectacular. The house is set in lovely gardens and has a really calm and relaxing aura about it. Although he visited Cuba for many years beforehand, Hemmingway also lived here permanently for over twenty years. It is easy to see why he loved it so much and how he drew such inspiration from his surroundings.

Inside the house, although it is called a museum, it's not set out like you would normally expect a museum to be. It is really just preserved as a residence, exactly how it would have been when he lived there with his wife. All the original furnishings are intact and the house contains around 9000 books from Hemmingway's personal collection. Most of them are now in reasonable condition even though, before a huge restoration project in the last few years, many valuable papers and books were lost due to the humidity. There are also around 3000 photographs throughout the house, either of Hemmingway, or ones that he took himself.

The Cubans really adopted the author as one of their own, even giving him the affectionate nickname 'Ernesto'. And he loved them just as much and his affection for the people as well as the country itself shows in many of his most famous novels - especially 'The Old Man and the Sea'. Inside the house, you can go into his study and see the typewriter on which he created all his famous work, and as you look out the window onto the fabulous views, it's almost possible to imagine that you could create a masterpiece from here too!

All in all, the Ernest Hemmingway Museum is a fantastic insight into this great man, and well worth a visit to learn about one of the most famous residents of Cuba. Hotel staff can organise a lift there for you even if you aren't a fan yet - you will be once you leave!

Til next time

Peter

posted at: 12:12 | path: /peter | permanent link to this entry | 0 comments

Hi Everyone,

Preparations are hotting-up for the Havana Carnival.

It's a time when the rhythm of the dance echoes through the crowds and along Havana's streets. It makes the weekends in Havana an exciting time!

The processions begin as if it were a race, waiting for a gunshot that comes from the San Pedro de Cabana fortress. Then the dancers set off in formation, dancing to both modern and traditional music, and showing off their amazing, colourful costumes.

Image by sfmission

But more than colour, there are flashing lights at the festival, too. The dancers are called faroleros, and they have lamps that they spin as they move through the streets, lighting up Havana as they dance.

A good place to see the Carnival is El Malecon. The Malecon is the name given in Latin America to a street that runs along the shore of a big city. In Havana this paved street runs for four miles along the seawall from Old Havana to the Almendares district, and the procession runs along this street before spreading through the city.

Image by sfmission

Every neighbourhood will want to put on the best routine and have the brightest outfits, and will practise for weeks to be the best. As well as dancers, there are giant puppets that join the procession. They are called Munecones, and they are often grotesques with funny features that make a strange sight dancing down the street with the parade.

There are fireworks at the end of the procession, and the street parties may go on all night. Of course, there is plenty of food and drink for the throngs of spectators in the streets - lots of beer and rum to share!

The Havana Carnival takes place every weekend in August, so it's a great time to take a Cuba Holiday, especially if you like to dance the conga.

Happy dancing!

Peter

posted at: 10:09 | path: /peter | permanent link to this entry | 0 comments

Hi,

Friends of mine know how much I love to explore so it seemed rather apt that on my last trip to Cuba I got to experience a part of the island which isn't usually visited by tourists, Baracoa.

Perhaps the reason that this place is not usually seen is because it is so impossible to get too; in fact until 1964 it could only be reached by the sea making it one of the most remote places in Cuba. However, I'm not the only explorer that likes to visit the Baracoa region; Columbus discovered this land in 1492 and instantly declared it to be the most beautiful land that he had ever seen. However, it was one of the more unusual stories of this region that prompted my visit.

Five centuries after Columbus had first landed on the shores of Baracoa, Che Guevara opened a chocolate factory in the region. The chocolate factory known as Duaba Farm is still functioning to date and I decided that it was definitely worth a visit on my next Cuba holiday. The small farm not only produces cocoa which is imported out to all the major chocolate factories in Switzerland, but is also a great place to sample the local coffee and fruits of the region including coconut, mango and bananas.

Duaba Farm has its own local cafeteria, which serves delectable food, such as deserts using the farms own pineapples and honey. The deserts may have been incredible, but I definitely made sure that I had enough room left in my stomach to try some of Che Guevara's legendary chocolate.

Before the taste test I was luckily enough to join a group of Canadian tourists and watch the entire process of how the fruit of the cacao plant is made into chocolate. The process was time-consuming but in the same measure equally fascinating and by the end of the demonstration I could hardly wait any longer to try the chocolate, but luckily the chocolate was well worth the wait. Its high cocoa content and rich flavour set it apart from many well-known brands of chocolate and Jasna definitely agreed with me, wolfing down the small bar that I'd brought her from the gift shop in seconds! Now she's decided that she wants to visit the Duaba Farm on her next Cuba holiday!

Peter

posted at: 16:11 | path: /peter | permanent link to this entry | 0 comments