New York New York

/ brisbanefrannie / 4 Comments

The words of the Frank Sinatra song sums up New York.

“Start spreading the news. I want to be a part of it…..”

New York is without a doubt a fabulous city. This time my visit here is different. Not just a tourist, I’m here to visit my son and his new wife and a group of fabulous swim trek friends.

We arrived very late after delayed flights from Havana to Miami and Miami on to here. So we knew it was too late to have dinner with Rob & Jordan.

Our air bnb in Charles Street West Village is in a perfect spot. It’s in a pretty little street between 6th & 7th which is in the heart of the West Village. It a good air bnb but not perfect! No washing machine and for me, not enough light or places to hang things.

I’ve started to become quite an expert on what the perfect air bnb should have. But it is NY and though it’s small it’s well located and no mountain of stairs to climb.

When we entered, there on the table near the door was a framed photo with a note. It was from Rob and was a photo of me looking up at him. Happy Mother’s Day the note said.

Needless to say I got teary.

We headed off the next morning for the FDR memorial.

I’ve never been to Roosevelt Island – in fact I didn’t really know about it. It’s an island in the river across from the United Nations building which is next door to Lynn and Lois’ apartments.

We got the cable car/ tram across river and walked along the river front.

Lois told us the history of the island. It was called Welfare Island and was home to the sick and destitute.

We passed an old hospital- no longer used but so lovely.

Lois filling us in on Louis Kahn the architect who designed the memorial to Roosevelt but died before it was started.

Lois, a landscape architect , was one of 5 women out of 500 students, taught by Kahn. She found that glass ceiling.

Photo: Lois,Betty, Steve, Bill, Lexie, me and Barry.

We walked along the paths towards the point of the island. Like a ships prow.

It’s so good being back with the group we met in Galapagos. Betty from LA, Lexie from Mexico City, Bill from London, Barry from Toronto and Steve & I.

We puttered along after the memorial and took the sky tram back to the mainland for lunch at Moonlight on 59th street. a typical NY diner – a bit upmarket and great lunch food.

Then for some speed shopping.

Why is it that men can shop so quickly ? In about half an hour Steve bought 4 pairs of pants and 2 beautiful Ralph Lauren jackets and a belt! He headed home and I went shopping for myself.

I had about an hour, got locked out of dressing room and bought one pair of black pants and had very tired feet.

Finally caught up with Rob & Jordan after they finished work.

WWe headed up to Lynn Sherr’s apartment near to the UN building opposite Roosevelt island where we’d been this morning.

The apartment on the 16th floor is amazing and the rooftop had the most fabulous views.

The swim group were all there and we had the most wonderful fun night.

Beautiful food, great company and so many laughs. Very special.

Trinidad. Cuba. Let’s Salsa!

/ brisbanefrannie / 4 Comments

Arriving in Trinidad was a different experience. It’s a cobbled city. Quite small with lots of coloured houses which gives a festive feeling.

It was raining when we arrived. The hot days are often punctuated with a downpour that lasts an hour or so.

It gave us a chance to check in and have a little rest.

The house we are in is on a street with lots of painted houses and some have a sign outside indicating they are a casa particular. They rent rooms to tourists. It makes such a difference to the lives of the people – making an income to supplement their government wage. Salaries are so low here. The owner of our house is an engineer who was paid 28CUC (about $28 a month). Renting a room, he can make about 20-30 CUC a night.

Our owner Reginald pulled out all stops in decorating our rooms. Ours is a beautiful blue and Marg’s is pink.

When the rain stopped we headed out to the cobbled streets walking towards the main square (and wifi spot!) it’s quite a busy little town and is known for its salsa clubs. Can’t wait to visit one!

We passed a few craft markets seeing things of a Cuba style. I just had to buy a bell for my collection.

We saw the Trinidad equivalent to the Spanish Steps. It was littered with people (mostly young people) on their iPhones taking advantage of the wifi.

Alex guided us around the town pointing out the best bars and coffee places.

We ended up for dinner on a roof top in another casa particular. It was a feast with far too much food. Simple cooking but nice ingredients. So far we’ve been fortunate to have Alex point out the best places to eat. The Government run restaurants look quite ok but are not good to eat at (according to our guide).

Walking back to our casa stumbling over the cobbles, we called into few craft places and I bought some cute ceramic earrings.

It couldn’t be the end of the night without a rum drink so as our casa also had a bar (in the kitchen!) we ordered a pina colada to enjoy before bed. It came with something pink floating on the top and was heavily laced with rum. Sleep came easily.

Today we headed to the beach. White sand clean water. Mojito.

Now we’re exploring the cobbled street of Trinidad and getting ready for salsa tonight.

A great dinner in a restaurant Alec suggested then off to salsa.

Some hot moves on the dance floor. There were a couple of men there to dance with the ‘lady tourists’ for tips I take it. Everyone seemed to be having a great time.

There was one girl. Turns out she was from Sweden and she was mesmerising to watch. She swayed and swung her hips. Her hands rotated above her head and we were entranced. Another had a lesson with a big guy with white trouser who swivelled those hips! We thought we’d like to have a go but thought we needed another lesson or 6!

Sorry. Photos hard to load!

Fantastic Fusterlandia

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I love discovering places a little off the radar.

Our guide Alex suggested a place called Fusterlandia. What is it you ask?

It’s a ‘Gaudi ‘ style creation.

It’s a street , a park, an area. And if it stands still it’s covered in mosaic tiles.

Needless to say I loved it. I love mosaics and this is mosaics in the community.

Our lovely taxi driver knew about it and drove us there, told us about it and then waited for an hour or so while we explored. It cost about 40 CUC for his time and well worth it.

Leon the driver was a great character and was so friendly and helpful.

The local kids were playing on the chairs scattered along the street!

It really 2 streets with a park and some walls around an oval each house has decorated their own fence or house.

It’s quirky, it’s fun, it’s communal.

I think all communities could embrace something fun like this. The more entrepreneurial people had set up little craft or food stalls.

Some of the walls were devoted to other Latin American countries. So creative.

The art works we’re great.

And the cars matched the fun.

Later that evening our visit to the Fabrica de Arte was not so successful. Despite enquiries we got there and it’s closed till June. Never mind. No art no party salsa 💃🏻 tonight. So we had a lovely dinner before returning to the old town walking around and enjoying the lighting on some fabulous buildings. And dropping into the hotel Floridita. Hemingway’s drinking bar. We’d seen it on the movie we watched on the bus. So we drank a final Pina Colada and salsa – ed our way home. We were slightly disappointed there wasn’t salsa in every open plaza : square. That would have been fun!

Che Day

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Today it was all about Ernesto Guevara. Or Che as he has become.

Our hotel last night was great and we had a lovely breakfast in the dining room. A smooth Alex arrived and gave is the run down on today’s activities.

We were to drive to Santa Clara about an hour away, but before that we visited the town plaza. Around a central garden stand some very grand colonial buildings. They are painted in different pastel colours and have colanades running along them which is handy in the hot sun.

We went into the arts co operative and loved the various arts and crafts. So bright and happy. Cuba certainly is colourful.

Then we tried to climb the building on the edge of the square with a high tower and a look out. Only problem no one arrived at 10 am to open up!

Next up was the theatre. It’s a really lovely building built by a wealthy sugar farmer back in the 1890’s. It’s still used for performance each weekend and us open to view for $5.

Unfortunately it’s been subject to the same decay that so buildings have been in Cuba. There hasn’t been the money to pay for restoration. So even though the whole square is Unesco listed they are in bad condition.

Last stop was the church. Very plain and in need of paint.

Paint can be hard to get apparently. Alex has bought an apartment with his wife and is trying to do it up. He can’t find any paint. He’s got the money but there just aren’t the supplies readily available.

Victor arrived with the bus and we got on for the hour long ride to the Che Guevara memorial. During the hour we watched a documentary on his life. He was certainly charismatic and driven and in the minds of the Cuban people he would be forever young.

In my opinion he seemed attracted not just by the cause and helping people overcome dictators but driven by the adventure.

We visited the museum and the memorial and it was quite moving.

Back in the bus we stopped next for lunch at a hotel. Quite attractive with a large empty pool.

Then it was across the mountains through sugar country to Trinidad.

The forms of transportation are varied – not many private cars, just taxis , tour bus, bikes and horse and cart.

This tower is not a church. It’s a tower that was used for watching slaves.

Until next time. Leave a comment!

sorry if the photos haven’t loaded. V slow internet.

Vinales to Bay of Pigs

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Vinales is a lovely quiet little town where the pace is slow, the people friendly and the food surprisingly good. We were told the food in Cuba was plain and rather ordinary and while it’s not Michelin standard so far it’s been fine.

Lots of rice yes! Last night we went to an eco restaurant on a hill on the outskirts of Vinales. All the food prepared for us was grown or raised on the farm.

We walked in the gardens – vegetable garden beds bursting with healthy plants and looked up at the house with breezy verandas.

The house faced the hills and the sun was just starting to set. It was quite beautiful.

The food started with a plantains and taro crisps & delicious vegetable soup then out came plates of roasted vegetable, chicken thighs, roast pork and shredded beef. Much more than we could eat!

We finished with creme brûlée and mint tea. No wine but we had a pina colada type drink with special herbs in it.

Today we left early, 8am and we knew it was going to be a long day as Alex planned a movie for us on the bus and Victor our driver was wearing a tie. Serious driving today.

We headed back in the direction of Havana and then in the direction of Giron and The Bay of Pigs. To give us some background Alex told us some history of the political life in Cuba including their heroes Fidel Castro, Che Guevara and what led up to the 3 day Bay of Pigs invasion by the Americans in 1961.

For a small country this is a big story. It is strategically placed only 90 miles from Miami and was wanted by Spain, America and Russia. Fidel led the revolution through the Baptista years. The country was crawling with Mafia types, communists and became a socialist country under Castro.

Then there was the ‘special period !’ In the 90’s when life for the Cubans became hard. It was anything but special. They were hard times. People were starving. Alex who is 34 said he remembers it well as there was so little food.

We arrived at the Bay of Pigs and had a swim. It was warm & tropical and lovely after sitting in the bus for several hours.

Next stop was the museum in Giron (passing Australia on the way)

to see the Cuban account of the Bay of Pigs invasion. Such a bad period of time.

We watched a short film and wondered what the American tourists would think.

There was a photo of JFKennedy who inherited the Cuba problem and didn’t seem keen to invade.

The Cubans are very pleased it wasn’t Trump in charge then!

We arrived at Cienfuegos and visited the former Palace. This small city is by the sea and in its former glory would have been lovely. The buildings are colonial style but many are in a state of disrepair.

We enjoyed our pina colada on the roof terrace before checking into the lovely old Union Hotel.

Tomorrow is Che day. All about that romantic political figure Che Guevara.

Wandering in Vinales

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We’re staying in a casa particular. A house owned by a local. We are in a little row of rooms at the back of Maria and her husband very modest house.

It’s a way the locals can make a little money. They set up a little bnb type of thing. Sometimes in their house or as in this case behind it. The owners pay the Government about 100CUC a month and can rent it for around 20-40CUC a night.

So the better ones would rent well.

Vinales is a small town in the Tobacco growing area a few hours from Havana. It’s in a Valley with Jurassic Park style mountains around. It’s popular with young people ( as Cuba is generally) who travel and who like to climb.

Our hosts gave us breakfast on their terrace and were so accommodating. Fruit, omelette & toast.

Then we set off to the Main Street with Alex to meet our local guide.Pero turned out to be a lovely, earnest former English teacher. We set out down one of the side street with Pero stopping every few minutes to point out the fruit trees or the plants growing in the gardens. Pero loves all things botanical.

We continued down the path passing colourful houses , oxen carts and locals riding horses.

We walked along the shaded country road until we reached the tobacco farm.

Pero explained the growing system, the type of leaves , the government control 90% of the crop goes to the Gov for a fairly low price. The farmer keeps the rest which he can the use to produce his own cigars but he can’t label them. So he can’t make too much money no matter how hard he works.

We heard about the drying, stripping, bundling and rolling. We moved into the barn to see leave hanging- for a year.

then into the house to meet Clara

and her husband who rolled us a cigar. What fun.

Then we were taught how to inhale and away we went.

I enjoyed the process as you can see here!

Now I’m recovering before our salsa class this afternoon.

After Salsa it was dinner at an eco restaurant. More later.

Internet hard!

Colourful Cuba

/ brisbanefrannie / 5 Comments

Waking up in a new place is always exciting especially when you didn’t get a chance to explore on the night of your arrival.

This morning Alex took us on a walking tour of old Havana. He managed to bring old Havana alive through the stories of the Spanish who came here in the late 1400’s, the people who influenced Cuban life, the beautiful buildings that are in such a state of decline, Ernest Hemingway and his Cuban years.

As we walked along the shaded streets he talked about the Americans, the Russians and those who have either occupied or tried to.

The buildings are beautiful- decorative and decaying but Alex explained that money is being put into restoration and in years to come they will be back to their former glory.

Obviously tourism is important here and although the tourism dollars are vital hopefully the numbers especially from cruise ships don’t ruin it.

We stopped for lunch and a mojito on a great roof top with a salsa band playing before making our way back to the bus for our trip to Vinales via the gardens at Soroa.

There are some colourful sights around the streets. I need a pocketful of 1 paeso CUC to pay for all the photos!

We saw a very soulful looking lady smoking a big cigar, a dapper gentleman with roses for the ladies, a band or two, a group of fun people on stilts and some lovely older locals selling fans.

Back on the bus we drove out from Havana along the waterfront before getting onto a road heading to the beautiful thick green forests. We also started to doze off as the afternoon rain came and the lunchtime mohito kicked in.

Next stop, in the rain were the gardens of Villa Soroa. Orchids, begonias, palms, so many plants familiar to us in Australia.

Back on the 24 seat bus for the 5 of us plus Alex and Victor our driver. So spoilt!

We watched a video on the making of the infamous cigars. Such a labour intensive process. I want to try one tomorrow when we visit the cigar making house near Vinales.

One last stop. A pina colada / pee stop! Yes. One of each.

Now listening to the Buena Vista Social Club with stars: the Albums called Buena rhythms del Mundi Vuba Sting, Jack Johnson, Vania Borges, Coldplay – its fun and getting us ready for some salsa dancing.

Our night was spent sipping Mojito and walking up and down the Main Street.

Such a quiet lovely place.

Tomorrow a visit to a tobacco plantation.

Can I smoke a cigar?

Farewell NOLA. Hello Cuba

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I find a travel day a mixture of boredom and frustration. Today it’s a bit of both.

It’s been smooth. Out of NOLA very early and it all went well. Into the lounge again so that was very welcome.

Then the 1hr flight to Cancun to transit to Havana. We arrived at terminal one, collected our bags then decided to not wait the 1/2 for a free bus to get us to terminal 2. We got a taxi at a $20 rip off cost! He told us we needed terminal 4! We arrived went inside and realised we were at the wrong terminal !

Once again we went out and I’m sure his ‘brother’ was waiting to get us again for another $20! This time we waited for the free shuttle.

So here we sit waiting for our Interjet flight to Havana. Let’s hope it’s smooth and our bags arrive!

Later……..

Our flight was delayed by about 1.5 Hr so we sat around then almost missed getting to the gate. A lovely young Australian guy came looking for us to tell us it was boarding – the board did not indicate boarding had started. It still said ‘delayed!’

Once on board it was a smooth 1 hr flight to Havana. The pilots here all take off in a hurry and land quickly with a bump ( yes there was clapping by appreciative flyers). But we and the luggage made it.

Then a little frustrating moment as our pick up contact from Peregrine tours wasn’t there. No board with our name in it! We waited and waited till s guy from another company said it might be better to take s taxi. So I had to line up to get money out from the atm.

There are two currencies here. The CUC which is more commonly used in tourism and the notes have pictures of buildings and monuments. And the CUP pesos which has pictures of people and is used by the locals particularly in markets and little shops. The trick is to tell the difference!

We took a taxi which took about 30 mins and cost 30 CUC.

We arrived at a large hotel. The Riveria by the water on the Malecon. It was built back in the late 1940’s by a Spanish company. It’s tired looking with large spaces, grand looking staircases, murals on the walls and a damp smell in the corridors and a wet concrete smell in the bedrooms. It adds a certain charm! Of a communist nature.

Our guide Alex is just lovely. Dark and handsome with a twinkle in his eye he will guide us around Cuba for the next 8 days.

He explained what would happen over the next few days whilst we caught up with John & Margaret Brannock and enjoyed our welcome drink.

Then we went off to withdraw some more CUC for our travels and into a restaurant just near the hotel.

We’d heard the food was pretty plain and not so good but I enjoyed my chicken with Cilantro sauce. We all had beer and enjoyed chatting to Alex about life in Havana.

Steve’s sister Marg arrives later tonight and we have an 8.30 start tomorrow.

On the way back to our hotel we posed in front of our first Havana car.