Tag Archives: holidays in Cuba

Ferry to Casa Blanca

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If you are walking down the “malecon” (coastal road fronting the sea wall)  in Havana toward the harbour and Bahia of La Habana, your eyes will be drawn to the lighthouse (faro) standing proud on the cliff edge protecting one of Cuba’s spectacular natural harbours, the bay of Havana!  The lighthouse stands on the end of a promontory strongly fortified with huge walls and battlements, built by the Spanish Conquistadors to defend the city against pirates and other bounty seeking invaders. Opposite stands the old city of Havana, once a jewel of the Caribbean!

A road tunnel now links Havana to the other side of the bay, but locals who live in Casa Blanca (a community on the other side) make the crossing to and fro on the ferry to get to work and school. If you like boat trips then the ferry to Casa Blanca will be one you’ll enjoy, and once there you can walk up the hill to the statue of Blanco Cristo (White Christ) and enjoy the view.

The ferry has a vauge time table…. It starts running around 6.30 to 7am and stops around 9.30 to 10pm and the crossing takes about 5 minutes.

Once you have located the pier, which is opposite the new Russian Orthodox Church you will need to go through the police check point and join the queue which is undercover on the pier. The police will want to look inside your bags and require men to empty their pockets and maybe even do a body search!!!  All a bit strict for a short ferry crossing you might think??

Well NO! In fact two or three ferries have been hijacked and sailed with all their passengers to foreign shores, namely the USA, where all Cubans are welcomed with open arms and helped to settle in! Another victory for the capitalists!!

The story of one famous hijack is worth repeating!

One day as the ferry left Casa Blanca to cross the bay a whole bunch of people boarded in party spirit.  Through the police check with their crates of beer, bottles of rum, pots of food and snacks, tambores, maracas, guitaras, singing,  dancing, laughing & joking. Men, women, children, adolescents, babies etc a big family outing!  You get the picture!! An outing with a surprise! Half way across the bay the ferry turned left and headed out to sea, party still in full swing!! This change of route was noticed by the security police on the pier who notified the coast guard. The coast guard was not quick off the mark as they thought something on the lines of..“well the ferry has hardly any fuel they won’t get far!” How wrong they were! This had been well planned. The crates of beer were full but the bottles were full of fuel not beer and so the ferry partied on to Miami!!!

So if you still want to chance the crossing, join the queue in the line marked Casa Blanca and when the ferry appears pay your peso to the official and jump on board!

The price you pay for the ferry is one peso moneda nacional MN (not tourist money CUC) and before you start thinking this is very cheap, please remember that an average Cuban monthly salary is $20 to $40 US so that is only 500 to 1,000 pesos MN.

Once on the ferry find a safe place to stand and hang on! Bicycles and other small cargo are allowed at no extra cost provided there is space. The journey is pretty smooth and eventless normally but you might want to take note of where they keep the life jackets!

Exit the ferry and the ferry terminal at Casa Blanca and ahead of you a road leads up through a small park onto a road that leads to the statue of Jesus Blanco. For the last few months he has been encased in scaffolding but there is a view point worth reaching and the walk up takes about 10 to 15 minutes from the pier.

Proceedure for the return ferry is exactly the same but if you don’t fancy it or are in a hurry you can always catch a taxi and return by the tunnel. If you have lots of time to spare then why not head up to the lighthouse or visit the old fort which is open to visitors for aprox. 10CUC

It’s a lovely view over the old city and the bay is cleaner now than it used to be before the iron curtain fell and cut of the plentifull trade from this once thriving port!

If you fancy a trip to Cuba and want some company why not join one of our small group tours. No more than 8 in a group with a dedicated tour leader throughout. Read more on our tours pages.

For a short tour try “Cuban Snapshot”
https://encompasstours.com/tours/a-cuban-snapshot-7-days/

If you have more time then “Mi Cubita” covers two weeks
https://encompasstours.com/tours/mi-cubita-cuba14-days/

Read more about Cuba in our news posts.

San Lazaro

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Cuba’s Favourite Saint

Catholicism came to Cuba with the original Spanish Conquistadors in the 16th century and despite efforts to ban religions of all kinds following the revolution of 1959, it remains outwardly the dominant religion of the day. The churches have all reopened and been repaired, the pope has visited twice giving Cubans his blessing, and people are able to freely practice their chosen religion without fear of persecution.

“Santaria” is the name given to the Cuban form of the African religions brought over with the slaves from West Africa. Cuban life is steeped in the beliefs of Santaria which has always managed to survive underground practiced by people in the worst conditions imaginable who gained from it their strength to survive. Although it is now recognised as a religion in its own right and openly practised it is so ingrained into the beliefs and culture of the island that it adopts and transforms the Catholic saints and embodies them with its own deities, and vice versa in a sort of symbiotic relationship!!

The saint most celebrated in Cuba is San Lazaro! He was the poorest of the poor. He ate the scraps from under the tables and even the dogs licked his sores, so the stories tell us. He was famously raised from the dead by Jesus and himself became a saint.

Who can not feel sorry for San Lazaro? He is the saint for whom so many Cubans feel a great sense of empathy.

San Lazaro has a dedicated following in Cuba his Sanatrian self is “Babalu Aye” (ref Rough Guide to Cuba)

December 17th is his saint day and the preceding day, December 16th, is the day of peregrination. The devotees begin their dedications and demonstrations of self sacrifice in Santiago de las Vegas and culminate their 5 to 6 kilometre journey at the Sanctuary of his name adjacent to and in the grounds of the old Hospital on the out skirts of El Rincon, a suburb of Havana.

They are a conspicuous procession, dressed in dirty old clothes or tunics made from old sacks for the occasion. Barefoot or with special rope shoes if not on their knees, some even spread-eagle themselves on the ground face down on the earth. They might carry wooden crosses or other burdens and slowly painfully make their procession to the feet of their saint. On reaching the Sanctuary they make their pledges and promises in return for cures received or hoped for, for themselves, for relatives or friends. Many also renew their promises to fulfil pre existing devotional pacts with San Lazaro for favours done and cures received.

On the streets of Havana there are many devotees who walk the streets carrying small statues of San Lazaro and collecting money for Cuba’s favourite saint!

Join us on one of our tours!

If you have only one week try “A Cuban Snapshot”
https://encompasstours.com/tours/a-cuban-snapshot-7-days/

For those with more time to spare try “Mi Cubita”
https://encompasstours.com/tours/mi-cubita-cuba14-days/

Humboldt’s Cuban Footprint

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Alejandro von Humboldt in Cuba (“the last man who knew everything”)

Alexander von Humboldt (born in Berlin Sept. 14, 1769 — died in Berlin May 6, 1859) visited Cuba for only a few months on two occasions during his many years exploring and researching South America with Aimé Bonpland, a French born botanist. His short visits have left a large footprint on the island, and his writing there have shaped and influenced many thinkers, leaders and scientists the world over.

If you are in old Havana you can visit a house where he stayed in Calle de los Oficios. It has a bronze plaque dedicated to his memory to the left of the main entrance, and another one with his portrait in relief. There is not a lot to see in the small museum house but, it is more than anything a tribute to a man who was an energetic and tireless collector, thinker, scientist, botanist, humanist, educator, philanthropist, explorer and more! He funded much of his own expeditions and died somewhat hard up due to his philanthropic activities, always keen to help young penniless students in the fields he love and made such significant contributions to.

He was undoubtedly the influence for the works of Charles Darwin who described him in a letter to a friend as “greatest scientific traveller who ever lived” Simon Bolivar who was responsible for the liberation of so many Spanish colonies, said of him “Alexander von Humboldt has done more for America than all its conquerors, he is the true discoverer of America.

While in Cuba Humboldt undertook scientific and social research with collaboration of Cuban landowner and thinker Francisco Arrango y Parreño. He visited regions around Havana as far as Trinidad and Matanzas. They conducted a survey of the city and surroundings and on his second visit he completed a mineralogical survey too.  He and his companion Aimé Bonpland made an extensive collection of Cuba’s flora and fauna, and in honour of Humboldt’s achievements and research carried out on behalf of Cuba a national park in the department of Baracoa has been dedicated to his name “The Alejandro Humboldt National Park”

Humboldt’s theory of life and the world was that “Nature herself is sublimely eloquent. The stars as they sparkle in firmament fill us with delight and ecstasy, and yet they all move in orbit marked out with mathematical precision”. He spent a large number of years writing up his findings and his theories of the sciences and the unity of the world we live in. He wrote an essay on the island of Cuba that was banned by the Spanish who felt threatened by it! It was called “Ensayo Politico sobre la isla de Cuba” and pointed great criticism at the inhumane  practice of slavery and all the injustices and corruption of thinking around its practice!

 

Humboldt was considered by Cubans as the second discoverer of the island and we can be thankful that the practice of slavery in Cuba was soon abolished. Carlos Manuel de Céspedes a landowner and lawyer declared all his slaves free men October 10, 1868 and became the catalyst for liberation from Spain and freedom for slaves in Cuba

If you would like to see Cuba and its beautiful flora and fauna, explore the old cities and rural towns, join us on a tour!

Learn more about Humboldt on BBC Radio 4 podcast with Melvyn Bragg http://www.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/series/iots/all#playepisode59

Why not book yourself onto one of our tours this year?

7 days tour “Cuban Snapshot”
https://encompasstours.com/tours/a-cuban-snapshot-7-days/

14 days tour “Mi Cubita”
https://encompasstours.com/tours/mi-cubita-cuba13-days/

Coffee Break Havana!!

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Coffee  Break al la Francia!

Its not VERY French but “Café Francesa” is the closest most Cubans have ever been to Paris! It’s a popular spot in a busy area and attracts an interesting mixture of clients!! Photos of the Eiffel Tower and other famous views of Paris in black and white are on display inside which is decorated in delicate shades of pink! !

On the covered terrace facing onto Parque Central, there are about ten tables and chairs and inside another five. The menu is not extensive, but you can buy basic sandwiches, and a good range of cakes, pastries, and bread to eat in or take away The coffee is normally good and the usual soft drinks, beers and spirits are available too.

Francia is located between Hotel Telegrafo and Hotel Inglaterra on Parque Central and is a very popular spot day and night where you can while away some time watching the world go by. The opening hours are 8am till midnight and due to its central location in the Hotel zone of old Havana where all tourist pass through, the colourful ladies and independent businessmen it attracts for commercial opportunities and meetings is apparent!

You won’t hear any French music, but the outdoor group playing daily at Hotel Iglaterra  always  provides a nice background of Cuban popular tunes.

 

Want to see for your self?

Join us on tour in October!

https://encompasstours.com/tours/a-cuban-snapshot-7-days/

The sweetest sugar in the world!

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Guarapo Frio!

Celia Cruz was not the only Cuban to cry “Azucar” with delight and eager anticipation, but she put the island on the map for many people!

“Azucar” or sugar, is and has been the life blood of the island and an essential ingredient without which Cubans could not survive!

Life is sweet in Cuba and coffee comes automatically sweet…”Sin azucar???” (without sugar) you must be crazy!

The plantations of sugar cane are now much reduced from their peak following the revolution of 1959 when vast areas of land were cut and burnt to boost crops and foreign income. Sugar prices were high as was demand, but markets fluctuate and during the last three decades Cuban sugar industry has all but disappeared! Many of the the “centrales” or sugar refineries, have been closed down or even pulled down, and in some cases only the elegant tall chimneys remain. Workers have had to move on to other industries, and communities have shrunk or moved away. The trains too that were so important for the transportation to the ports are mainly to be found in the museums or abandoned and rusting at the end of the line!

Home consumption of sugar will always be  high as Cubans have a very sweet tooth, and one way of getting your sugar hit for the day is a delicious cup of “Gurapo Frio” cold sugar juice!

Kiosks selling Guarapo are popular all over Cuba and the juice couldn’t be fresher!  A stack of recently cut cane is piled ready and you can watch the machine as it crushes and squeezes the sweet sticky liquids from the stalks. It’s comes trickling out a light brownish colour and is collected in a bucket as it runs from the rollers.

Next a block of ice is pulverised in your mug and the liquid poured over!  Its quite frothy, very sweet and will give you a huge energy rush! Cubans love it!! On a boiling hot summer day what could be better mid morning!!

Holidays to Cuba available now!

“Mi Cubita” 14 days tour
https://encompasstours.com/tours/mi-cubita-cuba14-days/

“Cuban Snapshot” 7 days tour
https://encompasstours.com/tours/a-cuban-snapshot-7-days/

For the sounds of Celia singing “Azucar Negra” you tube link below!  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fCSAHyvslhU&feature=related