Cuba is a magical land where you slip a few decades back, and time slows down. Time to relax, time to drink a few rums & smoke a cigar. Beach life & farm life are the casual norm – and why wouldn’t they be with epic Caribbean beaches & beautiful mountain backdrops over well groomed tobacco farms. “¿Taxi Amigo?” hustlers soon get drowned out by the awesome old cars or horse & (rugged) carts that shimmy by. Oh & the breakfasts/dinners – massive servings & pretty yum!
Old town in Havana was a hit, lots of Cuban Casa life, cars & street culture to soak in. Trinidad was a smaller version of Havana with more farm life influence. Beaches to die for. Viñales was even more farmy. Highlight: a visit to a tobacco farm meant dropping by the drying hut where a farmer would roll you up one of their finest cigars with a seal of honey & shot of rum to see you out (video to come).
No Internet was incredible (dialup in very few places for 9USD / 40mins). Strange at first, then really nice. Its amazing how much non living in the moment / surroundings that happens when you have an iPhone / Internet. Refreshing. Its true that you don’t need it all the time. Something to try & maintain once a month in the “real world”.
Coffee life was simple but a staple in Cuban culture. Espresso or perk with heaps of sugar – perhaps masking the often bitter (rubbish) coffee. A lot of (tobacco / fruit / vege) farmers grew a few coffee plants for their own personal consumption. Awesome. Didn’t make it east to the coffee plantations, saving this for COE (Cup of Excellence) farms in Guatemala / Mexico. Head over to espressocorp.com for more info / photos on coffee.
A few photos of our trip.
