Cuba 2017

Our family vacation in 2017 was to Cuba. We were there for 15 days and spent time in Havana, Vinales, Playa Larga, Santa Clara, and Trinidad -- and that's only like 1/2 the island! Guess we'll have to go back again someday! It was a lot of fun - vivid, lush, colors, beautiful music, rich history, and extremely friendly people.  Most of the photos that we took were of the landscape so there aren't a lot of me but here are a few from the trip.

Leaving from the St. Louis airport.

We stayed in AirBnB's the whole time we were in Cuba, which is pretty standard. For about $3-5 extra you could have breakfast in most places. Here's me eating my first Cuban breakfast in Havana. Let's just say that I was not a big fan of breakfast foods in Cuba.

After we arrived in Cuba, we spent the first day and night in Havana. We had pre-arranged a taxi colectivos (a shared taxi) to take us to Vinales, which is about a 3 hour drive. All the taxi colectivos are those old American or Soviet 1950s or 60s cars so it was kinda cool to get to ride in one of those, until it was so jammed packed full of people and luggage!  

On our first night in Vinales, Cuba we had dinner on the rooftop of our AirBnB.  

We also took a horse carriage ride through the Valle de Vinales. The Valle de Vinales is known for its farmland, especially for its coffee and tobacco fields/plantations. You can see the Sierra de los Organos and mogotes behind me in the photo. We toured a traditional farming methods, a tobacco farm (where we learned how tobacco is grown and cigars are made), and saw the Mural of Prehistory.  

One afternoon we went to scenic Los Jazmines Hotel to go swimming.  

After a few days in Vinales, we took another taxi colectivos to Playa Larga. Playa Larga is at the head of the Bahia de Cochinos, or as we say in English, Bay of Pigs. My Mom is a History teacher so it was super important to her that we stop here. In fact, this whole trip was super important to her.

Our beachfront AirBnB while we were in Playa Larga.

Me, at Playa Larga on the Bahia de Cochinos (Bay of Pigs) 

Me, at Playa Larga on the Bahia de Cochinos (Bay of Pigs) taking pictures.

Selfies

For the third leg of the trip, we went to Trinidad. The AirBnB that we stayed in here had a second story rooftop porch for relaxing and dining. It also had a 3rd story pigeon aviary where the family kept homing pigeons that they released everyday. Me and Dad are descending the staircase, here, after having spent some time looking at the pigeons.   

Sugar plantations were once a major cash crop in Trinidad so there are plenty of things sugar-related to visit in the area - historic mills, plantations, missions, and other things related to the sugar industry. Here I am posing in the bell tower at the Manaca-Iznaga Sugar Plantation and Mill. It was really high up and it was really windy as you can see. 

We also went the this sugar museum near the Manaca-Iznaga Sugar Plantation and Mill. Our guide was telling us about Cuba's role in the history of sugar. He was also showing us this sugar cane that still grew on the property. 

We did so many things in and around Havana, Vinales, Playa Larga, and Trinidad that aren't shown in the photos here. My Mom took almost 1000 photos! But, mostly not of us so you'll just have to trust me when I tell you that it really was such a fun trip! So, so, so many great memories.