In Cuba Day 8

Just 3 days to go here in Cuba. Starting to study the charts and tides and to choose 

a weather window. This next leg is shaping up to be a tough sail.

Tonight I have been invited to dinner at the home of an English speaking guide that 

was taking us around to all the Paladar restaurants here in Havana.

I had a wonderful home cooked meal tonight of rice, beans & chicken, with my friend 

Andres & his family of seven. What a nice family.

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In Cuba Day 7

Another Westsail 32 called "Alaya" left for Mexico this morning with Mike on board. 

He bought his boat a year ago in Mississippi and repowered with a beta 38

Last night we all went out to a bowling alley and had a few hours of fun. Lots of 

locals were there even though it was a week night

Today I am planning a relaxing day. I haven't got any trips planned and I want to do 

a couple of boat chores in preparation for leaving next Tuesday

I did a run to the fruit and vegetable stall and I bought pineapples, tomatoes, 

cucumber, papaya, mango and vegetables for $6.

Several people have offered me money for my bike here and initially I was going to 

give it away to one of the security guards here who has to walk a long way to work 

every day but then I found out that I would have to pay duty on it for importing it & 

also I am not supposed to violate the terms of my 3300 agreement

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In Cuba Day 6

Today we caught a bus downtown to old Havana and walked around the streets 

taking photos and video clips of Cubans in the old ornate, concrete buildings

Another cruiser kindly fixed my genoa this morning. It had developed a tear in the 

center of the foot that I hand sewed and she machine sewed it. Thanks Joan!

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In Cuba Day 5

Today I went on a 3 hour drive in a 1950 ford down to the Bay of Pigs to go 

snorkeling. It was a good chance to see the flat, dry countryside.

Agriculture is very primitive with no irrigation, and machetes and horse drawn 

carriages in widespread use. Lots of avocado, guava and papaya orchards.

Fruit and vegetable street stalls are common here but sell only locally sourced 

seasonal produce. Needless to say that it is all organic and none imported.

I went with a fellow cruiser to purchase some Cuban cigars. He ended up buying a 

box of some top of the line Cohibas

A box of 25 for $80. A lot of Cubans do smoke but I have noticed that there doesn't 

appear to be an obesity problem here

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In Cuba Day 4

Today I abandoned the taxis and hopped on my bike to check out all the Paladar 

restaurants nearby. There were many "cafeteria" places that offered cheap food

These places were on street corners, often just a stall in front of someone's home. Prices 

were cheap, usually in paseos

it wasn't unusual to eat on a bench or under a verandah in front of a service window.

Yesterday seemed like a family day here. Homes in the afternoon had meals going on in 

verandahs and there were lots of people just going for a stroll

Cars here usually have more than one person in them and a lot of the time they are full. 

You would be hard pressed to find any cars with just the driver

Today I bought a mango that was the largest and sweetest I had ever seen for about 30 

cents. The street stall was under a mango tree with 100s of fruit on it

Paladar restaurants again all afternoon. This time they were only Cuban where payment 

was in paseos. Great food and friendly people.

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In Cuba Day 3

Yesterday we saw around about 15 more Paladars including some in old Havana. We also stopped for some delicious ice cream for less than 10 cents each.

More Paladar restaurants today. We ate lunch @ Artechef that produces cooking videos for television. Huge lobster, elegant, great service, peaceful and upscale

There is ten pin bowling not 20 yards from my boat so my crew and I visited it for a game last night around midnight. Lots of fun.

I went by Castro's home today, very near to the marina and as you would expect, the military presence is very prominent. I will go into this more in the USA.

Havana is very spread out. There are some high rises but most people have a concrete house with a garden where they grow fruits and vegetables.

Sunday is just another day here. I told the worker sanding my boat to take the day off along with my taxi driver and my interpreter and they all were surprised

Even though Cuba has been isolated, and as a result behind in many respects, they are way ahead in healthcare. A couple of cruisers had 1st hand experiences

One cruiser discovered blood in his urine & within an hour he had an MRI where they discovered a "growth" & he is due to fly out tomorrow 2 the USA for an op.

Music here is as up to date as in any country. Bars play the same hits that u would hear anywhere. Young people wear white "Beat" headphones from smartphones

Saw a Saturday baseball match this morning. Lots of spectators, brightly colored uniforms and energetic players. Soccer season has just finished.

I had expected busking on the street but live music seems to be confined. Lots of radio stations with great selection and quality.

Transportation here has almost a cult following. I have yet to see a single dent in a car and everyone knows each make, model and year.

We went to an open air auditorium where Castro made poor Cuban's stand for hours listening to him. I can see a difficult transition soon to a new leader

There is a special currency here called kooks that was meant for tourists but everyone uses it because the local peso currency is worthless & 2 bulky to carry

Streets are relatively clean with lots of workers but I have also noticed a lot of people who seem to be out of work on the streets in the middle of the day.

I just came back from listening to a live band at a nearby hotel and WOW!!!..... no karioke tricks here and mostly original music.

VERY talented singers, guitarists, drummers and superb trumpet player. Awesome experience! I was surprised that there were only a couple of couples dancing.

There were 3 guitarists at lunch yesterday that showed the same talent. Male Cuban's have beautiful singing voices.

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In Cuba Day 2

Communication is restricted here. A local sim card only allows email protocols. No html. Havana has just 20 wifi hotspots but no Skype and no satphone usage.

The local who is working on my caprails is doing a fantastic job. He scrapes first then his favorite tool is a heat gun, then orbital sander, then hand sanding

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