After 9 hours on the plane we finally got to Cayo Coco, Cuba where we would be for a fortnight in the resort Iberostar Hotel Daiquiri. The Cayos are islands just off mainland Cuba in which there are 9 hotels, 3 in Cayo Guillermo and 6 in Cayo Coco. The resort was fantastic and was more like a village with pools, shops and excellent food facilities. The only problem was that it was in the middle of no where so we decided to book a day excursion to Havana, the capital of Cuba, where many people have said it is brilliant and a real trip back in time. For the first week me and Karl only relaxed, played a bit of tennis and went down to the beach to swim in the warm turquoise waters.
The Tuesday of the second week me and Karl went to Havana for the day to sample the true Cuban life. The streets were filled with people wanting your money, from people wanting to kiss and cuddle you for a picture to people approaching you and asking for money. We left the hotel at 6:30am for the flight to José Martà airport in Havana. It took an hour to get from Cayo Coco to Havana and when we got to the airport it was very basic with hardly anything in it. Havana, also known in Spanish as La Habana, is a very poor city with the homes looking like something you would see in the poorest countries of the World but the tour guide said the government was carrying out a lot of restoration work. It is split into 3 sections: Old Havana, Central Havana and Modern Havana. The tour started with us going to the Republican Square where there were several government buildings and it was where Fidel Castro made all his long speeches and he let no one make a speech from the same place as him on Republican Square, not even the Pope. We saw the Cuban taxis which are like Thai tuk tuks with 3 wheels but with a yellow plastic covering. We went to another square and 2 busty women came up to me and asked if I wanted to have a picture with her and I said no as I assumed they wanted money. Karl who was looking at something else instead of his wallet jumped at the chance so I thought I would join him and we ended up paying 10 convertible pesos which is roughly £6.50 each for 1 picture. We then went into a bar for a mojito cocktail which is a Cuban cocktail with rum and mint leaves in it. After leaving the bar slightly drunk we headed to Cathedral Square where there is the Cathedral of Havana which was one of the first buildings to have been restored. Next we went outside the Bodeguita del Medio which is the most famous bar in Havana having been a place where the writer Ernest Hemingway hung out and drank mojito. If you go into the bar the walls are decorated with visitors’ comments. We then had lunch. After lunch we went to the Capitolio Building which is a copy of the Capitol Building in the USA where congress meets. The Capitolio Building is where international and important meetings are held in Cuba. We went inside and the interior looked really good with a statue that symbolises Cuba. We then went to a cigar shop and they told us why Cuban cigars are so unique and it is that the tobacco for a type of cigar is taken from a specific area in Havana and because of the quality of the soil and tobacco it makes the cigar excellent. After that we went to the harbour and there was a market with all sorts in it from paintings to maracas. As well as all that there were all the old American cars which felt like going back in time. All in all a great day in a city with a lot of history and culture.
This is the end of the World tour which has seen me going to 34 countries and 6 continents around the World covering over 100,000 miles on airplanes. Many of the countries are not on the blog as I only did the blog for the final six months when really this has been going on from the 27th May 2006 when I went on a coach holiday to the South of France where I met up with Keith Sutcliffe and his family which was really good and a holiday which I still think, after going to many other places, as the best place I have ever been to. To walk around the Monaco Grand Prix after seeing it on TV and knowing that it is the greatest circuit in Formula One was great. Another fantastic place was New York, USA and going up the Empire State Building, walking around the Statue of Liberty and seeing all the famous buildings. I also liked the Copacabana beach, Cristo Redentor and Sugar Loaf Mountain in Rio de Janeiro. I have created a separate web page with some statistics and the list of places I have been to and the amount of miles I have covered in the year and nine months I have been flying on airplanes. The web address is roberttrip.weebly.com. I also have a slide show that I have created with pictures of all the 34 countries. Thank you for your support.
Take care.
Robert
