CUBA
The
largest island in the Caribbean and the 16th largest
island in the world
When
we think of Cuba we have visions of the Revolution, Fidel Castro and
Che Guevara, the missile crisis and the US embargo.
We
had always wanted to visit and have not been disappointed.
Cuba
has probably been one of the most interesting places we have visited
in our 9 yr circumnavigation thus far. We now have memories of family
people with a purpose in life, who are friendly and vivacious with a
love for dance and music, cigars and 1950's cars.
The
embargo is being lifted, the US embassy is built and awaiting
occupation.
Hotels
are being renovated and new ones built, streets paved, homes now able
to be owned are being painted and thousands of tourists are flooding
in.
Communism
is dying away, tips and handouts are being asked for...Capatilism has
begun!
Such
is the price of freedom.....
We
left Key West, Florida on the 18th of January. With
pressure to keep moving towards Panama we decided to make use of the
short weather window before the next “Norther” came in. These
winds blow down from as far as Canada bringing strong cold winds
which stall the trade winds.
The
Florida current sweeps eastward around the bottom of the Florida Keys
before it joins the Gulf stream. If strong wind is against this
current it can become very rough.
It
took us 24hrs to make the 100nm crossing in what we would describe as
being in a washing machine. The autopilot couldn't handle the state
of the seas so we had to hand steer the whole way.
When
we reached the entrance to the Hemingway marina, west of Habana, the
seas were breaking heavily on both sides of the reef divide and it
was still blowing 20-25 knots.
The
officials told us later that they could hear us calling on the VHF
radio but we could not hear them replying. They were advising us NOT
to enter as it was in their consideration too dangerous. We were
pleased we did not hear them...With experience and good judgment
Eric navigated us through without incident.
Our
clearance into Cuba was quick, polite and efficient. We excitedly
raised the Cuban flag which Cathy had made and made our way into the
marina canal
The
gale we had experienced in Key West , Cuba had also had, which
created huge seas . These had been breaking across the sea wall into
the first canal and boats were within inches of floating onto the
land. Rubbish was all that remained
The
marina hotel where we exchanged our dollars had some beautiful
artwork depicting Ernest Hemingway's association with Cuba
Once
the weather had settled down and we were happy to leave “Erica”
in the marina we joined friends in a trip into Habana to see the
sights.
Hailing
a taxi on the road outside the Hemingway marina
We
initially went to the tourist area in Habana and walked along the
wooden cobbled streets looking at the antiques and curiosities for
sale and appreciating the architecture of the buildings and 1950's
restored cars
A
tour of the city by double deck bus was a good way to get an overview
but not being able to understand Spanish made it difficult
Revolution square
Hotels next to Revolution square
Cemetery
Hospital 
University 
Our
friends took us to the non tourist part of the city where we enjoyed
lunch at a family run restaurant (Paladare) The food is cheap and
very good. We peered through doorways where the local people lived
and had a frontage where they sold wares from homemade cakes to
engine parts and household ware.
There
are also malls with label clothing, furnishings and household ware
with prices to match those anywhere else in the world.
We
found supermarkets in both Havana and the suburbs with a greater
variety of goods than we had expected and good locally grown produce
We
noticed a low level of police presence and when there was it was
around the tourist areas.
A
wedding car with bride and groom could not be a photo missed
All
too soon, the 25th of January, we departed the Hemingway
marina and worked our way west along the coast. The entrance going
out to sea was calm. Very different conditions than when we had come
in.
We
wanted to get around the western cape as quickly as possible to avoid
headwinds so sailed overnight and into the next day. This can be a
very unpleasant part of the coast to bash around in heavy seas.
This
royal tern decided to hitch a ride with us and remained perched on
the solar panels for some hours. It must have been desperate for a
rest as it allowed me to get quite close for a photo
We
spent a couple of days sheltering behind Los Cayo de la Lenoo with 2
other yachts. Fisherman also sought protection there and we were
happy to take them gifts in exchange for lobster. They felt we were
too generous with what we had taken them and insisted on giving us
some pork as well. These Cuban men spend a month away from home
netting stingray and shark.
We
met a lovely couple, Ian and Erica, whom we had talked to on the VHF
radio earlier on passage and got to meet them in person. It is always
lovely to share experiences and cruising info with like minded
sailors/travellers. After checking in and out at Los Morros with the
Guarda Fronterra (harbour master) we spent a lovely lunch aboard
their catamaran before saying farewell. They were headed to the
islands off Honduras and us to Cienfuegos in the south
Erica
made me a lovely birthday cake as a surprise as I was to spend my
60th at sea..
Visiting
yachts are allowed to stop at uninhabited islands but must check in
at designated ports.
After
spending a night at Cayo san Felipe we decided to go through a
shallow reef passage as a shortcut to the island of Juventud. As the
bottom came up on the sounder we felt nervous so decided to anchor
and put the dinghy in the water to sound the reef with a portable
sounder.
We
found some markers as well and cautiously went over the reef with
inches to spare
Eric
caught a Tuna which he prepared for smoking and when we arrived at
Ensenada de los Barcos to anchor overnight he smoked it...Delicious
The
next day we headed over the top of Juvenud island across the shallows
of the Gulf. We had noticed a law enforcement vessel at anchor for
some hours showing up on our AIS (automatic ship identification
system) so were not surprised by a visit of the the coastguard. We
began to furl our sails as we thought they would board us but they
were happy to talk on the radio and view us with their binoculars
before heading off again. We were happy about that as we were sailing
well and it would have been an inconvenience to stop.
Another
night at sea with wind on the nose and nasty short seas made it
necessary to tack every few miles so we sought shelter the next day
behind a cay until the wind changed direction
Here
we were visited by fishermen who needed diesel engine oil..With no
spanish understood by us and no english on their part we had an
amusing time communicating. But with gestures and a picture book we
finally understood each other. It was fun with lots of laughing!!
We
were able to give them a container of engine oil we had bought in
America and as it had spanish dialect on the label as well as english
they were extremely happy that it was the correct oil. They
insisted we took lobster tails as payment .
We
gave them a few treats, handshakes were had and they were keen to get
going. It is illegal to have a Cuban person aboard without prior
authority from officials so we exchanged gifts across the deck.
With
light wind we were finally able to sail in very pleasant conditions,
the autopilot doing the steering, us reading books and enjoying
lobster grilled in garlic butter. The wind increased in the night
and switched direction coming from just where we needed to go so we
anchored behind Cayo Guano del Este at 3 o'clock in the morning under
the lighthouse strobe light After a few hours sleep and a wind
change again there was no shelter where we were. 3 other boats left
so we decided to leave as well..
Another
unexpected night sail.... It was a hard and lively motorsail with
seas breaking across the deck frequently. Eric got an unexpected bath
as a wave hit the side of the boat and came over the top of the
cockpit dumping on him as he sat in the stern.. I couldn't stop
laughing!
We
made good progress in 20-25knots and arrived in the very protected
harbour of Cienfuegos. A tanker was coming out the entrance and as it
is very narrow in parts we pulled over to let it pass. The charting
with the GPS on our electronic charts has been spot on in Cuba.
We
anchored before midnight, officials visited us quickly and
efficiently and after a meal we were very pleased to climb into bed.
It
is always a pleasure to wake in the morning when one has anchored at
night and see the surroundings in daylight. Often very different to
what you imagine!
Finally
in Cienfuegos, the 5th of February...
Cienfuegos...Known
as the Paris of Cuba with it's historical French influence
The
marina is full of charter yachts so we anchored off with lots of
other overseas yachts
The
marina bar was frequented by other sailors and locals involved in
tourism. Cuban crystal beer is popular in these kegs
We
spent several days sightseeing in the city of Cienfuegos. It was a
lovely walk along the esplanade passing little restaurants and clubs
We
got around riding in bic taxis, horse drawn wagons and taxis.
There
are tour buses running trips to all the major centres and tourist
spots
Photos
taken around the town centre and Boulevard. There is a lot of
restoration happening in the buildings at the Jose Marti square. The
Museum, Tomos Terry theatre, city hall, cathedrals and the founders
house are here
We
visited the cigar factory but were not allowed to take photos inside
the processing area. There are 155 workers, mostly women. The tobacco
leaf is stripped, wrapped, pressed, vacuumed then cooled for 5 days
before the cigar is ready for boxing and dispatching. Each person in
the final exterior wrapping process on average processes around 135
cigars/day
Inside
the foyer while waiting for a tour there were photos of Fidel Castro
and his brother Raoul and Che Guevara. We couldn't resist having our
photos taken beside them
There
was always a queue outside the Copella ice cream parlour so we joined
the line and enjoyed 3 scoops of coconut flavour for 1 CUC (
equivalent of $1 USD)
Tourist
areas with tourist prices are much more expensive than local prices.
We kept away from the tourist restaurants and ate and shopped where
the Cuban folk ate and shopped.
Government
run and family operated restaurants (Paladares) are very cheap. A
nice meal was 3-5CUC each and we had haircuts for 1CUC each, but we
always gave extra.
This
parrot was enjoying it's lunch as well
A
day tour to Santa Clara and Trinidad with friends Debbie and Luc whom
we had met in 2014 in the West Indies was most enjoyable. Our driver
could not speak English so Debbie with good Spanish was able to
translate for us
We
visited the Mausoleum and museum at Santa Clara where Che Guevara is
tombed. No photographs inside were permitted
The
next stop was where Che and his guerrillas derailed and captured an
armoured train carrying arms and soldiers. This was a turning point
in Fidel's campaign to overthrow Batista”s government
We
stopped for refreshments , freshly squeezed sugar cane where there
was a market selling hand made items
Bullock cart loaded with sugar cane
Trinidad
is very much a tourist attraction with stone cobbled streets, old
pretty buildings whose facades have been resurrected by the Cuban
government and many stores selling souvenirs. We spent a couple of
hours sightseeing and listening to music and watching dancing.
