Cuban Blog Day #23 Spend All Your Money

I was taking a taxi to the airport at noon, so I woke early and enjoyed my last few hours in Havana.  I needed to find a post office to mail the rest of my postcards. I wanted them to be postmarked from Cubaand not Mexico. Finding a place to mail them was surprisingly harder than I expected. I asked a man with a family where one was, and they ended up running around Havana with me, going in and out of various buildings looking for a place that would mail out my postcards.

We never found one and I thanked them for their help and continued on. I finally found a post office on a corner. I was a bit worried that they wouldn’t actually make it home because the guy there was a little shady and took my cards rather secret like. I paid him for the stamps which I watched him put on and hoped they’d make it back.

I went to the plaza and people watched for a bit. I had been noticing all sorts of street dogs with collars on them, though appearing to have no owner about. I inquired about the dogs in one of the museums, and the lady there told me that they take care of them. Various businesses take it upon themselves to care for the many stray dogs all about. They put collars on them so they are marked and feed them. She told me the museum had five dogs. They were all sunning themselves just outside the museum doors. I though it was such a great and kind thing to do.

I went to the Chocolate Café one last time, roamed about different businesses trying to get more Che coins to take back as souvenirs and gifts. I got a lot of strange looks doing this, but I didn’t care. I ended up with 8 coins. I bought a small bought of three year Havana Club to see if I could get it back with me.

I headed back to the casa, packed up and waited for the taxi.  It is always bittersweet to leave a place. I enjoyed my time in Cubaimmensely, yet at the same time I was ready to be done traveling and be home in my own bed with my cats.

At the airport, I had my bags Saran wrapped. It was advice I’d gotten before I left. A friend told me, especially coming back from Cubainto Mexico, to have it done so that items do not get stolen out of it. It was $8 CUC, which I thought was excessive, but I had several CUC leftover which I wasn’t sure I’d be able to exchange in Mexico anyway, so I decided to be safe.

I waited in a super long line to check in, and then another to pay airport tax, $25 CUC, and then another to go through some sort of customs. I wasn’t quite sure what it was as I’ve never had to do that when leaving a country, only when entering.  They took my visa, which I was quite sad about because I had hoped I’d have that to keep in lieu of an actual passport stamp.  The lady nearly stamped my passport, but I noticed in time to tell her not to, and instead she stamped my boarding pass, now, the only proof I had that I had been. I then had to pay tax on my art, $3 CUC for each piece. If I had known this, I would have tried to fit it all into my suitcase.

I was glad to have arrived three hours early to the airport. After waiting in all the lines, I barely had time to take a book out to read before the announcement to board. It was a short flight back to Cancun, and I slept most of the way.

In Cancun, I tried to exchange my remaining CUC. I had thought that surely they would take the CUC, but not the peso national. They wouldn't take either, so I was stuck with about $30 US worth of CUC. (Anybody headed to Cubasoon?)

I waited for a bus to take me into town and ended up staying in the same hostel I did when I first arrived. They even remembered me.  I stayed in my room and enjoyed having the internet for the first time in nearly a month.

Traveling Tip #26 Spend all your money-  It is always difficult to know exactly how much money to exchange when traveling.  You do not want to exchange too much and then have to exchange back, thus losing lots in the back and forth.  I ended up sticking at or under my budget the whole way, exchanging about $500 US per week.  What through me off, was knowing about the $25 CUC tax I would have to pay at the airport and not having anything less than $100 Canadian bill to exchange. I’d used up all my $50s in an effort to lighten my money belt some.  I also really thought there’d be no problem exchanging CUC for Mexican pesos once I was there. After all, what do Cubans do when they come to Mexico? So, if you’re coming to Cuba, unless you’re planning to return, spend all your CUC in Cuba.  

Cuban Blog Day #23 Spend All Your Money

I was taking a taxi to the airport at noon, so I woke early and enjoyed my last few hours in Havana.  I needed to find a post office to mail the rest of my postcards. I wanted them to be postmarked from Cuba and not Mexico. Finding a place to mail them was surprisingly harder than I expected. I asked a man with a family where one was, and they ended up running around Havana with me, going in and out of various buildings looking for a place that would mail out my postcards.

We never found one and I thanked them for their help and continued on. I finally found a post office on a corner. I was a bit worried that they wouldn’t actually make it home because the guy there was a little shady and took my cards rather secret like. I paid him for the stamps which I watched him put on and hoped they’d make it back.

I went to the plaza and people watched for a bit. I had been noticing all sorts of street dogs with collars on them, though appearing to have no owner about. I inquired about the dogs in one of the museums, and the lady there told me that they take care of them. Various businesses take it upon themselves to care for the many stray dogs all about. They put collars on them so they are marked and feed them. She told me the museum had five dogs. They were all sunning themselves just outside the museum doors. I though it was such a great and kind thing to do.

I went to the Chocolate Café one last time, roamed about different businesses trying to get more Che coins to take back as souvenirs and gifts. I got a lot of strange looks doing this, but I didn’t care. I ended up with 8 coins. I bought a small bought of three year Havana Club to see if I could get it back with me.

I headed back to the casa, packed up and waited for the taxi.  It is always bittersweet to leave a place. I enjoyed my time in Cuba immensely, yet at the same time I was ready to be done traveling and be home in my own bed with my cats.

At the airport, I had my bags Saran wrapped. It was advice I’d gotten before I left. A friend told me, especially coming back from Cuba into Mexico, to have it done so that items do not get stolen out of it. It was $8 CUC, which I thought was excessive, but I had several CUC leftover which I wasn’t sure I’d be able to exchange in Mexico anyway, so I decided to be safe.

I waited in a super long line to check in, and then another to pay airport tax, $25 CUC, and then another to go through some sort of customs. I wasn’t quite sure what it was as I’ve never had to do that when leaving a country, only when entering.  They took my visa, which I was quite sad about because I had hoped I’d have that to keep in lieu of an actual passport stamp.  The lady nearly stamped my passport, but I noticed in time to tell her not to, and instead she stamped my boarding pass, now, the only proof I had that I had been. I then had to pay tax on my art, $3 CUC for each piece. If I had known this, I would have tried to fit it all into my suitcase.

I was glad to have arrived three hours early to the airport. After waiting in all the lines, I barely had time to take a book out to read before the announcement to board. It was a short flight back to Cancun, and I slept most of the way.

In Cancun, I tried to exchange my remaining CUC. I had thought that surely they would take the CUC, but not the peso national. They wouldn't take either, so I was stuck with about $30 US worth of CUC. (Anybody headed to Cuba soon?)

I waited for a bus to take me into town and ended up staying in the same hostel I did when I first arrived. They even remembered me.  I stayed in my room and enjoyed having the internet for the first time in nearly a month.

Traveling Tip #26 Spend all your money-  It is always difficult to know exactly how much money to exchange when traveling.  You do not want to exchange too much and then have to exchange back, thus losing lots in the back and forth.  I ended up sticking at or under my budget the whole way, exchanging about $500 US per week.  What through me off, was knowing about the $25 CUC tax I would have to pay at the airport and not having anything less than $100 Canadian bill to exchange. I’d used up all my $50s in an effort to lighten my money belt some.  I also really thought there’d be no problem exchanging CUC for Mexican pesos once I was there. After all, what do Cubans do when they come to Mexico? So, if you’re coming to Cuba, unless you’re planning to return, spend all your CUC in Cuba.  

Cuban Blog #10 Queer as a Three Dollar Bill and Post Cards?

Bayamo, Cubais a beautiful, artsy city.  I spent a leisurely day roaming the streets and plazas. Along the cobbled paseos the lamp posts and other ugly disturbances are cleverly disguised with sculptures of paint tubes and brushes.

During my walk, my eyes were always searching for the #44. I found a house number 444. I got a picture with me covering the first four to remember my 44^th country. This is a tradition I’ve only just begun. I can’t wait for all the creative ways I can find numbers for each country I visit.

I found a restaurant for lunch where I paid in pesos national for the first time. So cheap. I also got peso ice cream. 

I walked around and finally found a shop with some great postcards. I sat in the plaza and wrote out a few.  At the post office, I sent them off hoping they would reach the United States, a little worried that perhaps the embargo went that far, even though the woman at the counter assured me they would make it.

I went to Bar Esquina, which happened to be in the guide. There, Alberto made a proper mojito, actually using the muddler to bring out the flavor and aroma of the mint. I stayed and chatted with Alberto most of the evening. 

At one point another patron sitting at the bar next to me gave me a three dollar peso nationalbill. I’d not seen it before. I was surprised and happy to find the face of Che Guevara smiling back at me.  He gave it to me as a gift and I placed it carefully in my guidebook for safekeeping.  He seemed quite proud of this gift though I didn’t understand why at the time.  I thought it was very kind.

 

Traveling tip #12 and #13

 

#12 Yes, there are three dollar bills in Cuba. Yes, they depict Che Guevara, hero of Cuba.  There is also a 3 peso coin with his face on it. I collected these wherever I went, asking people to change in their coins for my bills because I wanted to give them as gifts once I returned. It was difficult to find anyone with the coins.  I ended up with about 10 coins and three bills.

The story I received, though I am not certain of my understand due to the language barrier, is that very soon the country will be changing over to a new peso nationaland for this reason, everyone, not just tourists, is hoarding the bills and coins.  Get there while you can and get them while they last.

 

#13 Friend and family did receive my postcards, albeit nearly two months later, well after I’d returned and settled back into life in The United States, and well after I had given up all hope of them ever reaching the land of the free. So send postcards, you’re friends will never receive anything cooler in the mail, so I’ve been told.

Cuban Blog #10 Queer as a Three Dollar Bill and Post Cards?

Bayamo, Cuba is a beautiful, artsy city.  I spent a leisurely day roaming the streets and plazas. Along the cobbled paseos the lamp posts and other ugly disturbances are cleverly disguised with sculptures of paint tubes and brushes.

During my walk, my eyes were always searching for the #44. I found a house number 444. I got a picture with me covering the first four to remember my 44^th country. This is a tradition I’ve only just begun. I can’t wait for all the creative ways I can find numbers for each country I visit.

I found a restaurant for lunch where I paid in pesos national for the first time. So cheap. I also got peso ice cream. 

I walked around and finally found a shop with some great postcards. I sat in the plaza and wrote out a few.  At the post office, I sent them off hoping they would reach the United States, a little worried that perhaps the embargo went that far, even though the woman at the counter assured me they would make it.

I went to Bar Esquina, which happened to be in the guide. There, Alberto made a proper mojito, actually using the muddler to bring out the flavor and aroma of the mint. I stayed and chatted with Alberto most of the evening. 

At one point another patron sitting at the bar next to me gave me a three dollar peso national bill. I’d not seen it before. I was surprised and happy to find the face of Che Guevara smiling back at me.  He gave it to me as a gift and I placed it carefully in my guidebook for safekeeping.  He seemed quite proud of this gift though I didn’t understand why at the time.  I thought it was very kind.

 

Traveling tip #12 and #13

 

#12 Yes, there are three dollar bills in Cuba. Yes, they depict Che Guevara, hero of Cuba.  There is also a 3 peso coin with his face on it. I collected these wherever I went, asking people to change in their coins for my bills because I wanted to give them as gifts once I returned. It was difficult to find anyone with the coins.  I ended up with about 10 coins and three bills.

The story I received, though I am not certain of my understand due to the language barrier, is that very soon the country will be changing over to a new peso national and for this reason, everyone, not just tourists, is hoarding the bills and coins.  Get there while you can and get them while they last.

 

#13 Friend and family did receive my postcards, albeit nearly two months later, well after I’d returned and settled back into life in The United States, and well after I had given up all hope of them ever reaching the land of the free. So send postcards, you’re friends will never receive anything cooler in the mail, so I’ve been told.

Cuban Blog Day #8 Know How You're Paying and Bring Snacks

 

 

I woke super early and walked along the beach past the baseball stadium, over a very questionable bridge into a tiny town where Playa Blanca is located.  I was nearly alone walking for about an hour on the beach because it was so early, though when I returned it was crowded with locals, swimming and playing soccer barefoot.

 Playa Blanca is a tiny white sand beach with just a tiny shore between rocks I was afraid of swimming out through. I was alone on it for a small time and then a family joined me. They were cleaning fish that they’d recently caught. The girl, about 9 years old, spoke with me and showed me the various things she’d found on the beach, including her collection of tiny hermit crabs and various rocks and coral. She called me tia (aunt) and kissed me goodbye when they left.

I watched her father and grandfather swim out through the rocks and knew it was safe, so I followed.  Later they got into a small pool made from other rocks. The pool would rise and fall with the tide.  The girl asked me to join them then grabbed my hand when I was a bit reluctant.  I would have not done any of it, if I hadn’t seen them do it first. It looked a bit dangerous.

They offered me coffee and I offered the little girl the only thing I had to offer- a magazine. I told her she could practice her English with it, which she had been trying to use while talking to me. She smiled, kissed me again on the cheek and ran to show her mother.

A man on the beach had asked me a few times if I wanted to go on a tour to the caves. He waited around for me, brought me a coconut. I finally decided to go when he said it was $6 peso, very excited to finally be using my pesos instead of CUC. 

I had only flip flops and wished the whole time I had my Chacos or other better hiking shoes. We walked way up into some caves, saw a beautiful view of the sea and Baracoaand finally arrived in some lower caves where there was a natural pool. It was awesome, super dark and clear, cool water.  It wasn’t big but the water at points was up to my shoulders and it was just incredible to be swimming in a cave. I wasn’t expecting to find that.

I finally headed back. I’d spent about lovely 9 hours there and would have liked to stay longer, but there was no where to eat. I was starving and had drunk all my water as well.  I walked back along the now crowded beach, ate dinner at a restaurant in town and went back to the casa and wrote and read.

 

Traveling tip #9 Know How You’re Paying- I’d asked a barman in Santiago how I know the difference between the CUC and the peso when people say it.  They all seem to say peso and this is confusing. He’d said the CUC is generally the CUC or the dollar and the peso is the peso national.  When my guide to the caves told me pesos, I thought it was pesos national. Of course it wasn’t. Mostly I believe this is their fault for not being clear, but to be on the safe side be sure to confirm how you will be paying to avoid any confusion.

traveling Tip #10 Bring snacks. I bring snacks with me from home any time I travel, granola bars and lollies, crackers and the like. You can also get snacks wherever you are, just be sure to always have some with you. These are great for bus rides and any time you might be stuck on a very private, beautiful beach in a town that is so small there aren't any restaurants. I did have snacks on this beach, they just weren't substantial enough to edge my hunger.

Cuban Blog Day #8 Know How You're Paying and Bring Snacks

 

 

I woke super early and walked along the beach past the baseball stadium, over a very questionable bridge into a tiny town where Playa Blanca is located.  I was nearly alone walking for about an hour on the beach because it was so early, though when I returned it was crowded with locals, swimming and playing soccer barefoot.

 Playa Blanca is a tiny white sand beach with just a tiny shore between rocks I was afraid of swimming out through. I was alone on it for a small time and then a family joined me. They were cleaning fish that they’d recently caught. The girl, about 9 years old, spoke with me and showed me the various things she’d found on the beach, including her collection of tiny hermit crabs and various rocks and coral. She called me tia (aunt) and kissed me goodbye when they left.

I watched her father and grandfather swim out through the rocks and knew it was safe, so I followed.  Later they got into a small pool made from other rocks. The pool would rise and fall with the tide.  The girl asked me to join them then grabbed my hand when I was a bit reluctant.  I would have not done any of it, if I hadn’t seen them do it first. It looked a bit dangerous.

They offered me coffee and I offered the little girl the only thing I had to offer- a magazine. I told her she could practice her English with it, which she had been trying to use while talking to me. She smiled, kissed me again on the cheek and ran to show her mother.

A man on the beach had asked me a few times if I wanted to go on a tour to the caves. He waited around for me, brought me a coconut. I finally decided to go when he said it was $6 peso, very excited to finally be using my pesos instead of CUC. 

I had only flip flops and wished the whole time I had my Chacos or other better hiking shoes. We walked way up into some caves, saw a beautiful view of the sea and Baracoa and finally arrived in some lower caves where there was a natural pool. It was awesome, super dark and clear, cool water.  It wasn’t big but the water at points was up to my shoulders and it was just incredible to be swimming in a cave. I wasn’t expecting to find that.

I finally headed back. I’d spent about lovely 9 hours there and would have liked to stay longer, but there was no where to eat. I was starving and had drunk all my water as well.  I walked back along the now crowded beach, ate dinner at a restaurant in town and went back to the casa and wrote and read.

 

Traveling tip #9 Know How You’re Paying- I’d asked a barman in Santiago how I know the difference between the CUC and the peso when people say it.  They all seem to say peso and this is confusing. He’d said the CUC is generally the CUC or the dollar and the peso is the peso national.  When my guide to the caves told me pesos, I thought it was pesos national. Of course it wasn’t. Mostly I believe this is their fault for not being clear, but to be on the safe side be sure to confirm how you will be paying to avoid any confusion.

traveling Tip #10 Bring snacks. I bring snacks with me from home any time I travel, granola bars and lollies, crackers and the like. You can also get snacks wherever you are, just be sure to always have some with you. These are great for bus rides and any time you might be stuck on a very private, beautiful beach in a town that is so small there aren't any restaurants. I did have snacks on this beach, they just weren't substantial enough to edge my hunger.