AKA “No, We Are in Mourning”
In early December of 2016, I visited Havana, Cuba with my friend Michelle. I had plans to make it to the beach in Varadero and even booked my bus ticket in advance…but I’m not sure why I thought I would want to rise at 4AM during my vacation like, ever. So I never made it to Varadero because sleep is life.
Anywho, our trip coincided with the final three days of Cuba’s national mourning in remembrance of Fidel Castro. We arrived on Thursday evening, and the memorial services culminated in Santiago on Sunday afternoon. I won't get into the politics and my reactions to the country’s “national days of mourning,” which included liquor and certain dishes not being served anywhere. Like anywhere. Like no rum to enjoy with my non-lobster entree. In the entire country. (Except for this one place but we will address that in another post). Popular tourist spots such as El Floridita restaurant and bar were also closed…
So our first three days in Cuba were pretty low-key. We did a lot of walking, made it to the Plaza de la Revolucion, and ate at smaller culinary establishments. More about that later ;-).
I have received questions regarding logistics for our trip, so I’ll try to answer some of these queries now:
1.) How did you get to Cuba from the USA? Don’t you need a special visa?
Over the past several months, relations with Cuba have relaxed in the sense that Americans can now travel directly to Cuba without much huff and puff from authorities (But I’m almost positive that Mr. Cheeto is going to ruin this for everyone sooner than later, so there may be difficulty in the future). When you book your hotel, casa particular, AirBNB, etc. and flight, you select one of twelve reasons for travel to Cuba. Just choose “Education/People-to-People” and you won’t run into any problems. No one asked us for a detailed itinerary or verification of our educational experiences. I have Global Entry, so it was especially easy to get back into the US with my bag (partially) full of Cuban rum and cigars.
2.) Did you fly directly from the USA?
No, we actually booked through Copa Airlines and had a layover in Panama City, Panama. Um…I’ll rant about their lack of customer service and decency when I have time. But the silver lining was that we easily purchased our tourist visas at the gate in Panama just before our flight to Cuba. it was 20USD, so bring some American cash! I have read that folks flying direct with Delta or other airlines are paying $50-$100 for their visa through third-party travel agents, or via their airlines, so maybe be cognizant of this if you are heading to Cuba from JFK or Miami, etc.
3.) Convert to Euros and then CUCs before you arrive, or just convert your USD when you get there?
I converted my cash to Euros before the trip and then to Cuban Convertible Pesos (CUC, which for our intents and purposes, you can conceptualize as tourist currency). I lost about $125 altogether with the conversions, but I did NOT incur the 10% penalty to convert from USD to CUC, which would have been in addition to the unfavorable exchange rates.
Oh, and if you’re wondering how a skinny brown chick traveling with her female friend just walks around with a considerable sum of money without concern for getting robbed…see these.
Yes, they’re granny panties. No, I did not feel sexy wearing them (Actually, sexy is a state of mind and I felt sexy for fleeting moments even with the underwear’s elastic band hugging my waist and WAAAAYYYYY above my belly button)…I DID feel safe. I brought enough to wear for each day of the trip, with just a quick sink laundering for one pair at the midway point. My passport and all of my cash fit into the pocket, and I developed a new appreciation for marsupials.
I’ll cover Days 1 through 3 in my next post. Get pumped! It involves rethinking my use of septic systems, Cuban commentary on Trump, and a 24/7 “chicken” shack (We still aren’t sure whether it was chicken. Whatevs, we survived!).
