| Day1-3 | Day 4-5 | Day 6 | Day 7-8 | Day 9 | Day 10-11 |
|
Havana panorama from Hotel Deauville. Click to see large view (takes a minute to load on a 56k modem) |
||||||
|
||||||
Frequently Asked Questions:
|
Cuba links:
|
|||||
Next page: Journal and Photos>1. It is LEGAL for Americans to go to Cuba, however, it is technically illegal for Americans to spend money in Cuba, and thus begins the insanity. It is impossible to buy a ticket to Cuba from the U.S. (try going to Travelocity from the U.S. and look for Cuba) unless you have a business license or special license. We arranged our flights before we left Los Angeles and had two options: 1. Buy our Havana tickets in Cancun when we arrrive or 2. Buy in advance by wiring money to Cubalinda, a travel agency, who would buy our tickets for us. We had to trust in Cubalinda to assist us. We did option 2. When we arrived in Cancun, our tickets were at the Mexicana airline counter, as we had been told it would be. There are laws being changed on a regular basis and if you are considering a trip, please research the laws. (posted at www.treas.gov/ofac) This law now states that ''full-time professionals whose travel is directly related to professional research'' can go without special permission. If they're questioned by U.S. Customs agents, they can simply say they were legally entitled to go. Previously, Americans who fell into the professional category had to
apply for a license. But Treasury ended that requirement last May, after
the office tasked with giving licenses was deluged with requests. Who
can go now without special permission? Apart from the obvious categories
of journalist and academic, all kinds of people qualify: doctors who
want to tour medical clinics, architects who want to view historic sites,
and, perhaps, musicians who want to observe Afro-Caribbean rhythms in
action. Washington requires only that the trip ''comprises a full work
schedule'' and that the result ''has a substantial likelihood of public
dissemination.'' Thus, this website! 2. We had a hotel in mind when we arrived in Havana. We had read that we should have a name ready. No one asked when we arrived though, but we did fill it out on our tourist card. At the Havana airport, we did reserve a room at a small desk before entering Customs for $50/nite. The Hotel Deauville, $50/nite. This turned out to be a good decision as it is central to both Havana Vieja and Centro Havana, and the views from our 15th floor room were killer of the the famous Malecon (Havana seawall) as well as the city. As we had read and been told, at Customs, the Customs agent stamped our tourist card, not our passport. Return to Questions Because "They're charging First World prices for Third World services" in the hotels, we stayed primarily, we stayed in people's homes, called "casa particulares", $25/nite. Cuba has opened up a bit for free enterprise and one of the positives of this is the allowance of people to open their homes to tourists. Specifically we called Miriam Rodriguez' home in Havana, our home base. One of the writers of the Rough Guide stayed there we found out. Miriam and her daughter Sinai welcomed us into their home and we met many other people through them. Turns out, it really is the best way to travel in Cuba because you get to meet the local people. There are also illegal casa particulares and you only need to ask around on the streets or with local people for information on these. If you'd like to stay at a casa particular, here is Miriam and Sinai's and their neighbor Mandy's contact information. Tell them Rhonda sent you! (So that they know where you got the info and I get a little thrill of helping people connect.)
We also stayed one night at the Hotel Las Jazmines, in Vinales Valley, very beautiful view. $50/nite. Return to Questions 3.We primarily ate as "paladors". Another positive of some recent free enterprise allowances. Paladors are small restaurants in people's homes. Usually they have 4-6 tables and serve what they have in house that day. Paladors are all over Havana and easy to find. Regulary we had people come up to us to say they had a "great place to eat", but we did not take the bait. These people are paid a commission to bring you to their palador, and the tourist pays it without knowing it. Return to Questions 4.We brought $700-1000 cash each with us for 10 days. I did not spend it all. I'm not accustomed to traveling with so much money on me, but for Americans, ATMs, credit cards, and US bank-issued Traveler's cheques do not work here. I separated out the money into 2-3 seaparate places on my body, bags, etc. We had nothing stolen. I wore my passport holder under my shirt like I do in most countries that I'm rucksacking around in. Return to Questions 5. Of course, as with any country, it is preferable to speak the language of the people that live there. Cuba has the distinction of being a tourist destination for the rest of the world except for Americans, so there is a lot of English speakers among tourists as well as Cubans who work in the tourist industry. However, if you want a taste of the true Cuba, it is best to be able to speak Spanish or be with someone who does. Luckily, Ronni speaks fluent Spanish, so we were able to converse with individuals that otherwise would have been impossible. However, keep in mind, I would never say don't go somewhere just because you don't know the language. It really depends on each traveller and how willing he/she is to have a 3 minute conversation to ask for an ashtray (which is "cenicero" Thanks Ronni!).Return to Questions 5. The only currency you can buy anything
with in Cuba is the currency of the only country on earth who won’t
let people spend it there. Crazy, huh? There are three active currencies
in Cuba. There is the Cuban peso that the Cubans get paid in and can
buy rations and basics in, there is the American dollar, and there is
the convertible peso, which converts exactly 1 peso to 1 dollar. Yes,
this is a "double currency", apparently common in black market
strong countries. So you have Cuban pesos, officially worth about 21
to $1, convertible pesos worth $1 each, and real live dollars. Return
to Questions 6. I am proud to say I did not check my
email while there, though it would have been hard to anyway. Yes, tourists
can check their email at major hotels or more popularly, more cheaply
at the Capitolio in Centro Havana, for about $5/hour. Most Cubans, however,
would have a hard time getting access to the internet, let alone being
able to pay $5/hour. “The Cuban state is very watertight. The general
public does not have access to the Internet,” says Hector Maseda,
the vice president for the Liberal Democratic Party in Cuba. “This
service does not exist as it does in the rest of the world.” (http://abcnews.go.com/sections/world/DailyNews/cubainternet000721.html)
From the people I spoke with, getting an internet connection at home
is usually done only by people who can secure it through their job OR
by the black market. Return to Questions 7. No, we did not meet Fidel. Though he apparently does stroll outside for events and does mingle among the people. We were on the lookout as we very much wanted to meet him. |
||||||
|
Next page: Journal
and Photos>
|
||||||
