Wednesday, 9 November 2022: A Fast, White-Knuckle Ride Back to Havana

Yesterday, the hostess at my casa particular, Silvia, arranged for a colectivo (group taxi) to pick me up at 7:30 this morning for my trip back to Havana.  I have enjoyed visiting La Punta and Cienfuegos but I wouldn’t bother returning.  Nor would I go back to Santa Clara or Sancti Spíritus a second time.  Trinidad is OK but mainly as a stopping off spot on the way to the mountains of Topes de Collantes.  Still, these cities and the countryside in between have provided me with a good look at Cuban life and landscapes outside Havana.

Early in the morning, I take a walk in the park at the scenic and quiet tip of La Punta one last time.  7:30 comes and goes giving me extra time to check on the hurricane situation. I learn that Nicole will totally miss Fort Lauderdale where I’m scheduled to arrive tomorrow morning. I’m starting to get nervous about the colectivo actually arriving when a black, late-model Peugeot pulls up at 7:50.  The price is a reasonable $25 for the 240 km (150 mile) trip to the same casa particular where I stayed in Old Havana when I first arrived in Cuba.  I’m the first passenger to be picked up by Mario which is great because I get the front passenger seat rather than being cooped up with others in the back seat.  He drives into Cienfuegos and picks up three young Spaniards (one guy, two women) at their B&B. 

Mario has a “lead-foot” and I feel a bit nervous when he’s doing 120 kph (75 mph) on the two-lane highway leading up to the six-lane Autopista Nacional.  He gets up to 140 (87 mph) a couple times on the autopista.  After about 1½ hours, Mario pulls off at an open-air diner along the highway.  There are no breakfast choices for a vegetarian so I order a grilled cheese sandwich with veggies and hot sauce.  I also get a frappuccino, unusual for me as I normally don’t drink coffee.  I get nervous when I see the waitress add crushed ice from a refrigerator.  However, there are no negative effects on my digestive system (and fortunately, I’ve had no stomach problems for the past three days).

Even with the food stop, we arrive in Havana in under three hours.  Mario drives into the city from the northeast and through the tunnel under Havana Harbor.  He drops the three Spaniards off first, then I help him find his way to Balcones (my casa particular).  When I walk into my room, on the bed is my Wilson gym bag which they have been holding for me for the past 15 days.  The gym bag has the books and CDs which I bought in Havana and didn’t want to lug with me while travelling in Cuba.   My missing drain stopper is in the sink.  The woman who checks me in makes arrangements for a taxi at 5:45 tomorrow morning.   Assuming the cab works out, I definitely should give Balcones a good review.

First order of business is checking on my flights tomorrow.  Yes, they are both still scheduled to leave on time.  I walk a few blocks to the Jibaro Restaurant for lunch where I had a good meal a couple weeks ago.  Their only veggie option today is spaghetti margarita with cheese, but it’s good as is the chocolate cake.  Then I walk up to the Natural History museum – damn, closed today.  Then I try a mural museum but it’s about to close for the day.  During my walk, I come across a tall black fellow with a display of mostly used books in Spanish or English.  I browse a bit and spot another book by Pedro Juan Gutiérrez that I have planned to buy.  The seller seems very knowledgeable about Gutiérrez.  I speculate that maybe he has a degree in Spanish literature and is a teacher supplementing his meager government salary by selling books on the street.  He offers me a deal on two more Gutiérrez books but my gym bag is already getting too heavy and bulky with all the books I’ve bought.  Besides, when will I get around to reading all of them, especially given my slow Spanish reading speed? 

 

I see a notice on a building of a lecture by an author that looks interesting.  Perfect, it starts in ½ hour.  But when I try to find the address for the lecture, it doesn’t seem to exist.  Well, except for the book and some more photos of Old Havana, I’ve struck out this afternoon. 

For dinner, I look over several menus but nothing appeals.  Sigh, I may as well get another pizza at the joint near La Plaza Vieja where I got a good one two weeks ago.  I’m really sick of the lack of vegetarian choices in Cuba.  I’m ready to be back in Denver where I can find a variety of restaurants offering vegan dishes, and back to cooking for myself and Judy with a great variety of ingredients.

It’s now 8:50 PM and I’m packed and ready for tomorrow, hopeful that Hurricane Nicole doesn’t cause flight delays or cancellations.           

 

© Will Mahoney 2022

All rights reserved.  No part of this blog post nor any associated photo can be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical or photocopying, recording, or otherwise without prior written permission of the author and photographer.