We've been back two weeks now and as much as it feels like the holiday was months ago rather than those two weeks ago, it certainly made an impression. The weather was amazing, the scenery was stunning, the people were lovely and it was the epitome of the perfect holiday. We only had two short rain storms and all they did was clear the air and it was back to being warm again.
By the time we arrived at the hotel we'd been up for 24 hours, our flight was delayed by two hours so we'd missed the last transfer coach by the time we got to Havana so our travel company put us in a taxi. We could barely keep our eyes open on the journey but at one point the driver braked sharply and we were both suddenly awake and sat bolt upright. As we saw a cow saunter across the road in front of the car in pitch darkness..... I do not envy the drivers of Cuba! There are very few road markings or road signs so you really do have to know where you're going. There's also a bridge between Havana and Varadero (where we stayed) which is collapsing and the town can't afford to fix it and so the police man it and only let one car cross at a time - very slowly.
Our hotel was brilliant, not five stars by London standards (but, let's face it, these places never are) but perfectly pleasant. The room was clean, bathroom in full working order and the food was brilliant. Lots of choice, a buffet but still with chefs cooking a few things to order (omelettes and eggs in the morning, meat/fish in the afternoons) as well as a snack bar by the pool. The long opening times of all these places meant nothing was ever rushed, which was a good job really as Cubans are just on their own time zone! Nothing is ever done at speed it seems.
We stayed in Varadero, which is a peninsula two hours drive from Havana. It varies from 400m to 100m in width and has beaches running up each side with a marina at the top of the peninsula and the town of Varadero at the bottom. We did spend a day in Havana and loved it, we had our own vintage car and private guide/driver who really knew his stuff. We saw a lot of Havana by car, which admittedly wasn't ideal, but I'm not sure how else you could do everything in a day! Since we'd been picked up at 8am for the two hour drive to Havana and, due to the cow incident mentioned earlier, the driver didn't want to do the two hour drive back in the dark so we had to leave Havana before 4pm. When we do go back I think we'll spend a few days in Havana to explore properly and then head to Varadero to relax.
Our ride around Havana
The other day trip we did was a catamaran to the island of Cayo Blanco. The staff were nuts and kept everyone entertained both going there and on the return trip to Varadero marina. The island itself was stunning, the complete Caribbean cliche. White sand that was as soft as flour, pale blue sea that was warm - and a pina colada in a pineapple!! Wonderful.
Cayo Blanco
Also, our Zika fears appeared unfounded. We didn't see a single mosquito and, due to some rather strong insect repellent that was so strong it melted my nail polish, we only got three midge bites between us. Which is absolutely unheard of! So, whilst I dream of still being there I look back fondly on all the memories we created. I think how lovely it was to spend that time with hubby (especially after hardly seeing him over the past week due to work commitments) and wonder, hope, that that might have been our last holiday as a twosome. It was certainly a good way to go if it was......
Chillin'
