Sunday 17th April - Santiago de Cuba - Cuba

So we are on tour again. We've already paid £15 each for our visas to visit Cuban, we did that at Havana - so these were what we've used for Santiago. Peter and I duly met up with the buses just outside the port and counted our passengers on. We were heading for La Gran Piedra, a large rock perched 1200 metres up on the top of a mountain. On the way we were to visit a botanical garden, and on the way back, a (very small) museum, a restaurant, and have a quick tour of Santiago city.

Although my bus was the first of four, we weren't able to set off until the others were ready. This is so we could be given a police escort! A Cuban policeman on a motorcycle drove in front, mostly it seems to make sure we weren't held up by traffic. My guide told me that this was because we were VIPs - which I instantly dismissed. It certainly got a few brain cells working wondering why. 

The tour held some interesting highlights, not least athe views as the bus drove up the mountain were quite breathtaking. I tried to get pictures, but as usual, a bumpy windy road doesn't help.

We stopped for a panoramic view and some photo's at a place called Olympus.  Trinkets and souvenirs were being sold and there was a single house. Apparently it used to be a school for 5 children but was now occupied by a family, washing in the yard, etc. Two of my passengers wanted to use the loo, and ended up asking the lady of the house if they could use hers. Personally I was quite shocked. If a bus load of tourists stopped outside my home and asked for a bathroom break, I'm not sure how I would react.

The Cuban lady was very helpful and showed the passengers to her loo. Now it was their turn to be shocked. The loo turned out to be a box with a hole cut into it perched over a hole in the ground. I knew how basic it was going to be and ran at them with the sanitizer as they came out of the house.

The little house that used to be a school at Olympus. You can see the loo I mentioned. 

Our next stop was 10 minutes up the road. The buses all parked on the road and we walked about 500m along a dirt track to the a botanical garden where the bathroom was a little more acceptable. Apparently, slaves had worked in this area in years gone by, and the remains of the buildings that they'd lived and worked in had become part of the garden.

This part of the garden used to be the sleeping blocks for the slaves. 

And then to the stop that Peter and I had been waiting for. The buses took us to a bar and restaurant at the bottom of the climb to Gran Piedra. (We still had our police escort at this point by the way). Apparently there are 434 steps up to the top from this point and although some stayed to enjoy the view from this, most of us elected make the climb and enjoy the awesome views from the top.

All too soon it was time to come down. Our escort had gone now, but uur next stop was a museum farmhouse Granjita Siboney - apparently a load of rebels had used the farmhouse as a base before attacking government forces on Uprising Day in 1953. Bullet holes in the walls were interesting.

Back in Santiago, we got to see Revolution Square. I was amazed at the buses used by the Cubans, they looked more like cattle trucks.

Central monument of Revolution Square 

Buses in Cuba

The restaurant we were taken to was lovely. It had obviously been set up for just us tourists and a man stood guard at the door, not letting anyone else in. The food was goo - a traditional Cuban meal of rice and beans, fish and pork- and once again we were entertained by a live Cuban band. Actually, make that a LOUD Cuban band, conversation was destroyed as the group sang. Very cultural though.

A quick walk around the town centre with our guide who explained a few of the buildings - and then back to the ship.

Fidel Castro used to give speeches from the central balcony of this building, so it is known as Castro's Balcony.

Directly opposite is the Cathedral.  The balcony around it was built for Pope Francis when he visited a few years ago, so it is know as Francis's Balcony. 

So that was Cuba, which I have decided I really like, especially Havanna. The people were friendly and keen to please and talking to the guide at the end of the tour, I found out that Cuba doesn't regularly receive cruise ships at the moment, so maybe we were being treated as VIPs after all.

Our next port is Ocho Rios in Jamaica. Now for something completely different.