This morning, after giving up the search for a buffet and pouring coffee into my "Bubba" mug instead of alcohol, my vacation officially came to an end. It was a good one, though!
Meet Bubba, a friend to anyone staying at an all-inclusive resort.
Once the plane finally left the ground, we all (the entire plane) let out a collective cheer; our holiday had begun. When the plane touched down on the scorching Cuban asphalt, another cheer rang out.
As I stepped out of the plane, the heat punched me right in the face; the hoodie and jeans I was wearing did nothing to soften the blow. After clearing security and customs (the Cuban with the rubber glove was surprisingly gentle) I shed the hoodie, and waited for my luggage.
Naturally, mine was the last to pass through the care and attention all baggage receives at an airport. Jeans are a stylish, comfortable option only when the temperature is below 23.
Outside the airport, shuttles await, as does a man selling beer at $2.50 a pop (and he accepts Canadian). Giddyup! Bags on the bus; beer cracked; flip-flops on; ah...vacation.
On the 25min shuttle ride to the resort our tour guide said many things; two of which I understood: rum and Cuba. Oh boy, was there rum.
If you’ve never been to an all-inclusive resort, I highly recommend it. It was the wife and my first time taking such a vacation, and boy did we take advantage. Hungry? Just show up to the feeding trough and fill your plate...a couple times over. Thirsty? Drink til you’re stupid, if you’re so inclined. (We ran into a few vacationers who took full advantage of the open bar. You can tell by their shared loss of balance; red eyes; and slurred speech, all reaching a plateau at around 8am.) Plus, the resorts are all along Varadero’s 24km of white-sand beaches.
Aside from the gorgeous weather and time spent by the pool or the beach, we also managed to get in a couple of excursions. The tour of Havana was really cool, and included a tour of the cigar-factory and rum factory museum. For lunch, we had a roast-chicken meal that would put Swiss Chalet to shame.
Me & The Wife in front of the Capital Building; those vintage cars are everywhere.
Tributes to Che Guevara are everywhere (This is in Revolution Square)
This is where Castro gave all of those really quick speeches...
We also took in a Catamaran tour, which included a swim with dolphins, snorkelling and a fantastic seafood lunch. Who knew I liked prawns?
The Sun reflecting on the clouds in the morning
This is our tour guide feeding the gulls from the boat.
Me & Erin with Jessica (The Dolphin)
Anyway, it was nice to get away for a week and be unconnected to the rest of the world for awhile; no cell; no computer; just relaxation. The resort did offer an internet cafe (which might as well be called Facebook Alley) for those that can’t go without it while on vacation...but I wasn’t having it. Though my mom probably wishes I’d taken advantage at least once. Sorry, Ma...We were fine, though. ;)
Now for some Things I Learned While on Vacation in Cuba:
- The food isn’t nearly as bad as people will tell you
- At the market, in an attempt to make a sale, A Cuban will tell you he hand-crafted the wooden astray you’ve already seen at five different booths.
-Rum & Lemonade is delicious
-The more you visit the bar, the more rum you get with each consecutive drink.
-Rum & Lemonade loses its appeal once vomited.
- Cuba may have a higher concentration of Newfies than Alberta at any given moment
- It goes: sun-block, beach, re-apply, fall asleep on the beach; and NOT: sun-block, beach, fall asleep on the beach, re-apply.
- The bigger a man’s girth, the smaller his Speedo...unfortunately.
-Topless beaches are NOT what you hope them to be.
-Crash-
**This is the sunset as seen from our room:
Meet Bubba, a friend to anyone staying at an all-inclusive resort.
Once the plane finally left the ground, we all (the entire plane) let out a collective cheer; our holiday had begun. When the plane touched down on the scorching Cuban asphalt, another cheer rang out.
As I stepped out of the plane, the heat punched me right in the face; the hoodie and jeans I was wearing did nothing to soften the blow. After clearing security and customs (the Cuban with the rubber glove was surprisingly gentle) I shed the hoodie, and waited for my luggage.
Naturally, mine was the last to pass through the care and attention all baggage receives at an airport. Jeans are a stylish, comfortable option only when the temperature is below 23.
Outside the airport, shuttles await, as does a man selling beer at $2.50 a pop (and he accepts Canadian). Giddyup! Bags on the bus; beer cracked; flip-flops on; ah...vacation.
On the 25min shuttle ride to the resort our tour guide said many things; two of which I understood: rum and Cuba. Oh boy, was there rum.
If you’ve never been to an all-inclusive resort, I highly recommend it. It was the wife and my first time taking such a vacation, and boy did we take advantage. Hungry? Just show up to the feeding trough and fill your plate...a couple times over. Thirsty? Drink til you’re stupid, if you’re so inclined. (We ran into a few vacationers who took full advantage of the open bar. You can tell by their shared loss of balance; red eyes; and slurred speech, all reaching a plateau at around 8am.) Plus, the resorts are all along Varadero’s 24km of white-sand beaches.
Aside from the gorgeous weather and time spent by the pool or the beach, we also managed to get in a couple of excursions. The tour of Havana was really cool, and included a tour of the cigar-factory and rum factory museum. For lunch, we had a roast-chicken meal that would put Swiss Chalet to shame.
Me & The Wife in front of the Capital Building; those vintage cars are everywhere.
Tributes to Che Guevara are everywhere (This is in Revolution Square)
This is where Castro gave all of those really quick speeches...
We also took in a Catamaran tour, which included a swim with dolphins, snorkelling and a fantastic seafood lunch. Who knew I liked prawns?
The Sun reflecting on the clouds in the morning
This is our tour guide feeding the gulls from the boat.
Me & Erin with Jessica (The Dolphin)
Anyway, it was nice to get away for a week and be unconnected to the rest of the world for awhile; no cell; no computer; just relaxation. The resort did offer an internet cafe (which might as well be called Facebook Alley) for those that can’t go without it while on vacation...but I wasn’t having it. Though my mom probably wishes I’d taken advantage at least once. Sorry, Ma...We were fine, though. ;)
Now for some Things I Learned While on Vacation in Cuba:
- The food isn’t nearly as bad as people will tell you
- At the market, in an attempt to make a sale, A Cuban will tell you he hand-crafted the wooden astray you’ve already seen at five different booths.
-Rum & Lemonade is delicious
-The more you visit the bar, the more rum you get with each consecutive drink.
-Rum & Lemonade loses its appeal once vomited.
- Cuba may have a higher concentration of Newfies than Alberta at any given moment
- It goes: sun-block, beach, re-apply, fall asleep on the beach; and NOT: sun-block, beach, fall asleep on the beach, re-apply.
- The bigger a man’s girth, the smaller his Speedo...unfortunately.
-Topless beaches are NOT what you hope them to be.
-Crash-
**This is the sunset as seen from our room:
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