Today we woke up to a morning of grey skies and torrential showers. We were hoping that we would bump into the German tourists we saw at breakfast the previous day so that they might be able to drive us to Matanzas where we would then catch a bus to Santa Clara, however they must have left earlier or the day before, so we had to find other means of getting there. Once packed we were greeted with more showers which delayed our journey until we saw a break. We started walking along the road leading to the main carretera (highway) with our thumbs out trying to hitch a ride. Eventually after about a kilometer of walking a taxi stopped which we paid 1 CUC (€0.80) for the last 2km. Once we got to the carretera, it didnt take long until a truck came along which had been adapted for passengers with stairs at the back and four rows of benches. It was going exactly where we wanted to go, the next big town called matanzas. The ride was already pretty full but we squeezed on.
We arrived in Matanzas at around 13:00 at the national bus station. We went directly to the counter to find out when the bus leaves for Santa Clara. We were quoted 17 CUC (€14) / person and the bus leaves at 19:30. This was odd as the lonely planet guide quoted 8 CUC / person and with a bus leaving at 16:45. We did a bit more poking around and asking people and there were many mixed responses. Later an Astro bus turned up which was scheduled to leave at 16:45 that was heading for Santa Clara just as the guidebook said, but we were not allowed to board it. We just got a NO. No reason given. We then spoke to the lady in the terminal again and she made it quite clear the the Astro bus is for cubans only. We then tried to show them our student IDs that we prepared, but you had to be a resident student in Cuba for that one to work. There were two seperate bus companies operating to Santa Clara (Astro and Viazul) and Viazul is the more expensive, but luxurious ride. So we could either wait for the Viazul and get there for about one in the morning or try to find another means of getting there.
In the mean time we needed to change some euros and get some grub, so we trekked into Matanzas center as the national bus station was in the south. We eventually found a place to change money after finding two banks that were already closed. We found a peso take-away that accepted the national currency and had some really tasty mango juice, fruit cocktail and two cheese sandwiches to eat now and four for the trip. In total this set us back about €1! I know, crazy isn’t it! After that we treated ourselves to a chilled beer and a walk around a nearby park next to the river and seafront where kids were throwing thenselves of the railway bridge into the water.
We got back to the bus station and after many taxi drivers offering us rediculus prices we found a guy that eventually accepted our deal for 35 CUC (€28), which was great as the bus was 34 CUC in total. So we hit the road and travelled in style over the cuban countryside. €28 for 217km in a taxi isn’t to bad :)
When we arrived in Parque Vidal in Santa Clara we headed straight for the casa particular called florida center by foot. On the way we got haggled by a guy who asked us all the usual questions… Where are you from, do you like cuba, bla bla bla and then the selling point… you need accommodation? He then started to follow us all the way to the casa where we then stopped and lit up a smoke just before. It’s bad practice to let a jinetero (tout) follow you back to any place your going to as they will ask the owner for commission. So we kindly asked him to stop following us and then just walked around the block. We lost him.
We entered the casa hoping that there might be space for us, however all the guidebooks reccommended this place and we would have to be lucky to get a room. It was beautifully decorated with a large terrace and lots of plants. The owner turned up and as I suspected there was no space available, but he did call another casa which led to the other owner arriving 5 mins later to escort us to his casa. The casa was about 500m north of Parque Vidal and was located in a quite street. The casa was also very nice and we decided to take it there and then. It was perfect for our needs. Clean, spacious, own terrace, minibar, firm bed and friendly owners.
After a well deserved shower we headed towards Parque Vidal (The Central Square) where we saw lots of commotion when we previously passed by. The owner also told us on the way that today the Parque would be filled with music, food and lots of people! (Every saturday infact) Great! Perfect timing. We had to eat at this point so we went into a really cold lit, over airconditioned, cuban restaurant where the prices seemed acceptable. The food took its time. For me it was a bit of a lucky dip as I really didn’t understand what I ordered. It turned out to be some sort of curry soup with chopped vegtables. Hmm, interesting as we did ask what it was before we ordered, but she failed to come out with anything that we understood. It would have surficed if she said “sopa”. Oh well it tasted ok. As a side order we had deep fried banana skins which tasted like potatoe skins. Tasty! Victoria had a steak with rice, a safe option.
While we were there we heard some english voices being spoken from two girls on the next table. We started talking to them and their names were Sefanie and Andrea from Southhampton and Birmingham! They told us about their travels around Cuba. They had been travelling for 2 months and had started their trip in Mexico. They too had just arrived in Santa Clara, being previously in Trinidad where we were off to next. They highly recommended us a casa particular there called Casa Chocolate and so they wrote down the address. They left soon after as they were a bit hungover from the night before in Trinidad. We got the bill for the food and we thought, that’s a bit much! It was around 15 CUC, but we worked it out to be 11.50 CUC. She went away, tapped on her calculator a bit and then came back, but it was still wrong! We left 12 CUC in the dish and left. They didnt seem to complain. Were sure they knew what they were doing. It has now happened a few times where we have been overcharged. Their trick is to tap around on a calculator a while and then show you the screen with a number. Hell knows how that number was calculated. To anyone who comes to Cuba, always check the bill and do your own calculations, because in some places they will try to rip you off by any means!
Anyway, post restuarant we got to the Parque and joined in the fun. We found some great spanish guitar coming from a window where we held out for a while to listen and then moved on to a bar to get a beer. There was various performances including a fashion catwalk, salsa and a more modern stage with DJs playing anything from reggaeton to dubstep. We hung around the salsa for a bit and while doing so a cuban approched us. His name was Reiner and he seemed like a pretty decent guy, but I was still suspecious none the less. Turned out, he was looking initally for a girlfriend, preferably a blonde! Interesting as I was wondering why he was speaking to us!? Anyway we had good conversation with him and he didn’t want anything in the end, just a chat, which was nice for once. We had a few beers in the square and then headed back to get some rest.
