We left Cuba with lighter bags and heavier hearts. We had a great time with Rafael and his family in Havana and were very surprised when he gave us a gift of local coffee and souvenir cups when we left. We left him all the things we no longer needed and he appreciated it very much.
Checking out of Havana airport was a lot smoother than checking into it. On the flight to Cancun we sat next to a Swedish woman. She told us she had befriended a couple of local lads. One of the guys told her he was going to marry a French girl on December 21st and the girl had sent him US$100 to buy a Cuban passport. He told her that the passport had been stolen from their gear when they were on the beach. The Swedish woman felt sorry for him and gave him US$50 towards another one. She then asked me if I felt she had been scammed. I told her I had asked Rafael what it was like to get a Cuban passport and he said it was very difficult, and I left her to make her own decision. These kinds of situations must happen often to the young travellers who hook up with the friendly locals.
We visited Cancun for the first time in 1981, on our way to Tierra del Fuego through Central America. Back then, it was a swampy place with lots of prawn factories. It was here we met our German friends Roland and Karin, whom we still keep in touch with. Together we camped along the lagoon and travelled together around the Yucatan. Today it is high-rise wall to wall hotels and resorts. We chose Cancun as when we had originally booked our ticket back in March 2016 it was not legal to fly directly to the USA from Cuba.
As we had given away all our old and unwanted clothes Cancun was a suitable place to restock. We booked into a wonderful bed and breakfast place in downtown, a couple of blocks from the All Americas shopping mall. The shopping centre did not open until 11am and stayed open until 11pm. We both managed to get more than one set of clothes at reasonable prices. I now also have 6 bottles of chilli sauce in my bag.
One day we took a bus ride out to the Hotel zone along the 20 kilometre stretch. We managed to see the hotel resort where Sarsha and Jose Luis were married and where Kerri and Adam flew with wee Tyler to the wedding. There is a lot of money in this area of Mexico. In the middle of the resorts was a Harley Davidson motorbike shop and made me think 'Do people really go on holiday, wake up and say I think I'll go shopping for a Harley today?' There was also a luxury mall for the Gucci and Prado shoppers.
Our host Ana was really lovely. She had just turned 70 and was looking forward to meeting one of her sons in New York for celebrations. He lives in Hamburg so it was a good place to meet up. Unfortunately, Ana's husband had been unwell with a fever and had to be hospitalised and re-hydrated. She managed to organise an early morning breakfast for us which we picked up from the fridge as we had a 3.30 am shuttle booked to get us to our 6 am flight to Houston, so we never heard if he recovered enough for her to .go on her trip.
The day we were here it was Mexico's Independence Day, our calculations make it the 206th anniversary. Shops were selling flags, red, white and green dresses, and shops had their mannequins dressed in the national colours. We saw the streets being decorated for a public festival and the roads shut to traffic. The party was due to start later in the evening but we needed to be in bed early for our early flight.
We had an early meal at a restaurant that had local dishes. John brought just enough money with us for the meal but when we came to pay the bill the price of the beers put us over our limit. We promised to return with the shortfall and left the restaurant. John went back and paid the full bill which included the service fee and still the waiter wanted more.
Checking out of Havana airport was a lot smoother than checking into it. On the flight to Cancun we sat next to a Swedish woman. She told us she had befriended a couple of local lads. One of the guys told her he was going to marry a French girl on December 21st and the girl had sent him US$100 to buy a Cuban passport. He told her that the passport had been stolen from their gear when they were on the beach. The Swedish woman felt sorry for him and gave him US$50 towards another one. She then asked me if I felt she had been scammed. I told her I had asked Rafael what it was like to get a Cuban passport and he said it was very difficult, and I left her to make her own decision. These kinds of situations must happen often to the young travellers who hook up with the friendly locals.
We visited Cancun for the first time in 1981, on our way to Tierra del Fuego through Central America. Back then, it was a swampy place with lots of prawn factories. It was here we met our German friends Roland and Karin, whom we still keep in touch with. Together we camped along the lagoon and travelled together around the Yucatan. Today it is high-rise wall to wall hotels and resorts. We chose Cancun as when we had originally booked our ticket back in March 2016 it was not legal to fly directly to the USA from Cuba.
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| There was a long orderly queue here to photograph the sign |
One day we took a bus ride out to the Hotel zone along the 20 kilometre stretch. We managed to see the hotel resort where Sarsha and Jose Luis were married and where Kerri and Adam flew with wee Tyler to the wedding. There is a lot of money in this area of Mexico. In the middle of the resorts was a Harley Davidson motorbike shop and made me think 'Do people really go on holiday, wake up and say I think I'll go shopping for a Harley today?' There was also a luxury mall for the Gucci and Prado shoppers.
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| The bed and breakfast place |
The day we were here it was Mexico's Independence Day, our calculations make it the 206th anniversary. Shops were selling flags, red, white and green dresses, and shops had their mannequins dressed in the national colours. We saw the streets being decorated for a public festival and the roads shut to traffic. The party was due to start later in the evening but we needed to be in bed early for our early flight.
We had an early meal at a restaurant that had local dishes. John brought just enough money with us for the meal but when we came to pay the bill the price of the beers put us over our limit. We promised to return with the shortfall and left the restaurant. John went back and paid the full bill which included the service fee and still the waiter wanted more.
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| The streets were lined with these beautiful trees in full bloom |
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