Discovering Cuba

With about twenty days in which it is not difficult to plan a visit to Cuba throughout the island is long and narrow and lends itself well to a round circle. And 'what we wanted to see east and west, south and north, the sea and the mountains, the countryside and cities.
After visiting Havana leaving for the west, towards Viñales and Maria La Gorda. Choose a route out of hand and very genuine and complete. E 'il Circuito Norte passing through villages filled with life: people queued for purchases, schoolchildren in uniform (white shirt, trousers or skirt, red ocher, depending on the level) or going back to school, stalls with decorations carnival paper, kiosks with porchetta sandwiches to pizzas and soft, rare tractors, many horses and bicycles, a truck load of people, very rare car.
The road initially vague between fields of sugar cane, then, following the pace of soil, salt and drops a hilly area covered with vegetation and cultivated fields, houses and towns. Un po 'everywhere rising senior, gray trunks of palm trees with real jagged and undulating green plume. The land is sanguine and generous. When the bumps on the road here is that the view is marvelous, the hills there are other hills, sometimes you can even see the sea or a few distant chimney.
The houses of the campaign, bohios are all similar: roof of palm leaves and wooden walls, a floor and the porch, but go west have a particularity: all, but all of them, outside, under the portico, there are two rocking chairs.
Even in the houses are generally of one storey, but with the masonry and roof tiles, arranged in long lines at the sides of roads, the entrance into the living room, there is behind the kitchen and the patio or courtyard, which overlook the bedrooms. The houses, like churches, are blue or pink, turquoise or yellow, green or mauve.
As the landscape changes, sliding bananas, chickens, pigs, dark, dogs, goats, oxen that dragged wagons or sleds rudimentary made of two logs. Many herons guardabuoi and "usual" roteanti vultures in the sky. Begin to shape the mogotes, Montarozzo sort of rock covered with vegetation that grow straight and steep from the plain.
I expected a lot more flowers but the winter is dry and the vegetation is still at rest. Only a few trees are in bloom, their extraordinary red hair stands out on the rest of classes still without leaves. And come to Viñales, a beautiful location in the country where life flows slowly and regularly punctuated by the rhythms of the seasons. The climate is ideal for the production of fine tobacco. Fields and fields of tobacco spread of drying, divided by hedges spontaneous intermittent from other crops. There's plenty of everything, our dinners, in the particular case, will be among the richest and varied throughout the journey, fresh fruit and vegetables: lettuce, tomatoes, peppers, grapefruit and oranges, Guayabo flesh red, fleshy and un po 'pepata, bananas and pineapple - very good especially mignon - to accompany the excellent meat free-range chicken or pork.
Many crops, but there is plenty of wilderness areas, parks and reserves where you can go hiking, usually guided. Having a guide, more or less official, is preferable, both for the necessary information on flora and fauna, but also because the paths are not lost and segnanti would be easy. During one of these trips we visit an area heavily cracked limestone and covered with vegetation, we saw the rare cork palm, tree ferns, termitai embraced high trunks and strange thorny tree trunk, others are home to orchids and dozens of epiphytic plants that rely on the branches waiting for some 'dew and yet liane and palms and the first Tocororo, the national bird, with the colors of the flag.
In the path we are accompanied by Lazaro, met by chance, 30-40 years, it seems more an Irishman than a Cuban: small and thin, red hair, clear complexion with freckles. The appearance is really miserable, shoes and clothes patched gutted. After the tour takes us to his house, he shows us three little birds singing and the unfortunate baby jutia (similar to the nutria) that takes in a cage, caught and then eaten. Lazaro, poor but generous, before we greet gives a score of grapefruit just shake from the tree.
We move further west, along the road there are several piles of coal and plumes of smoke coming out from many lit charcoal. In Maria La Gorda, which was to be a paradise (palms by the sea and seabed vegetation flourishing among the most beautiful in Cuba) arrive in the afternoon advanced. As we had said, Hurricane Ivan last year has reduced its bad this area, inside closed nature tours, branches and trees killed with 80% of leaves less - who in return has allowed us to spot many birds including the tiny hummingbird, and along the shore, palm trees spelacchiate, shells, corals and gorgonians beach. However, were very nice trip to the "cave pearls" and swim with the pleasant sight of the bottom coral full of colorful fish. But, given the late afternoon hours and the absence of wind, expect to find the exit from a myriad of tiny midges famelici that we have wings on their feet and in a flash we left the malconcio "paradise" for launching into a long race transfer to Trinidad.
City beautiful and unique, quiet, full of music, charm, and tourist bars. More than in any other place visited, the balconies, all are adorned and protected by gratings, the oldest, dating back to 1700 are in wood, iron ones are 1800. Huge balconies that sport the inside of beautiful colonial houses, especially at sunset or in shady areas as taxes are opened and the people in this place, a little 'house a little' street, sit down to take the cool.
Even here the day is never enough. The morning to make excursions among the green mountains of Topes del Collantes-rich streams and waterfalls cold, then the sea for a few hours of sun and swimming in different look for the rich seabed, but there are also interesting to see the museums, to architecture and civic art gallery, markets overflowing with beautiful embroidery and crochet work, necklaces of seeds, paper pesta cars and other items that do not find anymore. And it is also lost in the beautiful quiet paved streets, where are the horses that frequent the car, and finally, in the evening, the House of Find to listen to music while sipping a cool mojito (sugar cane, lime juice, white rum, hierba buena (like mint), soda, ice).
In our move east, everything returns after Trinidad dish. The plain is dotted with lakes and swamps, where the crocodile lived, but otherwise everything seems to be a great expanse of sugar cane, which at the end of winter and early spring collection is, in fact on the street you notice a certainly going to workers and truck for transport in the plants for processing. These collection centers will also notice a distance by the smoke that comes from plants and the sweet scent of the air.

 

Overnight at Camaguey, in the middle of the plain and most important of the island. The city is not particularly Trinidad, but lively, full of activities and shops with a good supply of goods - is found wanting even Coca Cola. Famous for its tinajones, large earthenware jars where they collected rainwater, but I rather remain in the mind as the city of bicycles, a shaman who frotte on all roads leading roles in traffic, at the same level with pedestrians and only slight competition with a bike taxi.
With another long stage arrived in Santiago de Cuba, in the mountainous and inaccessible east coast. The city, which is particularly significant for the history of the island - was first colonial capital of Havana and from there started the Revolution - is facing the Caribbean Sea, within a large and protective cove. The historical importance transpires from the wealth of architectural styles, from powerful defensive fortifications at the entrance of the bay, the ruins and dall'appassionato and tragic story of driving hours of the Moncada Barracks Museum of the Revolution.
Overcome Guantanamo, the American base is not the slightest perceived presence, and the Farola along a winding mountain road, we arrive at Baracoa. After the harsh desert and at the east coast is a dip in the green, the vegetation becomes prosperous, truly tropical, the climate ideal for coffee and cocoa, but here, they say, everything grows.
Until a few decades ago in Baracoa is reached only by sea but is now decidedly out of hand, first demanding a mountain road and a dirt track and the other full of holes.
Baracoa is a small city, say the minimum, with simple buildings, but as always, sorted and cleaned. The only church is semidiroccata and awaiting funds for restoration. Yet in the early 1900s had a thriving thanks to the production of bananas, but then the banana falls ill and the crisis came.
He was the first landing of Christopher Columbus in the Americas, he remains one of the cross, a monument and the name given to the strange mountain like a rock, "El yunque" behind Baracoa, unmistakable reference to the sailors from Europe.
Interesting was the meeting with the head of the Civic Museum, which told us: "I believe that America will Cuba have been discovered by Columbus, because here already residing population, but in contrast to the frequent view that sees in ' arrival of Christopher Columbus a bad time for America, I am convinced that wealth has brought cultural and open new perspectives. " Generous by his preference these are the other opinion would certainly been the indium Hatuey, who was burned alive for having opposed the Spanish domination and annihilation of his people.
Baracoa we liked to have found some traces of the natives of Cuba and particularly dear to us had a beautiful relationship with the people of the nearby Rio Yumuri, where we made an excursion accompanied by half and pampered village.
Finally, a remembrance of my taste buds for its cuisine, different from the rest of the island, with the coconut: excellent fish coconut milk, chocolate and coconut cucuruchos, a sweet grated coconut and cooked with honey, papaya or Guayabo, grapefruit or orange and packaged in the characteristic cones of banana leaves.

Notes
The trip was made in February by minibus with driver - convenient if you're on the number of at least 5 people - proved excellent choice for both the good relationship with "our" driver (Pancho) and for his knowledge of roads and places .
For the overnight stay, dinner and breakfast we have chosen accommodation in Particular Properties (homes) to have more contact with people and where we always found a good reception and good treatment.

For information and / or contacts in Cuba
Maria Grazia Brusegan
mariagrazia@arcam-mirano.it
to see photos www.arcam-mirano.it