Ruminations of an Expatriate

Jump to Comments

Thursday, July 5th, 2007...1:53 pm

I Have Arrived

I arrived in Playa Baracoa Saturday night. I missed connections at the airport with the son-in-law of my landlady; but did connect with a very nice taxi driver who has since driven me to Pinar del Rio for a days and who yesterday took me to the farmers’ market in the nearby town of Bauta to stock up on fruits and vegetables.

The house being fully stocked with food and other necessities I was today able to leave in search of an internet cafe. I was told incorrectly that there was such in the nearby Marina Hemingway, where I was told there was such in the Cub Habana down the road. There is indeed an internet cafe in the Club Habana but I am unable to connect my laptop there.

So I decided to head to the cafe here in the Hotel National in Habana with which I am familiar. So here I sit enjoying a glass of Bucanero beer.

I left Playa Baracoa this morning in a 1955 Oldsmobile taxi with a Russian diesel engine and a Russian transmission. Such taxis are not really permitted to transport tourists but the driver, who took me on a tour of his entire route, told me it was really no problem.

The house in which I am staying is very nice and fronts on an estuary created by a river entering the Straights of Florida. I am able to dive from the rear terrace of the house into the sea, though such is a bit hazardous at low tide.

The Senora in the house across the dead-end street manages the house in which I am staying for the owner, Suzy, who lives in Habana; and is a wonderfully warm and generous person.

Sitting on the terrace early in the morning, watching the fishing boats come and go and enjoying a couple cups of rich Cafe Cubano, sin azucar, I frequently find the strains of a song composed by a high school friend related to “a beach town day” running through my head. Cubans drink Cafe Cubano in those little demitasse cups, which I find unsatisfying, and with lots of sugar. I drink it in larger cups without sugar.

Monday I traveled to attend the birthday party of my friend Katiuska at her aunt’s home in Pinar del Rio. The day consisted of eating, drinking, dancing to tunes on Katiuska’s new sound system, and quite a number o games of dominoes, a game very popular with Cubans.

I will be here for almost the entire month of July and will try to post my here every few days of my experiences and impressions.

Share, Bookmark, or Email This Post if You Wish