In 2019 we decided we wanted a long-ish self-supported bicycle tour. The criteria—it must be warm and must be off the beaten track. Cuba fit the bill. We had visited Cuba s all-inclusive tourists, but never felt we had seen the real Cuba, far away from the beach resorts. We wanted to see it our way—by bicycle. Randy had a route planned, but nothing more. Each night we would source out our accommodations as we rolled into town. We knew there would be challenges in this unique country so we anticipated the possible challenges—bike repairs, spare parts, and even food availability. We also knew we would be among local Cubans and in order to put a few smiles on faces we loaded up our panniers with little gifts and treasurers that we thought might be appreciated.
Days 3 and 4: Banes to Mayari
Day 3: Internet Lineups, $.12 coffee, Street Pizza, and the Magical Casa Network We take the Internet for granted. Most Cubans do not have wifi in their homes. They wait in line at the Telecommunicacion Center in town to buy an internet card (about $1 for an hour). Then they login with a whole series... Continue reading→
Day 5: Mayari to Sagua de Tanamo
Day 5: Random farm animals everywhere, Commerce (or lack thereof), and Cuba at night We had originally planned to ride all the way to Moa, but decided to break this ride up into two days instead of one due to The Episode and not wanting to test my body any more than it has been. 58km,... Continue reading→
Day 6: Sagua de Tanamo to Moa
Today is the second half of the distance we had planned to complete yesterday. We are glad to have split the distance up because the hills today were quite long and laborious. The beautiful vista that we woke up to this morning changed as the day progressed. As we approached Moa the landscape changed from... Continue reading→
Day 7: Moa to Playa Maguana
Decay, followed by hell followed by paradise! Moa is a nickel mining city (not copper as reported yesterday). Little could have prepared us for the sight of the smoggy, dark, rusting, decrepit industrial apocalypse…it could be the setting for a sci fi movie. There were large swaths of land and buildings that need to be... Continue reading→
Day 8: Playa Maguana to Baracoa
Everything great about Cuba seems to be found in Baracoa The day started late as Randy discovered that yesterday’s bone-rattling ride shook a screw right off his pannier and he needed to improvise a repair. Randy’s always prepared for every possible mechanical failure so we managed. Everything great about Cuba seems to be found here... Continue reading→
Day 9: Non-cycling day in Baracoa
Rum, bloodsports, bikes, homes vs houses, and a birthday dinner with friends. The sights and sounds of our non-cycling rest day in Baracoa were colourful. We started our rest day by heading to the center of town for a coffee to see what we see and people-watch. We sat beside a table of exuberant young... Continue reading→