February 6, on to Pasacaballo and Cienfuegos   On the evening of Saturday, Feb. 4, we had dinner in La Boca with Rocky and Gail, the couple from Alaska. The next morning, Sunday, we set out for Pasacaballo, near Cienfuegos. Not five minutes out of La Boca, we saw Rocky and Gail and rode the rest of the day with them — by their good graces, since they are both racers and could have easily left us in the dust (right).

Except there was no dust, because it began to drizzle not long after our departure, and before we reached Cienfuegos it was pouring. We were totally soaked for at least a couple of hours. Barbara never put on a jacket, and I have no idea how she survived. Our Ipod got soaked and died because it was in a rack-pack that was not waterproof.

The approaching rain
 

Rocky and Gail decided to continue with us to Pasacaballo, a rural place on the coast near Cienfuegos. I assured Gail and Rocky (correctly) that owner Jose Pineiro would either have a room for them at Finca los Colorados or would quickly arrange one nearby. That much was true. However, I also assured them that he would give us a good deal. That was not quite so clear. Their room was very small (an employee's room and a shared bathroom with no water), and compared to other places we've stayed, too expensive. Availability of water was intermittent — and no water at all in Gail and Rocky's shared bathroom. The food, while certainly ok, was a little more costly than comparable places -- with the exception of our final dinner. (Left, arriving at Finca los Colorados when it is nearly dark.)

Jose, for his part, has been friendly and seems anxious to please. He talked with us quite a lot about politics and the economy, with many complaints. Suffice to say he's not a revolutionary!

 
Today, Monday, February 6, we stayed here in Pasacaballo for another night, but Rocky and Gail left for Playa Giron and Havana. They needed to move on, but also they were disappointed by Finca los Colorados. (Eventually I took this up with Jose. More about this later.)

Barbara and I went into Cienfuegos via the ferry. That was a pleasant trip, though it was a grey, humid day. Our time in Cienfuegos was not well spent. We were trying to renew our visas, and that was a miserable failure. Long lines, typically, but we saw that we needed our plane ticket for our departure (which we didn't have with us) and our health insurance certificate (which we don't have at all.) Plus, of course, the stamps from a bank that show we've paid our $50. So we gave up. We plan to try again later, perhaps in Holguin, and we'll buy our health insurance and try to get our stamps before we even approach the immigration office.

We were back in Pasacaballo by about 4:30, after a basic lunch at a peso cubano sandwich place in Cienfuegos. (Note: I left my expensive camera at the sandwich shop when rushing off to a currency exchange, and they kindly kept it safe for me until I remembered and Barbara returned for it.) At Finca los Colorados, Jose fixed us a truly sumptuous seafood dinner before our departure.

Right: the lighthouse just across the street from Finca los Colorados.

February 8, Wednesday, Cienfuegos

Yesterday, Tuesday the 7th, we left Pasacaballo and rode to Cienfuegos proper, on Punta Gorda. Before leaving, I tried to talk to Jose about some of the issues concerning our stay. The facts were that he charged the same as better places in Cienfuegos, for small rooms with terrible mattresses. The public spaces at Finca los Colorados are very attractive, but he charged more for beer, soft drinks and water than any place we'd stayed, including Havana. There were problems with water. It wasn't that a huge amount of money was involved. Rather, the point was that Rocky and Gail left partly because they were dissatisfied, and we were embarrassed because we recommended the place so highly.

Jose responded mainly with sob stories. The frequent water problems weren't his fault; it was the power company. He'd get better mattresses if he could afford it (though he can afford travel to Europe and the U.S.) The higher prices for food and drink weren't his fault; it was the taxes, and transportation expenses, and so on.

Jose had been arguing the previous evening that Cuba's regulations are frustrating, and he wanted more "free enterprise" or whatever. I pointed out that in a free market economy, consumers wouldn't care about his problems; they would only want the most for their money, and if he couldn't meet the competition, he would fail. But I couldn't get through. Jose's view of the U.S.-style free market seemed to be simply that he would face less regulation and make more money. Automatically. Competing successfully on price didn't seem to play into it. My impression, for what it's worth, is that some Cubans who want big changes toward a free enterprise system see only an upside like less regulation and more consumer goods — not the challenges and new problems that such a change would inevitably bring.

On the short ride (20 kms) between Pasacaballo and Cienfuegos
 

We arrived in Cienfuegos before lunch and spent time poking around, looking for a place to stay. We wanted to be on the water, in the Punta Gorda neighborhood. The first place we tried was full, and we asked for recommendations at another (fully booked) casa. The upshot was that we ended up, quite by accident, at the same casa we visited 10 or 11 years ago! It was the home of Maria Antonia and Napoles, mentioned in our book long ago. It is on the narrowest part of Punta Gorda, so we face east over the bay in front of the house, and the backyard is also on the waterfront toward the west. A wonderful location with a kindly family.

We rode into the center of Cienfuegos in the afternoon. On the way into town, we stopped at a sculpture garden on the waterfront. There was quite a collection of interesting pieces. (Below) We were particularly taken by the large dragonfly made of heavy guage wire, on the left.

In town, we met the sculptor who designed it, Fidel Reina. (Below, left) He wanted very much to ride our strange bikes. We let him give it a try on the pedestrian walkway where he was selling small sculptures. He wasn't able to make even ten feet without toppling. Neither he nor the bike were hurt. We bought four of Fidel's small metal sculptures, some of which are made of the wire from champagne corks. It was nice to see someone in Cuba creating objects that seem truly originial, not just repetitive knock-offs of things sold by the vendors next door. The wire butterflies (below right) can slowly turn and gently rock on their balance point.

Cienfuegos is a beautiful city with a wonderful setting on the bay and some elegant buildings. It may be our favorite in Cuba.

Cienfuegos has some wonderful architecture. The photos above and to the left are both taken on the city's main plaza. There seems to be more outdoor recreation in Cienfuegos than in any other Cuban city we have visited. Below, innumerable rowing teams would work out in early morning and evening; we could watch them from the balcony of our room. There was apparently a youth sailing program, and we saw sailboats on the bay every afternoon. We also saw groups of cyclists from time to time, tricked out in proper gear on fairly good road bikes. We thought they might be teams in training.

In the evening we watched the sunset from the back of the house and the full moon rising from the front. Below, Napoles and an old friend with a soggy cigar play dominoes in the afternoon.

 
We went out for a good roast pork dinner in a touristy restaurant on the water. After dinner, we walked to a music venue, but nothing seemed to be happening, so we gave up and went home to bed.

This morning, Wednesday the 8th, we had a quiet morning reading, helping Maria Antonia get our laundry hung, and working on the bikes. In the early afternoon, we rode into town. Barbara found wire sculptures she'd been wanting, and we had HUGE servings of Coppelia ice cream for about 20 cents each (in Havana we had been charged $2.50 each for half the amount of the same delicious Coppelia ice cream.) I got a haircut and was ripped off on the price but didn't want to bother fighting it. That made up for the ice cream bargain.

Our last afternoon in Cienfuegos we were sitting on the front balcony watching the water. A young girl burst into tears because she couldn't get her windsurfer righted after a spill. She eventually calmed down and got underway when a helpful passerby reassured her and talked her through it. Sailing dinghies and rowing shells zipped back and forth. The sun eventually went down, and we had a simple chicken dinner. Tomorrow we cycle back to Santa Clara, and the end of this part of our tour.

 
Sunset over Cienfuegos Bay

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