Yay back from Varadero, CUBA!

I was hesitant to go to the Caribbean fearing that I would get sick. But what are adventures ifyou don't take any risks?? I booked the vacation last minute via Sunwing.ca and the whole process was a breeze. For two people it costs around $1200 dollars including the travel insurance (even though I feel I did not need to buy it but it only costs an extra $30/person). Our resort was the Breezes Bella Costa, 3 1/2 stars out of 5 for 5 nights. We left early Thursday morning driving to the airport parking lot Sky Park (Do not ever go there!). The parking lot is outside and the shuttle vans to the airport were very run down and old. The service was alright though..but what can you expect for 10$/day?? But it left us feeling a bit worried about the car during our vacation. It's way cheaper than parking at the airport which would be about double that price.

We have all our stuff with us -- we only had 2 carry-ons and one luggage which we both shared. The duration of our stay was from April 15 to April 20th which was too short lived now that I think of it! We wanted to explore the historical town of Havana! But we'll save that for another time ;)

First Night:
Arrived at airport, picked up luggage and took the shuttle service bus to our hotel. Once we stepped out to the waiting areas, the Cubans were already trying to sell us some beer! Talk about beer everywhere, anytime! Say 3 pesos/can!
So we found our bus and had our luggage put in the storage and waited on the bus. It was night time in our arrival so everything was dark out. There were and always will be a lot of tourists. The tour bus guide introduced us to Varadero, Cuba and what to look forward to and what sort of things to avoid (drinking bottled water is best). But I honestly was fine during my whole trip even if I had the mixed drinks with ice , or the water from the bar. Checking in to our hotel was breeze and we headed to our rooms to settle our our luggage and carry-ons down. We had a room safe where we kept all our money, passports, wallets and electronics in. We always made sure we have the key at-hand and carry our card keys (1 each) with us. On our first night we arrived at our hotel at 11pmish and had a few drinks at the lobby bar. I had lots of white wine while Chris enjoyed some beer on tap. It was great to be here where the weather is so summery!

Over all, it was a wonderful trip!
We went on excursions out of the resort and explored what Varadero has to offer as tourists. It is best to book at least a day ahead to ensure your spot and time.

Jeep Safari Tour was mediocre (it wasn't the best), but it felt safer going with a bunch of people in a few Jeep vehicles. We drove into the heart of downtown Varadero and out to the countryside where the villagers lived. We had a break mid-trip to taste some fresh pineapple and coconut meat; also for a washroom break which is pretty much in the bushes/trees. It was the sweetest and juiciest pineapple I have ever had. There were roosters everywhere calling out! It was too surreal. We had our lunch set in a beautiful landmark just out in nature full of wild palm trees and different greenery against a small lake. It was breathtaking :) After a rough and bumpy ride, we all needed this break from our off-roading.
We had fresh lobster tail hot off the grill for 10 pesos while having buffet (which is included in the trip) on the side. There were fresh and crispy chips, slices of pork meat, veggies and fruit. The thing is with this trip, there were a lot of hidden costs which were not included in our tour. For an example, the Mojitos at the bar were not included, the desserts and lobstertails anddd the best pina coladas were not included. So I had to do without the real pina colada. :( :(
The lobster tail tasted sooo goood. It was garlicy and buttery, which is a good thing for a lobster tail. The setting was great, we had our lunch under a large canopy set along a lake surrounded by palm trees. Toilets were awkward, the stalls were not tall but just tall enough to cover down there when u sit to pee. You need to bring your own toilet paper too (don't want to end up paying for that too). Luckily I brought some!
After lunch we explored the area, and had a chance to take a few pictures with some wild animals. A small croc, a snake and a fat rat! It was my first time carrying these wild creatures! They were harmless and friendly. We took a small rest on the hammocks and took in the scenery. It was relaxing. Until a bunch or tourists arrived by a large boat. I find that the area is too full of tourists.

-- After lunch, we all meet up with our tour group and head out in our speed boats to explore the lake. We paired up with our fellow Toronto partners (also paired up during our Jeep offroading taking turns on the wheel). The speed boats were nothing fancy, but they were fun and fast! We took in the fresh air and looked at the surrounding landscapes during our speedboat ride.
At the end, we arrived at a bar where we had some refreshing Mojitos while taking our washroom breaks. There was a live performance from a local tribe at our arrival.
--We then got back into our Jeeps and headed out to a Cave where we were suppose to do some snorkelling but we had to pay extra to rent the gear (omg another added fee) so we did go in without it. The cave area was stunning, the water was a dark blue color and the ceilings of the caves have a few stalagmites hanging down. We went in for a much needed cold dip from the humidity. Despite the many tourists going in and the few bandaids floating around, we had a good dip. We went into the deep -end where there were few people and we enjoyed it much more :) :)

Scuba Diving -- this was great! we booked it on the full second day of our trip (Saturday). It started off with a small lesson with our Scuba dive instructor at the resort the day before, and her name is Lisa. She was a very kind woman and taught us very well for our first time. She looked to be about our age too. I did struggle a bit at first because I find the breathing to be very awkward, only breathing in-and-out of the mouth only. We trained in the pool at the resort the Friday of our trip.

The day or our dive, we arrived to a scuba dive rental place by bus (with a bunch of other tourists), to pick up our gear. The suit was a bit too big even though it was the smallest size they have, and the flippers were slightly a size too big, even the vest seems a bit too loose when I had it on at the dive site. After picking up all our gear and O2 tanks we head out to our dive site. We are suppose to go the the Isle of Pigs but due to a large number of tourists, we head out to a different dive site (bummer!). After getting out of our buses and getting suited up, we were put into teams of 5, we were with another middle-aged man, and 2 locals teens from Montreal who can speak french, our instructor/guide is named Micheal. He is a middle-aged man with a straight-forward attitude. I struggled quite a bit since my entire gear was a bit too big, and the 02 tank was kinda heavy on my back.
--Getting in and out of the water was proved toughest, we didn't jump off into a boat like most people would but we had to walk to the shore and try to put our fins on. The waves were a bit rough as well. A few tourists struggled getting in and out, as there were a lot of rocks and it was pretty sharp too. So in the end, a few tourists had some serious scrapes on their legs/feet. But we were careful enough and prevented it from happening to us. It was hard to keep balance with the waves pushing you. We went down under once every one has settled in the water. We went in for about 20 mins the first time and got out for a 10 minute rest. We went back into the water for our second dive for about 30 mins going deeper down into the reefs at about 10 meters. I have learned how to compress my ears very well at each meter and my breathing technique has slowed down from the first dive. So much to learn!! In our second dive, we spotted a Lion Fish! There were plenty of other fishes and coral types on the lake bed.

Late Afternoons and Evenings:

The late afternoons that we have come back from our excursions we would enjoy the beach, go into the water, collect some shells and tan on the beach if the sun was still out. We would then have our dinners at the resort (which was pretty decent!). In the late evenings we headed out to the bars for drinks and food. It was much needed and felt great. There were a few mornings where it seemed very cloudy or gloomy. But the sun came out as the day went on :) The sun felt nice and hot, and the water was cold and refreshing! Some times if the nights were very clear, we would lay out side the beach and look out to the clear skies and see the milky way. The moon was at crescent and we could clearly see the definite shape of the rock covering the moon.

Every morning-- we would have our freshly squeezed glass of Orange Juice to go with our freshly cooked egg omellettes with either cheese, or with pepper, ham and onions. Their pancakes tasted a little bland but still good to eat. There were chefs at a few stations serving freshly cooked food so we did not need to worry too much about the sanitation. The breakfasts at the resort is always good :)

On the day before we are leaving-- we took a taxi to downtown Varadero, for 5 pesos one way. But our first trip downtown left us stranded in front of the downtown Varadero bank where we needed much badly to take out some money for spending and going home the next day. A lot of back and forth trips by taxi but we ended up getting our money and then explored the downtown area. We head to a local mall to find a cigar store where we bought our cuban cigars :) The real deal here for only 3 pesos per cigar. We went souvenir shopping at a local Artisans' market where I bought a lot of things for my home. It was fascinating looking at all the craft and work the cubans made.

Last day-- was just a relax day where we get our tans on for the last time and took a final dip into the water. Surprisingly, there were a lot of people on our last day, but during our entire stay there were not too many tourists. We had our favorite food at the resort, the hawaiian pizza hot out of the woodburning oven, and ate our buffet lunch on the side for the last time with a drink.

Will definitely go again to Cuba possibly next year, but stay at a 4 star hotel resort and explore the historical town of Havana!