My 25th Birthday!

So, I was now officially a quarter-of-a-century old and in Cuba.  There are no words to articulately describe what I felt then, other than ridiculously lucky! 

Thankfully, the Nacional included a free buffet breakfast, since we were short on cash.  As we were walking to breakfast a friendly Aussie asked us if we knew where breakfast was being served.  We told him to follow us and as simple as that a new friendship was formed.  I have previously mentioned in my blogs how deeply important the people that I meet while traveling are to me.  And this was definitely no exception!  Marc, an Australian nomad, was by himself on the end of a round-the-world trip.

  Looking for some fellow travel companions he decided to join us after breakfast on our excursion to the beach.

The beach that we went to was called Playa del Este.  It was about a 15 minute taxi ride from La Habana.  As we walked over the sand dunes and in the direction of the ocean the sight of the crystal blue waters took my breath away!  I will never become jaded with the Caribbean.

We decided to go to the empty section of the beach where we found a man that would bring us anything we wanted for only a couple of CUC$’s…ahhh, que bueno!  I left Marc and Kristin to their sunbathing and went into the ocean.  While there, I encountered two very drunk Cubans whom kept insisting that I marry them.

  Marc eventually joined me in the water and kindly pretended to be my husband to get them to leave me alone (poor Kristin became their next target).  Marc tried to take their pictures, but they started to get very anxious and talk so rapidly that I could barely understand them.  The problem was that Cubans are not allowed to swim in certain parts of the ocean and they were afraid that the police might somehow see the pictures and they would get in a lot of trouble.  It was not just the ocean; hotels, restaurants, and shops that admitted tourists could also not allow Cubans to enter.  That type of segregation was really unsettling to me and continued to bother me throughout the rest of the trip whenever we encountered it, which was more often than not. 

We laid out for several hours under the hot Cuban sun and when Marc and I would need breaks we would cool down in the ocean and engage in talk of politics, current events, world affairs, our travels, etc.

  I felt like I had really met my intellectual match with him!  One of the question’s he asked me was, “What is your greatest vice in life?”  My response, of course, was chocolate.  I would pleasantly discover later why he had asked me that question.

Later in the day it started to rain and we took it as a sign that it was time to find some lunch.  However, finding something vegetarian for me and non-seafood for Marc and Kristin was proving to be quite a challenge.  Finally, we happened upon an ice cream stand, which made all three of us very happy.  Unbeknownst to us, that also happened to be where our two Cuban friends had found refuge as well.  They insisted on buying us ice cream and asking for Kristin and I' hand in marriage one last time (despite thinking that Marc was my husband).

  The sun started to come out again and we thanked them for their generosity and left them with broken hearts.

About an hour later, having had enough sun for one day, we returned to the hotel.  We decided the plan for the evening would include: mojitos at one of the Nacional’s bars, dinner at the nicest restaurant in town called La Guarida, and then dancing at a salsa club.  We left Marc to get freshened up and to check our e-mail.  In case you want to get online while in Cuba head to the Nacional.  It is one of the only places you can find a decent connection and you do not have to be a guest to use their computers.

After donning my little black dress for the occasion, Kristin and I went to meet Marc.

  We found him with a huge smile on his face and a bag of my vice (chocolate).  He said, “Everyone deserves a present on their Birthday.”  I was so touched!  Chocolate is a luxury in Cuba and he had spent quite a while walking around trying to find some for me.  The three of us then sat to watch the sun set on El Malecon and to drink our mojitos and eat my chocolate. 

El Malecon is an 8KM street in La Habana that runs along the water and offers stunning views.  At night mostly lovers meet there for romantic rendezvous’ and to listen to makeshift bands that play until dawn.

Next, we went to La Guarida (www.

travel.nytimes.com/travel/guides/caribbean-and-bermuda/cuba/havana/restaurant-detail.html?vid=1154654651774).  This restaurant is famous for having the Cuban movie “Tresa y Chocolate” (fitting, huh?) filmed inside it.  If you choose to eat there, which you absolutely should, make sure to make a reservation in advance.

Unfortunately, Kristin started to feel bad towards the end of dinner, so we decided to nix the salsa club and take her back to the hotel.  Marc and I did not want to end the evening just yet, thus we decided to have a few more drinks in another Nacional bar.  We continued our intriguing conversation from earlier in the day.  I was enchanted by his round-the-world trip, as I had always dreamed of doing one myself.  He offered to show me his pictures and I agreed instantly.  After looking at his pictures, Marc came up with the idea of going for a midnight dip in the hotel’s pool.  Now I was going to be in a forbidden pool in a forbidden country.  Oh dios mio!

All in all, it was the perfect Birthday!  Muchas, muchas gracias Kristin and Marc for a day I will never, ever forget!  :)