havana, cuba - day 1 // dame family trip 2017

When we landed in Havana, Cuba, we were waiting for our bags (over an hour, no joke) and got talking with other Americans. One gentleman told us that this was his 3rd time in Cuba and was asking about our itinerary. We told him we were staying in Havana for two nights and he said that was too long and that there wasn't much to see. He recommended leaving Havana earlier if we could. Not exactly what we were hoping for but after spending time there, we loved it and would go back in a heartbeat.  Havana had so much color and culture and life to it. Classic cars roamed the streets and although it was run down, it was very clean. The locals treated us kindly and were excited to see Americans. We spent our first day in the rain walking around the city. We got to know the area pretty well and there was a kind of romanticism to it. We took it slow and easy. Found a delicious bakery that we took one too many trips to throughout our time there. It was a Sunday and unexpectedly quiet and a lot of places were closed. 

We stayed right in the heart of Havana on Obisbo street in the cutest airbnb. https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/13796722?guests=2&adults=2&s=kvo8tJCv The location was wonderful... sleeping was not. We have never been ones to stay out late so we turned in around 8. The issue was, the noise in the streets and bars didn't stop until after midnight. It was LOUD. Then we were woken up around 3 in the morning to screaming and yelling.. I'm pretty sure a fight broke out.. and then shortly after we were woken up again to dogs barking. The beds were not the most comfortable but the apartment was cozy and clean. One thing to note about Cuba is that water and produce is a little hard to come by. When you find it, stock up! 

varadero, cuba // dame family trip 2017

Ah, Varadero. If you want the ultimate relaxation vacation, this beach town is for you. I can't tell you how many times I took my polarized sunglasses off to see if the water really was that blue. And it was! The sand was white and soft and the water was refreshing and clear. It was the best watching Florence play in it. She LOVED everything about the beach! She would lay down in the sand and dig her hands, feet and mouth into it. She had no fear of the water and would crawl as fast as she could into it over and over. Apparently only tourists are allowed at this beach which left it uncrowded and felt really safe. There wasn't any peddling like I've seen in many 3rd world countries. It felt safe enough where we could leave our belongings on the beach and all go into the water together. This was a great way to wrap up our trip before we headed back to the winter in Idaho.

We stayed in a little apartment we found on airbnb https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/7679359?guests=2&adults=2&s=B4Q0W8by that was conveniently located right across the street from the beach and walking distance to restaurants and shopping. I wish I grabbed the name of the restaurant we ate at our final night here because the food was soooo good! The bakery in town was awesome too. One thing that we thought was different was the supermarket. It wasn't very big and there was a whole isle of alcohol, another isle of juice and cookies, one isle with pasta and that was pretty much it. No produce or water. I'm not sure if that is due to an importation thing but it was a good thing restaurants were reasonably priced and close by. We stayed here for two nights which felt like enough time for us. I personally could have stayed another day but Tanner prefers to be a little more busy.  We were there in January and it was pretty sleepy while we were there. I liked it that way and after dinner, we would go back to our apartment and watch movies on our laptop. It was quiet when we went to bed which was different than our stay in Havana. One thing to note was that the beds were NOT comfortable at all. They were hard and you could feel the springs. I would wake up sore from sleeping on my sides. Varadero is a two in a half hour drive from Havana and we took a classic taxi which was around $120 one way. We stopped at a pina colada "tourist trap" along the way but they were honestly the best pina coladas we've ever had! We caught a ride back to the Havana airport for $60 since it was a rental car that needed to go back to the airport. You just need to ask around for this option.