Dec 2011 8 AM Our first morning in Cuba, I’m looking out of a wide window from our room on the 11’th floor of the Melia Cohiba Hotel. The view encompasses the ocean, the malecon and many old rustic buildings surrounding our hotel. The absence of billboards and signs makes a strong first impression on me. Beautiful old cars, many repainted with tropical colors including pinks and bright oranges add to this surrealistic montage that is my first glimpse of Havana
.An eagle or a vulture circles overhead, a large swimming pool
lies below and to the right sits the Riviera Hotel a notorious mobster hotel built in the 50’sportrayed in the Godfather movie, as the location where the dons of the Mafia meet on an ocean side patio to divide up the spoils of Cuba with the dictator Batista. Castro and the revolution would have something to say about that. Cuda’s finished doing her make-up and its time for breakfast I’am starving after turning down the airline’s excuse for food yesterday. I’m hungrier than a Cuban tree rat ( Yes they do exist
3 pm Were back in our meticulously cleaned room after an epic feast, and some poolside time Breakfast included freshly baked croissants, smoked salmon from Chile, gourmet cheeses from Italy and Spanish chorizo. A full gourmet all you can eat buffet and I did eat all I could. Numerous visits to the smoked salmon plate and they just kept piling it on. The service was over the top as plates would disappear immediately from the table if a waiter noticed the slightest disinterest in its contents. Cappuccinos and fresh squeezed juices arrived continuously. I didn’t know it yet but this was just a warm-up for the food bacchanalia awaiting us in Cayo Coco one week from now.
Last night we arrived at at our hotel lobby at about 10pm, after a transfer glitch at the airport. Sunway vacations had not included transfers from the airport to our hotel but kindly gave us a complimentary taxi to our hotel after a little dickering ( read the fine print in your itinerary before traveling) After checking in to our room and finishing our welcome cocktails in the lobby bar, compliments of the desk manager, we walked towards some live music coming from one of the bar lounges and we got our first taste of of Cuban bliss which we had waited so long for. I can’t remember the last time I was emotionally moved by a live performance of extremely talented musicians. This Cuban jazz quartet that we had the honor and high privilege to experience was red hot. I mean move over Miles Davis and Sonny Rollins…I mean a front man moving seamlessly between trumpet, sax and clarinet. A young kid all over the drums and a solid lead and bass guitar back-up. It doesn’t get any better than this. Sitting in this small bar surrounded by cigar smoke and sipping 7 year old Havana Club rum I was overcome by tears of happiness.These guys played their hearts out taking turns doing solo’s and each giving accolades to the other band members after playing. An appreciative mix of locals and tourists offered loud applause after each set. Excuse me, this is culture, this is life, real nourishment, not the fucking sterile pablum we are fed from our big screen TV’s. This was only the beginning of our Cuban music adventure and it only got better.
We had arrived in Cuba after leaving behind the drab gulag of a dreary west coast winter, and after only one day in Havana all the pieces were coming together why we had always wanted to travel here. So many new impressions,our senses overloaded, we reveled in the anticipation of the pleasures ahead of us.
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