Posted By: Costa <Isleindsun@aol.com>
Date: 4/24/99 09:44
A View of CUBA
Hello all you whoremongers. I was in Cuba from April 12th - April 19th of 1999. Here's
the latest update and information. First of all, let me say that this was my first
trip to Cuba so I don't know what it was like in the pre-crackdown days. Yes, the
crackdown is in full force and effect but moreso in Havana than any other place that
I saw. However, let me say in no uncertain terms that Cuba is still a chica heaven
for many reasons the most important of which is their passion for living. I've had
chicas in many different countries on four different continents and the Cubanas definitely
take the cake when it comes to passion. Read on....
Getting There
If you are an American like me, there are several ways to go (Mexico, Jamaica, Bahamas,
etc). I live in New Jersey and decided to go through Toronto. Why? Here was my flight
itinerary......
1. Left Newark at 7:30 am....arrived Toronto 9:15 am.
2. Left Toronto at 11:30 am..arrived Cienfuegos 3:00 pm (same flight goes on to Havana
also and arrives 30-45 minutes later). This is a better route as there is no 7 hour
layover as with the Cancun flights!! Think about it. Originally, I was gonna fly
Canada 3000 flight but it got canceled as the Canadian gov't took all their airplanes
to bring back refugees from Kosovo. I got re-scheduled on Cubana (which according
to prior reports was not the way to go). I was a little (OK a lot) nervous but I
found that they were now using Airbus 320's with an Irish crew. All said and done,
a very smooth and uneventful flight, just the way I like them. Cost? $287US Round-trip!!
Yes, that's right, $287US!!! Can't beat that with a stick. I used A. Nash Travel
in Missisaugua, Canada (suburb of Toronto). This man named Jury Krytiuk took care
of all the arrangements via e-mail. He was great!! His email is JKRYTIUK@nashtravel.com.
I had absolutely no hassles from Canadian or US Customs flying this route. Remember,
as far as the US is concerned, they think you were in Canada all this time.
Cuban Customs
A little glitch here boys. Maybe it was because I flew into sleepy Cienfuegos on
a Monday instead of busy Havana, I don't know, but they kept me there about 1 hour.
By the way, they didn't stamp my passport and I didn't have to ask. As soon as they
saw my US passport though, they pulled me aside and politely asked me to remove everything
I had one by one. I had to spray all my sprays (deodorant, shaving cream, etc), open
my books (hidden guns?) and they went through EVERYTHING I had. Now mind you, they
were very polite the whole time and kept apologizing to me. I joked with them that
I was not 007 and they nervously laughed also. I acted very submissive ( I had nothing
to hide anyway) and told them that I understood that they needed to do this so I
didn't sell it all while I was there and it was ëno problem'. They wrote down
all the serial numbers of my cameras, translators, Walkman, etc. The biggest problem
was with my digital camera. They couldn't figure out what it was and to make a long
story short, I had to take a picture of the immigration supervisor (by this time
I was surrounded by about 4 immigration officials) and show it to him. This made
him very happy and they let me go, apologizing again to me. Funny thing is, they
never checked me on departure to see if I had taken everything out again with me.
They just waved as they obviously remembered me. Make a note of that.
Accommodations
Havana - Through a fello TSM member, I found a really great casa in the Vedado section
of Havana. Truly the best I saw there. It was $35 a night but worth alot mor. It
was like a mansion, with a spiral staircase, 24 hour door service, cable TV, chica
friendly, etc. Unfortunately, I'll have to post it at a later time as I've been informed
by the TSM member that the owner doesn't want it up just now. Sorry boys...keep your
eyes open in the future.
Cienfuegos- Having read Bruce's earlier report on Cienfuegos, I took his advice and stayed at B & B Hospedage, Calle 41, #1402, between 14/16, in the Punta Gorda section of Cienfuegos. The owners name is Jorge and he speaks English pretty damn good. He's an excellent cook (check out my pictures on the ë99 Member Photos page) and I ate there every night. Even if you stay elsewhere, you can tell Jorge you want to eat there and he'll be glad to have you. Besides, its not just a meal, its an adventure. He doesn't know what he's making until late that afternoon when he goes to market. He gives you enough food to feed an army and its almost always fish. A typical dinner would be Grilled Red Snapper (fresh, fresh, fresh), Chicken soup, tomato/cucumber/red onion salad, fresh vegetables, fried platanos and cuban coffee w/ Rum. Along with that would come personalised service, great conversation and music (like me, he loves The Gypsy Kings and salsa).
What a wonderful man!! I believe he and I became lifelong friends. I gave him
$1000, my passport and my plane tickets to put in his private safe while I tromped
around Cuba and I never blinked an eye about it. You can trust him with your life
and certainly with your valuables. I dipped into my money 3 or 4 different times
and there was never a penny missing. As he says, "He is a real man with big
balls." While you're there, ask him to have his 10 year old grandson come out
and play 'La Bamba' on his guitar. Its precious. Dinner runs between $7-15 depending
on whether its something plain or its Lobster. Trust me guys, its worth every penny
there for a great meal.
Jorge rents out 3 rooms in his house. They all have private baths, A/C and constant
hot water. I happened to get Bruce's old room. I found a bunch of hash marks on the
wall. Perhaps Bruce's Cuban chica counter? Ask Jorge for either the middle or the
back room. They are the best. He has installed 24 hour surveillance cameras both
at the front gate and in the house with a video screen next to his bed and 24 hour
access is no problem. Yes, he has to get up, but I promise you he doesn't mind. The
cool thing about it is that you cannot sneak OUT of the house either. A buzzer goes
off in his room and he's up in a flash.
This is good for guests in case you fall asleep and your chica tries to sneak out with your money! Never happened to me but its nice to know its there. Speaking of chica access, they are no problem at ANY time of day or night. However, they MUST have a carneta (Cuban ID) on them or its ABSOLUTELY no go with George. One night I brought home a medical school student at 3:30 am who was 23 years old but had forgotten her carneta. I pleaded with George and he knew for sure that she was of age but explained to me that it was impossible. Should she get caught in his house without it, he would lose his license (B & B Hospedage is a legal casa. For your own good, always make sure you stay at a legal casa in Cuba to avoid potential problems. It protects you,the tourist). Anyway, she went home and got it, and all was well. Let me remind you guys at this point that although legal age in Cuba is 16, its always a good idea to stick to chicas 18 and over. (In Cuba, its really hard to tell. I met 12 year olds who looked like they were 25 and 35 year olds who looked like they were 18. If in doubt, check their carnetas yourself as I did. If they say they don't have it on them, RUN AWAY!!) Living in a casa like Jorge's that scrutinizes carnetas, it protects you from getting in trouble with an underage girl, false carnetas (Jorge is a master at spotting them) and by him holding it as long as she is in the house, it keeps her from leaving without your authorization.
Like I said, Jorge is the best. Tell him Costa sent you. You'll feel both safe and at home there. Rooms are $20-$25 a night (excluding all meals) and make sure you make reservations well in advance (at least a month).
Getting Around
Cienfuegos - If you need to take a taxi while in Cienfuegos, call the central
number at 9145 and ask for Miguel Enriquez. His home number is 5107. He's an older
and very sweet man. He speaks no English but smiles all the time. I liked him and
tipped him well becuse he's just a nice, hardworking and trustworthy man. Tell him
Costa sent you and that I say 'Ola Amigo'.
Cienfuegos is a relatively small city and very flat. Although I am not a fitness
nut by any stretch of the imagination, I took Bruce's advice and borrowed one of
Jorge's bicycles (no charge). I wound up bicycling 10-15 miles a day and got a real
feel for the city. Its a great way to get around and meet people, especially chicas.
Havana - I called Rolando (70-2925) when I got there but he was already booked.
Shit!! Bad planning on my part. So, what I did was use my head. I looked around the
Havana Libre Hotel and Coppelia (the huge ice cream place) area for a young looking
taxi driver in a non-tourist taxi. After about 5 minutes, I saw a 1954 white Mercedes
drive by with a cool looking dude with shades driving. I flagged him down, told him
I needed a driver by the day for chica hunting, and off we were. His name is Joel
and his number is 207139.
Ask for either Joel or Gina. He's a big dude (no problems in case you get into trouble)
with a great personality and he knows all the hot spots of Havana. Unfortunately,
he speaks very limited English. I contracted him out for $25 a day and I was very
happy. We did the sights of Havana by day (being my first time there, I was just
as interested in seeing the cultural sights of Cuba as I was in seeing the chicas)
and went chica hunting at night. I'd probably make arrangements with Rolando if possible
as he is our resident TSM guide, but keep Joel in mind as a backup.
Buses- There is only one way to go. As previously posted (its in the Cuba archives), use Viazul for inter-city transportation (Cienfuegos-Havana was $20 but a real luxury bus with A/C and TV). For intra-city transportation in Havana, use only taxis. The local buses (they call them 'The Camels'- you'll see why) are a nightmare.
OK, that's it for now....more coming on the crackdown situation, hotspots, chicas, etc. soon.
A Newbies View of CUBA
CUBA...........what a great place. I'm going to finish this report off in perhaps a non-TSM way in that I'm not going to give you all the chica details. I will however tell you this about Cuba, from my experiences.
1. They are EXTREMELY passionate women there. However, I never had a true "jinitera"
who watched the clock. Hard core is not what I'm after. I could go to NYC for that.
I assume that the pros in Cuba are like anywhere else in the world."Pay up,
get on, get it over with, get out" I always got a "good girl", meaning
not a pro, but a willing participant who knows that in the end she will get a "gift"
without having to ask for it. Yes, there is a BIG difference. Treat them right and
ANYTHING is yours. I had different chicas of different colors who, when asked, never
said no to anyting. Anything went.....BBBJ (never wasting or spilling a drop these
girls), anal, doggie, etc. You name
it, you got it.
2. Cuba is a wonderfully aesthetic and unspoiled country. It's a real paradise on earth in terms of weather, beaches, mountains, waterfalls, etc. Get out and see it. You won't believe it.
3. It's a secure country. I have never felt safer than when I was in Cuba. Oh sure, I got pestered for gum, money, girls, casas, etc...but I never felt at all threatened. Thatís the good side to the heavy police prescense. You can go anywhere, at any time of the day or night and not have to worry. Thatís a great thing.
4. Last but not least, the people of Cuba have to be the warmest people on earth. I have a gift in that I'm not afraid to start up a conversation with anyone and it led almost every time to an invitation to someoneís house. These people have nothing to give but themselves. They are wonderfully hospitable. Take the time to talk the talk and walk the walk with them. Some of the best talks I had was with the old timers who told me all about Cuba as it was and as it is (even though they knew I was doing their granddaughter at the time).
So boys, that's it ëtill next time I go in September/October. Hope I could give you a little insight into a wonderful place. By the way, don't forget to check the pictures in the Members Photo section.
- Costa