Growing up in a flat rural area of the most agricultural region of Romania, I used to dream about living in a place surrounded by beautiful landscapes (and mandatory by the sea). Maybe this was the reason why I developed a real passion for geography and the wonders of the world.
In time, I realized you can live anywhere, as long as you have the flexibility and the freedom to discover new places and create your own world map out of pieces o puzzle discovered along the way.
Here I am, sitting in front of my laptop (practically something I’ve been doing all year long), few hours away from the moment we will finally say „goodbye” to one of the most difficult and different years the entire planet experienced at once – 2020. Oh, this year – it’s like I closed my eyes for 1 minute, on January 1st, 2020 and then I woke up on December 31st, 2020. Except that, during this minute, so many life changing things happened to most of us …
Actually, the paragraph above was the last one I wrote last year. It’s like 2020 wanted to prove me, once again, that it can be a non-productive year from start to end. Having said that, I find myself again in front of the almost empty page I left few days ago, trying to write something about the last awesome place I visited back in 2019 – the place where my dream of laying under a palm tree and admire the Caribbean Sea came true.
Because I chose to meet this place not in a resort or a remote location, I had to split my time in there between the sea and the culture, the history and everything else the incredible country of Cuba has to offer.
My Caribbean beach memories are actually half Caribbean and half Atlantic – well, yes and the geographer inside me is now a little nervous, as is not event 100% sure the Atlantic half is actually not Gulf of Mexico. But I will park this dilemma for the moment, as the place I want to mention in this article is, by no doubt, washed by the beautiful waters of the Caribbean Sea.
Bay of Pigs. If you are planning a trip to Cuba, it might be that you won’t think to book some nights in this area. Mostly, because of how this bay on the southwestern side of the country is known to the world, has nothing to do with its incredible turquoise waters, endless beaches where you can easily rest under coconut trees and one of the best and, probably, the cheapest seafood area. No, when you think about Bay of Pigs, you would most probably recall a documentary, or at least some articles you’ve read, where the Bay of Pig Invasion was presented as the failed landing operation by the Cuban exiles, who opposed Fidel Castro’s Cuban Revolution.
It happened in 1961. In 2019, 58 years later, it feels like the locals in the area try to get a second wind. Of course, they still have a lot of challenges to deal with. Unlike Havana and all the other places we’ve seen, in Bay of Pigs, more precisely Playa Larga village, when it comes to tourism industry, they seem to be somewhere on the same position with letter B in the alphabet. The locals are acting like they try to adapt their lives to another wave of invasion – the touristic one.
The Bay of Pigs/ Playa Larga adventure was pretty intense from start to end. We arrived there, from Cienfuegos, very late in the evening … and although I am not paranoid and I never felt Cuba could become, at some point, dangerous before, I cannot lie – it passed through my mind that there can be clouds on the horizon.
Well, there we were – 4 people, 4 luggage + all the money and personal goods, and a driver we had just met the day before, in a car which you will not see everyday on the street – the car body was Argentinian, the engine was French, the car board Russian and the radio Chinese . Of course, you had no idea how many km/hour you were dealing with and it was just a matter of time that the engine (or some other part of the car, coming from God knows what part of the globe) would stop working. It happened the day before, on a 50 km ride. Why wouldn’t happen the same on a >100 km one?!
If you feel you’re in the mood for some adrenaline, try finding a very remote place, which seems to be out of this century, in a country you have never been before, without google maps and without having anyone on the streets, late in the evening. And, on top of that, add that you haven’t heard from your airbnb hosts and you are not 100% sure they are still expecting for you to come anymore.
Playa Larga turned out to be, at least for me, the most unexpected experience I had in Cuba. We knew there is not a Cuban tourist landmark. And since you can’t make an omelet without breaking some eggs, I saw this coming.
- The accommodation
Casa Noly y Yeny was a great place to stay in the „jungle” called Playa Larga. It was the definition a Caribbean household we (at least the girls) dreamed of since we booked our flights to Cuba. The hosts were always there to help and they really served a great breakfast. I still think about those donuts from time to time and the fresh juice and fruits … oh, I do miss those too.
- Playa Caleton
And not to mention that the house was literally 80 meters away to the beach – a 100% Caribbean beach (Playa Caleton). However, it was definitely not a place for tourists in search for fancy beach bars and luxury beach furniture. And, truth to be told, the sand and water were not in their best shape, as the tornado you might remember from the second episode brought large amounts of algae to shore. But it was the beach I was so expecting to see and the palm trees were there, too!
- The village
Playa Larga might not be the most welcoming place in Cuba. As mentioned before, the region’s recent history and maybe the lack of interest from the authorities make the village rather look like a poor and dusty place to be avoided, than an exotic vacation destination. The inhabited area is definitely in big contrast with the beach one. The great news is that, unlike some other places on the globe (and even in Cuba), the beach access is not restricted to the residents.
- The food
Not too many restaurants you can count on when your stomach is growling. But the ones you will find will definitely serve the best and the cheapest food. Especially seafood. I wouldn’t dare to say „the best and cheapest food in Cuba”, as I haven’t been everywhere, but it definitely was for my itinerary. Full lobster or crab dishes for 8 – 9 CUC (USD), the most delicious garlic shrimps and, if you really want to try something different at least for an European citizen, even crocodile meat, everything was so delicious! This memory is not for those who are faint of heart. You better stop imagining the dishes right now.
- The sunset
Three sunset places I remember from my vacation to Cuba and all of them were by the sea. The first one was in Playa Larga.
- The endless empty beaches
The great thing about this place outside the touristic map of Cuba is that, due to the small number of people and its endless beaches, you can find some awesome places for meditation, for relaxation where, besides your travel partners, there are high chances to only have the white sand, turquoise waters and the coconut trees as your witnesses only. And, boy, if this is not what you need, after a long and stressful year in the XXI century ….
Regardless I talk about Playa Caleton, the one literally next door …
… or Playa Larga, located a few kilometers away from the village, but still at a walking distance if you are not too lazy, the amazing landscape is definitely the breath of fresh air you need in order to be able to recharge your batteries and survive the crazy life we have to live in order to afford internet, coca cola, pringles and endless brands of chocolate, back in the „civilized world”.
If you are lucky enough to find yourself in a place like this, the only thing you should do is not to wish for more than what the nature has to offer. No human made luxury elements, no fancy stuff. Just the sea, the palm trees, the white sand, the friendly Mediterranean sun. Long story short – the nature wonders.
And, if you crave for some snack, nature always has something to offer in this field too. What’s better than a fresh coconut on a sunny beach day in paradise?
…hmmm, maybe more fresh coconuts, improved with some local Vitamin R (of course, the incomparable Cuban rum).
- The excursions
We had the chance of visiting some other beautiful places of the area, by buying a day trip – snorkeling included.
And we experienced some extreme sensations in the former school bus that drove us to other hidden Caribbean treasures. Probably retired before the ’60s from a small town in Florida.
And here, in Cueva de los Peces, I found myself that brave, I even dare to swim in a bottomless water eye. I must have been enchanted by the scenery.
- The departure
We had to say goodbye to this place of contrasts with a high level of adrenaline. Not little did I know that the feeling I had on our way to Playa Larga was actually a prediction of the departure moment. Now, almost 2 years later, safe at home, all me and my travel partners can think about this memory laughing, but then it was definitely the most terrifying moment of the whole vacation. Or I can even dare to say of all my vacations together.
Our hosts mentioned several times not to be that open and take any car ride we are offered on the street and to try get in touch with the guy who brought us there or, worse case scenario, take the Viazul Bus. But we thought we are fearless Romanian guys. We got rid of communism by killing our leader and our country’s landmark is Dracula. What could have happened to us in Cuba? Well …. it almost happened. Apparently, Cuba is not full of nice and welcoming people. Of course, they might represent 98% of the Cuban people, but you should not minimize the power of the other 2%. And we’ve learnt on our own nerves, that being too cocky in a place located at the end of the world, could definitely lead to unpleasant situations.
Here is a very good article about the transportation options in Cuba. Except the Playa Larga – Trinidad leg, we always traveled with taxi colectivos. Usually, recommended by our hosts. Everything went nothing but great. But Playa Larga seems to host sort of a taxi colectivos mafia and we understood where our host’s desperation came from, when we were about to become the victims of these people. Luckily, our adventure in Playa Larga ended with us leaving with Viazul bus, but the hour we had before this … well, I might save it for another episode …
Note to myself – Remember the beautiful places you’ve seen and start planning the new destinations – 2020 needs to be revenged.
Amintiri, realizări, aspiraţii ... şi ceva mai mult 