Traveling Back in Time in Havana, Cuba

Visiting Havana Cuba has been on my bucket list for a little while now and when Arnie surprised me with tickets to visit this lovely country a few months ago, I was ecstatic. From the moment we landed and stepped outside to the humid air, it honestly felt like I was stepping into a different time. There was an old woman selling vintage maps of Cuba for $5, people circling the arriving tourists with signs of names, and outside on the street were 1950s classic cars of all exotic colors driving up and down. We were instantly excited and then suddenly bombarded…. 

Taxi! Necessito un Taxi?!? Aqui!!

Cambio Dinero?

Quanto tu tiene?!

In an instant we were targeted as tourists and immediately harassed in all directions. Thank goodness our Airbnb host sent us a driver, so it was only a matter of time before we got picked up. Fifteen minutes later we finally spotted our driver with our names neatly written on a white piece of paper. A 30 minute car ride and 4 flights of stairs to our Airbnb, we were finally in our private room in the middle of Havana. Our private room had a balcony that overlooked the streets of Old Havana. With a mojito already in my hand I was admiring the people from the top floor. The streets were crowded with women in spandex dresses and flip flops, men aggressively talking with their hands and shirts lifted up to their chest, and kids running the streets barefooted chasing up to cars pleading for money. Immediately I was humbled by Havana and a little intimidated by the streets. However, the excitement over powered the skepticism and we were ready to explore. 

Havana is the type of the place that makes you feel grateful for every piece of architecture you are exposed to. One minute you’re looking at the run down streets of the city, bed sheets used as curtains, women 7 months pregnant roaming the streets, and hole in the wall businesses with locals analyzing the crowd that passes them. Yet when you turn to the other side of the city you are amazed by the classic cars, 1920s timeless hotels, and elegant mom and pop restaurants.  

Top two bars I would recommend any traveler (not recommended if you're not into the tourist traps) are: 

Bar Monserrate

What intrigued me to this bar was the live music i heard coming from across the street. I was at the bank across the street and while staring into my phone to find the next bar to hit i heard salsa music and bongos. I sat at the nearest table closest to the stage and i was already moving my shoulders and clapping my hands to the sound of the music. The tourist tried their best to keep up with music dancing salsa and i was drinking my cold beer and ordering a fresh mojito. The vibe was relaxed and fun. After the performance the woman (star of the show) went around with a tin can asking for tips. I had to give the woman props because she did not take no for an answer when she circled the room. When she approached us we didn't have small bills to give her, her response, “not a problem I have change.” 

El Floridita

This bar wasn't too far from Bar Monserrate, in fact it was only two blocks away. The bar itself from the inside out is truly gorgeous. The building is painted a hot pink with a green neon sign spelling the title of the bar. The inside of the bar had a massive martini glass, red velvet booths facing the bar, and the entire room was packed with tourist trying to order daiquiris. I purposely wanted to go to this bar because of the history it held. Ernest Hemingway frequented this bar often and is how it gained its popularity. Recommending this bar is equivalent to recommending anyone to visit Times Square. Its touristy and crowded but you cant go to Havana without coming here.

Aside from sight seeing, which is my main priority when traveling…and coffee, we requested a private driver to take us to Viñales to tour the tobacco farms and go horseback riding. The car ride was about 2 and half hours and I couldn't have been more grateful for AC. We arrived at the mountains and walked a half a mile to the farm. Now I've smoked a few cigars and do enjoy smoking them, do I know what I'm doing? Half the time, I don’t. Needless to say, having a Cuban explain how true Cubans smoke cigars had me feeling like Tony Montana. One cool trick the generals of Cuba would do is dip their cigar tips in honey to filter the tobacco when they inhaled the cigar. It made smoking the cigars a smoother process and I was able to enjoy it better than any cigar I ever had. I was feeling like a boss.

My favorite day out of the five days I was in Cuba was the day of sight seeing. On this day we did a tour of Havana in a classic car. One thing we quickly learned in Havana was how tough the hustlers are. A few times, from the start of our trip, we were taken advantage of because we weren't aware of how poor and desperate the locals are to make money. So when choosing the perfect classic car to tour the city, we knew exactly how to negotiate a decent price for the tour. It was an amazing time and a few times it challenged my picture taking skills in a moving vehicle. Oh, and by the way, you know how the girls in the movies that ride in convertibles with sun hats look so fabulous and elegant, yeah only in the movies because my hat almost flew off of my head a few times riding in the car.

The number one question I got asked a lot when I came back from Cuba was, “So was the food uh-mazing?" This is what I'll say about Cuban food. The Cuban food I've always known to eat in Miami or in any Cuban restaurant I've ever been to is NOT the same as the Cuban food I had in the country. I can only speak for Havana (not the whole entire country), but white rice, black beans, and skirt steak was not on every menu. It was a lot of pork steak, grilled chicken, ropa vieja, and arroz mojo; which by the way (ropa vieja & arroz mojo) was like the best thing I had in Cuba.

If there is one thing I would brag about Cuba are the drinks. Cuban Mojitos and Cuba Libres were the cheapest and best drinks of all. Every bar or restaurant we went to sold their mojitos for ₱3.50 which is like $4. Now, these mojitos weren't the mojitos you get at TGIF for $4 on happy hour, hell no. These mojitos were muddled with fresh mint, raw sugar cane, & REAL Cuban rum. Alcoholic drinks were practically cheaper than water, and if we even dared to order anything other than a drink we were looked at like we were crazy. So when I tell you I drank every day, I think I always had a drink in my hand. We even went to the beach one of the days and bought a bottle of Havana Club Añejo that only cost us ₱3.50 (the same price as a drink) and when I tell you I got so drunk I passed out on the sand…I literally passed out cold. I woke up forgetting what country I was in. 

Our trip was truly unforgettable. I loved every minute of it and even though we didn't have access to the internet, it forced us to embrace every moment we spent together. Cuba made me feel scared, excited, humbled, grateful, amorous and inspired. After rumors of Americans not being able to visit Cuba made me feel super grateful for being able to visit and would come back to the country if ever given the opportunity again.

Thank you so much for taking the time to read my article! If you have any specific questions about Cuban culture and some tips I learned from my travels please email me or leave a comment down below! Dont forget to subscribe!