Country 31, 32 & back to 22 - Caribbean Cruise

28th December - 5th January 2019

We left the single digit weather of New York and headed south to Miami. As soon as we walked out of the airport we peeled back the layers and made our way to our shuttle pick up point. Unbeknown to us there was a group of about 20 that were headed to the same hotel as we were. As soon as half the group piled in the van with us it was immediately clear it was a multi generational group that were going on a cruise the following day. The question was would they be on our ship? We got to talking and sure enough they were cruisers! But not with us they were headed onto another cruise liner. We spend the night at the hotel and the next morning we're on the cruise transfer on our way to the biggest ship in the world.

We knew the port of Miami was a hub for cruising but we didn't think it would be so crazy. 6 giant ships of all sizes lined up along the dock and people everywhere trying to get off and others dropping off bags to get on. We were cruising with Royal Caribbean, and as a hub port for the liner, they had built there own personalised and tech forward terminal while all other companies had to deal with the local port authority buildings. Their building was spectacular and within 10 mins we had dropped of our bags, walked inside, went up the escalator, checked in via an Ipad and walked straight onto the ship. It was the simplest and fastest check in we've ever had. A fantastic way to start our trip.

When I say this is the biggest ship in the world I'm not kidding. It made the other 5 ships in line look like little cousins. It would take us the full week cruise to find every knock and cranny, visit every entertainment area and we still didn't eat at every venue. It was crazy. There was mini golf, water slides, slippery slides, rock walls, wave riders, basketball courts and zip lining to name a few. We walked through Central Park - yes a real life park located on deck 6. We walked through the Broadwalk that offered an outdoor movie theater, water diving acts and kids entertainment. And then there was the shopping arcade. We avoided that one.
Needless to say we could have not gotten off the boat in the 7 days we were on board and still have been completed entertained the whole time. But with this gigantic ship came almost 7000 passengers, 3000 crew and god knows how many annoying children left to their own devises as the parents clearly didn't give a crap. So we were happy to have time off the ship and ticket a few more countries off our list.

First stop was Roatan, Honduras. We had perfect weather for a day of quad biking through the jungle. ATVs are one of Caleb's favorite things to do and the only way I'm getting on one is to have my own. So with American's who had clearly never driven one before Caleb and I stayed at the front of the group as we zipped our way through the mud and trees and our guides ran besides us. Yes that's right - ran. The poor guys jogged with the group the whole time in case someone broke down (which they did) or needed help (which they did again). As we finished in the jungle we ended up at a Beach Club to finish off the day. It was the perfect way to just relax and cool down.




We sailed over night to reach Costa Maya, Mexico the next day. We originally had planned to visit ruins in Cozumel but as we had an opportunity to cross off a major bucketlist item we decided to see the Mayan Ruins in Costa Maya instead. And they did not disappoint. Dating back to 700AD, the pyramids are nestled deep in the Mexican rainforest. Considering they weren't discovered until 1972, these ruins are very well preserved and maintained.




Another night at sea and we woke up in the port of Cozumel, Mexico. Today was the day. Big bucklist item! Today we went swimming with dolphins. I've always loved dolphins since watching the film Flipper as a little girl. We caught the bus out to the Dolphin Discover Centre, put our things in a locker and lined up for our experience. It was so good to see that the centre had built their enclosures in the actual ocean which meant it was a natural habitat for the animals. We spent about 45 mins in the water with these amazing animals watching them do little tricks and also getting an opportunity to be pulled through the water by them. It was as amazing as you'd imagine. We left our flipper friends and were directed to another water area. Here we got to spend 10 mins in the water with 2 Manatees. After lunch and a few too many tequila sunrises we headed back to the ship on a high.

Our last port at sea was Nassau, Bahamas. If you're up to date on this blog you'll already know that we had an amazing time in The Bahamas only a month ago so today we decided to stay onboard the ship and take advantage of the fact that most passengers were going ashore. We spent time in the adults only pool and bar area which had a tremendous view over the front of the ship which looked directly at Atlantis. We hit up mini golf next and then headed to the Bionic Bar to order a drink made by a robot. All in all it was a great way to spend the day before setting sail one last time to head back to Miami. 

Well it finally came time to leave our cruise and it was bittersweet as this was our last cruise of our epic honeymoon. We decided to get an uber into town to pick up our hire car. Once all of our bags were loaded we left Miami and set off for our Great American Roadtrip.

Country 30 - USA

16 - 28th December 2018

We left sun, beach and a warm 35 degrees for rain, fog and 2 degrees but we didn't care because we were finally in NYC! We landed at JFK and after a short delay at customs we got our bags and headed to the airport shuttle. We had an hour drive into Manhattan and before long we were in the concrete jungle of downtown. It had been a long day of traveling so our first day we just checked into our hotel and then took a short walk to Times Square. It had been 8 years since I was last in NYC and it was the first time for Caleb. The lights are just as bright, the crowds are just as big and the traffic just as bad.

Thankfully our winter clothes had made it after I sent them to a friends place in Pennsylvania when we were in Hong Kong. Not wanting or needing to carry our heavy clothes around for 6 months through places like the desert and the Caribbean, our friends saved us and sent them onto our NYC hotel to meet us on arrival. And thank god too because we needed them from day 1!

We strolled around the city walking through Hell's Kitchen and Central Park making our way uptown to the Museum of Natural History. This place was amazing. We spent most of our day here exploring the Hayden Planetarium and Deep Sea Exhibition. We watched a 30 min film in the Planetarium narrated by the one and only Neil Degrasse Tyson and the effects were breathe taking. This was the start of our space journey as you'll see in cities to come. As we headed back downtown we were stopped by a local news crew on the sidewalk who asked to interview Caleb about the recent firing of Manchester United coach. A great way to finish off the day!




We were hit with more rain the next day so we kept it low key but had a very exciting night planned. A lifetime dream of Caleb's was to go to Madison Square Garden and watch the NY Ranger's play. Well tonight was the night! We got awesome seats last minute in an almost packed stadium. It was a really close game too. The Rangers scored the game winner a man down with 50 seconds to go and we were lucky enough to be seated right in front of the net. The crowd erupted so loud I'm sure you could hear it outside. 25 years in the making Caleb was one happy man.

As we planned to spend Christmas in New York we decided to head down to DC for a couple of days to explore and show Caleb around the capital as I had been before. We took the train down and after an easy journey we arrived to more rain and fog. With rain jackets in hand our first stop was the Library of Congress. A magnificent building built with enough marble to sink a fleet of ships, we took a tour and learnt about the history of how the library came about. Today the library, that officially serves the US Congress, receives a copy of any published item in America meaning they have more than 110 million items in almost every language. Very impressive.

We walked across the road to the Capitol Building to see another impressive structure located at the top of the National Mall. We went inside and had a look around before walking around front to make our way down the mall to the famed Smithsonian Air and Space Museum. Space journey part 2! Here we watched a 3D IMAX movie narrated by Patrick Stewart, explored the Boeing flight hall and walked through the space exploration area that housed different replicas of space rockets and moon landing artifacts. We even used their space system to find satellite images of my family farm back in OZ. The museum is so well set up we could have spent hours there. But as the sun went down and the rain wasn't letting up anytime soon we decided to call it a day and make our way back to the hotel.

We only planned 3 nights in DC so on our last day we were lucky to have the sun out for our jam packed day. We jumped on the hop on hop off bus to take us around the city and our first stop was the Martin Luther King and Lincoln memorials. The Arlington National Cemetery was next and it was a very somber yet moving place to visit. We walked through the fields and visited JFK's resting place as well as the tomb of the unknown solider. Driving back across the boarder into Washington DC our next stop was the White House. Caleb was surprised to see how small the house was in real life. After getting a glimpse of the Oval Office we walked past all the secret service and police guards to the WH tourist centre and then onto the Washington Monument. We made our way to view the Declaration of Independence and Bill of Rights, a must do when in DC, before calling it a day.

As Christmas was around the corner it was time to head back to New York. We stayed at a new hotel this time closer to Madison Square Garden and still in the heart of Times Square. First thing on the to do list was the Empire State Building. The rain had stopped thankfully but the temperature stayed at a cool 6 degrees so it was a lovely day to get a birds eye view of the city. We had watched the movie Sully on a recent cruise so it was cool to see the Hudson River from that vantage point to just see how skilled the pilot was to land safely on the river. I pointed out the Statue of Liberty as well as the Wall St area as we weren't planning to visit this time around.

Christmas Day was finally here and we had been praying for a white Christmas. With all our fingers and toes crossed it just wasn't meant to be. Instead we had a clear blue sky and an almost zero temp day but hey it's Christmas! On Xmas Eve we visited Rockefeller Plaza with the rest of the city. Even with the elbow jabbing crowds, nothing could take away from the beauty of their Christmas Tree display. Perfectly perched above the ice skating rink it shimmered so bright irrespective of the city lights around it. We called our families amid the maddness to show them where we were and share the experience with them. We had to call again back at the hotel because there was no chance of hearing what they said to us while at the Plaza but we hope they liked the lights!


When the day was over we continued our exploration of the city and headed downtown to visit Ground Zero. There are not many words I can use to describe the presence felt being there, seeing the water monuments and reading the names of all those that perished on that fateful day. The area, as well as the subway station below, has been done very well to honor those in the towers as well as on the planes. When visiting it is just nice to stop, reflect and pay your respects. A very sombre experience and one our generation will never forget.



On our last day in the big apple we hit up Ripley's Believe it Or Not and soaked up the lights of Times Square for one last time. We decided to finish on a high - literally. Top of the Rock had the best views of the city made all the better because we had the best weather we'd had our whole trip. The sun was out, blue skies for miles and a skyline that was just begging to have it's photo taken. Caleb's lens ball got a work out up there.




Before we knew it 10 days up north were over and it was time to put the winter clothes away and head back to the Caribbean. Woohoo warm weather we were come! Out of curiosity, considering this was the coldest weather we've had on the trip thus far, I checked what was happening over in Alaska. A mere -12 over Xmas didn't give me great confidence for our trip in Feb with average temps dipping to -20. Best be soaking up the sun this next week as much as possible!

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Country 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29 - East Caribbean Cruise

5 - 16th December 2018

Today we swapped one paradise for another and found ourselves in Martinique. An island nation once owed by France, French is the national language and although it's located close to the US and a frequent destination for US travelers surprisingly English is a rarity. We arrived at the airport, met our transfer and drove about 50km around the island to our resort. Located on a private beach with lush gardens and pathways for days we were pretty happy with our home for the next 3 nights. We spent our time swimming, relaxing and soaking up more of the Caribbean sun. It was actually nice to just stop for a few more days and not have to worry about tours or schedules.




Not before long we were packing our bags and headed towards the cruise terminal ready to board our ship for our week long Caribbean island hopping cruise. We arrived and were first to embark thanks to our priority boarding. After some lunch we spent the afternoon looking around the ship and getting our bearings. This ship was much larger than the one we crossed the Atlantic on so there were a lot more things to find. In addition to the extra bars and themed cafes we found an America style sports bar complete with 2 lanes of mini 10 pin bowling. But the most fun find was tucked away on deck 16. This ship had a 4D cinema and a F1 simulator. Needless to say my hubby was a happy man. We got the gaming package which gave us unlimited access to all the entertainment. Caleb definitely got his moneys worth as he managed to achieve a time on the Barcelona track that would have qualified him on 18th last year. And I was pretty happy bowling while enjoying a cocktail or two.

That night we set sail and woke up in Guadalupe. Another island once owned by the French, this country is known as the 'butterfly' island for it's unique outline. Comprising of 2 islands, one of which is coral and the other volcanic, it's not hard to see why it's a draw card for many Europeans. We spent the day at Ilet Du Gosier, a lighthouse island just off the main coast. We took a catamaran from the harbor which sailed us around the coast for approx 45 mins until we reached the island. With blue skies and crystal clear water, it was a stunning location to spend the day. When it was time to leave the crew opened up the sails and took us to slightly open water for the wind to do her job. As we sailed back to the mouth of the harbor we sailed past a smaller boat and a support boat who had a couple of men onboard playing the bagpipes. Intrigued, our crew let us know the sail boat was participating in a yacht race from France to Guadalupe and they had just arrived and that the bagpipes were their welcome party.

The next day we awoke to the views of St Lucia. Unsurprisingly another beautiful Caribbean gem seemingly untouched except for a scattering of homes seen along the coast. We booked an off-road segway tour around Rodney Bay and lucky for us it ended up as a private tour. Our guide, a true Rastafarian, took us to some superb lookouts and gave us an insight to life on the island. The mountain path we took was littered with US history as we were shown ammunition bunkers used by the US in WWII as they prepared to defend any threats wanting access to the Panama Canal. We finished our tour at one of the main local beaches before heading back to town and making our way back to the ship.




Barbados was our next stop and we opted to do our own thing instead of a tour. We wondered into town and visited the Cricket Legends of Barbados museum. This museum celebrates the local players who played for the West Indies in the 60s, 70s & 80s. Caleb was in heaven. It was very well set up with old team uniforms, dress jackets, equipment, game clips and newspaper articles for all to see. Up the road was the Mount Gay rum distillery. This distillery is the oldest in the world dating back 315 years and the rum is still made with the same hand cut sugar cane as it was back in the 1700s. We joined a tasting tour and spent a couple of hours out of the sun at this iconic place before heading back to the ship.


On day 5 of our cruise we found ourselves in Trinidad & Tobago. As the islands tourism is heavily based around plant life and botanical gardens we opted to spend the day at the famed Maracas Beach. The journey to get there was about an hour from port and on the way we passed cricket legend Brian Lara's mansion and had a photo opportunity at a lookout overlooking Maracas Beach. Today was the only average weather so far on this cruise so the waves were a little rougher than usual and the water colder than what we've been used to so we spent the day lounging on the beach and just soaking up the views.





It was time for more adventure on day 6 of our cruise and today we were in Grenada. Pronounced like the word Grenade, the country gained independence from Britain in 1974 and then underwent a Cuban-backed revolution in 1979. When the Prime Minister was executed in 1983 the USA invaded and any lingering communism was abolished. Today it is a settled place and the locals are as friendly as we have come to experience in this part of the world. We booked  a private ATV tour that took us about 40km all throughout the southern tip of the island. We traveled along back roads through farms and abandoned pieces of land as well as the main roads. We stopped off at a number of view points and rested at a popular beach location before making the offroad trek back to the main office. Lucky for us we were given bandannas to limit the dust to our faces but like it or not we still returned to the ship 5 shades darker before we enjoyed a well needed shower. Again this island offered some very beautiful scenery and lovely people. Definitely one for the return list.


Last but not least our final day was spent in St Vincent & and Grenadines. Made famous by the first Pirates of the Caribbean movie, we decided to do the Pirate Tour to check it out. We traveled to the remote bay known as Port Royal in the movie. Parts of the set still remain although show a lot of wear & tear from storms over the last 15 years. The locals keep the gimmicks coming with life sized gallows and a noose you can get photos in which seemed to be a huge hit with the group. We then stopped at Fort Charlotte which has magnificent views over the coastline and was once used to patrol the seas. We made our way to the other side of the island and spent the rest of the day and our last day in the Caribbean on a pristine beach with water as blue as the sky. The best way to wrap up our time in these islands.




All too soon we were disembarking the ship. We spent an extra night in Martinique as our flight wasn't until the next morning heading up to New York. As we got a taxi in the early hours of the morning our time in Martinique came to an abrupt end when the taxi driver assaulted Caleb by throwing a full water bottle at his head as we entered the airport terminal. It came about as he charged each party in the van the price of the full fare essentially charging a ridiculous amount for the ride and when we said we'd share the fare like normal he threatened us with the police which we were happy for him to go and get. After waiting over 30 mins for the police we decided to just pay the individual fare pricing as we didn't want to miss our flight. As I received the receipt I slammed the door, as this guy had ripped us off and treated us like idiots, he then proceeded to run after us into the terminal and throw the bottle at Caleb's head. We went to the Police station upstairs and they didn't give a crap as we were English speaking tourists. We were fobbed off and told to only speak French to the officers. After eventually getting a police report we made our way to the gate.

Now as a travel agent we have to remain neutral on people's opinions on destinations as what happens to one doesn't happen to all. But on this occasion I'm happy to share in this blog that we will not consider travel to Martinique again in the future and for any French speaking nations we will take time to reconsider travel in the future. It's sad it came to this but any country who treats it's visitors with absolutely no respect because of the native language spoken doesn't deserve our money in my opinion. We've never had this before in our 52 country experience which unfortunately bought this happy cruise to a not so not happy ending.

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Country 22 - The Bahamas

1 - 5th Dec 2018

With a 6am start we said goodbye to our tiny cabin, the interesting to use shower/basin bathroom combo and of course the wonderful friends we made during our time sailing around Cuba. We made our way back to Havana ready for our flight to The Bahamas. We flew with Bahama Air for the hour long flight and it was this experience, the welcoming nature of the customs officer and the welcome music that we just knew this was our kind of place. With smiles on their faces we were met with our transfer and were transported to our new home.

Considering we had just spent a week on a catamaran, our 4 star all inclusive beach front resort was a very welcome change. We could now stretch out on a king sized bed once again and do more than just spin on the spot in the bathroom. Luxury has never been sweeter. We also had a balcony that gave us uninterrupted views of the paradise that awaited us below. Nassau rated just as high on my list as Cuba sailing with the same white sand, water like glass and colors of blue that you just have to see in person to truly appreciate. This was our time to just relax, as crazy as that may sound, catch up on sleep and continue to work on my newly found tan.

Of course it wasn't all beach, sand and cocktails. There was one very important place we just had to visit. The Exuma Cays have been on our bucket list forever and we were finally in a position to pay them a visit. There are 2 ways to do this day trip. You can either travel by boat for approx 1.5-2 hours in each direction or do what we did and take a private plane tour that reduced our travel time to about 45mins each way. The group was large enough to take 2 Cessna planes over and with a hop, skip and a jump we were racing down the runway and in the air before you could say 'Bahamas!' The birds eye views were as breathtaking as you'd imagine as we descended down to the Exuma Cays.




As soon as we landed as were whisked away on golf buggies to the speed boat pier just up the road. Once the group was settled into our bean bag seats we were off to our first destination of the day - Shark Bay. We arrived at the bay and within minutes we could see what we had come to experience. We walked along the wharf, dropped off our stuff and jumped in the water to have fun with the resident nurse sharks. We were told by our guide that the sharks use suction to feed so it was important to keep your fingers and toes away from their mouths. Although the crowds fluctuated as the groups came in and out, we spent the hour swimming and interacting with about 15-20 sharks. Coming from Australia the words shark & ocean wouldn't normally have you jumping into the water but we felt more than safe to interact with these animals here.

We dried off, jumped back into the speedboat and headed to Pig Beach. The sound of the boat engines alone draw these animals to the shore and before we knew it our boat was surrounded as they waited for us to get out and feed them. Well they didn't have to wait too long before we were on the beach being chased by these massive beasts. Our guide warned us to not turn our backs to the pigs as they have been known to bite people's butts. We thought he was joking but as one Asian tourist soon found out it was no joke at all. We each got 2 pieces of bread from the captain and it was game on! The pigs are friendly and come in all sizes. The biggest ones though are clearly the boss of the beach and they aren't afraid to push the smaller ones to the side. We spent about 30 mins with the piggies, fed them probably 2 loaves of bread and then we were back in the boat once more.

Next stop was Iguana Beach. Now we had already had some close up experiences with these prehistoric animals in Cuba so we were more prepared than the rest of the group on arrival. Similarly to Pig Beach, the Iguanas ran to the shore to meet us as we approached. Needless to say some in the group were scared to get off the boat but we just jumped off, took our bread and 'feeding' stick and made our way up the beach away from the others in an effort to not create any fights over the food. We spent a good 45 mins getting up close and personal with the Iguanas of all sizes. Once the bread ran out they wanted nothing more to do with us so we just enjoyed the view before returning to the boat.




As an added bonus on the flight tour and our next and final stop for the day was the low tide sand bar. That may not sound interesting to some readers but trust me you will be sorry if you miss this stop. This was the only place we visited that there were no other boats or tour groups so we literally had this little piece of heaven to ourselves for about an hour before the tide rose and covered this gem once more. The water here is some of the clearest water I've ever seen so it was a no brainer to spend the afternoon here and just soak in its beauty. Before we knew it our day came to an end and our boat took us back towards the airstrip. Back in our little plane we once again enjoyed a birds eye views of the Exuma Cays as we made our way back to Nassau.


All too soon it was time to leave this amazing place that has come to be our favorite country so far. The Bahamian people are so friendly they could easily be considered the happiest country in the world. The scenery was just magical that photos just don't do this place justice. This is one place that definitely needs to be seen in person to be believed. It's not hard to understand why so many islands are now privately owned by either celebrities or billionaires. Bahamas, you get 5 stars from us. We will be seeing you again! 


Tavelers tip - by paying the extra for the plane tour you get time to visit the sand bar. Trust me it's worth the extra $$ for a once in a lifetime trip

Travelers tip - Remember to ask the locals for advice. They are so friendly we found they go out of their way to help with anything from tours to local knowledge.

Travelers tip - They love Aussies! We are a rarity over there so they just love to hear about our life down under.

Country 21 - Cuba

20th Nov - 1st Dec 2018

We decided to walk to our hotel from the cruise port as it was only a couple of blocks. What we didn't anticipate was the cobble stone streets to pull my luggage along but walking straight past our hotel on the first try we doubled back and finally made it. The hotel is a 18th century State run Spanish colonial mansion that has since been converted. The entry doorway to our hotel was easily 12 feet high and as we entered we were welcomed by friendly faces and an open atrium were guests and staff could be seen from the balconies above. We had definitely stepped back through time. As we were 5 hours early for check in, and the heat was only rising outside, we retreated to the bar, the only air conditioned space in the lobby for a round of Mojitos. As Caleb's drinks got progressively stronger by the checky bartender we made conversation with an older couple who funnily enough traveled over from Adelaide (the same town we live in). Eventually the front desk let us know that our room was ready and we found we had been upgraded to a suite. Our room had the same Spanish colonial charm as the lobby with high ceilings and our own private courtyard.

We slept the rum off and the following morning we were greeted by the local travel agency rep and our tour guide for the next 2 days. It was an extremely personal touch and made us feel very welcome. As we knew before we arrived, Cuba does not have readily available internet as part of their mobile packages like we do in Australia. The only way to get internet is to buy a pre paid 1 or 5 hour card and tap into the general wifi offered in most hotel lobbies and in some public areas around town. Honestly if you come to Cuba it's just easier to reconcile with the idea of being 'off the grid' because it can take some effort to connect let alone the cost of doing so depending on where you are. So because of the lack of mobile data, Cuban's have latched onto an app called MapsMe. It's a genius way to have google maps without the internet. Only works on Android phones so my Iphone pretty much became obsolete and Caleb's phone finally came in handy. After a quick file transfer the agent had installed the app on Caleb's phone and we were good to go.

We spent the first part of the day with our guide walking through Old Havana. We had a private tour so we got to really engage with her and learn all about her life in Cuba. She was a 30 something local tour guide who is happy and proud to work in one of the main industries that earn a decent wage. As we walked past dilapidated buildings and construction zones we learnt how the average wage in Cuba is approx 40 USD a month. It didn't matter if you were a doctor or a government employee the wage was virtually the same. Even though education including university is free, there is a great movement of people forfeiting this free education for jobs in restaurants and tourism where tourists tips can mean you could up to triple your monthly salary in a couple of days. As almost every business is State run, the Cuban people have no say over their wages. To the point where every citizen is given ration stamps each month to cash in at a ration store (picture featured) to pick up specific goods that equate to one meal a month. They can then buy additional meat & perishables of course which can deplete their salaries faster than we at home buy a smashed avo on toast.

As we walked down the narrow streets that were once used for horse and carriages, we visited various churches and Spanish forts in Old Havana. In addition to the ration store, our guide also took us to the local 'farmers market'. Here farmers from outside Havana would illegally pay for drivers to transport their goods to the city market to be sold by State run operators. If they didn't transport it through back channels they would also have to pay the State transportation which would inflate the already crazy prices of fruit but also cut into whatever money they are set to make. Most of the fruit we saw was paid per piece not by the weight. Every story or situation we were told always came back to the same struggle - how the Cuban people could work around having to pay the government to do this or to do that. Although every Cuban we encountered was very friendly and seemed to accept their way of life it made you wonder how a dictatorship like this still stands today.

We finished our walking tour off at a cigar bar where we watched a cigar being rolled and then of course had a taste test along with a shot of run and a coffee. After sometime our guide left us for the day and we stayed on soaking up the Cuban experience before buying some cigars ourselves and heading back to the hotel. The following day we met with our guide again as well as our driver. Today we were driving in style in a pink La Machina - a 1950's American convertible. When you think Cuba you think of these cars. And Havana did not disappoint. For a long time these style cars were the only type available to the general public, however now 'newer' ex-state cars are steadily filling the streets once the government is done with them. Owning a car for tours & transfers is one of the best ways to make a decent living and can see Cubans earn double and sometimes triple what a doctor makes in one day! As a result these cars are the most expensive in the country.

Almost everything needs to be imported into Cuba. The government have a tight hold on what the people can access and as a result they must look overseas for most things. One favorable action the State implemented was a 125kg import allowance per person per year. This means any Cuban can travel overseas (getting a visa is a whole other issue) and bring back a max of 125kg of whatever they want once a year. So you'll hear of people bringing anything from tires to washing machines to TVs. Whatever they can sell on the black market. It's common for people to buy other peoples 125kg allowance to keep up with the market's demand. Our guide was very open about the fact that in each neighborhood people knew which door to knock on in order to get what you need. It seems as long as the State collects their import taxes on the goods (which equates to about $6 USD) they aren't too worried about what these goods are then used for.


During our half day tour we drove all over Havana and visited the Capitol Building, Revolution Square, the original Bacardi building where the family lived before they fled to Peurto Rico and the US embassy which is basically a ghost town after Trump removed 90% of the staff. Speaking of Trump we asked our guide what the people think of America. The easy answer - they love America. You will often find USA flags hung up in peoples homes or in their doorways. They love to watch USA TV shows. But how? Apparently the State has access to an 'illegal' satellite that for a subscription fee per month you can get the Cuban version of cable TV. After spending 2 days with our guide I'd say we got much more information than we bargained for and am forever thankful for that. We were really curious what the way of life was like in Cuba and after listening to all of her stories and explanations it's clear that the State hold tight reigns on it's people but anything can be paid for so they have some liberties like cable TV. On the other hand they are a nation stuck on an island with more restrictions every year on being able to visit overseas.

On our last full day in Havana we took a bus tour out to a town called Vinales. We visited a local tobacco farm that make organic cigars. We were given a tour of the farm to see the seedlings planted just that morning, the dry house (where the women hang the tocacco plant leaves from the ceiling to the ground to dry for months at a time) and of course a first hand look at how a cigar like Montecristo #4 is made. It was very interesting to see as I never knew cigars were made simply from the tobacco leaves. What makes these organic is the farm using a type of honey to seal the ends whereas in the factories a chemical mixture is used. After each having our own cigar we left the farm and visited local caves and took a ride on the underground river. After lunch we stopped to view the 90m mural painted on a sheer cliff before starting the 3hr jouney back to Havana.



As our history lesson came to an end we checked out of our hotel to meet up with our next tour group. We were about to go sailing around the Cuban Cays for the next 7 days. As we got to the meeting point we found 6 out of the 16 of us were Aussie. Add in one Kiwi and we almost had the majority. Most Aussies were from the east coast however one lovely girl lived a couple of suburbs over from were we live in Adelaide. Such a small world. Today we were traveling to Cienfuegos to board our sailboat. This was about a 4hr drive from Havana so we piled into a couple of vans and off we went. We had one rest stop along the way to stretch our legs and found we were 1 km from Australia! As the sun went down we made it to the dock and met our guide who would be looking after us for the next week. We boarded our catamaran, had our first onboard feast cooked by the First Mate and as we settled into bed the Captain sailed us out through the harbor where we would wake up to paradise.

During the next week we sailed through different Cays off the coast of Cuba and it was magical. Cayo Largo was the biggest Cay we visited and as we woke up from our overnight sail we spent the afternoon moored to a secluded part of the beach where the sand was powder thin, the ocean majestic colors of blue and the drinks were cold. While the girls waded in the water and the boys played some volleyball we all watched the sun set on our first day on the water.



The following day we visited a turtle hatchery on Cayo Largo before sailing out to sea, snorkeling on the reef while watching the Captain and First Mate catch our dinner. Over the next couple of days our time consisted of snorkeling, sunbathing, drinking, swimming and eating. Then simply repeat. On day 4 at sea we visited Cayo Estopa Reef in the morning. This reef was full of wildlife and the scuba diver in me searched for anything of interest and we were not disappointed. We found lion fish, eagle rays, stingrays, turtles and some even saw a reef shark. In the afternoon just before the sun went down our Captain took us to an isolated island filled with tiny dinosaurs. Locally known as Iguana beach, we took the dingy ashore and even before we got off the boat the shoreline was filled with these prehistoric animals running to the water line. After awhile I didn't feel the need to jump or run every time one moved in my direction but remained on high alert just in case. Without any incident we said goodbye to these amazing creatures and returned to our catamaran.

On day 5 we arrived at the deserted island of Cayo Rico where we spent the day on the beach before enjoying an amazing seafood lunch. Iguanas were free and wild to roam here as well and they could regularly be found under the lunch tables waiting for food. The restaurant/bar is the only building on the island run by staff living on another Cay that boat in and out when the restaurant is open. Mid afternoon we were sailing again with one last stop for the day for another swim and some fun before watching the sun go down.



Our Captain left the best for our last full day at sea. On day 6 we spent our day on Playa Paraiso. Ranked as a top 10 beach in the world by Lonely Planet it's very easy to see why. Here we spent more time in the sun under a cabana, pina coladas were following and with one last dip in the crystal clear water we started to wrap up our time in this Cuban paradise. As we got back on board reality started to set in that we were headed back to the real world. With our final dinner at sea we enjoyed the night with friends before starting our journey back to port in the morning.

Day 7 was a rough start. High winds meant sea swell which meant upset tummies and seasickness. Caleb got so bad that one of our Aussie friends who was a paramedic was able to give him an injection and a tablet that allowed him to sleep his way through the rough seas. We sailed through this for about 6 hours before finally reaching the port of Cienfuegos where immediately the water was calm and we could walk in a straight line again. Once we docked we spent the afternoon exploring the lovely town of Cienfuegos, the birthplace of musician Benny More. It's a very pretty French colonial city and was a beautiful way to end the trip and our time in Cuba with our new friends.

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Travelers tip -  Avoid using ATMs where possible. The Euro is the best form of cash to bring that can easily be converted to the CUC (Cuban tourist currency). Do not convert to the Cuban Peso as this is valued at approx 25 times less than the CUC.

Travelers tip - When arriving at the airport for a flight you can not enter the airport until your flight is open for check in. There are staff monitoring the doors. Just be aware and remain patient until you are allowed to enter.

Travelers tip - If you're thinking of doing a sailing trip like us we highly recommend taking a GoPro for underwater footage