🇨🇺 Easter in Trinidad
After more or less being tethered to Havana for my first four months in Cuba - on account of the lack of internet and electricity outside the capital, combined with the need to be online for a work at least a few hours a day - the Easter and May Day holidays in Europe finally afforded me the opportunity to see a bit more of the island. First stop: Trinidad…
The Road to Trinidad
If you think the major streets in Havana are relatively empty these days, wait till you get outside the capital. There were long stretches on the 6-lane A1 motorway yesterday without any cars aside from us in either direction. Had flashbacks to driving in the Outback.
Once you get on the back roads you'll find a bit more traffic though, mostly old timers (including some hulking trucks converted to carry people), but also some shiny new Kias and MGs driven by rich folks (presumably) and a fair amount of cows, goats and horse drawn carriages.
This was taken on the ‘main road' between Cienfuegos and Trinidad.
City of Encounters
Probably not the slogan or the colour I'd go with if I were running things around here. But I did indeed have some encounters whilst in Trinidad, so can't fault its veracity. And this pastel pink was not only appropriate for Easter (which isn't really a thing at all in Cuba), but was also indicative of the pastel colours found around town.
Happy Easter from Trinidad!
Cubans generally aren't very religious and Easter isn't much of a thing here. But the buildings in Trinidad’s UNESCO heritage protected colonial old town coincidentally wear a lot of pastel, so it kinda feels like the place is in the Easter spirit nevertheless....
NB: Just to be clear, we're talking about the city in Cuba, not the much more famous country of Trinidad and Tobago. More than a few people I know have confused the two. As did I when I checked the forecast, and was disappointed to see nothing but massive thunderstorms for the foreseeable future. Luckily, this Trinidad has nothing but sunshine these days. Doubly lucky actually, since there are frequent power cuts, and my guesthouse has a battery backup connected to solar panels.
A gentleman without fear and beyond reproach
Taken from the colectivo window yesterday, while passing through Cienfuegos - a fairly unheralded but cool looking town that I'm tentatively planning to spend a few days in soon.
"A gentleman without fear and beyond reproach"
(That's the subscript on the Che billboard, not a quote about the guy walking in the street. Although maybe it applies to him too, who knows.)
The hilltop of encounters
‘Hiked’ to the top of the hill overlooking Trinidad yesterday morning, and got treated to some incredible views of the surrounding mountains and valleys. However, the real highlight was getting to meet the security guard / caretaker of the TV tower facility.
Not only did he mercifully sell water (it was hot and sunny already, and I'd brought nothing along), but also took me up to the roof, where he preceded to chat away about all manner of things - from the strawberries of Serbia to the rums of Cuba, and why Trinidad is by far the best place to visit on the island.
Of course it was all in Spanish, so there was definitely loads of other interesting tidbits I missed, and I only got to ask a few of the questions I otherwise would, but it was still a great way to spend Easter morning. He even gave me mango when I left.
Seems the rumour about Trinidadians being the friendliest people in a country of super friendly people might actually be true....
Gifted mango
Here's that mango gifted to me by the aforementioned super friendly TV tower guard. It looked so nice that I kept it around for a few days before finally eating it, but it was indeed sweet and delicious. It's actually mango season in Cuba these days, so there are loads of them all over the place.
Hot Husky
This guy has the right idea. Trinidad is hot. But it's a fairly dry heat, so very conducive to an afternoon siesta - especially if your casa has a solar powered battery backup to keep those fans spinning during the more or less constant blackouts....
Apocalypse Now vibes
It's burning season in and around Trinidad, with clear skies and crisp mountain views (like the one above) unfortunately turning to opaque haze by the afternoon most days. I'm not one to get all Pollyannish about such things though, especially not in the developing world, and all the more so in a place like Cuba, whose development has been arrested (literally and figuratively) by decades of crippling sanctions from the nearby imperial power.
Also, fire make for some cool photos, as you'll see more of evidence of below….
Bridge on the River Kwai vibes
Went on another flip flop 'hike' today, and now inexplicably have the urge to watch The Bridge on the River Kwai. No idea why. Hadn't thought about that film in years.
Coincidentally, 'years' is also the amount of time it would take for me to download it from a torrent site, so I'll probably have to just read a book instead....…
A good flan is hard to find
Me gusta flan, mucho! But unfortunately nowadays a good flan is hard to find in Cuba. Or at least that was my experience for the past few months in Havana. And even when you do find one, it doesn't come cheap, which makes sense due to the scarcity and inflated prices of the main ingredients, ie eggs and sugar.
So I had understandably low expectations when I ordered the flan (the only dessert available) after my meal at Doña Clara, which made tasting this exceptional slice of eggy, sugary goodness all the more heavenly. Low expectations, folks - your best friends when travelling, and in life in general. I can't stress it enough.
And speaking of low, that's also a fitting word to describe the prices here. This flan was only 200 pesos, or just a bit over $0.50 at current exchange rates, while the whole meal - which you'll likely see posted later - was just a bit over $3.50.
Fine young cannibals
A doorknocker and (novelty?) postbox on adjacent houses in Trinidad's centro histórico - homages to the city's long, fascinating history of rampant, unabashed cannibalism.
Presumably. I haven't managed to get round to taking a city tour yet, so that last bit it just a guess....
Sunset in La Boca
So ever since I met a friend of the family in Havana in the waning days of 2024, La Boca was the beach destination that I fantisized about spending a month or two. Things of course didn't work out that way, for one reason or another*, and I eventually ended up getting my beach fix much nearer Havana, in Guanabo.
Now, months later, I finally got to experience the place I'd only seen in photos and on Google Maps, and…. Let's just say that I'm very happy I didn't come all the way here for an extended beach holiday as I'd originally intended. Sometimes (or perhaps even always) things work out the way they're supposed to….
Trindad by night
It felt like there was a noticeably dearth of tourists in this town whose present day raison d’être is tourism, which meant lots of (temporarily?) closed and even more empty restaurants, bars and cafes around the old town centre. This place seemed quite lively whenever I passed though, with live music and a crowded if not full house. I never ate there though, much preferring to stick to the much more low key hole in the wall spots I found the first couple days in town….
Trinidad by day
This is the view from up where a giant new Dutch owned resort sits at the top of the hill - or rather the top of a hill, which you pass on your way to the top of the higher hill where the TV tower facility is located. That biggest bell town in the middle is San Francisco de Asis, which marks the heart of the old town.
While from this vantage point you can also see how far away the sea is - the aforementioned La Boca is some 6km to the right side there, while the much more famous (and arguably amongst the best best beaches on the entire island) Playa Ancon is around 14km to the left, although driving their requires driving around a giant lagoon.
The local entrepreneurial spirit
These were both spotted in the aptly named village of La Pastora, which is located in the idyllic looking valley between Trinidad and the mountains. On the right, you've got salt for 100 pesos (or around $0.30) per kilo (?), and on the left you've got bathroom soap and duro frio (‘hard cold’), which are local style popsicles.
Road to Perdition
While having the skyline filled with view obscuring smoke in the afternoons was not ideal, seeing the charred remains of the now cleared and (hopefully more) fertile land up close was actually pretty cool. Especially this stretch of the road where both sides had recently been turned to ash. Felt quite Biblical (not that I know all that much about the Bible).
And seeing it up even closer, you could easily mistake it for abstract art. Or at least I could:
Disused railway line porn
Disused railway line porn. In a previous life it was a bustling affair, hauling out all of the sugar from the various plantations that lined the valley here....
Lucky horseshoe
The old me definitely would have picked this up, dusted it off, schlepped it around through various countries and then eventually brought it back 'home' to Europe. You can never have too much good luck, right?
However, the new me only ever so briefly considered doing all of this, before realising that my luck was already in the top percentile or two, so there was no need to get greedy. Plus horseshoes are heavy, and presumably frowned upon by airport security.
On the other hand, this photo weighs nothing and is already backed up to the cloud. Digital hoarding is way more compatible with my current lifestyle....
Doña Clara
The hole in the wall local, family-run restaurant where I ended up eating about half of my meals out while in Trinidad. The first time I tried to stop by for lunch, there was an old abuela in a rocking chair in the front room watching TV, which I assumed meant it was closed. And the last time I stopped by, there was a very unhappy granddaughter throwing a tantrum in the same front dining room here. You won't find a more homey dining experience than that!
The food was okay - simple, Cuban homecooking - the flan (as previously documented) was amazing, the service super friendly, the waiting times conducive to getting lots of reading done, and the overall atmosphere was yet another 11/10. You also won't find lower prices for a sit down restaurant in Trinidad. The total bill for this meal - chicken fricassée, small side salad, bottle of water and flan - came to a bit under $4 at current exchange rates. Highly recommended if you're ever in Trinidad.
There's more to life than a little money, you know
I'm sure at some point I watched the movie Fargo - as it was on the AFI's list of the top 100 films from the first 100 years of American cinema, and a friend and I had a competition to see who could watch all of them first - but I remember nothing about it, so instead of some witty reference from memory, I just found the most applicable quote to use as the heading above. It works on multiple levels, so I think I did okay…
Noa
When this is guarding your house, there's no need to lock your front door. In fact, even having a door is unnecessary. Might as well sell it, and just let the refreshing breeze blow through 24/7....
NB: Her name is Noa, and she's apparently only a year and a half old. Looks ageless and timeless to me though. On the original post on social media, someone commented that she looked like one of the terracotta statues you'd find guarding the tomb of a Chinese emperor.
Get outta that billboard, and onto that road
Idyllic white sand beaches are a dime a dozen. But finding this particular billboard in this particular spot yesterday, with an old timey car driving out of the sea and onto the road like an automotive Ariel? Priceless!
The water next to Trinidad is technically a sea and not an ocean, but the fact that this song is by a guy called Billie Ocean makes it impossible not to include it here.
Tobi
This is Tobi. Super friendly, just like everyone in Trinidad. Although even after days of begging for attention and jumping up in your lap without asking, he'll still bark whenever you enter the house (or room) like he's never seen you before in his life....
Words of wisdom
Only realised that yesterday was World Book Day now, so you get what I'm actually reading today, rather than some more thought-provoking historical quotes about Cuba (you're welcome!).
Finally got round to reading this a decade and a half or so after it was recommended to me. It was excellent, but the most interesting single thing was coming across a joke that a friend told me circa the summer of 2001, which I'd always thought was an original. I've been meaning to email him for months though, and calling him out for passing off a Bukowski quip as his own is now yet another reason to do so.
But since that quote is in no way appropriate for public consumption, and also something of an inside joke, you get this instead:
“The problem was you had to keep choosing between one evil or another, and no matter what you chose, they sliced a little bit more off you, until there was nothing left. At the age of 25 most people are finished. A whole god-damned nation of assholes driving automobiles, eating, having babies, doing everything in the worst way possible, like voting for the presidential candidate who reminded them most of themselves.”
Feel free to leave your own recent reading recommendations in the comments....
Solarset in Trinidad
Being my first time away from the (mostly) reliable electrical grid of the greater Havana area, the casa I booked in Trinidad not only had the prerequisite rooftop view, but also a back-up power supply - or actually two back-up power supplies. In additional to the usual diesel-powered generator, Yobani also had this solar system, which was hooked up to a fancy battery unit with it's own app for monitoring live energy in-flows and out-flows. Pretty interesting stuff to learn about.
Did that mean that there was electricity and internet available 24/7? Hahaha, of course not, this is still Cuba. But like I mentioned in the review I left on the booking site, you probably won't find a more reliable option in this price range in Trinidad. Plus the views and the little dogs and Yobani answering all my random questions about life in Cuba these days. Another 11/10. Who even needs lucky horseshoes?
Tiempo Cubano
If you've got to wait for dinner (and in Cuba there's a good chance you'll have to), it helps to have a nice ambience to pass the time in (luckily also common in Cuba). The second photo here is the view directly skyward.
It also helps to have an ebook reader on your phone. I've got a lot of reading done the past week in Trinidad....
Trinidad Blues
Didn't seem like this theatre was currently having any performances, but it had received a fresh coat of paint in the not too distant past.
Viva Fidel
Cuban roads
I'd say this is a typical Cuban country road, but it's in WAY better condition than most that I've seen. However, there are indeed loads of both these tanker trucks (delivering water, as the city supply apparently hasn't worked for months) and horse drawn wagons.
The former I'm not a huge fan of, because they've got super loud generators to pump the water. But hearing the clop clop clop of hooves on pavement and cobblestone is kinda nice....
NB: In real life, that tiny smidge of day moon was way more impressive, and really tied this whole scene together.
Trinidad traffic jam
Electricity and internet are spotty at best in Trinidad, but at least water is one constant you can count on. Unfortunately, that's because you can count on it being totally non-existent from the government taps, which means delivery via these tankers pulled through the streets by tractors - if you can afford to pay for it. If not? Then you're going to be schlepping it from a handful of functioning spouts scattered about the town….
Sunset in Trinidad
Golden hour on the rooftop
Morning shadows
N&T Security
Hasta luego, Trinidad
Hasta luego, Trinidad. One week is just about the minimum amount of time I ever like to spend in a place. But to be honest it felt like enough.
That said, if (my) time (and visa) weren't finite, I could have easily spent a month or more hanging out with little dogs, wandering around cobbled streets, and ‘hiking’ even further afield in my trusty flip flops without getting bored.
Although that very likely says more about me than it does about Trinidad. Anyway, as they also say, change is the only constant....
Rainy departure
When your driver postpones departure from 8am to 10am to finally 1.15pm, then still shows up a bit after 2.30pm and also pulls over to take a leak behind the Welcome to Trinidad sign on the way out of town. Another priceless moment.
NB: These old timers can really haul ass along windy country roads. They've also got separate little nobs to manually flick on the windshield wipers for either side of the window. So while I couldn't see much, the driver could, more or less. Safety first, (more or less)!