In Cuba following the Steps of Frank Sinatra

After another breakfast which could have been of boiled bacon, chilli, yogurt and sprouts but wasn’t the hotel tour was what was planned for the morning. After meeting the elderly lady, who took the tour, at the appointed time in the lobby it was apparent it was inadvertently going to be slightly comical. She began by introducing herself and it was immediately apparent that what she thought was an excellent grasp of English must have been in her mind only as she had all of the right words but many in the wrong order and spoken very quickly with a strong Hispanic accent. This resulted in all four tourists on the tour having to try to lean closer to her to understand what was being said. Apparently the lady was a retired civil servant who enjoyed taking these tours to the extent that she did it for free. As a civil servant she was loyal to Castro’s regime and had worked in the bunkers that could be found below the sea front side of the hotel’s gardens.

Much of the history was very interesting, particularly the number of celebrities that had stayed at the Hotel Nacional de Cuba over the years and we visited numerous floors and various rooms in which the celebrities stayed. These ranged from Nat King Cole to Winston Churchill to Robert Plant to Frank Sinatra and many, many more, all of whom have their photographs on the wall of the small bar on the side of the hotel near the Tarzan Pool (so named as a result of it being the pool used by Johnny Weissmuller when he visited and swam in the pool with Cheetah the monkey, as the tour guide said).

The Frank Sinatra story was of particular interest in that he happened to visit the hotel at the same time as the Mafia had their annual get-together. They took over the whole of the second floor which is the floor with the balcony all around the hotel and it just so happened that Frank Sinatra was booked into the suite which was within spitting distance of the main meeting room for the Mafia.

As said, it was a very interesting tour but also quite comical as everyone strained to understand what was being said particularly as the ending of sentences seem to trail off into whispers, but the guide was very knowledgeable and thoroughly enjoyed what she was doing despite having done the same thing possibly hundreds of times.

As the tour ended it felt only right to go to the verandah bar for more cocktails, the Mojito and Pina Colada being favourites, this followed by a light lunch and then a casual stroll around the parts of Havana surrounding the hotel. Despite being told by numerous people that Cuba is one of the safest countries in the world it is a most uncomfortable feeling when being stared at by groups of rough looking Cubans at every corner. However, as the day was absolutely scorching the tour was a short one as the hotel pool was calling.

The evening meal consisted of black beans and rice and a Cuban band playing the standard types of music heard in all restaurants and bars. Then back to the verandah for more cocktails! One of the more obvious other attractions was the number of very attractive young girls, most of which must have been in their mid to late teens. What was initially thought strange was that these girls were with much older men, most of whom, in fact could have been their grand-parents. After watching them for some time it was obvious the liaisons were all part of the oldest profession, yes, despite Cuba wanting to give the impression it was a morally fine place prostitution was rife and in the Hotel Nacional de Cuba. So off to bed and unlike some, a good night’s sleep as tomorrow a trip to Vinales and more photographs and a video.

On Tour With Robert Plant In Havana

A beautifully warm and sunny day greeted everyone on boarding the bus for the guided tour of Havana. The journey itself was an education, again seeing the different types and quality of buildings, cars and the Cuban people going about their daily business. Not all of the cars driven by Cubans are as classy as might be imagined!

After a short drive the bus stopped in one of Havana’s suburbs, the name of which escapes me, but which was home to one of the several rum factories in the area. To see a small factory producing such a class product is quite something, the workers seemed very proud of what they did and rightly so as the free samples offered proved. This sort of small-scale, high quality, industry would have been seen in the UK before the big businesses took them all over and it seems a shame that we have lost these.

Most people on the trip bought souvenirs and at the equivalent cost of just over a £1 for a bottle of rum (or Ron as the Cubans know it), of which there were many varieties, so those ready to move on waited on the balcony at the front of the factory. Despite it being very humid and comfortable enough for shorts and t-shirts small wet spots began appearing on the road, the origin of these spots becoming suddenly apparent when the heavens opened and the first of many tropical storms were experienced. A damp stroll back to the bus for the next stage in the journey was then undertaken and no sooner underway the sun returned.

Next stop was Revolution Square around which many government buildings exist including that occupied by Che Guevara when he was Finance Minister. (For further information on these click on the links). The square also is the location where many major parades and other events take place and should they take place on a day like when we visited it is difficult to believe that anyone could remain there for any length of time as it was absolutely scorching hot.

Getting back on the bus again, next stop was the Havana Fortress which protected the harbour from invaders from the North. From the Fortress there were great views of Havana including the Hotel and also grey clouds gathering in the distance which seemed to be heading towards the Fortress. Loud cracks of thunder together with flashes of lightning accompanied the clouds and it was clear the bus was the next stop.

As the rain began and got heavier and heavier it became apparent that any further sight-seeing was going to be impossible unless a soaking was deemed acceptable. So, we skipped the museum of the revolution to head back early to the hotel, the journey was again entertaining watching the Cuban children running about in the rain and laying in the huge puddles that soon appeared.


Arriving back at the hotel early another people-watching session in the garden enjoying a Mojito or three before tea was what was called for and on wandering down to the restaurant for a buffet tea, strangely with a similar selection of goodies as were available for breakfast awaited us and as I studied the pictures on the wall of the stairway on the way there. It seems that the hotel has had a great number of celebrities visit in the past.


Well I thought that if it was good enough for Robert Plant then it was certainly good enough for me!


More about Havana and celebrity next time and hopefully a couple of video's as well and once the Cuban adventure ends there may well be more on other issues including some political comment. Lucky you!

More From Havana

From what has been a particularly miserable winter it’s easy to reminisce about the two weeks spent in Cuba last summer, the heat, the cultural contrast, the distance from home and the ease with which I could switch off from all of the “wonders” of modern Britain.

The room in the hotel was as might be expected from what we had experienced of the hotel so far. It was bright and airy, basic but very comfortable and had fantastic views of the hotel grounds and the area around the hotel and the sea.




On what was left of the first day we had a wander in the gardens of the hotel, walking to the flagpole and looking at the Cuban life going on around the area and spending time sitting on the terrace people watching and drinking cocktails. As darkness crept in we went for our first meal which was as quick and easy as we could make it as the journey was catching up on us. A burger and beer in the American style diner, a very peculiar situation considering the hatred Cuba has of it’s neighbour just 90 miles away. To finish off the evening it was a moonlight stroll in the hotel grounds to see what we could of the Cuban nightlife. There were many cars cruising up and down the Malecon, the main coastal road in Havana and a multitude of locals sitting on the sea wall to socialise, chat and play music. A final cocktail before turning in for what might be a restless night now the body clock had been interrupted.

Next day was a Monday and waking early I thought taking a video of what could be seen from the hotel window would help kill time as breakfast would be an hour or so away. The buffet breakfast was interesting as there seemed to be as wide a range of food as was possible for breakfast including sprouts and carrots, chilli, eggs, very fatty bacon, pancakes, fruit and so on. I decided to pass on the sprouts. Once full a walk around Havana was planned, checking out the Malecon first. Once outside the hotel the many styles of architecture found in Havana were quite evident ranging from the classier buildings built prior to the revolution to the more ramshackle affairs built since. Apparently due to the lack of attention to their building stock Havana sees the collapse of 200 buildings every year!

Crossing the wide roads was a doddle as there is plenty of road available for the traffic to run on it but the first encounter with “street entertainers” was found on the other side. Two young Habanero’s, one with a guitar, the other with maraca’s began performing following the route taken until I gave them a couple of coins. Lesson learnt – avoid people loitering with musical instruments! Half a mile along the road to the west was another intriguing sight, I was going to cross back over the road to investigate further but this move invited some interest from the armed guards which were in evidence.

What had interested me was a square in which there must have been around 100 flag poles all flying black flags, each with a white star on. I later learnt that the building being guarded was the U.S. Interests Section (USINT) representing American citizens and the U.S. Government in Cuba and operates under the legal protection of the Swiss government. The armed guards were Cuban police who were there to restrict access to the Interests Section. The flags in the square opposite were erected in 2006 by Castro to obstruct a display board at USINT which showed ticker tape news on human rights issues and each apparently represents a Cuban who had died as a result of the U.S. foreign policy in Cuba.

Anyway back to the hotel for a quick lunch and then on the bus for a trip around Havana, but more on that next time. If you want to see more photo's then join me on Facebook.

Next Instalment - Calne Man In Cuba Story

Although modesty prevents me from publishing the comments received yesterday, thanks are due to “Glasgow” for being partly responsible for the resurrection of my blog. Whether or not this is a good thing is not for me to say, however hello again to anyone who might still be out there!

I will start off by completing what I started previously detailing the experiences I had in Cuba.

Our long flight from England had culminated at the airport in Havana from where we picked up a taxi for the next leg of our Cuban adventure, the journey to the hotel. As we approached we could tell that the Hotel Nacional de Cuba certainly lived up to it’s name as the most prestigious hotel in Havana, if not in Cuba (although the view in the photo below is from the rear and is not particularly good so a trip to Cuba via the link above is recommended).

The taxi dropped us at the main entrance and the driver was out opening the doors and taking the luggage from the boot. Following the bell-boy through the entrance doors and into the massive lobby it felt like we had been transported back to the 1930’s, or certainly an old Hollywood film set.

The lobby area must have been a good 50 yards or more from end to end with what appeared to be a timber ceiling 20 feet above us. We were directed to the check-in desk, which again appeared to be like an old film set, all wood and old fashioned looking, set next to the currency exchange office which was similar but with metal bars for security. We checked in and went to obtain some local currency.

Until fairly recently the Cubans were happy to take American dollars in exchange for the Cuban peso but their hatred of the Americans has resulted in the banning of dollars and they will only take sterling and euro’s. Happily for now I was able to offer the former and obtained enough pesos for the stay. I’m not sure how the system works but the peso’s were Cuban convertible peso’s and I believe this to be the currency issued to tourists only, so the authorities can keep control over the money supply. At the currency exchange desk I saw the first and last computer I was going to see in Cuba, similar to those I was using twenty years ago!

So, off to our fourth floor room closely followed by the bell-boy and our luggage via the lift shaft which was another splendid example of pre-revolution Cuba. One of the things I rarely do, as a matter of course, is to give tips. This isn’t because I am tight-fisted, although others might argue the case, but I have always felt that it is not for me to subsidise employers who are too greedy to pay more than minimum wages to their more menial staff and also because I never know how much they expect. Additionally I believe that unless someone provides me with an exceptional service they don’t automatically deserve such recognition. Anyway despite all of this I had decided I would tip whilst in Cuba unless I could get away with not doing so and slipped the bell-boy 1 peso which I had roughly calculated to be around 75p. The whole money thing in Cuba still confuses me despite reading in my travellers guide about how it works and I would appreciate it if someone could clarify it for me. My understanding however, is that, in this socialist state, everyone is paid the same monthly salary and is also entitled to a weekly grocery package including one toilet roll per day and other basic necessities. They are also provided with a house, receive free education and a free health service similar to our own. Of course where the British NHS differs is that it provides free prescriptions, unless of course, you are in England where we have to pay. That, I am sure is not just a sore point with me and is worthy of another blog entry or even a series of it’s own!

Well it all sounds cosy in Castro’s Cuba but the system is one that I find difficult to understand. Why is it, for example, if everyone is paid the same, would anyone want to take on a stressful job rather than the easiest? What incentive is there to train in anything if your financial reward was likely to be the same as everyone else? Additionally what about tipping? In theory a bell-boy, who receives regular tips, could earn more than a doctor who receives none if any?

There are many conundrums about their system and sadly I fail to understand, so will leave you for now with those questions and continue with my experiences on another day.

A Future In Calne

It's almost six months since my last blog entry and much has happened not least of which has been my total withdrawal from the political scene. My views are still as strong as ever but I can no longer, for reasons which I may refer to in future blogs should the demand warrant it, feel comfortable being involved in organised politics.

I may re-activate this blog but I am not going to write it just for my own satisfaction, it would be nice to know that there are a few who feel it would be worthwhile, so let's see if there is any demand and we'll see what we can do.

Journey To Cuba

At last I’ve found the time in between work, my social life and other ventures, currently in the pipeline, more of which at a later date, for updating my blog as promised with details of my trip to Cuba. The adventure started back in late January when the weather was dull, Christmas had not long passed and it seemed the year ahead would be a long one. Having agreed on taking a holiday somewhere a bit more challenging than a country on the Mediterranean as usual, and somewhere a little exotic and unusual, we chose Cuba, (Libya will have to wait!).

The booking was confirmed on Sunday 17th February and as luck, or not, would have it, on Tuesday 19th Fidel Castro essentially announced his retirement....

We had wanted to see Cuba as it was, under socialist control, but also without the influence of western civilization particularly that of the good old US of A. We were a little concerned for a while, as to what would happen in the country as a result of the change, but it seemed our fears were allayed when it was announced that Fidel’s younger brother Raul was to take over and nothing was expected to change, certainly in the short term anyway. Apparently (according to Wikipedia) Raul has implemented changes allowing, for example, “ordinary” citizens to buy DVD players, PC’s, scooters and other energy consuming products. He has also freed many prisoners and loosened up travel restrictions for Cubans. All changes which in the overall scheme of things, for Cuba, seem quite major, but still fall way short of what, we, in Britain take for granted, despite the oppression we continue to suffer under our wonderful Labour government. Unfortunately, it seems however, that what Brown, and Blair before him, see as the way forward for Britain, is actually a way back to a state run on similar lines to the way that Cuba is. Big mistake Gay Gordon, old chum, the British people won’t tolerate it. Eventually they will realise you are a traitor and are intent on destroying all that is and was good about this country and will rise up and take it back.

Anyway, we chose a holiday that would allow us time in Havana to experience some of the real Cuban life and history and also time in Varadero where we could relax in what appeared to be a fairly typical Caribbean resort environment.

On Sunday 8th June we boarded our plane for the 8 hour Virgin flight from Gatwick bound for Havana. It was the first time I had travelled quite as far by plane and was looking forward to it. I wasn’t disappointed as the flight was great, plenty of entertainment via our chair-back screen and also time to catch up with reading as well as enjoying the complimentary drink courtesy of Richard Branson as well as the other goodies provided.

The airport in Havana is named after Jose Marti (a leader of the Cuban independence movement and a poet and writer and considered a Cuban national hero) and was smaller than I expected but seemed to be as well equipped as any other that I have flown in to. The heat did strike you as soon as you disembarked and makes hot summers here seem relatively cool. The lack of major delays through customs and passport control or in claiming our luggage and the ease with which we found our travel company rep were all appreciated after the long flight. We knew there was a fair drive to our hotel in Havana and were expecting to board a coach but found a taxi awaiting us. After the driver loaded our luggage and got in and were even more pleased to find the taxi had air conditioning. The 40 minute journey was a strange one, I knew minimal Spanish and the driver minimal English so conversation was pretty much non-existent but it allowed me time to further study my travellers guide to Cuba in a vain attempt to find some Spanish phrases I could throw at the driver, but as it was I spent the time taking in the sites as we travelled. The buildings were largely poor and in need of repair, the people appeared poor and the cars were just as I expected, and could have come straight from a 50’s American movie. However, there were also a fair proportion of 70s/80s Lada's, I was more surprised with the fact there were also a fair few new vehicles from the far east, one of which was our taxi, but even more surprising were the few new Mercedes, some of which also turned out to be taxi’s but it seemed not for the use of the Cubans. So, as suspected, even in a socialist state like Cuba standards vary depending on who you are and the position you have.

As we approached our hotel I felt quite privileged as the building was very grand and imposing and is actually a national monument and THE place to stay when visiting Havana. As we got ready to get out I thanked the taxi driver in Spanish and in English he wished us a very enjoyable holiday, oh well, perhaps the silence was unnecessary after all.

We had arrived and my next blog entry will detail our experiences during our four days at the amazing Hotel Nacional de Cuba.

Cuban Recovery

Managed to get out of bed on Tuesday at 10am. Never experienced jet-lag before but went to bed at 10.30pm last night and couldn't get to sleep until 2.30am this morning. This wouldn't have been so bad but getting up at 6.00am this morning didn't do much for my ability to function particularly well at my first day back at work especially when faced with 101 things that had accrued during my time off. The morning was certainly a struggle but things improved as the day progressed and hopefully, tonight will see off the worst of it, so tomorrow will see the first instalment of my experiences in Cuba - I'm sure you can't wait!

As a starter it may be of interest that Ken Livingstone stayed in the same hotel in Havana as I did, but I was a paying guest and not there at the invitation of the Mayor of Havana, although there is a connection - ex-Mayor of London and the nephew of the current Mayor of Calne - perhaps it was destiny........