Cuba Mystic, Music
and Revolution
with Alex Veit
2-14
March 2005
Wednesday : 2 March:
Morning departure
to
Madrid arrival at noon,
Connecting flight to Havana departing
at 15:25 landing in Havana at 19:15. Transfer to Hotel. Overnight:
First class hotel (1 night).
Thursday:
3 March: Baracoa:
Morning flight to Baracoa. Baracoa, which may be
the place that Columbus first landed in Cuba, and it was definitely the first
Spanish settlement on the island. Set among palm trees and lush vegetation,
Baracoa was cut off from the rest of the island by a range of mountains until
the early 1960s. We shall spend our time rambling through town and
meeting the great local characters. Evening:
**Optional
visit
to
one of the local clubs “Casa de la Trova” where
live Cuban music is played nearly every night. Overnight:
Tourist class
hotel (1
night).
Friday-Saturday: 4-5
March: Guantanamo Bay-Baracoa:
Drive to Santiago de Cuba , through some of the nicest scenery of Cuba, Cocoa
and coffee plantations. Arrive around noon in Santiago de Cuba which
has
approximately 420,000 inhabitants
and is the second largest city in Cuba,
and it rivals Havana in literature, music
and politics. In the 19th century French immigrants settled in Santiago. The
mixture between Haitian, African, Spanish and French influences makes Santiago
the city with the strongest Caribbean influence in Cuba. The city today still
bears witness to a strong Spanish colonial character. Our two day tour of
Santiago de Cuba and its surroundings will include : A Walk around its
charming piazzas and streets, which hold many art galleries with different
styles from the naive to the surrealistic. Visit the piracy museum in the Morro
Castle and much more. Evening:
**Optional visit
local clubs, playing the “Afro - Cuban music”, salsa dancing and rum. Overnight:
First class hotel (2 nights).
Sunday: 6 March:
Santiago de Cuba-Camaguey:
Drive via
Bayamo,
to Camaguey. This charming Spanish colonial city, the third largest in
Cuba, is in the middle of a cattle-ranching region. Camaguey is associated with
early revolutionary Ignacio Agramonte, who led unsuccessful revolts against the
Spanish in the mid 1800’s. Overnight: Tourist class
hotel.
(1 night).
Monday: 7
March: Camaguey-Sancti Spiritus:
Drive to the oldest town in the
Cuban interior, Sancti Spiritus, founded in 1514. Explore this enchanting
colonial town, with its pastel facades and cobblestone streets. Overnight:
Tourist class hotel (1 night).
Tuesday:
8 March: Sancti
Spiritus- Trinidad-Cienfeugos:
Drive to
the historical city of Trinidad. This beautiful colonial city with
cobblestone streets" red-tile roofs, wrought-iron grillwork and Carrara marble
floors has change little in the last century and a half. “Unesco” declared it a
World Heritage Site and much of old town have been restored. The city was
founded in 1514 and some of the early mansions around Plaza Mayor date back to
the early 1700's. Visit the Romantic Museum, a house built in 1740
showing beautiful pieces that belonged to the wealthy families of Trinidad.
Stop at
"La Canchanchara", where the best traditional
Cuban music of Trinidad is played.
Drive on to the tranquil seaside resort town of Cienfeugos.Cienfeugos has
some of Cuba's prettiest casas particulares. Overnight: Tourist class
hotel (1 night).
Wednesday: 9 March: Cienfeugos-Santa
Clara-Havana:
Drive to Santa Clara
City to visit Ernesto (Che) Guevara Memorial. Che Guevara, born in Argentine,
was one of the commanders who fought with Fidel Castro in the war against the
dictatorship of Batista in the 50’s. Che, as he was called. died in
Bolivia in 1967 being the head of the guerillas in that countries
Revolution. His mortal remains (just recovered in 1998) together with those
who died together with him are buried in that memorial known as Plaza de la
Revolucion. Drive
on to Havana
(pop. 2,268,000), the capital city. A rich assortment of vintage buildings has
made Old Havana a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Overnight: First class hotel (3 nights) .
Thursday-Saturday: 10-12
March: Havana:
Three days of touring in and around
Havana: Including the historical center of Old Havana ( Habana Vieja)
considered part of “Unesco’s “World Heritage List. Visit Morro Castle, one of
the most important fortresses built by the Spaniards in the 16th Cent, to
protect this important city from the attacks of pirates and corsairs; see the
Capitol building, former home of the Cuban Congress and one of 'the most
majestic constructions in Cuba of the 20th
Cent.. Continue towards the Revolution Square, which is the mast important
political and Social Square in the country. Continue to the footsteps of
Hemingway. Visit the former house of the outstanding American writer Ernest
Hemingway; who lived in the house between .1939-1960 Located 9 miles south of
Havana, this 4-hectare property is a perfect example of the costumes and habits
of the American novelist during his life in Cuba. We shall also visit a local
cigar factory and much more.
Evenings: **Optional time
spent at the local clubs and cabarets.
Saturday: 12 March:
Havana:
Continue touring Havana: Evening depart for Havana Airport. Evening flight to
Madrid. Sunday: 13 March: Madrid: Noon Arrival in Madrid,
transfer to First
class hotel. Please note : That the flight home and overnight
in Madrid will not be accompanied by Alex, but will be prearranged. Monday:
14 March: Noon
Depart Madrid
for Tel-Aviv,
early evening arrival at Ben Gurion
airport.
**Please note:
that evening activities are optional, will expose us to all types of local Cuban
music, and is on clients account.
Please note: Tour is planned to cater both
Israeli and English speaking clientele. Tours are guided in English by specially
chosen local guides. Alex does not translate what is said in to Hebrew. How
ever, Alex will be bilingual, when it comes to his explanations which deal
mainly with administrative aspects of the tour.
****Dinners
are included, will be at specially chosen local
restaurants and at hotels; will enable us to enjoy the local cuisine.
See past tour's
photographs press here:
Cuba 2004
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