After a mostly nice 3 night sail from Isla Beata we arrived at 3am at the beautiful natural port of Satiago. The moon was out and as you enter the well lit channel there is a massive old Spanish fort there as you head up the river, this place just looks amazing you really realize you are in another world as soon as you arrive. We anchored a mile upstream out the front of the yacht club and they said customs ect would be over at 8am which they were. Fairly easy process, they checked our vegetables, lucky bamboo and herb plants and said they were all fine which was a relief. Shortly after a very excited Beagle sniffer dog was inside also having a good look but of course found nothing. Customs all very interested in what we have and keep hinting they would like any of our old electronics or basically anything we don't want and that seemed to be the theme song for wherever we went ashore. Is a really different place that I can't explain, it's really like going back 50 years in time. Most of the people really seem to have nothing but they really make the most of everything they do have. Besides all the old cars from the 50's (awesome!) they just fix everything out of necessity as that's all they can do. The old Chevy cars with Russian engines to the man on the street fixing a very old well used disposable lighter putting in a new flint they really do fix everything, like the worlds best recyclers!! Makes you sick in the stomach thinking about all the sorts of goods we just throw away in the first world countries. The people sure do it tough here. Most people working for the government and making 12cuc ($14) a month and then a very basic rashion of the most basic foods which consist of 6 eggs, 6 ounces of chicken, flour, a bag of salt every 3 months but not even fruit and vegetables:( The girls went on a tour with a guy Julie got talking to and he took them into the shanty town and he told them all this info, they say they felt super safe as everyone is very welcoming. Mark and I stayed on the boat and took a wander to music we could here near by.... Thought it was a restaurant out the back of a house but turned to be a private house with a family having a birthday party. We sat awkwardly and they offered us a beer then another and things loosened up after they just gave us a bottle of rum for $5 which we drank neat like everyone else (nice rum) looking around it was hard to think all these weren't gangsters but they were very friendly but knocking back the rums like no tomorrow. TheDJ there had a set of huge pumping speakers and there was all sorts going on. Then the birthday cake came.... Singing happy birthday with an amazing cake to this mid 20s guy covered in tattoes with a shaved head with track marks shaved in then just grabs a handful of cake smashes it over his brother and then it just turns into a massive food fight!!!?? Shit everywhere:) then the rum kept flowing and it all went downhill rather quickly....then we went back to get the girls and by the time we got back things had turned and we didn't really get a welcoming party so left.
When you go into the city it's mind blowingly awesome with so much going on from the music on every corner, old trucks flying by, dancing going on but then there's the hussle. They don't give up, trying from every which angle to sell or do something for you all in a very nice way but it does get way too much after a while but you can see why they do as it's the only way for a lot to survive. You have to have something on the side to have the most modest life. But they all are a super happy bunch that's for sure.
Some things are REALLY cheap, like a piece of pizza from a local stall for 20cents but then a lot of basic stuff is ridiculously expensive.
We changed 600€ for the 2 of us and spent it pretty well in 4 days. Visas $75cuc each then clearance another $55cuc and to anchor $10 a night or $20 to stay in marina which was easiest seeing there is 5 of us. Then if you are in Santiago yacht club you have to get a taxi to town which is $10 each time but divided by 5 was fine. Then there were the rum bars......mucho musica and fiesta, cheap rum but the money all went:) the 5 of us had a ball, good times. But Cuba is definitely not the cheap place to cruise as we thought it would be, probably the most expensive country we have been so far even though some things seem so cheap, or is it the bad influences my sisters seem to have????:)
Now we are off to the un inhabited islands that are closed to commercial fishing to "hopefully" catch dinner and be able to relax on the islands for a couple of weeks.
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