What you didn't want to know about TD...in 10 words or less: Day 5....food galore!

We took a trip into the country today

(This was written while in Cuba. But no Wifi, so I have posted it from the states.)

I seem to have lost track of days.

Room is still hot. Complained again. Maybe a room change.....probably nothing.

Long day today.

We stopped at a cigar store and I bought 5 cigars and a bottle of rum. Or as they call it here, vitamin R.

We took a bus trip out into the country. It was actually pretty in places.

In the rural areas we passed a lot of people in horse drawn conveyances..... and it was not for pleasure or for tourists. This is a way of transportation common in the rural area.

Things we learned on the bus from Rosalen:

Abortions are lawful in Cuba. Many young couples don't want children because it is so expensive to buy baby food, diapers and all the needed baby supplies. So a woman who gets pregnant can go to a family doctor, ask for an abortion, he writes a script and she goes to the hospital and has the procedure.

Lots of doctors in Cuba. When a student graduates university, they have to do three years of social service to pay back. Basically, they work for the government. If you are a doctor and go to a remote village where there is limited electricity and a remote backwoods life style, you have to serve one year there and that takes care of your three year service period. Because Cuba and Venezuela have a mutual need agreement, Cuba provides Venezuela with Doctors and Venezuela sends Cuba oil.......lots of doctors go to Venezuela, so there is a shortage of doctors in some areas.

If a Cuban family wants a house, they have to have the money. No mortgages in Cuba. If you have the money, you buy the house...otherwise you save and wait. Government will give people farm land. They have to work the farm for a certain period for it to become theirs. You may be required to provide part of your crop to a local school or community center for the people to eat. Once you stay on the farm for your required years, it becomes your property. i think she said her father was a farmer. And I think, but I am not positive about this, that the government now allows farmers to hire people to help work the land. The paladars also are no longer just run by the family. Paladar owners also can hire others to work in the restaurants. Sounds a little like capitalism to me.
I think I asked her about apartments..... and I believe she said those are owned by individuals, so you don't pay rent. That may explain why many of the buildings look in disrepair.
She did not say, but I assume the farm land the government gives is land they took from corporations or large land owners after the revolution. And the apartment buildings were taken over by the government and the apartments redistributed.

Rosalen said he area we went to today had lots of solar power. However, I did not see any. Unless you count the water tanks on top of the roofs, which I suspect do heat in the sun but also provide water pressure.

We stopped at a tobacco farm, met the owner and his family, toured his barn and bought some cigars.....10 for 10 CUCs.

And we had lunch at a paladar on an organic farm.

They brought out a plate of kale and okra, then one of tomatoes, onions, cabbage; another of plantain chips; a vegetable soup; white sweet potatoes, mango, and who knows what else. The table was full of food. Then they brought out pork. Actually, they had a piglet roasted and brought the whole thing out and carved it in front of us.....even had a curly tail! After the pork came the lamb. And the fish.. And the chicken. Heaps of food, served family style. Then came the flan. It was an absolutely terrific meal.
And this in a country where people in the cities are hungry.

Everything was locally sourced and organic. We toured the owners garden and learned a lot about plants...experiencing smells and textures of the various plants. He plants marigolds to keep away bugs....got to try that.

We then wandered the town of Vinales.....neat town of about 20,000 I think she said. Visited a craft market and bought a couple of things that were made in Cuba.

On the way back, we hit another scenic stop and I talked to some bikers; couple from Montana, one from Maine. They were taking a bike trip through Cuba to see it before it changed. Their longest day of biking was 60 miles, most days they do about 40. One lady said when it was 93 she decided to ride the tour bus and not ride....... Ages of the group were 18 to 73. The tour was operated by a Canadian company, I believe.

Supper was at a hoity toity paladar back in Havana. I had fish. It was not great. But is was good. Service was a little distant. As soon as you put something down, it was gone.

Our room was hot, again. This time we went down and asked for a new room. About 30 minutes later, we were on the move to a room with air conditioning that worked. Much better. Dan and I were much happier.
Anyway....on the road early tomorrow...headed to our next town.