{"id":5450,"date":"2016-03-10T19:46:15","date_gmt":"2016-03-10T19:46:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/?p=5450"},"modified":"2016-03-10T19:46:15","modified_gmt":"2016-03-10T19:46:15","slug":"santiago-de-cuba-a-feast-for-the-senses","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/?p=5450","title":{"rendered":"Santiago de Cuba, a feast for the senses."},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Where do I begin? There is so much to say about this place that I am overwhelmed and don\u2019t know where to start.<\/p>\n<p>Should I begin with the remarkable architecture, some lovingly restored and others gently held together with the hope that someday it too can be brought back to their original wonder?\u00a0 Is it the wonderful people, out on the town celebrating \u201cThe National Day of Women\u201d on a day set aside much like our mother\u2019s day, many carrying a rose?\u00a0 Is it the street food vendors selling pastry, ice cream, fried foods and ham sandwiches out of a window or doorway?\u00a0 Or perhaps with the dozens of tiny shops meticulously displaying their limited wares or the pet stores with amazing colorful birds and tropical fish.<img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-5467\" src=\"http:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-8-16c-023.jpg\" alt=\"OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA\" width=\"700\" height=\"525\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-8-16c-023.jpg 700w, https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-8-16c-023-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Perhaps I should begin with the vehicles.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Coming from the \u201cdisposable\u201d culture of the U.S. it\u2019s amazing to see how Cubans recycle and reuse in a way that puts us to shame.\u00a0\u00a0 Some vehicles look like they are about to travel their very last mile and others, like this 1950s vintage Opel that our driver from yesterday, clearly have many miles left under the hood.<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-5465\" src=\"http:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-10-16b-002.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"700\" height=\"525\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-10-16b-002.jpg 700w, https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-10-16b-002-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/>Even the interior was perfect, if a bit off of the original specs. <img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-5458\" src=\"http:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-10-16b-003.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"700\" height=\"525\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-10-16b-003.jpg 700w, https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-10-16b-003-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/>There are thousands of old cars, trucks and motorcycles spewing choking exhaust on impossibly narrow colonial streets so clogged with traffic that crossing is a life threatening experience.<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-5460\" src=\"http:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-10-16b-014.jpg\" alt=\"3-10-16b 014\" width=\"700\" height=\"525\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-10-16b-014.jpg 700w, https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-10-16b-014-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-5452\" src=\"http:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-8-16c-025.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"700\" height=\"525\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-8-16c-025.jpg 700w, https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-8-16c-025-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-5455\" src=\"http:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-8-16d-018.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"700\" height=\"933\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-8-16d-018.jpg 700w, https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-8-16d-018-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-8-16d-018-600x800.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/> Not all of the cars were in as nice shape as this vintage VW.\u00a0 <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-5461\" src=\"http:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-8-16b-009.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"700\" height=\"525\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-8-16b-009.jpg 700w, https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-8-16b-009-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/>For sure, plenty will be changing in Cuba as they open up to the world.\u00a0\u00a0 Perhaps there is no better illustration of the challenges that this country faces than the long lines of young people waiting outside of the cell phone store waiting to enter for service.\u00a0 And,as in the U.S. , it seems like nearly everyone is busy huddling over their phones, perhaps, like us, trying to use the horrible wifi in public squares.\u00a0\u00a0 For sure, wifi is not great as it took me an hour yesterday and all of the time on my prepaid wificard to get just a simple post with one photo to publish.\u00a0 Today I am in a cafe using their computers so it\u00b4s going much better, so far&#8230;<\/p>\n<p>As we spoke with Cubans, at the marina, in taxis and some that we met on the street, there is an air of excitement that Obama is visiting later this month.\u00a0\u00a0 However, tempering their enthusiasm, is a fear that the influx of American\u2019s and their money will take away the \u201cgood\u201d of Cuba.\u00a0 However, it seems that most feel that there will be more good than bad as Cuba \u201cjoins the world\u201d again after so many years of isolation.<\/p>\n<p>There is a constant parade of \u201cbuses\u201d adapted from old Ford trucks with large rear areas,complete with benches, packed to the gills with customers racing through the narrow old streets.\u00a0 Yes, the grey section with the tarp is the \u00a8bus\u00a8 and passengers are packed in cheek to cheek. <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-5451\" src=\"http:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-8-16c-017.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"700\" height=\"525\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-8-16c-017.jpg 700w, https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-8-16c-017-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/>Surrounding the public squares are fabulous buildings, hundreds of years old and in perfect condition, at least from the outside and yet only a few blocks away homes in a terrible state of disrepair. <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-5453\" src=\"http:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-8-16c-034.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"700\" height=\"525\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-8-16c-034.jpg 700w, https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-8-16c-034-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/>Yesterday we had lunch at a Paladar, a family run restaurant on a rooftop overlooking the harbor and countless homes on the hillside.\u00a0 Wonderful food and reasonbly priced.\u00a0\u00a0 Great Mojito too.<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-5466\" src=\"http:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-10-16a-004.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"700\" height=\"525\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-10-16a-004.jpg 700w, https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-10-16a-004-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/>The nearby market had some interesting items for sale.\u00a0 I sure hope our lunch didn\u00b4t come from this stall. <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-5459\" src=\"http:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-10-16b-013.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"700\" height=\"525\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-10-16b-013.jpg 700w, https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-10-16b-013-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/>Perhaps this fruit stand is more our speed. <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-5454\" src=\"http:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-8-16d-008.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"700\" height=\"525\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-8-16d-008.jpg 700w, https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-8-16d-008-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/>On a nearby rooftop,\u00a0 a dog that looked much like or Son Rob\u00b4s Bobi.\u00a0<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-5464\" src=\"http:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-10-16a-007.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"700\" height=\"525\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-10-16a-007.jpg 700w, https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-10-16a-007-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/> There are many busy and beautiful public spaces.\u00a0 <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-5463\" src=\"http:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-8-16c-014.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"700\" height=\"525\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-8-16c-014.jpg 700w, https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-8-16c-014-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-5462\" src=\"http:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-8-16c-013.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"700\" height=\"525\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-8-16c-013.jpg 700w, https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-8-16c-013-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/>I still do a double take when I see the Cuban flag flying high.<\/p>\n<p>There is street music most everywhere. <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-5457\" src=\"http:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-10-16a-003.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"700\" height=\"525\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-10-16a-003.jpg 700w, https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-10-16a-003-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/>We stopped at a local hotel in the heat of the afternoon to cool off with fresh lemonaid.\u00a0 What a spot. <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-5456\" src=\"http:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-8-16d-021.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"700\" height=\"525\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-8-16d-021.jpg 700w, https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/3-8-16d-021-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/>I could go on for hours and surely,\u00a0 with all the \u00a8fun\u00a8 of finding a good spot to download all of this, perhaps I should quit while I am ahead.<\/p>\n<p>One way or the other, Cuba is surely a feast for the senses.\u00a0 What a place.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Where do I begin? There is so much to say about this place that I am overwhelmed and don\u2019t know where to start. Should I begin with the remarkable architecture, some lovingly restored and others gently held together with the hope that someday it too can be brought back to their original wonder?\u00a0 Is it [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","_s2mail":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5450","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5450","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5450"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5450\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5468,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5450\/revisions\/5468"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5450"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5450"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5450"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}