Tash and I were up at 3am and in a taxi by 3:30. We had a really early flight to CUBA :)
I sat one row in front of Tash on the flight and boy did she have some crazy amigos sitting next to her. They ordered orange juice with four sugars each and then asked for extra cans of pop. They tried to explain to the two of us what hot commodities the pops were and wanted us to have them before exiting the flight.
Tash and I took a pirate taxi from the airport driven by none other than Rico Suave himself. This car, as well as this man's style, was E-X-P-E-N-S-I-V-E. However, dropping us on the side of the road at some random unmarked building to exchange our money did not leave us feeling very E-X-P-E-N-S-I-V-E. We eventually got to our hostel though, which was more like a homestay, run by an AMAZING couple Marilyn and Frank.
Papi Frank as we affectionately started calling him, sat and chatted with us for a long while and then took out us and about in Cuba. Among other things he told us, was that if we didn't see a blue anchor sign on the door, it meant that the place of residence wasn't a sanctioned homestay and that we needed to avoid it.
After, he brought us to a local restaurant with a fish and beef special that was so delicious (but way, way too much food for Tash and I).
We walked around after lunch and noticed that all of the buildings were so colorful! The heat was horrendous though, so we headed back to our casa to take a nap. I think Frank and Marilyn thought we were crazy for sleeping midday, but also for running the AC while it was still light outside. Tash and I had a really hard time getting up from our nap, but we knew we would regret it if we slept away our first night in Havana.
While we were getting ready, the power went out. Papi Frank told us that this was extremely common and sure enough, we looked around to find that the whole block was out. Tash and I used our phone lights to navigate the little house through the small sliding door that provided closure to our bedroom and down the tiny stairway that even I had to duck under.
Tash and I went to the Florida hotel which had a bar downstairs for dancing. This bar however, was like no normal hotel bar. The restrooms were down the hall and man were they a sight. Firstly, the door didn't latch, which wasn't a big deal until I came to find that the toilet was missing it's seat. Not only that, but there was no toilet paper in sight. Upon exiting the restroom, I found that both sinks were completely dry. I sure was glad we were staying in our homestay and not this hotel. However, what the hotel lacked in facilities, it made up for in experiences. The music was bumpin, the mojitos were strong and the men were ready to dance! Tash and I were immediately scooped up by the local cubanos whose pleasure it was to teach us to salsa all night long.
Roberto took a particular liking to us and even offered to bring us to another club before we headed home. Papi Frank warned us about these overeager cubano boys though, so Tash and I headed home on our own, counting our first night in Havana as a win.
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