Day 43, 44, and 45 - Playa Larga, Punta Perdiz (Bay of Pigs), and Cienfuegos

Day 43 - Thursday, November 2, 2022
Arrival at Playa Larga and a Forgettable Meal

Today we had to get up early again as our taxi collectivo was already waiting in front of our accommodation at half past 7. Manfred still ordered breakfast while Anna was still sleeping. The ride took 5 hours and cost us a whopping 40 dollars per person. We had to change once near Havana and after 4 hours of driving, we stopped at a rest area to grab a snack and coffee. Finally arrived in Playa Larga, we had to find accommodation, which we had previously chosen on Airbnb. The room was okay but nothing special. Playa Larga itself disappointed us a bit as there were hardly any restaurants or anything like that. But since we were hungry, we went to one of the few classic tourist restaurants, which charged us almost 40 dollars for a terribly dry pork fillet and calamari with a drink each. They also did not accept the 50 dollar bill we gave them because it was damaged. Manfred had to go back to the Casa to get more money. Visibly annoyed and deeply disappointed, we left the restaurant and swore never to go to a place that charges in dollars and not Cuban Pesos again.
To brighten up our mood, we went to the beach in the late afternoon. The water was pleasant but not exactly clean. On the way back, Manfred cracked a coconut, almost like a real Cuban, and we had a little snack for the evening. Back at the accommodation, our landlady gave us a beer and we enjoyed a nice evening.

Day 44 - Friday, November 3, 2022
Diving in Punta Perdiz

Right after breakfast, which we again had at the Casa, we made our way to our diving instructor, whom we had met the previous evening. He lived just 5 minutes away from our accommodation and had very good equipment stored in his house. We booked the dive for 35 dollars the previous evening, where we also checked the gear. Together with 9 other divers, we set off in three classic Cuban cars to Punta Perdiz, a very famous diving spot in the Bay of Pigs. Our driver had to hotwire our old Chevrolet at the front hood to get the engine running. But once the car was running, it purred like a kitten and brought us safely to the beautiful Caribbean beach. There, we didn't waste any time, put on our dive gear, and went into the water. Since we were in a group with two instructors and some beginners, we split up underwater. While the others returned, Anna and I enjoyed the underwater world a little longer (mainly because we consumed much less air than the beginners). After that, we had to wait at the beach for a while as a third group was going diving, which suited us very well. The beach was heavenly beautiful, just as one imagines the Caribbean. In the early afternoon, we drove back to Playa Larga. We grabbed a local pizza from a small container buffet that we discovered on the way to the beach the previous evening. The pizza cost about one dollar and was much better and more authentic than the dinner the night before. At 6:00 p.m., our bus to Cienfuegos, which we had booked the previous evening, left. Our landlady was visibly unhappy that we were leaving so soon and kept trying to convince us that the bus wouldn't come. But with the ticket in our backpack, we weren't easily swayed, or at least Anna wasn't, and we went to the bus stop. And indeed, the bus arrived and we continued our journey. When we arrived in Cienfuegos, we spent almost an hour looking for our new Casa as a completely different address was given on Airbnb. We were also not accommodated in the booked accommodation but at the neighbor's place, which turned out to be a stroke of luck.

Day 45 - Saturday, November 4, 2022
A Warm and Friendly Family in Cienfuegos

This morning, we were served one of the best breakfasts in all of Cuba. Fernanda and her father Carlos were really nice hosts and served us the whole range of Cuban food from mango juice to meat patties in the morning. We ate directly in their living room. Although eggs were very expensive, Fernanda served us pancakes, scrambled eggs, and so much more that we almost burst when we left. After that, we strolled through Cienfuegos for hours, admiring the beautiful buildings of this coastal city. After almost 10 kilometers through the city, we treated ourselves to a pizza and a pork skewer at the pier and slowly made our way back to the accommodation where we had stored our luggage. Our bus, which we had booked with Viazul the day before, only left at 10:00 p.m., so we had enough time to explore the entire city. In the Casa, we communicated half in Spanish and half with gestures, which surprisingly worked well and was very informative. We thanked Fernanda and Carlos with a chocolate bar and headed to the bus station. The bus was almost an hour late, so we arrived in Trinidad at 1:00 a.m. Luckily, we had already booked accommodation and checked in, falling completely exhausted into our beds.