Final report on Cuba . . . After departing Cienfuegos we sailed overnight along the south coast of the island, arriving at the far eastern end late the next afternoon. Our destination was Santiago de Cuba (a redundancy apparently to distinguish from the capital of Chile), situated at the north end of a six mile-long bay, not far from Guantanamo Bay. We did not visit Guantanamo Bay--or we might still be there.
At the eastern entrance to the bay is a gorgeous old fort, Castillo de San Pedro de la Roca (1700). We were not fired upon. See the photo below. |
Halfway to the city. Santiago de Cuba is ahead 2-3 miles. On the left, industry. On the right, hotels, bars--playtime! And we sailed right past it, grrrr. |
This "cattle boat" does not qualify as playtime. |
Next morning the weather has cleared so we board a tender for the bumpy ride into Santiago de Cuba. |
Reversing the view at the city square, we're looking at the Cathedral Basilica of Our Lady of the Assumption . . . |
. . . and here's the interior of the Cathedral, a service in progress. Shhhhhh . . . |
As the service continued inside, these little niñas danced to their own conga drummer on the Cathedral's upper porch. |
In front of the Cathedral, folk dancers and musicians performed to a crowd, pulling in viewers to join in the dance--and then spend a few American $ on their CD . . . |
. . . like--What? That's Sheila! |
Yep, she bought the CD ;-) |
Here's that building at the back of the city square. See the historic photo of Castro? He once made a rebel (not rabble)-rousing speech from the balcony directly above the photo exhibit. |
Back on the bus and another grab shot through the window. Castro: "We build a prosperous and sensible socialism." |
Evidence of Castro's armed attack: Bullet holes! |
We're back outside to board the bus, but let us pause to ogle this 1956 (?) Chevy. |
Cuban high-speed transit, shot through the bus window (hence the reddish coloration). |
Our tour bus has brought us to our last important site in Santiago de Cuba, the Santa Ifigenia Cemetery. You'll never guess the two heroes buried here. Yeah, you will. |
We enter the mausoleum . . . |
. . . and view the place of burial below. |
And now, the grand finale: Who do you think is buried here, hmmm? |
On the way back to the ship, "I am Fidel." |
Aboard the tender, we're on our way back to the ship . . . |
. . . for a 5:00 p.m. departure. |
On our way again through the bay en route to the open Caribbean. |
Approaching the open sea while sailing past the 319 year-old fort at the mouth of the bay. |