Image - welcome sign - 20th May

20th May - our official arrival day in Cuba. We had been in Cuban water since 12th May exploring the Gardens of the Queen area - by leaving our official check-in until today we will unofficially extend our stay - as the entry visa is only for 30 days.
After our overnight sail we arrived off the entrance into Cienfuegos harbour about 8am - perfect timing. We passed a few local men out in small boats of very basic construction and got a 'hello' wave in recognition.
The imposing Guarda Frontera station was just 1 mile in through the entrance. The office building was on the cliff edge which had been painted with a 'Welcome to Socialist Cuba' - what an arrival statement!!.
An old fortress, the 1745 Castillo de Jagua, high up on the western shore, guarding the entrance was an imposing sight. James navigated us carefully up a winding narrow channel, past an outlying fishing village on the left and then into Punta Gorda peninsular on the right. The magnificent large bay of Cienfuegos was ahead of us - we had arrived into one of the largest natural ports in Cuba. There was some large commercial shipping coming from the western end where we could see an ugly cement processing plant and the abandoned nuclear power plant (apparently a Russian/Cuban joint enterprise that did not continue after the fall of communism)

As per the Cruising guide we made a VHF call to the Guarda Frontera 12 miles out and again on our arrival off the entrance lighthouse - both calls with no reply. Once into the bay we could now clearly see the marina and several yachts at anchor - so called again. Thankfully the marina answered and informed us in good English that we needed to come into the marina, and alongside a dock for the entry formalities.
Thankfully it was a very still and calm morning and we could early come alongside the solid concrete pier. The dockmaster was there and helped take our lines - there was a man standing on the dock waiting - it turned out that he was the doctor - who was onboard immediately! He spoke good English and asked some basic questions about our general health and what countries we had recently visited, completed some paperwork and then took our temperatures via a thermometer with a beam aimed at our foreheads - he declared us fit and healthy and fit to enter Cuba!
In all our years of sailing and visiting so many countries we have never had a doctor come onboard as part of the entry formalities.

In a polite and friendly manner he left the boat with our passports and boat documentation and said the next official would be along shortly. He also confirmed that our watches were 1 hour behind - it was now 10.30am local time.

The marina complex was right beside the local swimming beach, and this area was full of local teenagers enjoying their day - like all teenagers around the world they were loud and boisterous.... watching them I realised that neither the girls or boys had swimwear.... they were all wearing their day clothing - obviously no bikinis and boardshorts are not available to purchase here. An interesting first impression!

The day was getting hot, and James was tired and went below for a nap - but it wasn't long before the Harbourmaster came on board. A welcoming young man with good English sat at our cockpit table, looked at our boat registration papers and exit papers from Jamaica and asked several questions and wrote notes. What countries had we been in over the past 12 months, extensive questions to the equipment we had onboard and took details of all our communication equipment? He wanted to know what were our travel plans, how long we thought we would be in Cuba and explained that we would be issued a 30 day personal visa - that was easily extendable and the boat would have a 6 month permit issued. The cost of this was $15 CUC for each personal visa and a $55 CUC charge for the inward boat clearance costs and permit. He said these fees needed to be paid in cash before we left this dock. He left happy with the info we had given him and said the next officials would be along shortly. (1 CUC is approx. $1US)

About ½ hour later 4 officials came along the dock and asked to come onboard. On official came with a dog - a sprightly tan and white cocker spaniel who came into the cockpit and then with his handler down into the boat. James went with them for the inspection. This dog was carrying out a drug inspection. He nosed his way eagerly around the whole boat, meanwhile 3 other officials came on board and waited in the cockpit. All 3 men were polite and friendly, very well dressed in clean and pressed uniforms, and spoke good English. When the dog was finished, I could gave him a friendly pat and off he went back to the dock.

Now these remaining men proceeded down below into the boat with both of us. The Harbourmaster went with me into our cabin. He open all the cupboards and drawers and just had a quick look - he picked out our digital weight scale and wanted to know what is was and how it worked... obviously he had never seen such a devise ever before and was happy with my demonstration and explanation. The 2 men with James just had a quick look in the obvious cupboards in the galley and did not lift any seating or floorboards - just looking through the loose items. One official asked for a torch to inspect the forward storage area, but only gave it a quick look, coming back sweating from the heat.

All the officials returned to sit back up in the cockpit and then another dog arrived. Another eager cocker spaniel - this one black and white, went off the lead and again had a good nose around through the whole of the boat, around the deck and down below. Apparently this dog was trained to smell out explosives. This whole process took less than 1 hour, and everyone left after shaking our hands and saying WELCOME TO CUBA.

Shortly after and Harbourmaster returned with our passports and our visa documentation. There was no stamp in our passport, just an officially stamped loose document.(similar to our visa for Israel) We were asked if we had any questions, and then told to go to the dockmasters office to pay the fees - total $85CUC and informed that our boat permit would be issued on our departure from Cienfuegos. He had been able to get some Cuban cash from a yacht in Jamaica so were able to go straight to the Dockmasters office, pay the fees and have the arrival process completed successfully - all within a short amount of time. The Dockmaster explained that the marina was full, so we would have to go out to anchor off - the fee for anchoring was 20cents per foot per day ($4 per day) and we could use the showers and toilets and the dingy dock for that fee. He was very friendly and professional. All completed, we are now officially allowed to take down our yellow Q flag.

We were keen to get off the dock as the afternoon wind was picking up and we were getting blown on to the rough cement quay - so out to anchor off amongst about 12 other yachts. It was just a short dingy ride into the shore and marina.

Our arrival formalities went without a hitch - of course we didn't tell them we had already been in Cuban waters for over a week. It was great to be here - and experience it all for ourselves.

The views back onto the shore were very grand indeed. We had the very elegant Club Cienfuegos, with its wide marquee covering the terraces from the afternoon sun right on our bow. This stunning, white 4 story building, with twin green tiled domes was obviously the upmarket yacht charter base, with a large swimming pool, restaurants, bars and extensive well maintained grounds. The neighbouring, striking blue 1920's Palacio Azul had been restored to all its pre -revolutionary splendour. The whole area was more like Monto Carlo than Cuba!


21st May - I was woken early with the noise from the rowers - the single skulls, doubles and eights from the nearby shoreside rowing club were out early, with their coaches running around in a dingy, loudly giving instructions etc. This was not a sight I had expected!

We calling in and notifying our arrival into Cuba to the 9am MagNet and listening to the Chris Parker SSB weather forecast. After over a week at sea only, we were keen to get off and start to explore mainland Cuba.
Now having seen the marina area and the anchorage we both felt it was OK to leave the boat here at anchor for a few days and go on a 2 night inland trip via the local bus to the nearby city of Trinidad. Thankfully our lonely Planet guide became our reliable planning and info guide.

It was just a short dingy ride into the marina. We decided to keep our large 15hp engine safely locked on the boat, and used the little 5hp engine to get into the shore. We didn't know what to expect here in Cuba regarding the safety and security of our boat and gear - so decided to take what we felt were the necessary precautions.

It was SO good to get off and stretch our legs, and really enjoyed the waterfront 3k walk into the city. We walked along the wide Malecon shoreline - past the welcoming billboard quoting the words of the native soul musician Benny More ''the city I love the best''. I quickly became a 'transport spotter' with my camera. There were many 3 wheeled tricycles (used for passenger and bulk goods traffic), a few old motorbikes with sidecars, mopeds and some beautiful old American cars - in various state of repair. Many of the locals had bicycles, and there were very few private cars. As we got into the cities backstreets we saw many horse and carts being used as both goods and local transport.

The city of Cienfuegos is described as the 'Paris of Cuba' with an elegant French sprit and Caribbean panache. This City has had a UNESCO World Heritage Site listing since 2005. The original French colonizers arrived here in 1819. The city has two districts - the colonnaded central town zone, with its elegant Prado and Parque, and the thin slice of land Punta Gorda on the bay.

Yes, the Paseo del Prado was shabby chic, with many neoclassical buildings and pastel-painted columned grand buildings that had seen better days - but it was all a wonderful and impressive sight. We will come back into the central zone to explore more over the coming days.

The main drag - Avenue 54, a wide pedestrian only shopping street was full of activity with Cubans going about their day-to-day business. There were many individual shops, of all shapes and sizes, with no chain stores. There was a surprising variety of household and tourist goods available - something we were not expecting. There is no visible economic crisis in this city.

We needed to achieve a few basic jobs today, to be combined with our initial look around. Along the main pedestrian street we found a Bank to change some Euros into CUCs, and then to a Cadeca to change some CUC's into local Pesos. Cuba has a double monetary economy - with two official currencies - CUC convertible pesos and MN Cuban pesos referred to as Moneda Nacional. We are able to use both - CUC for main items and pesos only in 'local' store and for 'local' market shopping. 1 CUC is approx $1US and 24 MN to 1CUC - so MN purchases are very good value for money.

So now armed with some cash - the tourist info office was the next stop. We found one stall with very little info and no maps - another a bit further along was very helpful with info and directions - but the lady said maps were in very short supply due to no funds available to print them and she could not give us one. Her directions to the bus terminal led us through the local streets, past many pesos stores with queues outside - and I was keen to take a look.

Our bus tickets to Trinidad for Saturday needed to be booked. The bus station was busy, there were a few touts, but no one gave us any hassle. We found the ticket office and with my little Spanish purchased our tickets - 6 CUC per person one way - so a total return fare of CUC 24 - not an expensive price for this 3 to 4 hour oneway bus journey.

The locals around the bus station were having lunch on individual pizza - so that would be good for us too. For 6 pesos (25cents) each we had hot, delicious, freshly cooked pizza - just great. I was keen to put my head in the tiny hole-in-the wall shop to take a look at the pizza oven and takeaway operation. They had an impressive 24 gallon drum improvised into a pizza oven, with the blazing heating coming from wood and coals. The pizza pans were well used, and the filling looked to be coming from a fridge! We passed a bakery and bought a large freshly baked loaf for 4 pesos (60cents) - it would be just perfect for breakfast toast.
We needed some breakfast fruit, so wandering the streets and checking out the many pesos shops along the way we found the local market. The fresh meat section had beef and pork only, and the fruit and veg was a minimal selection - but SO MANY flies! We didn't purchase anything - but at least I know what is available for our big shop before we leave to move on next week.
In one of the local stores we made our local purchases - the all-important Havana Club rum, and Queso Azul - a good looking Cuban blue cheese - so tonights sundowner drinks and snacks were sorted.
We saw many of the locals queuing at an old fashioned ice-cream parlour 'Coppelia'- and we just had to try the 'Sunday'. The two scoops of melon and vanilla were very rich, creamy and tasty - at 2 pesos (12 cents) a scoop, this place practically gives away icecream!!

After a hot walk back to the marina - refusing all the offers for a ride from the many 3 wheel cycles, as we needed the exercise. At the marina office the very helpful staff member made a phone call to our chosen Casa (B & B) in Trinidad to book our 2 nights accommodation for Saturday and Sunday. I also requested that they arrange for the hostess to meet us off the bus when we arrive - so good to have that sorted.

Hot and tried from all our walking we crashed for a few hours - then went into the marina for a shower - very little water or pressure. We toasted our day with Cuban rum and very tasty blue cheese snacks.
A sunset thunderstorm was very threatening; we had several changes in wind direction, but no rain or strong winds.

FRIDAY 22 - after doing some research for our Trinidad visit we walked around the Punta Gorda area near the marina. This a strange area - again not at all what we had expected. We saw many beautiful refurbished eclectic early 20th century palaces and palatial buildings. Obviously an old upper-class neighbourhood, with bright clapboard homes - many offering Casa (B & B) facilities. Many of these original palaces are now exclusive small hotels, featuring luxurious swimming pools, and facilities in this beautiful bayside setting. The large 1950's Hotel Jagua looked to be the main tour group hotel. Again these exclusive tourist facilities and restaurants were not what we were expecting to find in Cuba. Tourism is bringing in the money to this City.

SATURDAY 23 - securing the boat and putting out a 2nd anchor to leave for a few days took awhile - but we had plenty of time as our bus going to Trinidad did not leave until 12.30pm.
We caught a local taxicab directly from the marina to the bus station, and arrived in plenty of time. The taxi looked old but OK from the outside, but the inside seating was well-worn, ripped and torn, but spotlessly clean and obviously the drivers pride and joy.

Before getting on the bus for Trinidad, James went across to the PESOS pizza man to get us our filling 25cent snack lunch.

MONDAY 27 - After our weekend away in Trinidad -thankfully when we got back to the marina in Cienfuegos La Aventura was still safe at anchor, but the dingy we had left on the beach had fared less well - full on water from all the thunderstorms and the side pod was low on air.

TUESDAY 26 - another day to take a look around the city and also get a few jobs done before we move on. We gathered up all our laundry, I prepared our food shopping list, and back to the bank to exchange some cash for CUC.
We caught a taxi directly to the laundry - just 1CUC each for the ride. At the town large community laundry, Norma the laundry lady said she would do our 2 full bags, wash & dry and we could collect it at 5pm - for a total price of PESOS 36 -approx. $1.20 - the cheapest laundry we will ever have done!
Bread was next on the list - the 1st bakery did not have any loaves or rolls - the next pesos shop had only rolls - so we bought 3 packs of white lunch rolls - then we came to the peso bakery and they had both loaves and rolls, so we are fully stocked with bread.
Food shopping here in Cuban is a real hit and miss - sometimes things are available and sometimes they are not - even bread. You can tell when something important is available as there is a queue outside the shop!
Next stop the bank to change UK£ as the rates was so much better than Euros. American dollars are exchanged at a very low rate AND an extra surcharge is charged for exchanged them.. so a double hit for American tourists.... that's the Cuban way to get a little payback for the 'blockade'.
We had cigars to purchase for gifts - so into the beautiful wood-panelled Casa del Habano store 'El Embajador' to make our purchase from there wonderful selection.
Next and final stop was the fruit and veg market. We were able to get most things - but no apples that I had seen on my previous recce. I was looking forward to buying some more of the very tasty Queso Azul blue cheese - but there was not in the store, and when I asked the guy just shrugged and say maybe tomorrow- maybe never!!
So now loaded down with all our shopping we headed back to the boat via the waterfront - it is a beautiful natural bay.
After lunch back onboard we headed back out again for another look at the town. Walking along the main shopping street Avenue 54, there were far fewer locals around - well it was a very hot afternoon. The main tourist sights border the central square/park - Parque Jose Marti. The Arch of Triumph is dedicated to Cuban independence - a very French arch - a mini version of the Arch de Triumph in Paris. A very large, serene marble stature of the great Jose Marti takes pride of place in the centre of the park. In a nearby colonial bandstand a lone guitarist was playing - his very entertaining music floating around the hot and still, shady large central square. In the 1890's Jose Marti was one of the original founders of the Cuban Revolutionary Party, and his death during the Second Independence War has led him to martyr status throughout Cuba, and we were to see SO many tributes to him everywhere - they love a good revolutionary in this country!!
Opposite the park, the Cathedral de la Purisima dates from 1869, and is distinguished by it wonderful French stained glass windows. We were one of the few tourists inside taking respite from the afternoon heat whilst taking the majesty of the Cathedral and its grand windows.
Our next stop was at the very grand Italian style Theatro Tomas Terry. Built in the late 1880's to honour this Venezuelan industrialist, the fully restored main auditorium has outstanding marble columns, hand-carved Cuban hardwoods and Italian cherubs frescoes floating across the ceiling. This theatre is in constant use with local musical groups holding weekend concerts, and visiting 'big name' visiting artists. We took refuge from the afternoon heat to enjoy an excellent iced coffee in the beautiful flower canopy-covered patio to the side of the theatre building.
The south side of the square was dominated by the silver-grey provincial building - not open to the public, but I could get a feel for the buildings grandeur by poking my head into the wide double doors to take a peek at the palatial main staircase and stained glass windows.
I wanted to climb to the domed rooftop cupola of the fully restored Casa de la Culture to take a overview of the square and city - but sadly the heat got the best of me!
Thinking back and looking at my many photos - this small City square was outstanding for architecture and atmosphere, and well worth fighting the heat to wander, see and enjoy.
By now it was about 4.30pm and we needed to collect our laundry. We took another long walk back to the boat around the bay - there were many rowers out, and we came across an impromptu boxing class being held under the shady trees.
After a long, hot day we wanted to have marina showers - but there was no water in the afternoon, and again just before doing to bed we checked again - no water in any of the taps or showers. Just another example of the REAL day-to-day situation regarding infrastructure here in Cuba.

WEDNESDAY 27 - During the morning I did some cooking and James fixed the cabin lights that had been playing up.
Future weather forecasting was going to be important for our sail west along the south coast, so we decided to get a grib for the next few days before leaving. Well - several hours later and much frustration we didn't get a grib file!! Our Sat Phone and Global Marine Network set-up back in Bocos was fraught with problems - but we thought we had it all working fine....obviously not!

We went into the marina officials to arrange to check-out. From reading the info we had this was supposed to be a longwinded procedure with official inspection the boat etc,etc... but no it was all very quick and straightforward. We paid our anchoring bill - 7 nights at 20cents per foot per night - total 56CUC -then just took our receipt to the Harbourmaster in the next office and handed him our payment receipt and our passports - he completed some paperwork and gave us copies to be handed in at the next port - Cayo Largo and then we were free to leave - all too easy.

With the town water back ON - we both made the most of the freshwater showers at the marina, James filled our deckwash bucket - so now full of food and water and ready to set off again. Our timing was great - we had a good north wind to head south for this overnight passage of 80 miles.

On exiting Cienfuegos and heading southwest to Cayo Largo we needed to clear the major prohibited zone - The Bay of Pigs. In 1961 CIA trained Cuban mercenaries, with the backing of the US Kennedy administration staged an unsuccessful invasion of Cuba to overthrow Fidel Castro at the Bay of Pigs. The consequences were far reaching - at the funeral service for 7 dead Cuban 'martyrs' Castro declared ''Socialism or death''......ultimately resulted in the US declaring a full trade embargo - we were sailing through such an historic, strategic and political area. After passing the exclusion zone we had no offlying shoals, reefs or dangers. We ran with a full genoa, no main and just needed to jibe a few times - an easy overnight sail with ½ moonlight. The far-off thunderstorms were no problem to us.