DAY 5 - Soroa to San Diego

Sarah didn't sleep well and was still not able to stomach a lot. We called a taxi to take her to our next stop, San Diego. I decided I wanted to cycle as it wasn't very far and I'd felt incredibly safe since day one of our trip.
I again had extreme difficulty finding lunch (a tupperware container full of cut fruit from breakfast only goes so far). I finally found a roadside cart where a lady was making little pizza-like creations. It wasn't good, but it was food.
I made it into San Diego and found poor Sarah passed out in bed. It was a quiet town with little to do. I went to check out the local baths which were closed for the weekend, but I was told a five pesos bribe was all it took for the guard to open the door and show me down to the smelly sulfur baths. He was a friendly young man with a young daughter. We had a nice conversation about Cuba during my twenty minute soak after which I was not supposed to rinse which meant smelling like sulfur for the next 24 hours.
Dinner was delicious served at the casa, lots of veggies and rice and beans and fruit. Fuel for the next day!

DAY 4 - La Habana to Soroa

We set out towards Las Terrazas destination Soroa. This was the hottest day and the day Sarah got food poisoning. It took forever to get out of Havana, very difficult to navigate all the winding streets. Highway riding was relatively flat, but hot as hell. We were starting to run low on water and energy and luckily found a cafetería (house/trucker stop). The meal was delicious, but only Sarah at the pork. NB. Avoid pork products when possible. 

After lunch, still thirsty, and not looking forward to spending the next five hours drinking tablet treated water, I spotted a guy drinking a coconut under a tree. I hooted and asked him if we could please to the same. This was a highlight, he was lovely and accommodating. Fueled and quenched, we kept pedaling along the long highway slog. 

We arrived at Las Terrazas and had a pit stop at a beautiful ecocafé. We had a snack after all the international yogis cleared out and enjoyed the sights in this little community.
The ride from there to Soroa was, um, longer and hillier than expected. Sarah was starting to feel not so great and it was long. And really hilly. I was cheering her on best I could, but we knew something was wrong. We had to stop before our destination, but luckily we found a great casa (B&B) to stay at. I ate my fair share of dinner, Sarah couldn't eat and had to go to bed. It was a long, unfortunate night, but we kept her hydrated.

DAY 3 - La Habana

We spent the day cycling around La Habana, wandering the city and organizing the rest of our journey. 
We went for a mojito at the uber touristy Bar del Medio as we had met a guitar player the day before who was impressed that we were cycling and made us promise to go watch him and his band perform. It was lively and fun.
Havana is most famous for its nightlife and upon a recommendation from some lovely international students at the Havana high school, we went to the Fábrica de Arte Cubano. This is an amazing space that has only ever existed in my dreams. Great local artwork, a concert space, a movie theatre, stage and bar/café. 

DAY 2 - Matanzas to La Habana

Unfortunately the next morning was again really hard to find food. We  could only find a little cafeteria on a side street that sold sandwiches and juice and shitty instant coffee. Also a screw had come loose from my back rack and my heavy paniers needed a secure connection. Luckily Sarah had a bungee cord that fit perfectly. NB. Always travel with zap straps. 

After that we spent an hour in the town square squinting in the heavy sun trying, in vain, to find a tiny metal spring piece from our pump. Luckily it still worked even without the missing bit!

We headed out with bottles of water and tamarind juice. Also I remembered I had a piece of halva I'd brought from Canada. But no real snacks, no almonds, no trail mix like we usually stock. This was a major concern because when you're touring you need to eat! 
We eventually stopped for lunch at a restaurant with girls wearing skin tight turquoise jeans and hot pink lipstick. They matched their restaurant's decor! Cuba loves colour. We had some fish, rice and salad to fuel us for the rest of our hot, dusty ride into La Habana. 

We pulled into the capital around late afternoon after taking the ciclobus, a bus that  bikes have to take to get into the city because there's a tunnel. We arrived at our host's house before dinner, then, STARVING set out for dinner with Juan Silvio, the sweetest man and colleague of my mentor, Hilary, from Vancouver. He took us on a tour if old Havana visiting Bar La Floridita (a Hemingway favourite) and we had dinner in a restaurant in one of the city's many plazas.

 

DAY 1 - Varadero to Matanzas

Arrived at the airport full of excitement. Once the bike boxes arrived we put everything together while being watched curiously by airport staff, men dressed in long pants and button down khaki uniforms, women with tight white shirts unbuttoned to expose cleavage, tiny skirts, fishnet stockings and stilettos. 

After a couple bites of stale Starbucks pumpkin loaf I had saved from the dumpster in Vancouver, we cycled from Varadero airport to Matanzas along coconut lined streets and 1950s cars; slow, slow moving, but heavy on exhaust. It was only a 30km ride, but it was difficult to find the house we were staying in. Luckily we arrived before sunset.

Eventually we found the place and took much needed showers then headed our to look for food. This was the biggest challenge of our day. Restaurants were few and far between in the downtown core. We went into one but had to walk out because they didn't have food. We finally settled on a pasta restaurant. NB. Never eat international cuisine in Cuba unless you're absolutely starving and desperate. Like we were. Sleep came easy that night despite the lively street action right outside our window. 

Cuba trip planning

Our trip dreams started around December 2015. We were both itching for a new cycle adventure in a warm climate. Ideas of Mexico were thrown around until we found flights on sale to Varadero. These flights were hurriedly booked online while multitasking which resulted in buying different airline tickets. Oops.

Airline tickets aside, the whole trip came together swimmingly. My amazing colleague and mentor, Hilary, connected me with a wonderful network of Cuban educators. Big thanks for your time and support, Hilary. One of these people is one of the warmest people on this planet, Juan Silvio Cabrera Albert. He is a very proud Cuban and works at a university promoting education through the arts. He was an essential part of making this trip happen so smoothly. Mil gracias otra vez, Juan Silvio.

Sarah had a wonderful idea for this trip which involved having a fundraiser. Instead of bringing our beloved and reliable Surly Long Haul Truckers down to Cuba, we would be looking to the community to help us in our endeavors.

Working full-time and finding bikes proved challenging, but luckily I have a super supportive and well-connected boyfriend was able to secure us two bikes from his community of fellow cyclists. Endless thank yous, Drummond and friends.

And our fundraising night just could not have happened without two amazing Vancouver musicians, my brother, Luca Fogale who did our sound for the night, and a colleague of mine, Juan Pablo who played and practiced and sang some beautiful Cuban tunes alongside us. We so appreciate the support, it was an incredible night and a great way to kick off our trip!

Finally, grazie mille to the Italian Cultural Centre. So amazing of them to let us use their space for free and for feeding us delicious pizza.

Thank you, family, friends and community. I hope you enjoy reading about our adventures...

SANTA BARBARA TO SANTA MONICA

LAST DAY!
After a great sleep and an early morning wakeup call, David and I head to the beach for breakfast and a swim. It was a nice way to wake up and prepare for the next 90 miles.

I started out slow and steady. Thankfully it was flat and gentle for the first 3/4 of the ride. I followed a great bike path along the water and past an Air Force base.

Then I hit Malibu and holy crap this was bad, bad and more bad.

First of all Malibu has lots of hills. Secondly once halfway through the city I had to ride along the highway which involved riding between cars rushing past me on the left and parked cars on my right. Cars parked all the way along the highway. I was nervous that I would get door prized, but thankfully that never happened. It was a nasty, never ending ride out of the city and into Santa Monica.

I was so thankful to be finished. Sarah and Dave picked me up at the pier (again, so thankful for you guys) and we went for dinner where I proceeded to eat way too much pizza.

I'm exhausted and full and very happy to have made it to LA! All in all it was a fantastic ride and my brain is still buzzing with images and thoughts and routes.
Thank you for all the support and love.