We planned on getting a bus from Havana to Viñales but realised too late that you had to pre-book (small piece of advice!). We managed to find a taxi driver that could take us all the way for $80 and for the convenience of having a car all to ourselves we were sold. The driver was an English lecturer and we had a great chat with him during the 3 hour journey through Piñar del Rio.
It amazed me how the car managed to make it up the hills as we began to rise over the mountains. The roads were incredibly twisty which wasn't doing Andrew or his car sickness any favours. The views were breathtaking, deep lush valleys and horse and carts carrying the produce. We arrived in to the town which is basically one street and fell in love with the place. We had booked to stay at Casa Nolo which was a bright pink house on the edge of the town and cost $25 per room per night. We sat outside waiting for our hostess Vana, watching the hens run about loose and local girls doing each other's hair on the porches.
Vana arrived and was the loveliest ball of energy. We were staying on the top floor which was so spacious and we had a massive terrace all to ourselves. The bathroom shower was a bit unique in it's plumbing and electrics but we didn't get any shocks so can't complain too much. We had dinner on the roof which was a complete feast - soup followed by lobster with salad and homemade crisps and only $10.
The next day we had booked a horse trek through the valley and tobacco fields. We met our guide Lazaro in the morning and he looked at our attire and shook his head. We stupidly hadn't brought long trousers and he told us in broken Spanish that we would suffer for it later. We also met another couple who would be joining us - Walter and Innes both from Belgium. Innes was fluent in Spanish and proved an absolute lifesaver in translating Lazaro's mumbles and the guide at the tobacco farm.
Andrew had never ridden a horse before and I highly doubt I will ever see him on one again. When we met our horses there was this beautiful big black horse called Negreto and another smaller brown one called Dancer. Common sense made me assume I would be getting the smaller one but it turned out Lazaro had a great sense of humour and saw an opportunity. Andrew was assigned to Dancer and he quickly realised the reason for his name. Dancer didn't trot like a normal horse but danced about the trek throwing Andrew every which way causing him to howl with pain when we burst in to a canter. We all laughed an awful lot, Lazaro included. Andrew was less impressed!
Being able to see the valley while riding a horse was incredible. Looking up to see dramatic cliff faces and lush green crops against the red earth was something I will never forget. The tour of the tobacco farm was great and the guides were so knowledgeable about the land. We felt extremely cool lighting up the cigars they had just rolled for us and because they had dipped them in honey, they actually tasted really good.
After the tobacco farms we were brought to a natural pool hidden in a cave. I think they oversold this place a tad because when we got there it was actually a dark pond with murky brown water. They had the cheek to ask us for an extra $2 to get entry but luckily Innes was able to tell them where to go in Spanish. The walk through the cave was a health and safety nightmare with a few random torches. We braved the water although I wasn't sure what the hell was swimming beneath me! I would recommend asking to see photos of these 'natural pools' before you visit them!
We a fantastic steak at El Olivo this night followed by several Ron Collins. We sat on the terrace sharing a cigar and thought we were the bees knees. Cue an embarrassing conversation with our hostess when we got back with Andrew repeating 'Me llamo Andrew' - cringe!
The following day was one of Andrew's favourite trips of the holiday. We had booked an old Chevy to take us to Cayo Jutias, a beach on the coast about an hour and half away, with our new friends Innes and Walter. The car didn't travel above 30mph the whole journey although it was hard to tell because the speedometer didn't work. It didn't matter because the drive was so beautiful.
What we didn't expect was how stunning Cayo Jutias would be. The sand was white, the sea was the most amazing blue and there was a beach hut nearby ready to supply us with food and some cocktails - absolute heaven!! We were told that this was a great place to snorkel however this isn't all that true. The water is crystal clear but the sea grass didn't offer a wide variety of marine life and we gave up after about 20 minutes. There were some terrific walks along the beach though and we didn't have to go far to have the beach all to ourselves. It was such a wonderful day.
On the way back we ran in to a thunderstorm which proved how old the Chevy was. Andrew's passnger window only went up half way and the driver had to cover the rest with a plastic bag. This didn't work too well and it wasn't long before Andrew was ankle deep in rainwater. The sound of the thunder and the intensity of the rain was such a sight though we loved every second.
Despite us lathering ourselves in suncream we still got burned. Andrew's feet were practically purple and only added to the injuries he had accumulated on the horse trek the day before. Note: bring plenty suncream with high SPF and effective aftersun!
Our last night was spent with on the terrace watching the sun set and eating more of Vana's great food. The conversation was starting to dry up with the Belgians and we were finding ourselves in the holiday predicament of being stuck with another couple. Unfortunately we we were spending the next day with them in a car travelling to Trinidad so we had to be as polite as we could!
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