Travel Archives - Page 16 of 41

Central America / Caribbean Panama

Panama Canal

On my second day in Panama City I was met at my hostel at 8am by Ana, the taxi driver I met the day before. We were heading to the Panama Canal. Honestly, I was not excited to see the canal. I figured it would be boring – an engineering marvel no doubt, but not an interesting sight. But I also felt like I couldn’t go to Panama and not see the Canal. Surely they will ask me when I leave the country if I saw the Canal, and if I say no, I will not be allowed to leave.

The Miraflores locks are not far from Panama City. It costs $20 to go to the observation area and visit the museum. (You used to be able to go to a bar and get a drink and watch for free but they put an end to that.) Fortunately, just when I got there there was a large ship and a small boat passing through. Had there been no vessels to see, I do think it would have been dull. Like, really dull. But seeing ships pass through was actually, surprisingly, interesting. Really.

The museum is pretty good too, as it explains how the locks work and about the history, which I previously knew nothing about. So it was good.

From there I asked Ana just to drive me around. There really aren’t many sites in Panama City I was interested in, at least not enough to make an effort to get to or the time to explore, but I was happy to see some areas. We stopped at a market selling crafts.

We drove out to an area of cafes and whatnot to take in the view of the new city and have some shaved ice.

We took obligatory pictures in front of the Panama sign.

We drove through the new city to look at the high rises where the rich people live.

Along the way, Ana told me about some history and different areas. She played me local salsa music and sang along. It was a good time. I didn’t see anything amazing, but it was pleasant.

I was back at my hostel a little after noon. For the rest of the day I walked around and found a few new areas, but ultimately I ended up having a cigar in a square before dinner and a cigar on a plaza, listening to jazz music and relaxing. As I often do, I had ideas of going out to a bar or a night spot, but I was tired and asleep by 10pm.

Central America / Caribbean Panama

Panama Bound

It was a super cheap flight that inspired me to go to Panama. That sounds crass, but it’s true. I’ve not thought much about Panama as a destination, but a $273 round trip ticket was inspirational. I left Thursday right afterwork, changed planes in Mexico City, and by Friday afternoon I had landed in Panama City.

I stayed in Casco Viejo. The old city, reborn. There seemed no other options really. The new city of Panama just looks like a jumble of skinny high rises, malls and traffic. Casco Viejo is a pretty grid of revitalized colonial buildings jutting out into the sea, painted with striking colours.

There are several lovely looking hotels, but I opted for the Hospedaje Casco Viejo; a functional hostel with little in the way of services or amenities but a some private rooms and great location at a cheap price.

I took a taxi from the airport. My driver was a woman of a grandmotherly age named Ana. She spoke a little English and I enjoyed chatting with her so we made plans for her to drive me around a bit the next day. But in the meantime, I had wandering to do.

Casco Viejo is small. I walked nearly every street in a few hours, but it is lovely. About 16 years ago it was crumbling, broken, unsafe. But now, through the magic of capitalism and gentrification (about which I have mixed feelings – and so do the locals, judging by some signs and grafitti I saw), it is pretty and safe. On that first evening it was just what I wanted.

I visited the many churches, paused in the squares and photographed many of the colourful buildings.

I finally settled on a place to eat, which wasn’t as easy as it should have been. There are tons of restaurants in Casco Viejo, but they are mostly either too touristy or too fancy and none of them seemed just right. I finally settled on a cafe (yes, touristy, but not cheezy) with a leafy courtyard.

Of course, then it was time for a cigar. There is a La Casa Del Habano with a good selection. I bought a cigar and was going to settle into one of their inviting leather chairs when they broke the news: no smoking. I think I audibly gasped and clutched my non-existent pearls. They had cigar ashtrays out, lighters, and cozy comfy chairs. But no. Smoking is not allowed indoors. Period. I don’t know exactly what the law is here on smoking, but many patios are also non-smoking. Fortunately, I found a seafood restaurant down the street from the La Casa with a generous patio and virgin piña coladas. I settled in with a Bolivar (always the right cigar to start a holiday in Latin America – if you don’t know why, check your history) and a book and stayed until it started to rain.

Had that been my only time in Casco Viejo, that would have been fine. In a few hours you can see it, eat, stroll, and hang out. It would be rushed though. The next day I had other sites to see.

Azerbaijan trip 2019 England United Kingdom

One Night in London

I ended my trip to Azerbaijan with a night In London. I lived in London for a bit after high school, but since then I have only visited for daytime layovers. I was thrilled to spend the night.

I stayed in Soho. I spent the afternoon wandering around past the parks, squares, and sights. It was so crowded. The Tube was a nightmare, the streets a sea of people walking slower than I would like, but I loved it. So familiar, historic, and exciting.

I went to James Fox’s for a cigar and then ate some street food, sitting on the steps on St Martins. I decided to see a show and spontaneously bought a ticket to Night of the Iguana starring Clive Owen in the West End.

How amazing that anything is available to satisfy any whim.

After the show I grabbed a falafel and walked around. The pubs and bars will spilling out on to the street with queues and smokers. Everything looked inviting, but I was exhausted, so I went to bed.

The next morning I got up super early for a walk before returning to the airport and home. It was kind of incredible. On that early Sunday morning the streets and squares were empty. There was no traffic. No tourists. No buskers. It was almost eerie, like everyone had been the victim of an apocalyptic event, but it was also peaceful.

It was just one night in London but it made me wish that I still lived there, or at least think that I should spend more time there than just a layover.

Asia Azerbaijan Azerbaijan trip 2019

Back to Baku

While I took the train from Baku to Sheki and loved it, I didn’t want to do the same on the return journey. I could have taken a minibus, but I really wanted to take a private car so I could have a more comfortable drive and also stop and see some things on the way. Fortunately, Misha, one of my Air bnb hosts, was driving back to Baku and agreed to take me. This turned out to be a great option. He was excited to show me some sights of his country and I had no particular agenda and was just happy to go along with whatever he chose.

But first, the family I was staying with made breakfast and wanted a final picture.

The first stop was in Kiş (Kish), which is just next door to Sheki. It is notable for a church, the Albanian Church, built in the 10th century and may also be the site of much older churches. It is very pretty, set in a rose garden, and gives a view of the hills in the background. I said that it looked like an Armenian church, which, as is turns out, was not the right thing to say. I had forgotten that there had been fairly recent war and hostility between the country.

From there we stopped at a waterfall picnic site popular with locals. There were a couple of small lakes filled with yellow fish, a waterfall, restaurant, and shisha smoking area. Oddly, there were also fiberglass creatures placed around the lake like deer and alligators.

We went for a quick and very expensive coffee in a town with an impressive gondola going up the mountains for views and hiking.

We stopped at a roadside stand and bought a freshly made, buttery flatbread rolled up with 7 fresh green herbs inside.

We stopped at another spot – a roadside cluster of camps for refugees from the war with Armenia – and bought delicious, hot bread fresh from the outdoor clay (?) oven.

We stopped at a lake area where locals picnicked, went out on paddle boats, rode horses, and smoked shisha in little tea houses.

Everywhere we drove we went past roadside stands selling fruit, honey, nuts, and jam.

We stopped for a traditional tea in the forest with all the accompaniments: lemon, sugar, rosewater, cherry jam, and candies. The idea, I discovered, was not to stir the jam into the coffee but to take a spoonful of it as you drink your tea.

*The assortment of jams for tea available at a restaurant in Baku*

The ride was great. I learned a bit about history and culture and saw things I would not have sought out in my own, but I enjoyed seeing.

We arrived back in Baku where I snapped pictures of more random Azerbaijan architecture from the car window.

The next day was my final day in Baku and I really didn’t have anything I was excited to do, so I decided to just go for a meandering walk on the way to the bazaar. As it turned out there are a cluster of cafes with book themes or bookstores with cafes just above Fountain Square (on and around Tolstoy and Gogol streets). I decided to visit as many of them as I could find. I think I had about 5 coffees in about two hours. It was great. I liked the neighbourhood and the cafes, which ranged from cute to divey.

I especially liked the Old School Cafe, which is not book themed, but has a delightful and eclectic atmosphere. And of course, you can smoke inside all of these cafes, which made the even better.

I had a great time wandering the streets.

I make my way up to the bazaar, which I enjoyed, but I felt a bit rushed because people could tell I was a tourist as soon as I took out my camera to take pictures of food, at which point everyone tried to sell me caviar. I had heard this was the place to buy inexpensive caviar, but I wasn’t having any.

The rest of the day was pleasant, but a bit aimless. I walked, I smoked shisha, I ate at a Georgian restaurant, but eventually I was just killing time until my very late flight.

A lot of people who had never been to Azerbaijan said my trip sounded too short, and I had wondered that myself ahead of time. As it turned out, it was just right. A few days in Baku, a day and a night in Sheki, an overnight train trip, and a day driving was exactly the right amount of time. I saw everything I wanted to and left satisfied – and ready for a final night in London.

Asia Azerbaijan Azerbaijan trip 2019

Sheki, Azerbaijan

I arrived in Sheki (aka Shaki, but really Şəki) by train and took a taxi to the town centre. I intended to take a taxi to a cafe called Gafgaz and the driver dropped me off on a corner saying the cafe was “right there.” It wasn’t. It was 7:30 in the morning and everything was closed. There were a few people out and about, but I wasn’t at the asking for help stage. So I walked around the town square and then down the streets off it. No cafe. I finally gave in and asked and it turns out the cafe was a bit of a walk, but I found it.

The reason I was looking for the cafe is because I had booked an Air bnb and it was allegedly just across from the cafe. I had the address, but that turned out to be of no assistance. Across from the cafe I did see a woman leaning on a fence, looking at the street. I thought for sure that was the person I was to meet. I walked up to her with a smile and a Zdravstvuyte, but got only scowls. Ok….so i walked up to a man skinning a goat hanging under a tree. I showed him the address and he pointed to a house. I walked up to the house and a man who did not speak English woke up someone who did. It turned out this was not where I was staying. Thankfully the sleepy English speaker called the cell phone of the Air bnb host, who was not in Sheki, but he then called his mother, who was, and the English speaking man walked me to the street and waited with me until the mother walked out to meet me. She was probably in her late 60s, had dyed red hair, and was wearing a patterned house dress, socks and sandals. She showed me a piece of paper that said in English “I do not speak English. Follow me.” And I did.

The house, I learned later, was about 100 years old and built by the family. It was taken by the government during Societ times, during which the family continued to live there, but other families were moved in. After the Soviet Union fell, they eventually got title to the house back and are now working to restore it. Many of the rooms have hand-painted patterns on the walls. My room was brightly coloured.

The mother set me up with tea, fruit, biscuits, and candies. I soon met her son, daughters, and grand daughters, two of whom spoke English. They were very hospitable.

I picked Sheki as it was supposed to be one the prettiest villages in Azerbaijan with a few sites of note. It is pretty set in a basket of green hills and colorful flowers, with distinctive brick patterned houses with tiled roofs. The centre of the town is compact with a nice leafy square and not at all touristy.

After getting settled in my room, I walked to see the sites. I walked up a long hill populated with food merchants, but increasing many many baklava shops. Sheki is famous for a kind of baklava (confusingly called halva). I tried it and didn’t like it nearly as much as non-Sheki halva.

There were various tourist-focussed shops and a few coffee shops. And there were more tourists in that area.

I visited the caravanserai, built in the 18th-19th century.

Form there I was excited to visit the Summer Palace of the Shaki Khans, built in the late 1700s for the royal family. It, along with the centre of Sheki, was added to the list of UNESCO sites just last month. I reached the palace complex, but when I arrived at the palace, the sites was closed, with no explanation. So I took a picture looking over the wall. I found out later that the day before a wind had blown a tree on one part of the palace and someone died.

I walked round the grounds of the palace, which were interesting as a whole, if not so much the individual pieces.

Fortunately, I was able to visit the smaller Winter Palace, which was less lovely from the outside, but beautifully ornate inside. Finding it was a bit of a challenge, but there were some signs in Azeri leading through residential neighbourhoods.

Those were basically the sites. After that I walked around, looking for the bazaar, but found instead a supermarket, which was interesting in it’s own right. And I just wandered around.

In the evening I had dinner on the square and a cigar before returning to my room, where the family invited me to tea and cake on the balcony.

Restaurant in Sheki square where I had dinner

One day in Sheki seemed short, but was enough and I was glad I went.

Asia Azerbaijan Azerbaijan trip 2019

Night Train to Sheki

I awoke on the third day in Baku, Azerbaijan feeling leisurely. There was one area I wanted to check out, but beyond that there wasn’t much on my agenda. I had breakfast at Manipura, a vegan café I had found the day before and then walked in a different direction, along the water, past an area with a bunch of pretty man-made canals winding past fancy looking restaurants.

I wanted to check out the carpet museum – not the inside, but the building itself. A notable entry into Baku’s crazy architecture collage, the carpet museum is shaped like a giant rolled up carpet. It did not disappoint.

Across the street from that is a funicular that takes you up to the base of the flame towers. There are also stairs, but it is quite far and the funicular is only one manat. There really is no reason to get up close to the flame towers but you get great views over the city.

After that I just wandered around, drank coffee, smoked – all very relaxing.

At some point I packed up my backpack and took the metro to 28 May station, which is where the main train station is in Baku. I was taking the night train to Sheki.

I had bought my ticket ahead of time online, which was a good idea, as the train seemed full. Buying the tickets online was easy enough. They went on sale about 10 days before and the site had an English option. I picked up my ticket at the modern train station. The ticket for the approximately 8 hour ride was $5.60 CDN.

There are different classes of cars. You can book sleeping cars with two beds (SV/lyux) or four (kupe), or you can book tha platzkart, which is an open car with loads of beds. There are also cars with regular seats. I decided to go with the platzkart. Having a sleeping car with only two or four beds can be weird if you are traveling alone. I figured more beds would be safer and more…interesting.

The car is set up so that on one side of the aisle are beds stacked two high running the length of the car. On the other side of the aisle are alcoves with four beds, stacked two high. I booked myself bed 17 because it was in the centre of the car (away from the toilets) and because it was on the lower level, meaning I could store my backpack under the bed. Had I booked bed 19, I would have also had an electrical outlet. Now you know.

When I got on the car, I found there were already three guys in my four bed alcove. They were playing cards and drinking home made beer from repurposed two-litre soda bottles. They looked alike. Sort of like crosses between Al Pacino and Charles Bronson, all with moustaches. The spoke no English. I was friendly enough, but I thought, “It’s nearly midnight. When are they going to wrap up the cards so I can lie down and sleep?” I chatted with a young man sleeping across the aisle who spoke good English and could answer all my train questions.

At about 12:30am they put the cards away and took out plastic bags from which they produced: a whole roast chicken, a kitchen knife and cutting board, a container of raw onions, about a dozen or more tomatoes, two loaves of bread, a whole fish (smoked?) wrapped in newspaper, and bags of sunflower seeds. They proceeded to prepare supper. The young man told me this is typical, though he clearly did not approve. They kept offering me food and beer, which I politely declined.

Other people went to bed right away, or stayed up drinking tea or chatting.

Finally my seat mates they wrapped up their meal and I could get to bed.

Each train car has a woman called a Provodnitsa who oversees things. She sternly walked down the aisle at the beginning of the trip, handing out plastic bags containing two sheets and a pillow case. Each bunk already had a pillow and mattress rolled up. I made my bed and went to sleep.

I slept pretty well actually and woke up about an hour before reaching Sheki, which allowed me to get a few creepy photos of the train car in sleep mode and to get a look at the dry and desserty landscape.

I had no idea we had arrived in Sheki when we did, as we arrived a little early, and I might have missed my stop, had the Provodnitsa not come and barked “Sheki” at me when she did.

The Sheki train station is a bit out of town, but there were lots of taxis on arrival. For 10 Manat, I secured a ride to the centre.

I am so glad I took the train. It was hassle free, comfortable, and gave me a non-touristy view of Azerbaijan. Ok, I didn’t love the fish and chicken smells, but It was worth it. With my arrival I would spend a day and a night in Sheki.

Asia Azerbaijan Azerbaijan trip 2019

I fell in love with a building in Baku

I enjoyed my first day in Baku, but my second was better. I was rested and having gotten a sense of how compact things were I was freed from any anxiety about seeing everything in the time allotted.

I went for a leisurely breakfast of cucumbers, tomatoes, olives, cheese, and mountains of bread. (I didn’t eat mountains, but they provided it.) They take bread very seriously here. Perfect baguettes, round and sesame simits, long and salty bread that is both flat and fluffy. Apparently bread can never be allowed to touch the ground, even when discarding it. I had a cigar at a leafy cafe.

I walked many of the streets were the same that I saw the day before but it was less hot and I had more energy, so it was better.

But I did have a sort of a plan. I wanted to go see the Heydar Aliyev Centre but it was a bit far from the city centre, so I took the metro. The metro system in Baku isn’t vast, but it’s decent. I went to the station at the old city, bought a BakiKart (plastic metro card, which costs 2 manat) and loaded a couple of rides, which I think were about 30 qəpik each. It’s a regular metro and was easy to use. They even call out stops in English as well as Russian and Azeri. I took a few pictures before I realized that is not allowed.

I got out at the Nariman Narimanov stop, expecting to see the distinctive building I was looking for, but I didn’t, so of the four directions I had available to me, I picked one on instinct and it was the right one. (I assure you, I am not usually so lucky.)

If you are trying to make the same trip, as you exit the metro station you have two directions to choose from. Take the one on the left. When you get to the street walk so that the park and the unsightly McDonalds are at your back. Keep walking for a couple long blocks and you will eventually see the white Heydar Aliyev Centre one block away on your left.

The Heydar Aliyev Centre is magnificent. I had actually debated visiting it at one point, thinking, “Do I really want to go out of my way to see the exterior of a building?” I am so glad I went. It is huge and gleaming and as you walk around it, it reveals itself in various, beautiful forms. It’s like a frozen wave or a perfect cloud.

Baku is fully of varied architecture, from ancient and Islamic, to Soviet, to modern and beyond. But this is, in my opinion, the best of it.

What made visiting it a bit of a challenge was the wind. It was the strongest wind I think I’ve ever experienced. It blew me off my feet, lifted my heavy shoulder bag, and swiped the sunglasses of a woman I asked to take my picture.

On the grounds of the centre are numerous brightly coloured rabbits and snails. I don’t know why.

From there I walked in the hopes of finding the next closest metro station rather than backtracking. I didn’t find it. Rather, i walked for quite a while through an area predominantly populated by garages, whilst getting pelted by gravel and sticks from the wind. I did stumble upon a market, which was nice, but I was tired and that dampened my enthusiasm for watermelons and figs.

So i hopped on a bus. I didn’t know where it was going ultimately but it was heading in the same direction that I was, so…good enough. Of course the bus quickly started turning until I had no idea where I was. Eventually, seeing a bunch of taxis, I hastily got off while the bus driver stopped for shawarma. And where was I? At a metro station! So I was able get myself back, getting off one station early, which allowed me to walk through a new neighbourhood.

I stopped at a cute baklava bakery (one of many) in the old city for a Turkish coffee and a selection of treats. Baklava so sweet my mouth felt like it was vibrating.

I had a bit of a nap and then went out for some shisha and delicious eggplant rolls stuffed with walnut paste and pomegranate arils. I also had tea. They are very big tea drinkers here, but one thing that is unique is that tea with jam is often on the menu; one selects the type of jam and gets a huge bowl of it, which they stir into their tea and eat by the spoonful. I did not have that. It looks appealing, but I don’t really want to eat a bowl of jam.

I went to bed around midnight and dreamed of rabbits.

Asia Azerbaijan Azerbaijan trip 2019

Arrival in Baku

I don’t think I even knew what or where Azerbaijan was until I went to Georgia and checked out the region in my plans. It sounded interesting and I was drawn to the pictures of historic mosques and the walled old city of Baku with super modern architecture rising in the background. It has not disappointed.

A bit of trivia: Azerbaijan is located here:

It is officially the Republic of Azerbaijan and is located in the Caucasus region at the furthest edge of western Asia between Russia, Armenia, Georgia, and Iran. The Caspian Sea lies to the east. It has at various times been a part of different regional empires, often going back and forth from Iranian and Russian control. It was briefly independent in 1918 before it was absorbed into the Soviet Union, where it stayed until the fall. There are portions in the south that are still disputed territories, but we won’t talk about those.

The approximately 10million people here speak Russian and Azeri. The currency is the Manat. Baku is the capital. They have oil.

I arrived from Moscow in the afternoon. I had gotten my visa online ahead of time. (The evisa system https://evisa.gov.az/en/ is very easy to use if you follow the instructions.) Security and immigration were simple and I exited the super modern airport.

There are shuttle buses and taxis (official and not) from the airport. There are also cars you can prebook online to pick you up. They have uber as well. I decided to hire an official taxi from the rank, as I didn’t feel like haggling. They gave me a general price but said the ride would be based on the meter, plus a small fee for going into the old city. The official taxis here are black British style and the drivers wear suits and ties. Smoking is allowed in the front seat but not in the back. My driver never was able to find my hotel, but I was certain that we were close and that I could find it on foot (which I did in a couple minutes). He told me the price was exactly 50 manat, which was about 15-20 manat past ridiculous, but my Russian does not include the words for con artist, so i paid the money. If I were doing it again, I would have taken an unofficial taxi and haggled for a flat fee.

I am staying at “Floors The Housing Space” which is in the old, walled city. The location is awesome. Easy to find (except for con artist taxi drivers), just 30 seconds away from a metro station and walking distance to most sites. It is pretty cheap and has a nice rooftop area. The staff are friendly (though, with my limited language skills, who can say). It is a bit weird though. The decor is quite stylish, which makes sense when you realize that the main business is not as a hostel, but as a bar / shisha lounge. On the second floor they have a small dorm room and two private rooms, but all other areas, including one area on the second floor are used for the bar / shisha lounge. So at night loads of people are coming and going – loudly. At midnight when I walked from my room to the bathroom in my pjs to wash up, there were people hanging out, smoking and drinking. Loud music carried on long after I fell asleep. I think I am the only guest staying there. Weird, but fine.

That first afternoon I explored the old city and took a walk to the sea. The old city is very enjoyable for strolling. Lots of restaurants and crafts shops, ice cream vendors, roving fruit sellers, shisha bars. Also residential areas. The structures are old, some about 1000 years old or so, including fortresses, a palace, mosques, and baths.

Old city Baku with Flame Towers in the background

It does all feel quite cleaned up. It is not as crumbly as old Tbilisi or as labyrinthine as a medina. I like it, but I might like it better if it was a bit rougher.

Poet head sculpture right next to my hostel

I visited the palace, which is now a small museum, but otherwise just poked around.

Around the old city is the regular city, which, in the centre anyway, feels very European.

There are lots of park areas with fountains and benches, carousels, and snack sellers.

It is super hot here. About 35 degrees on the first day. And humid. I see other women walking around, faces powder dry, makeup impeccable. Me? My face poured sweat, my hair stuck to me, i looked like a mess. Arriving after ~30 hours of travel didn’t help.

The lack of sleep and jet lag caught up to me. I walked to the sea, where there is a wide promenade. I sat down, back against a post, looking across the sea, trying to make out Turkmenistan in the distance, and fell asleep.

I don’t think I was out for too long, but on awaking, I knew it was time to rest, so I walked more in search of a cigar lounge I had seen online. Eventually I found it. C. Gars. I got a Partagas P2 and settled in for some quiet, indoor smoking.

After that, the sun was going down and I returned to my hotel for a small rest before going out again at 9ish for diner and a hookah. They don’t have a lot of vegetarian food here, but what I have had has been excellent. That first night I had lentil soup, fresh bread, and a baked dish of eggplant, tomato, potato, and plums.

After, i had a hookah at an outdoor cafe. It was late and I was tired, but the weather was so perfect, that it sustained me.

In that first day, which was really an afternoon, I felt like I had seen much of what I wanted to see and I was not sure what I would do the next day, but I am definitely glad I had more time.

Azerbaijan trip 2019 England Europe United Kingdom

London Layover

I decided to go to Azerbaijan because I had about 10 days of holiday to use and I had loved a previous trip to neighbouring Georgia so much that I thought it was time I returned to the Caucasus.

There really is no quick way to Azerbaijan, so I flew from Vancouver to London, from London to Moscow, and Moscow to Baku. Mercifully, I had a nine hour layover in London. Any shorter and I would have been at the airport. So I went into London for the afternoon. I wanted to walk a different area from the past few times I was there, so I decided to walk the South Bank of the Thames.

I took the Heathrow Express to Paddington and then the tube to Westminster.

Big Ben’s tower was covered in scaffolding but I caught an over the shoulder look at the parliament buildings as I crossed the bridge. Turning onto the boardwalk, I suddenly thought I had made a terrible mistake. It was so crowded. Like shoulder-to-shoulder, shuffling along crowded. But I didn’t have a bunch of time, so I didn’t want to waste time changing gears and map consulting, so I pressed through. Fortunately it got better.

The worst of the crowds were at the beginning the walk, around the London Eye, Dungeon and Aquarium, then they thinned out. I can’t think of many things i would like to do less than go on the London Eye. Packed i to sealed glass pods with a bunch of sweaty strangers as you move slowly in a circle. My biggest gripe is the slow speed, followed by being sealed up in glass (in the heat), followed by the sweaty strangers. It occurred to me though that I would enjoy a ferris wheel if it was open at the top so you could have a breeze, and there were tables with seating for two in each, then you could order cocktails from your phone and pick then up at the bottom as you circled by. Cigar friendly, of course. This is a great idea. Get on it, someone.

Anyway, once the crowds lessened, it was a perfect walk. There were buskers, a skate park, a book market, street art, and wonderful views.

I got a burrito from a food truck and just strolled along.

I didn’t have time to visit any of the attractions, but just the fact that on one short walk I walked past all the stuff on the street that I did, but could have just popped in to see world class art at the Tate or visited Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre, is amazing.

I waled to the London Bridge, catching glimpses of St. Paul’s, the Shard, the millennium bridge, and the Tower of London on the way.

I walked to A nearby Tube station and went to Green Park, where I popped in to the excellent tobacconist James J. Fox and enjoyed a Montecristo Linea 1935 in their upstairs lounge.

Leaving there, I strolled a bit more before returning to the airport, with plenty of time.

It was a perfectly pleasant afternoon and nicely broke up the long flights to Baku.

Central America / Caribbean Cuba

Weekend in Havana

A long weekend in Havana sounded perfect. I had been before, in 2014 I think, and I loved it. Mostly for the cigars, but it is a great destination in its own right – though if it wasn’t for the cigars I wouldn’t have gone back. I had already seen the sights I wanted to see in Havana, so a weekend sounded like a perfect opportunity to just hang out with no pressure to see or do anything in particular.

I left Vancouver on a Thursday evening, changed planes in Mexico City and landed in Havana at about 2:00pm on Friday. I arrived at the airport in Havana and, once through immigration, found myself doing the usual haggling with taxi drivers. They all wanted 40 or 35 CUCs, which I knew was too much. After making my counter offers, I was left rideless. I smoked a cigarillo, deciding how long to wait before upping my offering price, but then a guy who was picking up other passengers and also going to the National Hotel offered to take me for 10 CUC. Bingo.

I held the sign with the name of the family we were waiting for. When the family of four (two older couples) emerged, I suddenly found myself being asked to pose for pictures with them. I get that they were excited to travel to Cuba, but the airport pickup photos seemed excessive. I found out on the ride in that two of them were born in Cuba but left 40 years ago, moved to Puerto Rico and hadn’t seen their families since.

I arrived at the Hotel National giddy. With heat and humidity, with the excitement of being in Havana, and with the sight of that gorgeous patio facing the sea. Before even going to my room I bought a box of 10 Partagas torpedos and smoked a cigar on a wicker sofa outside.

My room was ordinary, but the Hotel Nacionale is a dream. It is this grand historical hotel that has so many stories that they do historical tours everyday of just the hotel.

From the hotel I walked mostly along the Malecon to old Havana, taking detours for street art and architecture. It wasn’t a long walk but I was dripping with sweat by the time I arrived.

I spent the rest of the day time hours walking around the old city revisiting streets and squares I have been to in the past.

Much of it was as I remembered but there were also new and refurbished buildings.

It’s such a touristy city but it still feels authentic. People live there and operate businesses. There was a new cool cafe that had opened, but next to it was still the same shack where locals paid a pittance to shoot bebe guns at beer cans.

I wandered aimlessly over that day and the next, taking time out to smoke cigars at the private room at the Partagas store and in At the La Casa in Miramar.

One of the best things that happened was walking through old Havana I heard loud Duke Ellington music and I thought, “That’s a place I need to be.” I figured it would be a bar or restaurant but when i found the door through which the blared I discovered that I had in fact walked in to a man’s humble living room.

He was older. 70 maybe. Sitting in a wooden chair in a pretty empty room next too a record player and a stack of records. I apologized a d said something about liking the music, but as I went to leave, he beckoned me in and pulled up a chair. He spoke no English and I speak only the most basic of Spanish but we hung out for the better part of an hour. He showed me his records – classic jazz and crooners. I played with his kitten and snapped my fingers along to Dexter Gordon. He played songs and I sung along to Ella Fitzgerald and Frank Sinatra. He put on an old Ray Charles album and got up to dance. He started twisting with enthusiasm. I felt suddenly awkward. Dancing with a stranger in his living room open to a busy pedestrian street is outside of my comfort zone, but I wasn’t going to sit there. That would be more awkward. So I danced. We danced for three songs and then I thanked him and left. It was a great experience. A brief connection.

I didn’t want to invade his hime by taking pictures of him, but I did take one of his kitten…and his foot.

I chilled out at my hotel in the evening, smoking cigars outside and in my room (just because I could). At about 11 pm I walked to the Fox and the Crow, nearby jazz bar and watched amazing jazz until nearly 1 am in an tiny underground bar.

And that was just one day.

The next day I did more of the same. Smoking, walking, reading, listing to buskers, drinking virgin piña coladas. It was perfect. I was actually happy to leave after two full days. I had what I wanted to do, soaked up the sun and the atmosphere; smoked more cigars than I can count. And then I was home.

I think that 2 days would not nearly be enough for a first visit to Havana, but for a second trip, for me, it was perfect. I’m sure I’ll go back for another two days of cuban cigar heaven.

Wandering North

Tag: Travel

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Weekend in Havana