Days 9 & 10 - Asta la vista, Cuba!

Our last day in Havana we planned to visit the castle and fort across the water. Unfortunately, after a few failed attempts to hail a cab, we figured out that the tunnel to get there was closed in one direction and required a 45-min. detour (which the drivers were not enthusiastic about). Plan B was to walk there, and see if the tunnel had a safe sidewalk that we can walk along. However, Plan B was quickly abandoned once we were angrily shooed away from the tunnel entrance by a security guard (I wouldn't do well in a Cuban prison).

Our walk down to the water (notice the 'security' lining the walkway on the left side every twenty feet or so). They were all lined up because Obama was in the area. Again, the security was rather diverse. Most were young women, wearing like, flip flops. I'm not sure what they were expected to protect...but they were lined up on both sides of the pedestrian walkway (very nice, btw) and the street for about a mile.

The castle...so close, yet so far. Sigh. 

Plan C was to find a cigar store to get my brother Joey a few cigars and then cruise the city. The first two attempts at procuring cigars had failed (both stores had closed), but we scored on our third try! 

We were convinced that Cohibas were great, but mostly in name. Instead, we got him a small box of Romeo y Julieta's, which we'd seen everywhere. And of course, my brother had smoked them before and knew exactly what they were.

If Ryan were with us, we would have definitely hopped this type of taxi. He would have died if we hadn't. :-)

The Bacardi building...I wish you could better see the details and wood work of the building, but it was stunning.

A final stop at this well known bakery to stock up on tortica cookies (Cuban shortbread), fruit tarts, lobster tails and palm cookies for the family in NYC!

On our cab ride back to the airport we passed a hospital (we flew out the same day/time as President Obama, btw...there were many cheers in the terminal when Air Force One took off). And because the Mister is an RN, we tend to seek these buildings out to check them out.

Flying over Cuba...

And a short 90 minutes or so later...flying in over Cancun.

Our hotel in Mexico for the night (an American owned brand...Comfort Inn, I think) was an exciting moment for me. Mostly because we were back in a country with water pressure and warm water. Hot, even! It felt luxurious and wasteful to see all that warm water cascading out of the shower head that night. Though our hotel was nice enough, they have a racket getting back to the airport...I want to say it's like $15 US for a 4-minute ride to the airport (partly along the freeway, so walking wasn't an option). Grr.

I think our flight the next afternoon (Day 10) back to JFK was about 4 hours long, but we were so giddy to land (at 10pm) because it meant getting to wake Ryan up (it was after midnight by the time we got to their apartment) to say hi for the first time in ten days!