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As the wait for the work permits to be processed drew out to over three weeks longer than we had expected, we decided to skip town on a last-minute-deal holiday to Cuba - a country high up on our 'to visit' list. Flights and accommodation were booked on Thursday and we flew out Sunday (after averting a minor crisis when we realised we had forgot to check visa requirements before booking the holiday - fortunately this was not an issue!). Most of the time on holiday was spent soaking up the sun on the beach and poolside in Varadero, coupled with a two day side-trip to Havana to absorb a little Cuban culture and check out a few tourist spots.
Varadero
With Varadero a popular travel destination for Canadians, we had a direct flight from Toronto to the Varadero airport which was just a 30 minute drive from the beachside resort that we were to stay at on the Varadero Peninsula. We spent 4 full days in Varadero and activities can be basically summarized as: beach, pool, tennis, relaxing, sipping mojitos/rums/beers, watching sunsets, a little exercise, and trying to stick to regular portion sizes when faced with buffet dining. A few healthy competitive events included:
- Pool bombs - draw
- Creative dive - Van won
- Tennis - Van "won" but started with a 4-0 handicap and took it 6-5
- Tennis ball juggling - perhaps Van should consider a career in the circus, taking this one out
- Holding breath underwater - Van
- Swimming pool underwater propulsion distance - Matt
Havana
We were both really keen to see Havana so we took a bus down in the middle of the week to spend a couple of days there. We took a ride to the bus station in one of the old school chevys prevalent in Cuba, which was pretty neat. Havana highlights:
- Checking out the Havana Club rum museum
- Learning about the Cuban revolution at Museo de la Revolucion
- Daquiris at El Floridita's - one of Ernest Hemingway's old haunts
- Cold chocolate drinks at the Museo del Chocolate
- Cristal & Bucanero beersies
- Espresso coffees with the locals on Calle Obispo
- Watching afro-cuban-style dancing on the street
- Old cars
- Dining outside listening to live Cuban music
- Walking along the waterfront
- Cuban cigars
All in all, it was an awesome holiday including both chillaxing (which we're not generally very good at on holiday) and exploring. Without the internet all week, we returned to Toronto to find that our visas had been finally processed and approved while we were away - wahoo! So the next trip will be down to the border at Niagara to re-enter on the work permit and now starts the job-hunting process!
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