Then we got to the cathedral, it was gorgeous! We went in, and mom said a prayer while I took some pictures.
It is the center of a really nice plaza.
Something interesting was that at the entrance there was a sign of no sandal or shorts. Funnily enough, that is what everyone is wearing, so everyone pretty much ignores the sign and goes in.
Just wanted to mention this, while in Havana (with no WiFi and/or Cell signal) I was using google maps and the tracking option was working. Please don’t ask me how it was working because I just don’t know, my best guess is satellite? Who knows, all I know is that I was able to navigate the streets of Havana with ease thanks to this. By the way the same thing happened in Utah when I lost cell signal going through remote areas, Google Maps continued to track me. Very useful.
After we left the church, we noticed a crowd nearby. And I looked on google maps’ and it said “La Bodeguita del Medio” was there. Mom told me it was where many of the revolution meetings happened. And it is a famous place in la Havana, you can also notice all the signatures of people on the walls. So we went there to get some pictures.
On the way back, mom saw some art that she liked, and stopped to buy some.
We kept on walking, while we headed towards the ship.
Stoped to get some water, I think it was like $3
There are plenty of restaurants, and stores there.
We stopped at multiple stores, and mom bought some stuff. She bought tobacco and souvenirs. The outing took like 2 hours or so.
This is back at the port.
We then decided to go to the ship and get some pool time.
Have I spoken about this church yet? It was a gift from the Russian’s to Cuba, it is a Russian orthodox church.
There were a few people at the pool. We had a good time talking with a few of them, and enjoying some drinks.
The view from up there.
We stayed until late, and my stomach was growling. We then got ready and went to eat dinner at the MDR. The wait was minimal, like one minute or so, and the service was again really good.
Mom used her time to post pictures and make calls, while I studied a little. I won’t say that I was fully successful at studying during these times. After all, I was pretty lit by then, but it made me feel better that at least I was trying to study =/
The food was also very good.
Mom got the soup, it was good.
I got the fish carpacio. Not sure if you all remember, but I had a raw fish allergy for sometime now. I have been lucky enough that I am outgrowing it. Although sometimes I still react. This time around I just had a slight irritation on my lips, but nothing horrible. It was really tasty.
Mom’s steak, she loved it.
And my fish, it was really nice and tender.
After we ate, we went to the room and got the money and the passports, and headed out.
Here is my take on Havana at night.
I did not feel unsafe, but the roads get lonely. So that is when we decided that it was not the best of ideas to be the only people in an alley, and me with 2k worth of camera on my hand, not counting cells and whatnot. We also noticed that a lot of people get off the ship at night, but nearly all of them had shore excursions from the cruise ship. So yes, you can go out at night, and I am sure it is safe. But just try to stay on roads that have more people or just to buy shore excursions from the ship.
Here are some of the pictures from that night.
Again, I was using google maps with tracking.
The weather was really nice.
There was a friendly cat following us, mom got to pet him.
Sadly we did not have any food to give him.
Cuba is really nice at night, I kinda wish that we knew a local that would of taken us around.
We walked a little, mom bought some other stuff and then we went back to the ship.
The port was really quiet, with only 1 or 2 immigration attendants there.
Back on the ship they had a few activities going on.
We went to the mojito bar and got a few drinks. Then I gave my mom my cellphone and I headed to the room to try to study again, not that I was successful… But what are you going to do, at least I was trying.
Mom stayed up for a while, and she said the ship was really quiet that night. I think most people were either worn out, or they had gone out to clubs like Tropicana or something.
Day 2, End.
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