6 February Discovering the highlights of Cienfuegos

Buzzing around on our bikes was a pleasure; the old Spanish boulevards are wide and there is little traffic. We could have taken twenty minutes to walk along the seafront from the marina to town or we could have taken a pedi taxi and paid a dollar each but we like the freedom of our bikes, the opportunity to turn down a side road as the whim takes us and to park where it is most convenient. It was a steady 10 minute pedal or a six minute dash when we were late for a music show.

theare (L) and library in Jose Marti square

Government offices opposite the library

pedestrian boulevard

Catedral Purisma Concepcion

Cienfuegos is different to all the other big towns we've visited because it is a working town with industries, quite wealthy and better preserved than Havana. The old Square has a leafy park in the centre and restored 19^th century buildings surrounding it. The cathedral had been closed for many years and only re-opened a few years ago when the Pope visited. There's nothing fancy, no great shows of wealth with gold leaf, just a simple building. On the north side there's the old library, a fancy theatre and the Benny More jazz club. Benny More was a famous local jazz musician who chose to stay in Cuba after the revolution while many of his contemporaries fled to the States.

with Carlo outside Benny More's

Every night there's a different band playing. We wandered in and met the very tall son of the owner who speaks perfect English and told a interesting story. The story came out after he asked where we hailed from. He told us he'd been to Glasgow as part of the Cuban fencing team. He'd also represented his country at the 2000 Sydney Olympic games and won a bronze medal there. He now lives in Switzerland with his wife and children and teaches fencing. A really interesting man and interesting to chat with someone who has been able to leave Cuba. He was back to look after his Mum's club and his Mum while she is unwell. Carlo helped us with suggestions of what to see in town and where to eat. He also made sure we tasted the best rum available from the bar. Our Cuban experience was meeting the people.

At Carlo's suggestion we pedalled out to see Cementario de Reina, a walled cemetery begun in the mid 1800's and still in use today. The older family tombs bear Spanish names and elaborate marble carvings. The more recent headstones might be a polished marble slab with a photo of the deceased.

On the way back to the central Parque Jose Marti through the back streets we came across a man and his stall of fresh vegetables. His family might have grown the produce and his role was front man. Of course we had to stop and buy. If we didn't have bikes we wouldn't have walked a mile to see the cemetery and we would have met Senor. Kismet.

When we weren't eating the bounty of local produce at home we sought out restaurants. Some we visited were mentioned in the cruising guide and some we followed our noses. At El Espanol, in their beautiful first floor dining room not only was the food tasty, but the bill came with a complimentary cigar. At the paladar Dona Nora we sat on the balcony, watching the evening promenaders and feasted on sublime lamb shanks in wine jus and chocolate mousse. And at rustic Campesino for a traditional beef stew called Ropa Tienda we were serenaded by the house parrot.

On the more mundane excursions we found the market to have excellent fresh produce and more of those wonderful characters. A little blonde lady who couldn't speak a word of our language but beamed with smiles hugged us whenever we saw her. She sourced honey for us. I bought some beetroot and tomatoes from her and brought a couple of shirts I no longer wear for her daughter. She was so thrilled I got a bunch of parsley in return.

mother, daughter and son-in-law

the boys in the corner

There were the old lads in the corner selling plastic bags, just hanging out with their mates. We admired a Raleigh bike belonging to one old lad and he very proudly told us it was 66 years old and he was 72 and he'd had it from new.

There's a full service laundrette tucked away on a back street where we took a couple of bags of sheets and towels. It would have been full service except the drier wasn't working but for CuP 6 per load, that's about 25p, we had clean sheets in thirty minutes. Back on Jackster I pegged them on our eco friendly washing lines and we had sea breeze fragrance sheets to put away.

For internet we had to buy one hour Etecsa access cards and find a wifi hotspot. We could have bought a SIM when we were in Havana for $30 but we didn't. It turned out to be just as easy to do the cards. Sometimes we could use our WiFi booster on the boat and link into the Hotel Jagua close to the marina, sometimes we went to the hotel for a coffee and stronger signal. There were always a cruiser or two in the lobby. There was also a resident hummingbird. A tiny dart of emerald flits between the planters and builds her nest every year in the branches of a tree, a fragile basket of spun grass balanced above our heads. I've never seen that before.

Cienfuegos was good for us and we felt very relaxed here.