Has anybody been to Cuba?

Strangeways

We all know that Cuba was a location that Bond visited in Goldeneye and Die Another Day although filming actually took place in Puerto Rico and Spain respectively!

I myself am off to the real Cuba next month. Staying in Havana for 8 nights and I just can't wait. I always feel a bit like Bond when I travel abroad. Anyway, can anyone give me a heads up on what to expect?

My biggest concern is that I won't be able to use a credit card. Any other thoughts would be really appreciated.

Silhouette Man

I've heard a late uncle who visited there say that it's a lovely place, but once you go beyond the beaches and the glamour of the place, you see the facade hiding the appalling poverty that many of the people sadly still live in there. This was way back in Summer 2001 and he also said that then then President Fidel Castro made a speech on TV there that lasted something like 8 hours! His brother Raoul Castro is now President, of course. For reading matter on the plane, please see Ian Fleming's 'For Your Eyes Only' and 'Quantum of Solace'; both mention and reference Batista/pre-Castro Cuba, plus Francisco Scaramanga was employed by Castro in the novel of The Man with the Golden Gun (1965).

always shaken

No i havnt been,but we did go to Jamaica ,wanted to vist various Bond locations
we stayed at the Rose hall Hilton ,again like you was staggerd at the poverty in various parts
people where using shipping containers as shops/homes.One of the main problems is that
all the hotel groups,have purchased up most of the beach front land, so out of the 40 or so
beach areas ,only about 8 are left for the Jamaicans ,even the famous Dunns river falls (DR NO)
has a bannister up it, Most of these caribean hotels are all inclusive, so most of the profits
end up back in Europe and not to the locals ,but its all a vicious circle if we didnt go there they would
have no jobs ect

The Domino Effect

Havana is one of the most intriguing cities in the world. Gorgeous colonial buildings and tremendous ill-repair. There are buildings that look derelict and beyond hope until you peer more closely through the windows that aren't there and realise that people are living in them. The streets are still filled with the old 1950s American cars...although most no longer have old 1950s American engines in them and instead have motors cobbled together from anything that creative mechanics can find. There's wonderful history in Havana from ancient Spanish colonial times to the Cold War (take a look at the towering Russian Embassy building). There are some nice bars and some lovely cafes but you also get hassled by beggars during the day a lot more than I ever expected in a Communist country (didn't think it was permitted to let visitors realise how bad things are) and by drug dealers and prostitutes at night. From what I can recall, credit cards/debit are fine as long as they're not American Express or drawn on an American bank...so a Barclays Visa etc would be fine. That said, credit cards are only accepted in places frequented by tourists, ie hotels, restaurants, stores geared for visitors. For cafes, street-eats etc, make sure you have cash (you can exchange at the airport or most hotels have a bureau d'exchange on the premises). If you want a taste of pre-Revoltionary Cuba with a Communist-flavour, spend an evening at the Tropicana. This was the nightclub where all the rich and beautiful people went pre-Castro. Now it's for tourists but entry not only includes the cabaret but a bottle of rum and one teensy-weensy little shot of cola. It's an interesting evening! Visit Plaza de la Revolution where there's the huge iconic mural of Che Guevara and the spot from which Castro made those speeches before crowds of hundreds of thousands. Not far away is the US Embassy with its ticker-board which the Cubans have tried to block with patriotic billboards. Watch out for pro-revolution graffiti and murals and if you venture outside Havana you can still see anti-aircraft batteries hidden in the bushes pointing towards the U.S. Make sure you read Graham Greene's 'Our Man in Havana' before you go: not only is it genuinely funny but it also paints a great picture of the last days of pre-Castro Cuba.