Well have just returned from a lovely vacation in Varadero, Cuba. Our flight there was a bit frustrating as we had been flying for nearly an hour when the captain announced there was a maintainance problem with the plane and we needed to return BACK to Calgary, change planes and take off again! The problem was the computer which controlled the engines - the backup system was working, but the main system had failed - so with no backup to the backup system, it was in the best interest of everyone aboard to get a new plane. The impact on our vacation was quite minimal, as we were going to be arriving at 7:30 or 8:00 PM Cuba time originally, with only 10 minutes of daylight remaining. So we arrived at the hotel close to 11:00 PM, hungry & tired, but happy to be there.
The weather was absolutely phenomenal. It only rained once, and that one time that it did rain, the rain came down 5 minutes after we had gone to bed. The days were usually very warm (more than 30°C, which felt MUCH warmer due to the humidity and lack of wind), with slightly cooler temperatures in the evening, however again not much wind.
The beach was the whitest sand beach I had ever been to. There was very little rocky material, shells, weeds when we arrived, however there was a gradual increase over the course of our stay as sandbars shifted and altered the flow patterns. I picked up some very cool modern and ancient shells right off the beach.
We were fairly active during our vacation. Usually woke up around 7:30 and went to the gym for a short work out - me on the bike for 20 minutes with some yoga stretches and Cameron doing a 10 minute bike and then pushups/situps for the remaining 10 minutes. After a quick shower we'd go for breakfast, then head out to the beach. The best way to keep cool was to stay in the shade and go in for frequent short swims. We snorkelled on the first day using the hotel equipment however with nothing more than sand and a few seaweed patches to check out, no inspiration to continue snorkelling. Cameron tried waterskiing on the ocean, as well we went sea kayaking (double and single kayaks were availalble). Also got to take a 30 minute tour on a double-sail catamaran - that was pretty exciting!
We took 2 tours while in Cuba: a 1/2 day snorkelling/cave tour which cost approximately $40 CDN (each). We went snorkelling right off Coral Beach, aptly named, because it is rimmed by a large coral reef. We had never seen such beautiful corals, with so many types of fish. Truly memorable! After the reef visit, we quickly went off to visit Saturn's Cave, which was a large open-mouthed cave which was filled with cool fresh water at the bottom. We were able to go for a swim for 30 minutes - that was really refreshing. We were the only ones, except for another fellow from Spain, who stayed in the cool water as long as possible - most people waded in and found it too chilly & so went out to eat an ice cream cone. We also went for a day-tour of Havana, which was a bit more expensive, about $85 each, but included AIR CONDITIONED bus transportation to and from Havana (250 km round trip) with commentary on the countryside, agriculture, politics, economy, etc. of Cuba by our tour guide, visits to historical places in the city, visits to authentic cigar and rum shops, some free time in a flea market (mostly junk, but interesting to walk around in), lunch in a restaurant atop the highest building in Havana (33 floors up, quite the view!), with a few more historical stops in the afternoon before returning back to the hotel.
Cameron saw and felt the baby move for the first time on Friday, June 23. I had just finished doing some stretching exercises on the beach with the fitness instructor and then laid down on my back on the beach chair and I could feel the baby kicking quite a bit. So I was just staring off at the ocean, when I saw my belly bounce a bit. I told Cam & he watched for a few minutes and he saw it too! Then he put his hand right where we had seen the movement.....we waited for what seemed like a long time....and then he felt the baby kick! That was really exciting! I should have photographed him at that moment - he had a big proud grin.
Cameron got a sunburn on his back after the first day, and Danielle got a small patchy burn on the second day - must have sweated/rubbed off some sunscreen. Other than a few mosquito bites & very occasional tummy upset, no injuries, so very happy overall with our trip.
Returned home last night around 1 AM and found a very happy kitty to greet us. We had soup and grilled cheese sandwiches because the airplane meal was a bit small and had been more than 7 hours ago. Cam made the food while Danielle unpacked suitcases (nearly everything went into the laundry).
Woke up to a bright and sunny morning in Calgary. Forecast is for very nice weather over the next week, a far cry from the gloom & rain that had been happening when we left.Have yet to fully inspect garden yet, however did see some iris blooms last night and veggies seemed to be taller in the back yard.
Today will probably go get some annual flowers & plant them. Time to get our Calgary summer started!!
