..and on to the beach

After the prison we went to Bibijagua beach. The road to the beach was very odd, with big sections missing their tarmac. It was as though whoever built the road knew they didn't have enough tarmac to get all the way, so they tried to make sure each area got some, distributing it in random patches. A bit like communism really.

Bibijagua wasn't really what I expected. The beach was rather thin and there was almost no-one there. To be fair, it was a rather cold day, with quite a lot of wind. We had a quick dip in the sea; it wasn't exactly cold, but it certainly wasn't the 'near bath-tub' temperature the guide-book had promised. I have an irrational fear of jellyfish, so I was feeling rather nervy in the water. Jellyfish are just plain unnatural - what kind of self-respecting creature is see-through?

Anyway, we didn't sit on the sand for long, deciding instead to make use of the stone tables and chairs on the immaculate lawn. It was quite lovely there, sitting in the sun, although the wind was pretty chilly when the sun went in.

Immaculate lawns leading to the beach

We stayed there for about four hours, basking in the sun, reading our books and writing this. At precisely three o'clock, just the time we asked Mr Taxi to collect us, it started to rain. I was appalled. I'm tempted to ask Castro for my money back. It doesn't rain in Cuba, I'm sure of it. Anyway, the rain didn't last long, and by the time we got back to Nueva Gerona it was sunny again.

We dropped our stuff off at Villa Mas and set off in search of an internet cafe. We eventually found one hidden at the far end of Calle Marti (well, a block to the right). We were pleasantly surprised to find that the connection was reasonably quick. It seemed to be the state-run telecommunications company (ETECSA) so we'll have to keep an eye out for more of them. It was rather nice to find e-mails from Dad, Frodo, Emma, Gerallt and Sam waiting form me, so I spent some time replying and wrote a quick and rather random blog post.

It was about then that the red marks I'd noticed on my skin the day before were starting to itch. By the evening they'd turned into big hives, about 30 of them, all very itchy. I've clearly found a new allergy, although I wish I knew what it was to. I'm rather glad I brought anti-histamine tablets. I've taken one now and it's starting to help, so I think I'll hit it with a high dose of anti-histamine so I don't scratch and end up with horrible scars. I thought at first it was insect bites, but they're all over me and continued to develp all day, so an allergy seems more likely.

We watched a bit of Cuban TV when we got back to the casa. They have this crazy channel which combines radio with CCTVish footage of the local area, so you're sitting there watching the ferries in Nueva Gerona harbour, people crossing the bridge, people walking down the street, all apparently in real time (the sun was setting and the lighting was just right).

For dinner we had the most wonderful fish. I think it was dogfish from the mime Harry was doing (by the way, their business card suggests his name is Jorge). It was beautifully fresh and light, and is apparently Castro's favourite. It was served with rice and a sort of black bean sauce - something the guide book tell us is a Cuban speciality. It was delicious with the fish, just right. We also had fried plantain, salad and a creme caramel type thing they called a flan. All very delicious.

Cuba is a very tiring place with lots of learning, heat and early mornings, and I think we haven't adjusted to the time zone in the slightest because we went to bed at 7.30. Ridiculous!