Cuba 2016 – Retirement Cigars In Bay Of Pigs

I had taken Frank already twice to the tobacco farms, Viñales and Pinar del Rio so I thought I’d show him a different part of Cuba this time.

Give Frank a good cigar, some rum and a nice cannon or machine gun and he is a happy camper.

So what better place than Bay of Pigs with the invasion museum and the tanks and guns piled there….

It would be a celebration for myself as well as I would be officially retired from Lufthansa and into the government pension plan as of March 1st.
So we left Havana on Feb. 29th for the long boring ride to Jagüey Grande with just a stop to have a rum-splashed coconut on the way.
I like to stop at Los Morales, halfway to Jagüey for their Piña Colada, but even though it was noon the Piñas were all gone.

We arrived in Playa Larga on time for a good meal with Ute and Patty who were hanging out there and loving the dolce far niente as daily beachgoers.
I had stayed earlier at Silvia & Homero’s casa particular but had never enjoyed the newly built roof terrace – lovely spot to have meals and cool down.

While I took a nap my friends went to see Guama and the crocodile farm.

Well rested and sipping rum and a cafe con leche on the front porch I welcomed them back. Guess by now everybody knows our middle finger greeting style … 🙂

We went for a sun-downer on the terrace of Mayito’s casa and being midnight in Germany I could raise my Cubata glass to being finally retired.
Having left flying almost 7 years ago it was sort of an anticlimax but it felt good.

Dinner was back at the terrace and we had some excellent conch & crab salad and two really fantastic and freshly caught Pargos.
Ute & Patty surprised us with two bottles of fine rose bubbly which we shared with our gracious landlords. Having only a few rooms we had the entire casa to ourselves.

We stayed up late enjoying the calm and the breeze while smoking perfect Salomones and sipping Santiago Añejo – being retired is a bitch I thought … 🙂

After a long breakfast it was time to explore the Bay – and what better way than to do it in a classic car from my birth year, a 1953 Ford. Blue of course to match our casa colours.

We visited Cueva de los Peces, caught a glimpse of the secretive Castro island off the bay and arrived in Playa Giron to find the museum closed for renovation.
Thank God the tanks were still out there for a nice shot with Frank – although he was already planning on asking for a quotation and taking them to decorate his garden in Belgium.

We visited the swamp charcoal place just outside of Playa Giron to chat with the guy there like every time I visit the place and heard about his interesting story being on military duty from Angola to Mozambique to Syria back in the 70’s and 80’s.

After a tour of Caleta Buena it was back to Playa Larga and a hearty lunch of fresh seafood before hitting the road again back to Havana for us.

Of course we had to stop by Australia and the invasion HQ of Fidel – Frank can’t live without the smell of gunpowder.

Nino