Cuba Visuals

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Theres this feeling I get when I'm in another country alone. The first time I felt it was in December 2012 in Hong Kong. I just turned 14. My parents and I were in Hong Kong for a trip. They went to get massages and I stayed in the hotel room alone. I can't begin to describe how amazing I felt. Just that feeling of being alone in a foreign land. It felt perfect and I remember thinking this is what I want to do for the rest of my life. For the last 8 years, I have been chasing this feeling and going wherever it takes me. When I was 19, it happened to take me to Cuba, which happens to be 26 hours away from home.

 Looking back now, I'm so damn proud of myself for having the courage to wander so far away from home & to put myself out of my comfort zone. 

Cuba is more traditional due to the government there. Therefore, there is no internet. There are 'wifi stops' which look like bus stops to get wifi. You will need to get wifi cards in order to use the internet for a few minutes. This may be one of my favourite things about Cuba. I love that when I was there I was forced to disconnect from practically anyone. Imagine me a 19 year old Singaporean Indian girl in the middle of Cuba, unable to contact friends or family back home. To most this may sound like a nightmare but to me this was the most amazing experience I've had. 

It was a humbling experience and it reminded me that at the end of the day I am the only person that will be there for myself no matter what. I learnt this lesson early on growing up as an only child. I also learnt there that I am really freaking strong and capable of taking care of myself despite a lot people around me who have a pre conceived notion that I am unable to do so since I am an only child and they assumed I was spoilt rotten. 

I stayed in a hotel in central Havana for a few nights. I woke up to the sunrise. (the pictures above do not do it any justice) I tried smoking a Cuban cigar. (once in a lifetime opportunities to smoke a Cuban cigar in Cuba while watching the sunrise) I listened Lana Del Rey songs during my stay there. With the setting of the scenery & the people & the music, I felt like I was in one of her music videos. I felt so damn lucky to be there. I felt so proud of myself. I was raised being constantly protected - I was not allowed to cross roads even as a teenager as my parents were afraid that something would happen to me. But I looked at myself then and thought, I was in freaking Cuba. I didn't cross a road, I crossed oceans and continents. 

While staying at the first hotel, I went around central Cuba. I did a tour around Havana with the vintage car. Ask your hotels for driver recommendations. I lucked out as I got a pink car. My driver only spoke Spanish which was helpful for me as I had spent the last 6-8 months before my Cuba trip learning Spanish. I personally don't like being a 'tourist'. When I travel, I try to blend in with the place I go to in order to have a fuller experience. I tend to skip certain tourist spots to spend more time at little cafes that the locals go to. Usually when I travel, I have a notebook and pen with me so that I can always jot down my feelings. 

I wrote this in my notebook.*

15 Dec 2017
It's crazy that I'm in the middle of Havana right now. I'm enjoying this. Even though there are certain things I need to do/find - mainly a supermarket of some sort to buy water. Luckily I found my way to Old Havana. And it's a more touristy place so hopefully I'll be able to find the things I need as well. I'll be lying if I said I love being on my own. I do love travelling on my own and stuff but like always a small part of me just thinks how nice it'll be to have some sort of companionship with me for the fun of it. However, at the same time I feel like now is the time for me to discover myself and just be completely free and also build confidence and strength in myself. Travelling with someone wouldn't do that. Moreover I kinda have the rest of my life to travel with my friends/guys if I want to. I feel like travelling alone and doing the things I do- it can only be done when I'm young. I had this imagination in my head and started thinking of how cool it will be to travel to all the places I've already been to when I'm older. Imagine going back to Mykonos in my sixties and looking at the clubs thinking- that's the place I table danced at 40 years ago. 

I also kind of like being disconnected. 

*I did not edit the grammatical/ punctuation errors cause I like keeping it the way I wrote it 3 years ago 



When in Havana's town centre, I quickly figured out the roads and streets as google maps does not really work there. I went to the Havana Club to get some pictures but did not do a tour there. 

For my last 2 days in Havana, I went to Hotel Meliá Habana. This is the biggest hotel in Cuba, with the biggest swimming pool. It was a bit fancier than the one I stayed in before. This leg of my trip was mainly for my own relaxation purposes. After the year I had had, I wanted to spend a couple of days by the pool in the middle of Cuba. I spent almost 2 whole days by the pool  

 I'm incredibly grateful that I have the means to do trips like this. 



 

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