Banes.

We hired a taxi for the day and headed to Banes, which is about an hour away from our resort. Michael, the same taxi driver we had going to and from Gibara, was our driver! He was great, but once again the ride wasn't so comfortable, but i had the front seat this time, so that helped!!! Banes is an interesting place, it's were Batista was born and where Fidel Castro got married. This is the cathedral he was married in. As usual, we were approached by many people trying to sell us something and mostly i was able to just keep on walking. However, this lovely young man who spoke very good English (he was a teacher and poet!) engaged us on the street. He then spent about an hour taking us around a few of the interesting parts of Banes. It is such an interesting ritual...there is no talk of being paid, but i guess there is a hope on the part of the person offering a service. At the end of the tour we gave him 5 cucs (tourist currency) which is quite a lot there. Most people make the equivalent of 25 cucs a month! He was so knowledgeable and such a delight, we enjoyed our tour very much.

We had lunch in a nice little place and got in just in time to miss an amazing half hour downpour! Then we headed to a beach that was quite an adventure. The road was absolutely horrendous! but it was fun to explore!