Around the world
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Money, currency, exchange offices, budget: everything you need to know before going to Cuba
What currencies should I take before going to Cuba? The euro, the pound sterling, the Canadian dollar… but not the US dollar which suffers a 10% penalty when exchanging. Americans are still hated here. Besides, American tourists say they are Canadian. Are credit/debit cards accepted? Yes in some restaurants, especially in Havana, but not in the special casas that will represent a big part of your budget in Cuba. Distributors are more and more numerous, especially in Havana. The exchange rate for distributors is the same as that applied in exchange offices. I withdrew money once in Cuba (and had a heart attack because the screen stayed unchanged for 20…
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Internet access in Cuba, getting connected, phone card and other telecommunication info
Internet in Cuba … ahhhhh you feel projected back to the time of AOL, where you had to save every minute, where you downloaded your email, logged out, wrote the answer, and reconnected just to send it. What you need to know is : (1) Forget 3G, it doesn’t exist ! Update 2020: yes there is! 3G exists and even 4G, but only locals have access to it for the moment(2) forget about unlimited Internet(3) be patient There are three ways to connect to Cuba : (1) Go to a hotel and pay for a 4.5 CUC/h wired connection at the business center at that hotel(2) Buy a 1.5CUC/h Wi-Fi…
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How do I find and book a Casa Particular in Cuba?
How to find accommodation in Cuba? If the hotels exist, they aren’t numerous and are very expensive On a trip to Cuba, it is best, like everyone else, to go to special casas, which are like hotels, but run by private individuals. For the moment, apart from hotels and special casas, the government does not allow other types of accommodation (couchsurfing, home exchange etc.) There is no site that lists all the casas in Cuba. To find good casas, you can : Buy the Lonely Planet guide for Cuba Go to TripAdvisor and look at the top rated accommodations in the city Read blogs/travel diaries of other travelers. Among others,…
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Where to eat in Cuba: state restaurants, private restaurants or casas
Having lived in Vietnam at the time of communism, when every family had a food book, I thought that in Cuba we also risked starving to death. But no! I offer you this guide in the form of Questions/Answers to reassure even the most greedy among you. Will I starve to death? Gone are the days when each person is entitled to x bananas and x apples. If food is still not plentiful, it can be bought at the supermarket or on the street, where vegetable vendors park their carts full of fruit/salad/onions. Cuba now has the right to import food and medicine. One can even drink Coca-Cola imported from…
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5 months in South America & Cuba: Itinerary & Transportation (Argentina, Chile, Peru, Bolivia, Paraguay, Uruguay, Brazil, Cuba)
Update May 2017: Here is the latest version of our itinerary in South America, Cuba & the Caribbean. All that lasted 5 months… I found transportation a bit complicated to understand in South America, some border crossings are recently impossible (especially Los Antiguos – Chile Chico), I had to tear out a lot of hair to establish this itinerary. There are many land border crossings, especially between Chile and Argentina, make sure you have enough blank pages in your passport. Click on the button at the top left of the map below to access the list of destinations. CHILE Easter Island(round-the-world ticket) Santiago (round-the-world ticket) Punta Arenas (plane 160€/person) ARGENTINA…
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Around the world: 15 kg less
A good surprise of the round-the-world tour is my 15 kg loss and the return to my farm weight after… 10 years of overweight! This is all the more satisfying since this was not an objective of the trip and it was done effortlessly At 18, I left the family cocoon for my studies. At the same time, I completely gave up sports and started very bad eating habits For 10 years, I regularly changed my pants size (upwards you will have understood it) and my weight fluctuated between 90 and 100 kg In 2010, for our wedding, I tried a diet that… worked! I lost 10 kg in a…
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12 unbearable things in youth hostels
When you travel around the world for a year, youth hostels are a must if you don’t want to blow your housing budget. It is in Argentina, Chile and Uruguay that we mostly slept in youth hostels. In these three countries, two beds in dormitories cost us more than a comfortable hotel room in most countries in Asia If some youth hostels are perfectly equipped and very pleasant (special mention to those that put a curtain on the beds allowing a little privacy), in others, we feel that it is the race for profitability and that the comfort of the customers comes second Staying in a youth hostel is also…
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[The Return] Finding temporary accommodation in Paris after the Round the World Tour
Today, we are starting a new category [The Return] because this subject is treated rather succinctly on the Round the World blogs, surely by its morose nature and the depression that falls on ex-travellers 😀 But we, we have a lot to say on this subject Why temporary accommodation? It is March 27 and the return is scheduled for April 29, 2017. As we returned our apartment before our departure, we will return to France homeless (without a fixed address) Our project is to stay one month in Paris, the time to settle some administrative details, see friends, our favorite doctors for a quick check-up and eat (lots and lots…
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How to visit Christ the Redeemer in Rio: Transportation, tickets, budget, advice
I find the Lonely Planet (Kindle version) from Brazil particularly sloppy. The proof: I have to find out for myself how to go and see Christ the Redeemer all by myself. The information found on the Internet isn’t very clear either. So I give you here the simplest version, with the least amount of waiting to visit one of the New 7 Wonders of the World. Note: Uber is really cheap in Rio so forget about shuttles, towers etc. I did the calculation for you, it’s the simplest and cheapest way (when you travel with 2 or more people). City Center -> Christ the Redeemer Take an Uber (X or…
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1 week in Argentina (Iguazú & Buenos Aires): Itinerary, assessment, budget, guide, advice (2/2)
To read the first part of the guide about Patagonia, click here Ahhh Argentina! This country so vast and whose must-see are so far away from each other that we had to visit it in 3 times. After 15 days in Patagonia, we visited Chile, Bolivia, Peru, Paraguay, before spending a few days in Foz do Iguaçu in Brazil, and crossing the land border to Puerto Iguazú in Argentina Itinerary Puerto Iguazú (3 days): after visiting the Brazilian Falls, we cross the border by local bus to Puerto Iguazú (Argentina) for 20$AR/person. See our guide on Iguazú Falls here. The visit of the Argentinian falls takes us a full day…
