Cuban Road Trip: Reporter’s Notebook

[elleng]

The reporter William Neuman wrote a front-page article about his 17-hour road trip, in a 1956 Ford Fairlane, across Cuba. Here he reflects on the trip and ideas of modern and new.

http://www.nytimes.com/times-insider/2015/01/07/cuban-road-trip-reporters-notebook/

[Lydia Leftcoast]

1. Having been to Cuba, I found it really superficial

and unlike the writer, I was in only two cities (Havana and Matanzas).

[cbayer]

2. I was thinking of going either at the beginning or end of the summer, but

the airfares are outrageous!

I don't really understand why they are so high. I can fly to pretty much anywhere in Europe for less.

[elleng]

3. Sorry to hear that, cbayer.

I guess I'll wait a while. MIGHT take a RoadScholar trip. http://cuba.roadscholaradventures.org/?so=PEY

[cbayer]

4. That trip looks really wonderful.

It includes airfare, but I can't find the total price anywhere. Do you know about what it is?

We are going to park the boat and get out of Mexico for the summer. Not sure where we will live yet, but I would like to go to a spanish speaking country and DH wants to go back to Italy. I think we may have to split it up, lol.

[elleng]

5. Let's see, between Spain and Italy - - -

I guess you could find something!!!

I have no idea about airfare for that trip, haven't studied it, just know they offer a few Cuba tours, and I like the way they do business.

[cbayer]

7. France would not satisfy either of us.

My husband lived in Italy for many years and still has a lot of friends there. We lived there last summer and it absolutely felt like home to him and he is establishing his residency there.

But, I am determined to become bilingual and Spanish is the language I have dedicated myself to. I spend 5-6 hours a day studying and am going to take an immersion course in March.

Italian just confuses me. It is too close and at the same time too different than Spanish.

I know this is a first world problem, right? Who is so fortunate to have to decide between two of the most wonderful countries on earth?

It looks like it will be 3 months Italy, 3 months Spain and 6 months Mexico….. at least for the foreseeable future. On the upside is that it is less expensive to live in any of these countries than the US.

Have you been on a Road Scholar trip before? I sent my mom on an elder hostel trip and she didn't really like it.

[elleng]

9. WHAT A LIFE you have!!!

But for children/grandchildren (and a suitably mobile partner,) I'd follow you wherever you go!

Have studied French, high school and college, seem to have an ear for Italian and Spanish, but only to hear, not really speak. Portuguese is the one that gets me, just CAN'T make heads or tails of it!

Went to Paris, CTyankee and I took a RS Paris trip a few years ago, and liked it a lot. People were nice, guide(s) were great, and of course, the city was fine.

[cbayer]

10. I know. Not a day goes by when I don't appreciate my good fortune.

Grandchildren will be coming in the next couple of years, I think, so this plan may not work forever, but for now it's a big GO.

Didn't know you had traveled with CTyankee. I bet that was great. She knows so much about art.

[elleng]

11. Yes, yank and I first met at the airport,

and had a fine time in museums etc etc etc.

[elleng]

6. RoadScholar Prices, Cuba

May 5 — May 13, 2015 $3395

May 12 — May 20, 2015$3395
May 19 — May 27, 2015$3395
May 19 — May 27, 2015$3395
Jun 2 — Jun 10, 2015$2995
Jun 16 — Jun 24, 2015$2995

Included
at no additional cost on this date ...
•8 nights of accommodations
•21 meals: 8 breakfasts, 6 lunches, 7 dinners
•4 Expert-led lectures
•12 Field trips
•12 Hands-on experiences
•2 Performances
•2 Flights during the program
•Visas: 1(out of 1 required)

Round-trip charter flight from Miami to Cuba is included. Road Scholar is authorized to travel to Cuba under OFAC License #CT-2014-308137-1.

http://www.roadscholar.org/n/program/summary.aspx?id=1-5SYY5E&cm_ven=Search-Paid&cm_cat=Google&cm_pla=Cuba&cm_ite=PEY&Srccode=PEY

[cbayer]

8. That's pretty steep. It's close to my travel budget

for the entire summer, lol.

[elleng]

12. I understand that!

Heck, I haven't even made it to visit friends on the west coast, partly due to my conservative nature, $-wise.

Am planning a birthday celebration for my high school class mates in June (we had an official reunion back home, in 2012,) not fancy, and visiting in NJ with 1 daughter (and 1,1/2 grands!) soon, so not much more travel planned.

[cbayer]

13. The birthday party sounds like a blast.

Traveling is so expensive, but the way we do it is not. Since we are able to go live somewhere, the only additional expense is the airfare. Everything else is what you would pay to live anywhere. I am loving that.

Glad you will be able to see the grand kids!

[elleng]

14. Party will be fun,

at the cottage which I must share. Not EVERYONE who attended high school on Long Island will make it to MD, but it's 'in honor of our' 70th birthdays, so well worthy! Have e.mailed about 170 of us, heard from about 30 so far, I think, and don't expect a huge group, maybe around 20 of us will make it. And sorting thru menu from nearby restaurant/cafe I like, includes crab cakes! http://www.dreamweavercatering.com/CAFE-MENU.html

1 daughter, with husband and 6 month old, live nearby, so will visit and I'll show them off to my classmates. Other daughter lives in NJ, suggested they (1 year old + husb) might come to party. (She's 'newly' pregnant again, 'secret,' so we'll see if they travel then.)

Right, travel is the expensive part. When family was together, husb and I had 'twin' credit cards that separately accrued miles, so actually took 2 big trips to Europe, 4 of us, with minimal transportation costs. THOSE were the days!

[cbayer]

15. Aha! I wondered if the 1 ½ was a typo or meant a pregnancy!

I don't use credit cards, so no miles for me. I know people that use credit cards to pay all their business expenses and they never have to pay for plane tickets.

I hope that you will get the opportunity to travel in the future. Think how much fun it will be to take trips with the grandkids.

The reunion sounds like so much fun. I love these kind of big get togethers.

[elleng]

16. No more 'miles' for me,

debit card only. Our trips were 'paid for' by weekly grocery shopping!

I'll surely travel, have discussed with daughters, but with the babies, their formerly regular travels have been suspended, so may or may not travel with them. The grandkids? YES!