The Cuba Libre..

Somehow it feels strange to write this and almost sad in a certain sense...I am in my last week in Cuba! Wow, what a journey it has been. Full, over-flowing with memories, emotions, friendships, heartwarming and heartbreaking stories of poverty and overcoming hardships. Many many kilometers of riding a heavily laden bicycle into winds, down beaches, up mountains. Being tanned, feeling fat, having no food or water, drinking rum with locals, eating funny food, seeing amazing sights, but most of all, the journey has healed wounds and centered me more than any journey I have taken on before. My aunt in Johannesburg, feels I have opted out of life after reading my blogs. My opinion on that is, that I am one of the few people I know who has actually opted into life, in a way most people wish they could. We can't ask for an understanding around this sort of undertaking, people either get it and most probably don't. It's not that I want everybody to experience what I have done or the results this sort of thing has with me personally, perhaps some people get the same result by spending money in a casino, I don't know. What I want to share, and why I write these words down is for people to get an idea, live vicariously through them, that there are other possibilities out there rather than the conventional. People shouldn't feel trapped by the way the world goes round, because you can find your own beat and rhythm. Most people will never leave the beaten track in their lives, and are quite content to follow norms and principles governing 'a normal life', set out by a few people in the dark ages. This is not something anyone can force a change in, as it's what 95% will do, and they will die having been governed by those values and guidelines. Shame. This is not my way of living, or not living, as I view it, but then again, I am in the minority. People must do what makes them content, and if you are truly content, then your life is full....no change needed. People, on the whole, will watch television all night, with no real thought process on why they do it (minutes and hours wasted which they will never get back, movies are an exception), read the newspaper (which is controlled media), sit on social media, trying to create more followers and live their lives, caring what public opinion thinks about how they live. WTF!! How can one go through life, living your life according to what others think? This all, can only end in regret at the back end. Why would one want to watch moving, flashing images, on a screen, all night, that have no educational, beneficial or rewarding outcome and that just enable you to pass up minutes and hours of your life... The last 5 days has been riding intensive. Since Cayo Jutias, we have ridden 5 days in a row, followed mountain roads through nature reserves, been to non-descript towns, bearing no relevance to any foreigners travel plans here, and traversed Cuba's midriff, from West to East and ended up back at Playa Jibacoa, 70km East of Havana. Paul Neilsen advised me to visit San Cristobal, I'm not sure why, maybe at the time he was thinking about the nappies he would be changing shortly in his life. Maybe I just missed the attraction there. We went to Soroa (the red wine I drank was called Soroa, so had to, but alas), through more mountains and to Las Terrazas, San Antonio and San Jose, where we must have been the first tourists there for ages, gauging by the stares we got. We passed Jamaica and rode through Mozambique, which wasn't as bad as Australia, and just before we finished yesterday, saw Peru. As I said, ride intensive. The mountains were beautiful, especially closer to La Palma, where we rode under the shadows of the Magote's, through thick tropical jungled landscape. The road was either up or down, the gradient normally above 10%. It still amazes me how, as soon as one is vaguely near a tourist route, the prices sky rocket. We stopped for coffee, without milk, just coffee. Had 2 small cups and a refill. We used our own condensed milk and when the bill came it was the equivalent of 8 USD. WHAT!!! I gave her 5, and even that felt like I was like being raped( obviously I don't know how that feels, but for dramatic effect, before someone gets offended). I told her in my Spanish fluency that it was too much and tried to make an angry face so she understood. I think she did. It's quite nice to be back at this beach for the last leg, we go to Havana on the 23rd and fly out to Cancun on the 25th, where we have booked nice accommodation close to the beach, in a resort type of set up, although it's a self contained unit, but has a pool. Not having to cart luggage everywhere on Penny will be a nice way to end 2018 and I'm sure that 2019 will allow for as much adventure, discovery and awesome travel, as 2018 has...now all I need to do is speak to Oakley!! Mexico should be a refreshing change from Cuba, I'm sure cuisine, culture, architecture and all that will be different, and I also can't wait for a few tequilas and a taco... I bid you all farewell from interesting Cuba, it sure has been a fascinating journey to be immersed in and I am so grateful that I have had this opportunity to indulge myself wholeheartedly into a country which has been shaped so much so by one man in the last 50 years. As a result it has been left behind, the people are magical humans on the whole, and are as humanity should be towards one another. I am happy I have witnessed this, it sure is rare. The contrast and irony which is so prevalent and constant is noteworthy, but feel it takes being away from the tourist channels to find this characteristic and to realize that below the facade, is a country crying out for intervention and help in many ways. The control is still in place and as long as that holds, ironically, I think the Cuban people will have less, but will be saved from a lot more. Everybody dies, not everybody lives...thank you for following my adventures, now start having some of your own FFS.