Itinerary & Travel Log

Thursday, April 24

Departed Minneapolis at an obscenely early hour; half a day of beach play at Playa Caracol, Cancún, Mexico; night arrival in Havana, Cuba; check-in nightmare at the Hotel Vedado. Full-story.

Friday, April 25

Morning lecture at the Cuban National Union of Jurists; International student festival at UHA; walk around Vedado; change of hotel rooms; dinner at nice restaurant; El Morro and cannon-shot ceremony; Salsaloca night! Los Van-Van!!! Full-story.

Saturday, April 26

Walking tour of Old Havana with a restoration architect; shutterbug clown and street dancers on stilts; La Bodeguita del Medio and the "monk" hotel; Museo de la Revolucíon and Granma memorial; exquisite dinner at El Huron Azul; rainstorm and power outage; the drunk outside La Bodeguita del Medio; walk along the Malecon. Full-story.

Sunday, April 27

Mass at the old cathedral; Artists Market; relaxing day at Playa Santa Maria del Mar; mojitos on the terrace at the plush Hotel Nacional de Cuba at sunset; dinner at Le Chansonnier. Full-story.

Monday, April 28

Morning lecture at the Cuban National Union of Jurists on Cuba's legal system and political perspective; lunch at Todopan.com; Latin-American Film Foundation; coco-taxi rides; Revolution Square; dinner at Las Mercedes paladar. Full-story.

Tuesday, April 29

Bus ride to Pinar del Rio and Valle de Vinales; sugar-cane juice and Dodo; Cigar factory; medical supplies; lunch at El Ranchon; El Cueva del Indio and the underground river; La Ermita Hotel and the fantastic view of the Magotes; Cuban dancing and merriment till late. Full-story.

Wednesday, April 30

Morning walk and visit to a tobacco drying house; a wet return to Havana; lecture and tour of the Cuban Music Institute; the hotel screw-up that landed us into the five-star Hotel Nacional de Cuba for the remainder of our stay! Coco-taxi adventures in Centro Havana. Full-story.

Thursday, May 1 - International Workers Day

Breakfast at the incredible Buffet Veranda; Castro's speech; some of the group attended the parade, others went on a day excursion to Las Terraza's and the San Juan River; visit to the Moka Moka hotel; cabaret show at the Parisien at night. Full-story.

Friday, May 2

Morning lecture at the Cuban National Union of Jurists on U.S.-Cuba relations; lunch underneath the mango trees; the bustling Artist's Market; dinner at El Huron Azul (you can tell we liked this place). Full-story.

Saturday, May 3

The artists market (again); walk around El Morro, the Malecon, and other monuments; group dinner at El Aljibe; late night packing. Full-story.

Sunday, May 4

Insanely early departure; gifts for our excellent hosts; duty-free shop buying spree; problems with customs in Mexico; beach lounging at the Sheraton on Playa Caracol, Cancún for a few hours; customs problems in Chicago; arrival in Minneapolis at about 9:30PM. Full-story.