May 26, 2015
Facts about Playa Larga
From Lonely Planet Guide to Cuba
Larga was one of two beaches invaded by US-backed exiles on April 17, 1961 (although Playa Girón, 35km further south, saw far bigger landings). It’s now a diver’s paradise. There’s a cheapish resort here, a scuba-diving center, and a smattering of casas particulares in the adjacent beachside village of Caletón. With the nearest accommodations for Gran Parque Natural Montemar, it is a good base for en- vironmental excursions around the area.
Cycling Stats
Rest day
What happened…
Andrew writes: Woke up, enjoyed a nice breakfast from our table overlooking the Caribbean and just got ready to chill all day. Around lunchtime the wind came up enough to get the kite out on the water for a bit. We went for pizza for lunch, and grabbed some hamburgers for dinner later. Amanda went back to the Casa to read and I went to the ETECSA office to use the internet. I ended up waiting to use the computer for about an hour, which is fine, I’ve been practicing my Cuban patience. After dinner, I went to play in the surf with some of the local kids, and we had a great time on the surf-mat. Ended the night with a movie and cuddled up in bed with my love.
I really like rest days. It used to be so mentally draining, waking up in the morning with the feeling that we *need* to ride a certain distance, because at the end of our journey, we’d have to go back to work. Now, it’s less taxing because we can stop and smell the roses whenever we want, and since Cuba is so unique, and so beautiful, there are lots of roses to smell (although no actual roses).
Amanda writes:
We decided before going to sleep that we were going to take a rest day tomorrow. It was an easy decision with our casa being on the beach of the Caribbean Sea and listening to the waves lapping from our bed. I awoke a few times in the middle of the night feeling like my skin was crawling. I feared that the stings or bites from our snorkelling excursion were worse than I had originally thought. I managed to fall back asleep and then in the morning after sunrise finally turned on the light to see the damage.
In Mexico the jelly fish would wrap themselves around my ankles and I could actually see where the grabbed on. My ankles this morning told a similar story. The lousy part was they grabbed my ankles, my feet, my forearms, my calves, my quads, my breasts and this time they even seemed to have hugged my neck. I had a cold shower to try and reduce the swelling and layered up with cortisone. Unfortunately I’m not too eager to go snorkelling again today which is a shame because the sea is so clear and the fish are so colourful. I’m just thankful I did a little yesterday.
Instead I am enjoying hiding under the shady palapa on the beach that our casa has. I’m sure there are worse things than these stings in life … and while I’d rather be out there with Andrew body boarding it is so much fun to watch him. He tries so hard to catch waves. In the process today he has attracted a crowd of Cuban children who are intrigued with his mat. What started as three kids has quickly grown to six. They’re all lining up and waiting their turn for Andrew to put them on his mat and give them a push to catch a wave.
Today’s Photographs
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