As we head back toward Havana, Lynette talks about the geography of the island. There are three mountain ranges in Cuba with the central range that surrounds Trinidad having a peak of 1,000 meters. The Eastern range has the highest peak at 1,900 meters. Nickel is mined in these mountains and is an important export. We stopped for a break and coffee in Sancti Spiritus before continuing on. This region is known for growing garlic and onions which we saw in abundance at the open air market. We saw fresh pork laid out on the planks, head, feet, tail and all! Many fruits and vegetable were also being sold.
Our next stop was in Santa Claraa where we visited the School of the Arts, a high school for music, dance and theater. They have about 200 students. A small group sang for us and two girls did interpretive theatre.
The Cayenes Resort served us a very nice buffet lunch and then we stopped at the Ernesto ‘Che’ Guevara memorial. Che is a national hero of the Cuban Revolution that overthrew Batista.
Che was born in Buenas Aires and graduated from college as a doctor. While traveling in mexico he met Fidel Castro who was exiled there at that time. They became friends so when Fidel came back to Cuba in 1956 Che came with him and was made commander of the rebel army.
In 1958, Batista sent an army train through central Cuba where the rebels led by Castro and Che fought and won, sending Bastista out of the country. In 1964, Che felt his work was done in Cuba, so he left his wife and kids and went to Bolivia to help with their revolution. He was eventually killed in 1967 in Bolivia. He body was hidden there until 1997 when we was brought back to Santa Clara, his home, and interred in the memorial.
Tonight is Party night! Half of our tour group went to the Buena Vista Club for a Cuban show and the other half of us went to the Tropicana Club. it was 2 1/2 hours of high energy dance and song presented as a Vegas style show with elaborate costumes, outrageous headdresses and vibrant colors.
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