Sunday, July 02, 2006

Hola...Part 2.

More of the highlights of my one week vacation in el pais Cuba....

I so carefully guarded my private moments of solitude and reflection at the beach, that's what I mainly came here for. I did a lot of sunset seashore-walking too...








Dalawang mundo ang hihila sa yo pag nasa isang tourist resort kang gaya nito, depende sa kalooban mo. Dalawang mundo rin ang nag-agaw sa aking atensyon, ang nasa taas at nasa baba...

Araw-araw they teach the sun dance (sun dans as in "u" ang bigkas ng typical Cubano, instead of san dans as we say it). Kelangan daw sayawin para maging maganda ang panahon.

Psssst..buti na lang malabo ang peyktyur. Meron diyang walang saplot sa taas. Oh wag pilit mamboso!

Limang galon yata ng pinya colada ang nainom ko. Kakauhaw. Tsaka peybrit ko yan eh!

Si Manong Luis, isang watercolorist. Nag-usap kami hinggil sa painting techniques. Sabi nya muka raw akong Latina. Naka shades kse, di nya kita ang aking singkit na mata...wihihihi. From then on, lagi akong nakashades kahit sa gabi...:P

I only dipped twice sa pool, actually did a few laps each time. Lagi akong tumatakbo sa la playa, mas masarap dun eh.

Minsan naman nasa balkonahe lang ako ng aking kuwarto, nagpapahangin, tumitingin sa paligid at nakikinig ng lumang mga tugtugin sa luma nilang CD player(e.g. Don't give up on us baby, don't make the wrong seem right....kakarelax).



On more than one occasion, I was invited to join some people for dinner. I stood my ground and said, "nope, I want to be on my own." So yeah, I pretty much had dinner by myself most nights, except on two strictly unavoidable occasions.



Lonesome after dinner but enjoying the stars and the moon from my suite's balcony...


ANG ISTORYA NG MAHALAY NA BLUSA...

Okey, here's the start of what you'd say a semblance of romantic moments during my stay. But then again they were simply "moments of...." (hmp! as usual).

Nung gabing ako'y nag-a la carte dinner sa Martino's (Italian restaurant). Pagpasok na pagpasok ko sa patio, narinig kong tumutugtog ng romantikong music na Ingles yung pianista. Nakiawit ako. Ngumiti sya, at ako'y inescortan na sa aking candle lit table para sa akong pescado marinated in white sauce with veggies, bottle of red wine and tiramisu dinner. In the course of my dinner, lumapit si pianista at nakipagkilala. He asked if I was a professional singer (nyaks!), sabi ko hindi, mahilig lang talaga at nagpipilit. He said I sang beautifully nevertheless and promised to play romantic Cuban songs sa piano dedicated to me. He did - agagagay, kakainlab - yung music, kse medyo alang buhok si manong pianista although me hitsura na rin. I left thanking him and asked for a photo together but kakainis, as you can tell, pumalpak ang battery ng aking camera that night...Yan po ang istorya ng aking mahalay na blusa na may glitters na ginto. Turned out, mas mayumi ang hitsura nya sa ibang "tops" na isinuot ko, but it earned a few romantic Cuban songs...oh say nyo? hmp.


It's Cuban show-time at night by the pool, served with cocktail drinks pa. I was there most nights...



Ay bago ko malimutan, staple food nila ang sardines, ayan ang hitsura. Araw-araw I had minatamis na talep (my favorite) and fresh natural and strawberry yogurt ...yummmm...Napakahealthy ng pagkain ng mga Cubano. No wonder makikisig sila at magaganda ang porma ng katawan....


IT'S ACTION TIME....WATER SPORTS, "romantic notions" and.....marriage proposals, nyek!


Posing as if fishing - here with yabang Augustin and a couple of my newly-met friends. Eventually he asked if he could make palit his 20 US with 20 CUC with me (Cubans are not allowed to make palit foreign money with convertible Cuban money sa legitimate exchange centers nila - ewan ko kung bakit). Sabi ko baka pera ng hapon yan ha at saka bakit payat si Lincoln sa dollar bill mo? Dehins nya naintindihan joke ko pero oks lang, nalugi yata ako sa palitan...hehe. He gave us extra time with the hobie cat though.

Hobie cat (wind-propelled siya, sailing to the core) - grabe, ang sarap ng hangin sa dagat....sabi ko sa isip ko, ito ang buhay. I met a Filipino couple sa trip ko, 32 years na sila sa Vancouver, they love to travel. I had fun with them during my last 3 days sa resort, yun nga lang yung stance ko for solitude all throughout eh nasira...but it turned out okey na rin.

Kayaking, grabe ang hirap magmaneuver sa gitna ng dagat, muskolado ako after...

Ay mga manang, heto na, I went deep sea snorkelling with this lifeguard (will withold his name to protect his identity mwehehehe).Burly sya, pero upclose very attractive, oo nga! Naku po, we went out swimming into the sea with me holding on to his arm all the time. Sometimes holding hands, sometimes I would pretend to be having a difficult time so I could purposely hang on to his shoulders or neck. Then he would so carefully sweep my "pelo" (hair sa forehead) from time to time in the middle of the ocean and say oh so gently - almost whispering " beverli, tu pelo es en tu cara." He would grabe, to me sounds ultimately romantic, say things in Spanish about the beauty of the fauna and flora, throw food at schools of fish so they will come out from hiding from the corals as I watch them with awe and wonder. In my faltering Spanish I would appreciate everything. There were moments when, ayayayay, I wish sya si Brad Pitt and he would kiss me right there in the middle of the ocean. Ay ang landi ni manang! I was half-in love with him when we came out into the shore. But of course, I was in love with love....ayayayay, buhay nga naman!

Isa pa to, my scuba diving instructor. Enlarge the photo, may hitsura talga sya. He was so gentle and respectful. Nung kaholding hands ko sya underwater, feeling ko tinutugtog ang moonlight sonata he he. He had better English and at one point, I panicked under water and took out my mouth piece so nakalunok ako ng tubig. I had to ascend rapidly. When we were finally out on open sea, he said, "Beverly, it's okey. Look at your tank, it's full of air. When scuba diving you don't breathe with your nose, you breathe with your mouth," in the most gentle and romatically Spanish-accented way. Ayayayay, I overcame my fear and panic soon after and we descended into the depth with the colour of the water changing at every altitude. While swimming with our hands clasped together all the time (ay kilig), he made me hold a water spider, touch water "makahiya," and pointed at different kinds of fishes and corals. Natatawa sya sa akin when he was teaching me the international codes for scuba diving underwater, at one point I put my two hands together and placed it under one cheek to say I'm sleepy from all the lessons, he had a good laugh. After the dive, I made yabang to yabang Agustin (remember the hobie cat guy above?) when we returned to the nautical centre to return all the equipments and said I killed two sharks. Wow, this time around, his stony face crinkled and I had the pleasure of finally seeing him laugh for the first time inspite of my jokes...Hey, can't blame him, life in Cuba albeit idyllic could be tough, average income a month - 20 CUC or approx. 20 US dollars. Average-looking shirts alone cost 15.95 dollars each.


Oh yan tuyo na ako and ready for a different kind of action, grabe I went seashore walking and from the two end posts of the la playa manned by two different security guards, I got marriage proposals, mwehehehe. Both of them in their twenties, one of them fairly good-looking. They could not be photographed though for some reason. I told both of them, "but hey estoy tu abuela (your grandmother)" and "i'm still single coz I'm fea, gorda y viejo" (pangit, mataba at matanda). They insisted that I was "bonita, muy linda" and didn't look the fifty-year old hag I said I was. I said mi cara es operada (ehehehek, thanks to Dr. Belo kuno). Anyway, one of them was so sweet, he handed me seashells as a gift when he approached me and invited me to his town of Sta. Cruz (where most of the hotel staff lived). I actually said yes half-heartedly (not to the marriage proposal, tange) but to see them again, as I didn't have the heart to see their North American dream crushed right away (ehehehe, yeah, yeah I saw through the motives right away, ang babata nila noh? sa tanda kong to paloloko pa ba shi ako?). Anyway by the end of my stay, I was also hiding from the front hotel security guard who invited me to talk to him during his night post (aguy, si manang ang kausap nya noh?). He had a shamed look when I threw a pack of chocolates his way telling him to give it to his "nina." I "knew" he had a daughter although he looked young. Don't ask me how, I just knew it. Suffice it to say that my ambitious parents were fairly disappointed upon learning that the marriage proposals I got were from hotel security guards and flea market vendors...:).

Anyway, one guy was really aggressive and insistent - yeah, the tour guide to Havana who rode with us on the van. He sat beside me and from the very onset declared that he preferred me over the puti na single (around fifty, obviously ako ang matatypan ni manong for my "youth" mwehehehe)with us. I guess the lady (who was really "looking") was quite offended based on her remarks (but hey, it's all a joke noh? to me anyway). Narindi talaga ang manang senses ko after two hours of insisting that I was his "wife" that I had to declare we were officially "divorced" on the grounds of irreconcialible differences sa music-preference (I had to find a legitimate ground noh? Kse he tried his best to make me understand the romantic message of the rap song being played on the van cd player- his fault...mwihihihi). I said sorry, "no intiendo"(kahit oo, he he) and I hated rap. He truly looked dejected the whole time after that....mwehehehehe. Ewan ko ba. Here he is, abviously di ko type he he... Nakachancing pa si mokong sa pag-akbay...kakainis! At ang blusa ni manang, nakakaiskandalo...no wonder! Di ko napansin yan ha? Kse naman, mga istilo ngayon (he he palusot pa *wink*). Here I am super nakangiwi and looking really tired he he he. Tatlong klase ang lahi ng mga Cubano, puting ispanyol (yep they were also colonized by Spain), mixed at itim. Guwapo yung mga mixed.


I thought I was through with being proposed to upon landing in Toronto. I came home at around 3 am and had to take the taxi, upon settling in the front seat, the driver to my horror of horrors asked, "are you single?" Hay buhay, I readily retorted with exasperated finality this time around, "nope I'm married with two kids." And the nerve of the mokong,humirit pa..."but are you still with your husband?" I said incredulously with widely-opened eyes "but OF COURSE!" and napped soon after. Hay salamat, natapos rin sa wakas ang yugtong ito ng buhay ko.....he he....

More photos - scooter ride, local Cuban beach and Havana...


With the scooter tour guide - inulan kami and had to make a stop over in a little drinks shop.

Kasama sa grupo namin. Wet look, hay. Kinuhanan nya ako ng peyktyur and I asked to be photographed with him after his shot, out of courtesy. Interesanteng kausap, piloto sya.










oist pagod na ako...dami pang pics but will blog about them later. I love Guanabo beach, the most beautiful I've seen - the pure white sand and the play of soft ocean water colours was incredible. The fishing village and the small towns were interesting too, I had quite a glimpse of the Cuban way of life...but later....

9 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

uy, ang sexy ni mamasang!!!!

may nag hello ba sa 'yong 'da not so old man and the sea?' sa la playa? bat walang pekchur ni mang fidel? nakasakay ka ba sa taxi na 1950s na coche?

11:20 AM  
Blogger cacofonix said...

teka lang teka lang di pa kse tapos magload ng pics eh marami ng tanong tong si shredded oyster...dami pang litrato at nagaposing ako sa mga lumang coche para sa imo...teka lang...dami ring istorya...

11:25 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Welcome back AteTulipya! Eh di fully charged ka na at raring to work ... este, to go on vacation again, he he :) O nasan picture na suot mo ang kahalihalinang gold and black blouse? At nasan ang mga kwento? :)

8:01 PM  
Blogger ss said...

This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

10:35 PM  
Blogger ss said...

Buenas dias, Manang Tulipya alias Aling Otik en la playa de Havana! Talaga bang authentic Gumamela de Cuba yan, at ikaw ba kumuha ng pic na yan para sa akon?! Muchas gracias for your Birthday greeting, prayer & well-wishes! Nakaka-touch naman.. :)

Grabe, mukhang henjoy na henjoy ka, at akala ko ba e manang ka, hehe.. Same as "1st wee in AM"--ask ko rin kung nasan yung blouse na mas conservative pa yata sa pic outfits mo, bakit di mo sinuot? Ay naku, aabangan namin ang mga huwento mo ha, esp ang mga marriage proposals kay manang.. :) God bless!

10:44 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

manang itik, daming pekchurs! ang ganda naman pala sa la playa ng cuba, iba ang ambiance at parang napaka idyllic na sultry na nakakatamad na parang gusto mo na lang uminom ng kapeng malamig oras-oras. gusto ko punta don. tsaka gusto ko yung chevy. eh asan na ang kwento sa mga papasang, bat wala? sa ginanda ganda ba naman nung mga tinda mong papaya at melon eh walang tumawad este nag 'hola' man lang? o baka naman shino short change mo kami nila titdaday at krung-krung II at pinaglilihiman mo kami ng mga eskapada mo at ng mga papasangs, ha?!!

5:47 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

weewee in a wine bottle, dehins pa ako fully charged, eto nga at nagchacharge ng battery by sleeping since yesterday. oo gusto ko bakasyon hulit. depends kay Lord saan next, got two more weeks.

yung mga next pics eh load ko later, also the kuwentos.

7:15 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Bads, utentik photo yan from Jibacoa - I took it specifically with you in mind, bersday gip ko nga eh. Hikaw ang magandang gumamelang naghihintay ng pagpitas ng maamong bubuyog, hik, hasan na vah ha?

Lam mo vads, hindi naman ako ang may sala dyan sa mga sultry photos na yan eh. Yung mga melon ko, umaapaw kahit anong gawin kong pagtatago, eh humid dun sa place kelangan parati kang nakasando, eh ang mga istilo ngayon kung nde pasas ang divdiv moh, naku fu....magkakakasala ka talaga in the area of exhibition...*wink*

blusang mahalay story to follow...

7:36 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

tutti pwetty, pssssssssssst. mahal ang melon at papaya ni manang . walang makaafford dun sa mga nagpropose..mwehehehehe.

tumpak ka sa imong obserbasyon about the resort. i guess it's the best place to be in Cuba if you want some quiet and idyllic leisure all throughout the year. yung ibang resorts masyado raw commercialized, coz yung mga naghahanap ng action ang pumupunta dun. this place is ideal for honeymooners, kaya sa 1,000th honeymoon nyo ni L punta kayo rito. the staff/people are so friendly, you'd feel sorry for them most of the time coz they only earn 25 CUC or approx.25 dollars a month. eh ang t-shirt dun mahal pa sa presyo sa canada, average is 15.95 dollars, hay...more kuwento when i load the photos later, especially the holas from the guys...

7:40 AM  

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