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Lot of people keep asking questions about the use of CUC and Cuban Pesos...here are some questions and answers:
....If I was going to buy a meal or pay for a bus ride or taxi journey what currency will I be charged in?.... Depends on some factors but usually, as Uīre a tourist people will say the prices in CUC. If U take the local buses or camello (I advice U not to do it) it is on cuban pesos. Taxis usually charge 10 or 20 cuban pesos for cubans but for U itīll be more. Discuss the price prior to the ride...
....If I am charged in local pesos how will I now if I am being charged correctly? If I am charged in CUC then what change will I be given, will it be local Pesos or CUC's....If the place has a menu, check the menu. The conversion is 25 cuban pesos for 1 CUC. But if U exchange smaller accounts, typicaly it will be 5 cuban pesos for 0.25 CUC. If U pay in CUC, expect to receive change in CUC, if U use cuabn pesos, the change will be in cuban pesos. Sometimes maybe somebody will try to give U cuban pesos in return of CUC, donīt accept it and ask for CUCīs...
....If I have local pesos then how and when can I use them. Does a black market exist in currency....The cuban pesos can be used in many places. Just apply the conversion 1 CUC = 25 cuban pesos. In China town for example, the prices are listen on CUC and cuban pesos. And many other places accept this kind of combined payment. Goverment places only accept one of a kind, CUC or cuban pesos. And yes, there's a black currency market, stay away from it, cab be tricky... Leave a Comment
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It was my first time traveling to Cuba and I must admit that I wasn't careful enough. Coming back from la Casa natal de Jose Marti, someone caught up with me from behind, ripped off my shoulder strap and ran away with my purse. Some people saw us running after the thief and next thing you know, there were about 15 police cars, 50 policemen and 2 boats looking for him. Sure enough they found him after about 30 minutes and found my purse as well, with almost nothing missing. The police then took me to the hospital to make sure I was fine and then to the police station. They were incredibly nice, and even funny!
So, my advice to first time travelers would be to leave your purse and wallet behind (in a safe, preferably). After all, you only need cash to get around Havana so just bring a small wallet which you can fit into your pockets. And if you want to avoid trouble all together, just stick to the more touristy areas - there are enough policemen there to ensure that nothing will happen to you. Leave a Comment
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 Malecon - Troublemakers (2004) by Kaspian
This warning isn't about the jineteras so much (you're a grown man, you can be make your own decisions), but more a warning that when you walk the Malecon they will catcall, make bedroom eyes, rub their bodies, and try to flirt with you even though you are walking with your girlfriend/fiance/wife! This can be an extremely dangerous situation. If your girl is the jealous type (quite common) she will not appreciate this kind of behaviour from other women (especially while she is present) and it could be you who ends up paying the price later. My advice is to watch ahead for packs of teenage girls and steer clear if you can! Leave a Comment
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Tricking tourists into exchanging CUC for Cuban pesos is one of the biggest scams in Havana. The worst place for this kind of scam is in the Vedado area, but it also happens in La Habana Vieja. If you're walking up the Paseo, young men will constantly come up to you and start chatting, trying to make friends with you, perhaps saying that they work at your hotel and have seen you arrive the night before. Now, if it's your first day in Cuba, you'll of course be delighted to speak a bit of Spanish and exchange with local people. After a while, they might slip into the conversation that you should be thinking about getting some Central pesos, that you would be getting a much better deal than with CUC. They might even offer to take you to a bank where a friend works, and put some added pressure by saying that you need to go straight away as he's taking the next week off.
To sum it all up, whatever you do, stick to CUC! They only place where you should be exchanging money is at an official Casa de Cambio. Central pesos are in fact Cuban pesos and although you might be able to buy an ice cream cone with them, that's about as far as they will take you. After talking to a few of these young men, we realized that there was a code they were using to see whether someone had already tried to trick you into changing money and it's the "salsa festival" (mind you, they might change it from time to time). But once we figured that out, every time someone would walk up to us we would tell him we already knew about the salsa festival and they would instantly disappear. Which is kind of sad because we really wanted to meet some local people, but it's still better than being taken for a fool. Leave a Comment
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 At dusk...Centro Habana by russian_yaz
Some streets may seem dark and frighteninig but they are for sure safe. Nevertheless, avoid just in case dark places or walking alone very late at night. Try to walk trough iluminated streets or just grab a taxi. At night better take a government taxi, Havanatur or Panataxi, it will be safiest, just to avoid any particular taxi driver with bad feelings.
And most of all...
Because of the economic and other kind of problems in cuba, many seek to fly away, by any mean they can find....translated it means that many young and not so youg men and women will approach to U with good intentions but many of them are looking just money, or, the final goal, get married and leave the country.
So my advice is: enjoy Cuba, meet their kind and always happy people, try to know all our customs and ultimately try to discover each lovely place this island has. But, take the usual precautions that U use anywhere and don't fall in love. If U do it, just try to be sure about your and yours mate feelings.
And this goes for men and women, same situation for each of U in Cuba! Leave a Comment
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 Killing time by russian_yazLeave a Comment
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 by florryLeave a Comment
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 Trees on the street after the
hurracane by russian_yaz
The government has a very good program to protect first of all, people lifes so if U catch one of this natural disastars, just follow the orders U receive and don't panic.
The hurracane season begins on april until november, so it leave only 5 moths without this natural disasters. The last worst hurracane was "Charley" on august of 2004. It had lot of wind and strong rain. In the Saffir-Simpson scale this hurracane was a 4, with winds of more than 210 Km/h...and that's a strong wind, I can tell U. I was still in havana at that time and it was really big. Some days after I went to the street to see the desctruction it caused.
Nevertheless the destruction, there where no lost of human lifes. Leave a Comment
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 Another horrible incident by joernmeLeave a Comment
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Jineteras...other way to call protitutes. But this ones are quite diferent. Maybe they are have universitary degree and knows more than 2 language. Some are teenagers that hang around in Havana, mainly along the Malecon trying to pick up tourists. When they take a man home, they usually introduce him to the family, ask to buy her things, clothes or something for the family, medicines or just food. Because of the economical problems this kind of behavior is normal, they seek ultimately to get married and fly away from Cuba. Being in other countries they can help their family economically.
Of course U'll find the classical one, 20 bucks for this, 40 for that and 50 for everything....
So my advice is that if U're not along be aware with this girls. They may seem innofensive, but can create a real mess. I mean, if U're with your gilrfriend/wife they will not care and will blink eyes, make sensual movements and even will dare to talk to U... so if U're not looking for this kind of "diversion" better keep away from them. Leave a Comment
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