Introducing myself

Hi livineasy4life,

Welcome to Expat.com and thanks for this introduction.

Regards
Armand
Expat.com Team

Hi there livingeasy4life! Sounds like few of us are in the same emotional atmosphere as you are. Yes, living in Ontario is very stressful and I also have plans to move to Cuba eventually.

I like the East Coast for the reason that it is much more less stressful than Ontario
When do you plan to go back to Cuba? I did advertised looking for people who want to travel.

Of course but living is cheaper as you found out.

Keep in touch,

M

welcome ,livingeasy4life.  Yes, sounds just like my story, except I moved to Ont. from Sask.,but also a mistake. Cost of living in Ont. is way too high to match the wage scales. My meeger retirement income from Sask. will go so much farther in Cuba. I'm also in the process of changing wives. No sense doing things half way. "Yaritza" will be my version of Rosetta Stone, I am learning Spanish at an alarming rate. Funny, how if you are hungry, thirsty, lost, or want to make love to your beautiful Cuban significant other, the learning curve is a lot steeper. Keep posting,   W

http://www.special-events.clubforleisure.com/1.html

Thank you for your update. I welcome you to connect with Walt. People who have the same ideals for a better quality life.

http://www.cubacultureclub.clubforleisure.com/11.html

Don't hesitate to ask all the questions you have about Cuban life.

Hi Mayling,

We haven't connected for some time and hope and trust all is well with you.

I am keeping quite occupied with the reworking of the main Cuba Culture Club website. There was a French version and that is now being worked on also by 2 friends in Quebec.

Some great news for those who want to have another different kind of Cuba vacation! From December 22 through March 23, 2015, we are agents for Cuba Cruise, an all-inclusive luxury cruise that visits ports along Cuba's coast and sails only at night. This affords opportunities to discover, explore and enjoy for oneself, the sights and sounds of the visited ports of call and take part in the available excursions or just mingle with the locals.
http://www.cubacultureclub.clubforleisure.com/27.html

Even better, since we do groups, for the organizer of a group of 9, the 10th person goes free. Please let  me know how things are my friend.

Hasta luego.

Buenos Tarde mi amigo
Dear me, I wonder if you know  that i am Mariam.([email protected]) 'Maylin' is my online Expat.com name.

On another note, my friend and I were just  looking at air fares but there are only two of us wanting to  go  Sept. 17th-24th..

I do want to go Havana but will be landing in Veradero. There is a tour bus that travels to Havana but we don't want to return the same day with the tour bus back to Veradero. Question. Is it possible to rent a room for a night or two from your wife while we tour in the day time on our own time?.
We are both spontaneous air sign Libras..

Hasta Luego
(I have sent your website link to at least 40 people on expat who I've been in contact with over the past year and half. Hope that you had some response and hope they mentioned me...lol
Mariam

Hi my dear friend,
I guess I'm not Sherlock. I did not make that connection...  Thanks for the referrals but I have not heard from anyone from here.
Our house is a long distance away from El Centro.
There is a very nice lady, Elsa, who owns a casa particular. I would recommend that you contact her.
Animas #273 (bajo) e/ Aguila y Amistad
Email: [email protected]
cell: 011 53  5 291 9181

Let me know if that works. I have others also I can recommend.
Have a wonderful weekend!

I;m so sorry. I only realized it now that you maybe did not make the connection. I will email her. Thank you!! I will email her tonight and get more information. Does she have children. I always  bring  a little gift but uncomfortable asking or giving directly. Cubans are a very proud people as you noticed. 

Sorry for the misunderstanding there..

M

Hi,
No need to apologize.... 
No youngsters in that casa. I can give you the name, etc of Pablo, my partner there who has a small art studio/gallery. He is a guide who is and will be working with me.  He and his wife Marta (she works with me also) have a 14 year young son, Angel, and Paul, an older son (18, I think).
You would find them very friendly and helpful.
I would also give you my Orialys' cell # and perhaps you would be able to connect.
If any or all of that sounds good, I would give them foreknowledge.
All the best dear friend.

Hi Walt,
Oh! I think it is the profile pic that threw you off. I've been having problems changing it
a long while now,  and simply gave up.
We were in Veradero, met at the Villa LaMar,and we wanted to get out and see the real Cuba.
I took this pic of everyone and chose this one as my profile to show the group cohesion enjoying mother nature. We come from Canada, Russia, Denmark Venezuela and Cuba.
Its great what you doing and i see a lot of success for it because things are changing for the better.

Hasta Luego

Mariam

Absolutely helpful. We haven't booked yet but I don't mind staying for week there if beaches are close by; but I am not alone so I will check with my friends after I email your friend.


  gracias.Walt
Mariam

Bueno Noche Walt,

The email [email protected] is not going through.

Sorry to bother you this late; maybe you can check it out tomorrow?

Thank you,
Mariam

Good morning dear friend.
Her email addy is georgelina[at]informed.sld.cu.
Your addy has an 'r' in the 'infomed'. ("georgelina[at]infoRmed.sld.cu")
Have a lovely Sunday!

My friend, I sent Elsa a message and she replied: "Hello, already working my mail, tell me what date you want to stay in the house, Greetings"

Buenos Tarde Walt,

I emailed a few hour back but no reply.
The thing is, my computer doesn't seem to recognize it and shows it in a different color...but it went through and did not bounce back.

Can you find out if my email went through ok..

gracias
,

If it did not bounce back, it should be ok. Elsa may be out of the house and sometimes emails take some time there. I received one today from  my Orialys that she had sent a day ago. Es Cuba.

[email protected] its okay....my mistake...i put infored

Good! So you received a reply? 

Oh, I did not know the emails took that long....I will wait for her response and let you know the exact date after I book tomorrow. Its only 1.5 hours to Havana from Veradero.

Much thanks

Mariam

Not always but it can happen. I will liik forward to hearing back from you when you have a reply. Remember, I can also put you in contact with my Orialys and my tour guide.
Hasta luego.

Buenos Noche Walt,

Yes, I did receive a reply from Marta yesterday and emailed her, I will be in touch before I leave here and have more details on exactly time and date. She is en la ciudad, so that's nice. We don't want to spend too much time traveling on the road. If you want to send something for your family, and I don't mind bringing it.

Have a rested night.

Mariam

Thanks for your message dear friend. Marta? You mean Elsa, right? Thanks also for your offer to take something and I do have a booklet for the camera that I had forgotten to give my wife when I left. If you can bring that for her, that would be wonderful, Also, like I said, if you want to have my guide's contact info or anything else, please let me know. Any idea when you will be leaving? I will tell my wife. Have a good night and God bless! 

We are leaving Sept 17th. Yes, I meant Elsa. We don't know exactly where we want to tour yet but we will decide that. before we leave. My neighbor has been looking at your site for ideas. I have been  but its her first time. That is not a problem to deliver the item to your wife.

Thanks again

Mariam

Great! Thanks. We will just have to meet for that sometime in the next 10 days. I am moving to St Catharines on the 23rd. Ok?

Did you already book your flight? Please don't forget that I can do that for you and your friends.
Have a very good day my friend.

Hola y Buenos Dias,


That would not be a problem to meet with you within two weeks.
However, if its more economic to post it I could send you my address also.

St. Catherine is a far distance off.



Will be in touch as things progress.

Mariam

Mail is too unpredictable so it would be best to meet face to face and hand it to you my dear friend.

Did you do the booking for the trip with your friends? How are things going with your arrangement with Elsa?

Take care and God bless!

Buenos Dias mi amigo,

Blessed that all is good. I see you have moved. Do you know what date you want to meet up?

.You will also be meeting my neighbor and travel buddy Judy.
So we booked the 17th Sept - 24th Sept and plan to be in Havana early morning on19th for 1 or 2 nights.
There is a slight  possibility that someone else we meet at the hotel may also come with us to Havana. (We are such blabbers)i On my last visit, I met a couple who came from Somalia...so I went over and introduced myself, found out they are from Toronto. The first thing her husband said when I asked him how he liked it so far was, '  I don't like it'. lol..lord, the man just got off his bus a few hours ago. So I started telling him about places i went to...that's how things happen.
I don't want to throw Elsa off guard by showing up with someone else in tow.
.

Have yourself a wonderful day..

Hasta Luego

Mariam

Hi my friend,
Actually, I intend to go to Havana myself next month so a meeting here is not necessary now. Thanks anyway.
I have not moved yet. That move will happen 9 days from now, the 23rd.
I am very busy with our group travel business and that also keeps me from taking extra trips here.
We will have walking tours to see places of special interest, historical. fun places, shopping, etc.
And, for those who want to have fun and also gain some new friends and skills, we have cooking, dancing, film making, music, painting, photography, sculpture, and Spanish classes.
There will be plenty of relaxing and fun activities from which to choose.
Have a very good day and God bless!

Hi
My responses are intermittant as my home is in Cuba - my wife is a Cubana - and of course when I am there I do not have access to the Internet.
I am surprised to find that the site is now accepting commercial promotion. However that is for the site to determine. In the past I have always used the site to try and help others.
Firstly, if visiting Cuba, there is no need to use commercial tourist agencies. For accommodation in casa particulars go to the site:  cuba-particular.com
There you will find all the towns listed and the casa particulars in that town. The site is run by Raul Fuentes and there is no charge. Confirmation of reservation is provided by e-mail which you can print off. Costs vary but are also included in the listing, for example:
Habana Vieja is usually about 30 - 35 CUC per room per night
Vinales, Trinidad, Baracoa etc. at 25-30 CUC per room per night
Meals are not included, but are usually:
Breakfast: 4 - 5 CUC  each
Dinner (Supper of 3-4 courses) 8-10 CUC each
The meals supplied in casa particulars are usually better than those in state owned restaurants and equate with paladars (private restaurants)
Travel around Cuba using the Viazul coach service. Timetables can be checked on: Viazul.com
So for example:
Fly into Varadero for a week. Only book your hotel for one week. On the 8th day take the Viazul (you can book at Varadero)
to Trinidad. Having pre-booked your casa particular, your host or hostess will meet you at the Trinidad bus station. Pre-book the Viazul at Trinidad to go to Havana three days later. At Havana book for Vinales the next day and go to your casa particular in Habana Vieja (There is an early Viazul from Trinidad at about 7.00 a.m. getting you into Havana (near the zoo) at about 1.30. Next day go back to the Viazul bus station and take your reserved seats on the Viazul to Vinales for a couple of nights. Then take the Viazul back to Havana and on to Varadero for the flight home.
I have only outlined the type of visit you can make without use of any tour guide and without paying for one. I love Cuba and its people. I would add that in the past I have been Executive Director for Tourism in one of Canada's provinces and know the industry well. The owners of casa particulars will lean over backwards to assist you. The Viazul service runs to the minute and for example stops part-way between Trinidad and Havana at a roadside cafeteria where you can take a coffee or a quick snack. Whereas Spanish is a help, it is not an essential - don't be frightened of the language challenge.
If you have questions, please ask them. I shall check back on the site in a couple of days and don't return to Cuba until October. Currently my wife is here in Canada on vacation from school.
I repeat my dislike of the site now being used for commercial purposes, but suppose that it is a temptation.

Commercial interest? Of course, there is no charity involved. What I/we do is called sustainable travel which means that I/we provide employment for locals. That does not come from me/us giving money away. We work, they work and they earn as a result.

An addendum to my comments about commercial activity.

If a foreign business requires employees in Cuba, it has to have and sign an agreement with the government which employs the employees and pays them at Cuban rates (about $20 - $25 per month). The foreign business pays the government directly - for example I understand that the rate is about $9,000 per annum. If the foreign business makes any direct payment to an employee that is contrary to the signed agreement and is regarded as corruption a criminal offence. Hence three Canadian businessmen currently in jail in Cuba. Forming a business in Cuba can be a precarious action and hopeful entrepreneurs should be very careful.

Point taken, with thanks.
I was/am aware of that and intend to act accordingly.

Rather than the much advertised on TV Rosetta Stone ( The lady saying that Rosetta Stone is the only way to learn a language with the added "In my opinion"), try Michel Thomas 'Speak Spanish' which you can obtain through Amazon at a very modest cost - my memory is about $45 for the 10 CD introductory course with additions for the two further courses adding about another $45. I can recommend it. It is a system in which he uses two students and you become the third. Each lesson takes about one hour. He points out for example that you can learn about 1200 words of Spanish in a couple of minutes. With three exceptions any word in the English language that ends ....tion translates by replacing the 't' with a 'c'. So position is posicion, He also explains that in every word in Spanish there is an emphasis on the penultimate syllable. Oddly, one of the three tion words that doesn't translate as described is translation - it is traduccion.
Good luck!

Hi MacDuff and all, I am a french Canadian from Quebec and quite new here. My girlfriend is from La Habana where I went a few weeks in January. She is a nurse over there and she is coming to visit me for a few months since she has some vacation time to spend. We are waiting for her Canadian visa after long delays to get her passport and all documentation needed. I read your threads on the site and your answers are very pertinent and you are well informed. Sadly the french forum doesnt quite answer precisely basic questions. My main question concerns her plane ticket: will Canadian customs ask her to have her return ticket upon arrival here? Money is not a problema its just that it would be more flexible for her not to have a precise date of return to Cuba and an open ticket is far more expensive....
I intend to follow her to La Habana after her stay and live there for a few months. I would like to know the best ways to travel from Canada to Cuba with more tan 1 luggage that I was only allowed on Air Cubana from Montreal in January. The thing is that I intend to bring some stuff needed for the renovation of her house. Also, I would like to know if someone wants to move some used furniture over there: is it possible by container? Are there any special formalities or custom fees? Is it worthed? Maybe your answers or other answers would be precious to me and other members. Thanking you in advance....

If you go to the web site:     Cuba-particular.com            and look at the casas under Habana, you wil find that it lists the casas in each part of Havana eg:  Habana Vieja      Vedado         Mirimar
If you wish to visit sites and museums, art galleries etc. then go for Habana Vieja
The prices and details of each casa are provided and you can get a confirmation of your reservation by return. There is no charge for the service which is run by Raul Fuentes.

Hi Majito (is that French for mojito?)
I will be pleasantly surprised if your girlfriend gets  a visa. The Canadian Embassy in Havana is not co-operative and unless she owns a property will almost certainly turn her down. My wife was rejected 5 times - the last three times after our marriage and our home is in her name - only Cubans can own.  We eventually got a visa for my wife to visit the UK with me and the following year Canada at long last and unwillingly gave her one.
Yes, she will requre a return ticket. If you have to change a return date WestJet charge $100. They also accept an extra case for $20. I take two cases and return with one - they fit inside each other! I have found WestJet to Varadero most competitive. Air Canada Vacations fly to Havana but at a price! Your girlfriend will know about using a taxi particular - there is a street in Marianoa where they hang out - and the charges return to Varadero are fractional compared with Cuba Taxi! We live well west of Havana and use a local taxi return to Varadero for about 50 CUC

I cannot tell you about furniture. But I can say that we have had some made to measure in Cuba for modest sums - much better than  the junk sold by Gaviota.
If taking household stuff, don't take electrical as the Aduana may confiscate it - but allow you - at a price! to collect it on your way out of the country. Hair curlers are OK.
It could be that your girlfriend could find through the grapevine - they can find most things - used furniture in Cuba.
I wish you every success in your venture, Cuba grows on you more and more, but NEVER forget that it is a Communist Dictatorship.