Santiago De Cuba, Travel Guide, Eastern Cuba

A visit to Santiago De Cuba, including street walking, San Pedro De La Roca, Moncada Barracks, Hotel San Basilio and Hotel Casa Granda.

From the waterfront we meandered up through the old town, an area once, populated by French escapees from the 19th-century Haitian revolution.

We were heading for the old art deco Moncada Barracks, significant because they were the location of Castro’s first amateur attempt at a revolution against the dictator Batista. The barracks turned out to be closed, so we stood outside and looked at the bullet holes on the side of the building.

Our accommodation was the very grand and comfortable Hotel San Bastillo. It was a great place to relax with a cold drink and enjoy the airy green foyer.
English language books are hard to find in Cuba, but the Hotel San Bastillio even an intriguing library.
In the evening we headed out to the old spanish fort of San Pedro de la Roca, which sits imposingly at the harbour mouth, just outside town.

After all that informative history it seemed appropriate to return to town, head to the rooftop bar at the Hotel Casa Granda, get a drink and recount the day's activities.

[VILJL]

Good video. Don't pay any attention to the negative comments, they are "common" and the "norm" nowadays. I sent it to a family from Santiago de Cuba, and they liked it. Enough said.

[jaysonbiggs]

Clueless in Cuba. Patronizing. Condescending. And they say we Americans are patronizing, condescending and clueless.