jhubbel

Thanks again all, and btw we do have an extremely well established guide, without which I would not be going on the island.

Dancing is going to be determined by whether I have been able to beat the ugly nasty bug that has cost me more than twenty pounds over the last three weeks. Otherwise I may have to limit myself to wiggling in place.

And SambaChula, appreciate your thoughts. I've been short on research time this time around and hope to get more done prior to leaving. Being ill has had a rather unhappy impact on my ability to sit up straight and work on my computer. Your point is well taken and I usually do my best to do precisely what you suggest.

annhig

jhubbel - sorry to read that you've been under the weather. whatever meds you have been taking, or think you might need, take double [at least] with you; there are very few chemists [pharmacies] as we know them in Cuba. There is probably one or more in Havana [in one of the big hotels] and there is one in the big hotel in the centre of Cienfuegos.

Cubans rely on herbal and other remedies [which you can buy from a proper shop with advice on how to take them] and we bought some anti-diaorrhea liquid from one, just in case our own supplies ran out. Fortunately they didn't, just, and we left it behind in the last casa we stayed in.

annhig

Something you might be interested in, to whet your appetite before you go:

http://www.lahabana.com/content/monthly-guide/

jhubbel

Thanks again annhig. I am still struggling hard with my illness- am on something called Flagyl, which specifically targets what I have. You can only do your best. I am loading up on miso soup packets and applesauces individual servings, which we were advised to bring as convenience stores are rare as we know them. I also loaded up with Pedialyte in the hopes that this will help. Determined to make this work. Beyond that I am likely to be eating little more than lots of rice and papaya. Pretty much what I had in the Amazon, which worked quite well.

I can't wait. I am off today to track down a Lonely Planet Cuba guide. I've been buried with writing chores from the last two trips, which have kept me from basic research, which happens sometimes when a great many trips land on top of one another.

SambaChula

"convenience stores are rare as we know them."
Absolutely unknown, rather, at least in my experience.


"I am likely to be eating little more than lots of rice and papaya"

Papaya was sometimes served for breakfast at the casas, usually along with a variety of other sliced/chunked fruits. Speak to the owner so that the person cooking knows to concentrate on what you can keep down.
It was not as easy to find local markets to buy on my own for snacks as it has been in many other parts of the world.

The rice served with meals in restaurants was most often "Moors and Christians" (Moros y Cristianos), a dark rice with a few undercooked, hard, crunchy black beans scattered through it, not plain white rice. At a casa, if you request dinner service, it may be what they themselves are eating or may be cooked specially for you, but they may have an electric rice cooker, and may easily be able to make you some plain white rice.

" ... kept me from basic research, which happens sometimes when a great many trips land on top of one another."

Yeah, just decided not to go to Senegal next month for a music festival, due to insufficient time to plan.

annhig

SC - we often found ourselves eating plain rice, Moros y Cristianos not so often. We found casa owners very obliging and wiling to make anything, so long as they could get it. I also got the impression that they are used to catering for people who are suffering from gastric troubles, so wanting plain food will not come as a surprise to them.

One thing we did see from the top of a HOHO bus was a supermarket, somewhere in downtown Havana, but I couldn't tell you where it was exactly.

Good luck!

SC - sorry about Senegal. Many years ago we went to the Gambia which for a while was a popular british tourist destination and i have an idea that we went to Senegal for a day trip but that's as far as my memory goes.

jhubbel

Trip is off, sad to say. I woke up this morning increasingly ill again, losing my battle with c.difficile. After ten days of meds, what an evil operator this is proving to be.

It would be beyond inappropriate for me to join a healthy group of folks in this condition, and potentially ruin their holiday.

Redirecting. I am so sad about this. However, were this to turn septic I'd be in a Third World country, and my insurance would (rightly) say I left with a pre-existing condition, rendering extraction coverage null and void.

Not a chance I'm willing to take.

Cuba isn't going anywhere. I need to ensure I can.

Thanks all for your kind input. Will put in the file for "someday."

annhig

so sorry that you're not getting better jhubbel, but i do understand your decision. Ironically, Cuba is probably one of the such few places where the treatment you'd have got would have been up to scratch but like you, I wouldn't have wanted to risk it.

I do hope that you get there soon, but more than that, that you start to feel better and recover from this horrible bug.

SambaChula

Sorry to hear that you are still not feeling well.
I think that Cuba, being a place that does not have all the "mod cons" would not be a good place to try to "get by" as a tourist while even being marginally sick. (not the medical care, just the lack of convenient pharmacy "comforts" and familiar food and perhaps comfortable lodging).
Yes, Cuba will still be there, and IMO is not going to change character as rapidly as many Americans who have not yet been there seem to think. Meanwhile you can refine your research as soon as you feel able, and plan an even better trip.
Best wishes for a speedy recovery.

jhubbel

Thanks, SC. Given the severity of what I have, and the fact that I have to lie down many times during the day due to the rapid and severe weight loss, it's just out of the question.

It's a pain to have to go through all the trip cancellation documentation but interestingly, the amount of stress I was feeling trying to get myself "up for the trip" went away once I made the decision. At least now I can concentrate on healing, regaining the weight and rebuilding my strength. Appreciate all the many good suggestions. Thank heaven for World Nomads. It is such a good habit to buy that insurance the moment I buy my ticket.

Now- back to hot tea and my blankie.