The Bay of Pigs in combination with the Zapata Swamp may not sound attractive, but in reality, it’s one of the most interesting parts of Cuba, which is worth visiting in any case. Here we find long sandy beaches with hidden coves and crystal-clear water almost along the entire coast and there are also some small cenotes where we can refresh ourselves in a mixture of sea and fresh water inland. But let's continue from the Giron Museum, which we learned about in the previous part and which is located at Playa Giron and together with all the natural attractions offers enough for a slightly longer stay. Playa Larga is located at the innermost point of the Bay of Pigs and only a few kilometres east from the beginning of the large Ciénaga de Zapata National Park, where you can admire terrestrial and aquatic flora and fauna.
Entry to the Ciénaga de Zapata National Park is only possible with a guide, and there are two excursions available, one that is slightly more professional and is intended for those involved in bird watching and study, and the other is tailored to the average visitor interested in the lives of birds and other animals in the national park. To visit the park, you have to pay the entrance fee of approximately 10 euros, and to this you must also add the transport costs if you don’t have a rented car. On a long flat trail going between natural salt pans and a dense tropical forest dominated by mangroves, we can observe a range of birds throughout the year, among which the most widespread are flamingos, followed by cormorants, American pelicans and other water and land birds. There are special observatories with an excellent view for observation, so don't forget to bring your binoculars and a good telephoto lens.
In addition to birds, in the summer months, when there is significantly more water in the Zapata swamp, we can also meet caimans, which sometimes await visitors at the entrance. In addition to caimans, which, according to the guide, don’t endanger visitors, we also have a company of mosquitoes in the summer months, which are similarly annoying as mosquitoes in our places, so it’s advisable to protect yourself properly.
Guides from the national park also organize a guided tour of the Sendero Enigma de las Rocas park, where we could also go alone, as there is no sign or barriers that would prevent us from doing so, but it still makes sense to visit with a guide, as it would be quite difficult to find on our own what we can experience with a guide. In the park, we can admire small cenotes or tectonic depressions in which water has accumulated and in which we can also refresh ourselves, a cave where bats live and other caves where the water is a few tens of meters deep, but of course the most interesting are the fauna and flora. In the park, we can meet various species of birds, chameleons and also a special species of crustaceans, and as far as the plant world is concerned, the most interesting are the various species of cacti, and of course we also meet many other tropical plants. I have to admit that I would’ve overlooked many of the animals as well as plants if I had gone around the park alone.
The park is located at a tectonic shaft, which is always full of water and slightly salty because, in addition to the fresh water of the swamp, it’s also filled with seawater. One of the most beautiful points is the Cueva de los peces, which is halfway or a 15-minute drive in the direction of Giron and where only a few meters from the main road we can refresh in almost completely fresh water, although the beach on the other side is so picturesque that we only think of freshwater pampering after enjoying the warm and clean sea; also, because the beach is completely natural and we can't even find a shower on it to wash the salt off our skin. Cueva de los peces is very easily accessible, as it’s located just a hundred meters from the Playa Larga–Playa Giron main coastal road.
On the way to Giron, however, there are a few more hidden places that are just a few meters from the main road and offer exceptional refreshment in the crystal-clear sea. Due to the rich sea world, this part of the coast is also a paradise for divers. In one of these places, which is located about ten minutes east of Giron, there’s the Caleta Buena tourist center where, for about 15 euros, you can enjoy the heavenly and well-kept beach with an all-inclusive offer between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. I advise you to be at the entrance just before 9 a.m., as there are many tourists in organized groups that visit the center, so it’s wise to occupy a strategic position with a deck chair in the shade and close to the sea before they arrive.
And if the national park awaits us in the southwest, and the beautiful coast with a fish cave, the Giron Museum and the tropical Caleta Buena beach in the southeast, only 10 kilometers or a 10 minute drive north is the next tourist attraction, where tourists come for day trips from Varadero and other places.
It’s an extremely rich terrarium of crocodiles, and at the same time it’s the starting point for visiting an Indian village located in a lagoon on the east side. But while the crocodiles are genuine, the Indian village is unfortunately only a tourist attraction, as the Spaniards exterminated the entire local population about half a millennium ago, and with the pope’s consent at that. He even described the local Native Americans as soulless creatures, like animals. Regardless of the fact that it’s an artificial village, we can learn about the way of the Native American life there, at least one as imagined by modern historians and based on the records of the conquerors. But the drive to the lagoon and the admiration of the plant world outweigh the entrance fee.
Lovers of unusual food will also get their money's worth there, as they are happy to prepare a specialty of crocodile meat in the restaurant at the entrance. Although it’s important to understand all the prejudices against such a culinary experience, it should be noted that the crocodile, unlike pigs, chickens, fish or cattle, is one of the few animals that would be happy to eat us if given the chance.
Cuba normally has well-organized bus services between major cities and tourist destinations and is the only Caribbean country where the railway still operates, but the coronavirus times are everything but normal, so it was necessary to travel between places by taxi, which is otherwise cheaper than in most of Europe, but still expensive due to the distances. Of course, it’s also possible to rent a car in Cuba, but given that it would be parked most of the time, renting a car wouldn’t make sense this time.
It was the loss of transport around Cuba that changed my plans a bit, so I decided to stay at my current location for a few more days, before leaving for Havana. The route to must-see Trinidad was possible by private transport, but given that I had visited Trinidad several times, I decided to stay and explore not only the surroundings of Playa Larga, but also the interior of the municipality.
According to the established protocol, on the fifth day after my arrival, that is, on the sixth day of my stay in Cuba, a nurse came to the accommodation and took another swab, the negative result of which also means free movement.
Despite the negative result, I skipped one of the most beautiful cities in the Caribbean – Trinidad – this time due to the staggering prices of transport. Fortunately, I had visited Trinidad several times already, but more about the city and its surroundings in the next issue.
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