The flight from St.Martin to Kingston was short, yet it felt like we had traveled a long way. Jamaica is a lot poorer than its Caribbean cousin and its neglected capital shows it. Most tourists stay in luxury resorts on the north coast, so very little money filters down to the rest of the country.

Downtown Kingston is like many African cities we’ve seen - a collection of crumbling colonial buildings and roadside shacks. It has plenty of character though and the local Jamaicans give it a colourful and laidback atmosphere. The smell of ganja is everywhere and everyone seems to be on a constant high. It’s illegal to sell the stuff but you can easily find a few stalls selling it at the central market. Apparently the local police are pretty tolerant, giving warning shots before they raid a market. We couldn’t resist and bought two joints. A visit to Jamaica just wouldn’t be the same without it

Kingston is of course the home of Bob Marley. His songs are like Jamaica’s anthem and are played constantly. We visited the neighbourhood in which he grew up - Trenchtown. It’s a rough neighbourhood with gang violence common. An old friend of Bob Marley’s family showed us around the simple buildings that were his home and the birthplace of so many reggae hits.

After a few days we flew from the home of one icon to another. Ernesto “Che” Guevara wasn’t born in Cuba, but it’s here that he made his name fighting alongside Fidel Castro in the 1959 “Revolution”. Their images are painted all over town, along with slogans of socialist ideology. Take those away and Cuba actually looks like Poland under communism. Long cues, grey buildings, russian cars and zero privatization.

But it’s not all bad news. Socialism brings with it free health care, free education, cheap public transport ($0.02 for a bus ride) and job security. Although the wages are pitifully low - US$20-30 per month!! Looking at the prices in supermarkets, you wonder how the people survive. Most will earn some money on the side by driving taxis or selling cigars. Others get assistance from their families abroad. Mostly people look happy and seem to enjoy life that little bit more than Europeans. Maybe it’s the rum or salsa??

Mass tourism was introduced by the government in the mid 1990’s and brings in a lot of money. Unfortunately it’s heavily regulated and doesn’t make independent travel easy. It’s lucky then that we met David (via couchsurfing). He lives in Havana and has helped us to see the ‘real’ Cuba. He even took us to his family farm in Pinar del Rio to experience the village life. We loved the simplicity of the life his uncle’s lead working the farm. BTW they’re all in their 70’s!!! We plan to go back before we leave.

Still in Havana we met our good friends from Singapore - Ren & Piotr. They brought some much needed parts for the Africa Twin, which we wouldn’t find in Brazil. Thanks guys!!
After a couple days walking the timeless streets of Havana Vieja (Old Havana), we traveled together to Trinidad. A really cool place on the south coast of Cuba.

We plan to rent a scooter in Trinidad (there is nothing else available for tourists) and ride around for a week or so in the east of Cuba, returning to Trinidad for Christmas. We’ll still be in Cuba for New Years Eve before flying out to Brazil.