Che Guevara in Santa Clara

Students and money makers aside, Santa Clara's main claim to fame is the connection to Che Guevara, so we figured we had to fit in a few of the Che sights.

The link to Che comes about because it was here that in December 1958 he masterminded a defeat of General Fulgencio Batista's military and the taking of Santa Clara for Fidel Castro's revolution.

His plan to derail the armoured train was successful and Che's men were able to capture the soldiers, weapons and ammunition before they could mount a defence. The taking of Santa Clara was hailed as a tipping point in the success of the revolution and cemented Che as a hero.

The site of the derailment is now a memorial to the event, displaying the old train carriages and the tractor used to derail them. A modern looking sculpture represents the train tracks that were displaced.

Somewhat smaller is the nearby statue, in which Che is carrying a child. What makes it interesting are all the little details; his belt buckle has a group of tiny people on it, there is a small motorbike, and revolutionaries climb over him.

But the main monument is the mausoleum. Che died in Bolivia, executed on 9 October 1967 for his participation in an attempted uprising there. Thirty years later, Fidel Castro had the bodies of Che, and some of the revolutionaries who died with him, brought to Cuba for burial there. Later, the bodies of others of his comrades were brought over too and there are now thirty of them in the mausoleum.

The place is huge, with a statue that is over twenty feet high standing atop a plinth about three times that. The monument as a whole celebrates different aspects of his life, but clearly the overriding aspect is of his part in the Cuban revolution. The scale of the site and structure is clearly intended to reflect the high esteem that Fidel Castro held Che in.

The burial tomb itself is a rather more understated affair. No one is allowed to take any bags in with them, no photographs are permitted and we were watched while we were in there; Che's final resting place is clearly well looked after and protected.


'We want them to be like Che'

Free to get in to - it would have seemed very wrong had they been charging I think - it is built within the main monument and feels very serene. With dry stone walls and a rolling slatted wooden ceiling, it resembles a mountain hideaway rather than a tomb, with the eternal flame adding an unexpected cosy warmth. The thirty people interred all have a small plaque marking them, and the one for Che is identical to the rest, no larger or more ornate than the others. As it should be for a staunch believer in communism.

Cuba's Casas

An increasingly popular alternative to Cuba's government run hotels is the Casa Particular, where you rent out a room in someone's house.  They still have to be licensed by the government, but they offer a much more personal experience.  Casas started up in the mid nineties, after Cuba found it needed to boost its income with tourism when the international decline of socialism left it lacking funds.

Initially used predominantly by hardened backpackers, they have gradually become more mainstream and are now an essential part of the Cuban experience for all independent travellers. Of course there is a question of whether this kind of private enterprise - and therefore earning power - is appropriate in a communist society, but that is a question for a different posting.

We stayed at Casas in three of the cities that we visited. The first was in Cienfuegos, run by Anay and Efrain.  The second was in Trinidad, run by Hiraida and Jose and one in Santa Clara. The first two were both lovely places with a real feeling of being in someone's home.  In Cienfuegos the house was a regular terraced building and we had an en suite bedroom and the use of a small lounge, as well as access to the roof terrace, which is where we ate.

The one in Trinidad was a beautiful large home in a lovely colonial building, and we had a large ensuite room and use of their lounges and a gorgeous patio garden. Both Anay and Efrain and Hiraida and Jose were friendly and happy to chat, although they generally left us to our own devices.  Both couples gave us small gifts when we left; we especially liked receiving a CD of some of the Cuban music that the latter had been playing.

Most Casas offer reasonably priced breakfasts and evening meals too, so in both places we took them up on this for one of our two nights there.  And they certainly feed you well.  We had a nice variety of tasty home made dishes and they were happy to cater to my food awkwardness.

The Casa in Santa Clara was a little different.  We had considered ourselves quite lucky to have managed to book into one that was highly recommended but had only two rooms available.  It was especially well known for its food, which was said to be some of the best in the town.  They now open up for dinner to non guests too.

However, sadly I think this is one of those cases where somewhere has been spoilt by its success.  When we arrived, we discovered that we had in act been farmed out to another Casa a couple of blocks away.  While that place was fine, it was not nearly as nice. We could go to the original one for meals, but the new Casa weren't happy that we weren't there for breakfast as that would have been extra money for them.  The meals we had didn't disappoint, but it felt like a restaurant, and not at all like being in someone's home.

Generally though, I would definitely encourage staying at a Casa and certainly would be happy to recommend either of the first two.  One bit of advice though, regardless of how you book, you will need to call ahead a day before you arrive to confirm your reservation.