Viñales
The reason why I wanted to go to Viñales was due to my interest of learning more about the production and the specific quality that makes Cuban cigars one of the best in the world. I didn’t have high expectations to the area, I was only going there to learn more about the Cuban cigars.
When we first arrived in Viñales, we drove through the center and made a stop on a viewpoint, some miles out of the center. This gave us an amazing view over the valley. It’s such a green and speechless scenary, nothing like I’ve ever seen before. We were lucky enough to enjoy the view with a local band singing and playing some local music while we were standing there pinching ourselves to see if this was real. I do get attracted to nature and beautiful sceneries, so this was definitely a home run for me.
After enjoying the music and taking some pictures we headed over to a plantation. This was so fun to experience! We got a full lecture on the whole process inside a barn, where tobacco leaves were hanging up to dry. We got to smell the tobacco leaves and know the secret recipe to their famous, Cuban cigars. These guys knew English really well and we could ask all the questions we wanted. At least as long as the rooster was quiet.
After getting to know the full process of the tobacco leaves, from seeding to harvesting to curing, we were ready to see how the tobacco leaves turns into a cigar.
The guy that showed us this process, did the presentation both in Spanish and in English. He was quite entertaining, and he also gave the women a free cigar to smoke. If you’re thinking about buying some authentic cigars, buy them here, buy them from locals so you don’t get scammed.
Of course these cowboys had horses, so we decided to hop on and get a tour of the fields. We also made some stops to hear about their local coffee and rum production. If you’re in Viñales, make sure to squeeze in some horseback riding. It was so fun to be back on the horseback. Not so fun when the guys made the horses go faster without you controlling it, but it was a fun activity. I enjoying the people, the scenery and the animals.
On our way back we passed through the center of Viñales again, which basically is just a street with small shops and restaurants. It looked like a nice place to sit down, have a drink and continue enjoying the awesome vibe of the place, but our driver had a different plan. He wanted us to check out a cave, so we ate at a restaurant near the cave. I can’t remember the name of the restaurant, but we had some amazing local food.
This was such a funny dinner btw. My friend wanted to be nice to this young couple and asked if they wanted to eat with us. They hesitated but gave in after the third time asking. I can tell you it was an awkward dinner, for sure! I was using all the Spanish words I knew, I even got to use “Abuela”, the Spanish word for “Grandmother” and my friend was using body language to the fullest.
Make sure to step out of your comfort zone while traveling; it does make some funny stories.
