Page 133 - WINE DINE AND TRAVEL SUMMER 2022 DISCOVERING MADRID

We spent Easter weekend exploring the
UNESCO World Heritage city of Trinidad,
Cuba’s colonial treasure. At sunrise, we
walked its narrow cobbled streets, past pas-
tel-colored homes, as the town slowly came
to life. A highlight of our visit happened on
Good Friday (a national holiday in Cuba),
when we joined local families in a candle-lit
twilight procession that wound its way from
Trinidad’s historic Church of the Holy Trinity
along a circuitous route back to the town’s
historic Plaza Mayor.
We took a field trip from Trinidad one af-
ternoon to visit an 18th century hacienda in
the Valle de los Ingenios (valley of the sugar
mills) where we photographed a young local
preparing for her quinceanera. Back in
Trinidad, we managed to eek out time for a
dance lesson, a scrumptious foot massage, a
little shopping – and a few hours of practic-
ing our salsa with locals at a neighborhood
dance hall.
After a stop in Cienfuegos, we returned to
Havana to prepare for our journeys home.
But first we gathered for another sundown
stroll along the Malecon. It’s an image that
lingers – and triggers the senses: I hear the
echo of waves slamming the sea wall, the
steamy rhythm of hip-swaying salsa, laughter
and clinking glasses. It brings to mind the
breathtaking sound of silence at sunrise, the
tart taste of freshly marinated ceviche, the
slow burn of Havana Club rum – and the
warm pleasure of embracing new Cuban
friends. But perhaps most of all, it reminds
me once again that travel can be magical - an
exquisite joy.

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