Cienfuegos, Old Coffee Fincas near Las Terrazas and Viñales
After Cienfuegos came the longest drive of our trip, around 500 kilometres, to the Viñales valley. A pity: on exactly that day Fidel’s body arrived in Cienfuegos, and we could have seen the funeral procession in the late afternoon. But time was too short, so we set off early towards Viñales.
A detour to abandoned ruins
The motorways towards Havana and on to Viñales were surprisingly good, which left time for a detour to Las Terrazas. There we searched for two abandoned coffee fincas that have been slumbering in the forest for about 200 years. After a lovely hike we stood in front of the ruins, completely alone. Las Terrazas lies in the Sierra del Rosario, a UNESCO biosphere reserve since 1984; the village takes its name from the terraces on which the deforested slopes were replanted with around 5,000 hectares of forest.
Arrival in the Viñales valley
Right on time for sunset we reached our last stop, the Viñales valley with its distinctive limestone rocks and red, fertile earth, on which, among other things, Cuba’s best tobacco grows.
Left, a cyclist in front of the Cuban flag; right, “¡Gracias Fidel!” – that day Fidel’s body arrived in Cienfuegos.A long colonnade and a lone pedestrian on the empty square.Fishing boats with tall masts lie in the still water of the bay.Two benches and a lamp on the jetty, open water beyond.Flags on the square and on a corner house, twice – the city prepares for the funeral procession.A large Cuban flag on the white colonnaded facade, two schoolgirls below.A stone figure in a suit raises its right arm into the blue sky.“Teatro Tomás Terry” above the windows of the warmly lit facade.Left, a Cuban flag on the facade; right, the columned pediment of the Colegio San Lorenzo.The Colegio San Lorenzo with a Cuban flag and the “26 Julio” banner.The Cuban flag from below, a power cable running across it.A wet street, a classic car and cables strung between the facades.Left, laundry hanging in a window; right, a corner balcony in warm light.A girl with a portrait of Fidel on the step, a piece of bread in her hand.A cyclist in front of columns and a large Cuban flag – we had to leave early for Viñales.A classic car on the country road beneath palms and a grey sky – some 500 kilometres ahead of us.Mist over wooded hills, twice.The road leads into the green slopes of the Sierra del Rosario.Left, a winding road; right, a summit in the clouds – in black and white.Two empty football goals on the meadow below the palm-covered slope near Las Terrazas.A narrow road past a few houses, the wooded mountains behind.Tall palms in front of dark forest and low clouds.Twice, the road through dense greenery – once dry, once wet.The white centre line leads into the tall, dark forest.Pale trunks and lianas – in search of the old coffee fincas.A blue-and-white classic car bumps along the stony forest track.Left, a young palm frond; right, a path beneath the canopy.Gnarled branches in the dark forest, in black and white.Slender trunks and dense foliage – some 5,000 hectares around Las Terrazas were reforested.An open wooden shed on a concrete slab in the middle of the forest.Still water between tall trees.Overgrown remains of walls – the finca has slumbered in the forest for around 200 years.Plant-covered walls of the coffee finca, in black and white.A clearing with smooth, pale trunks.Left, a bamboo thicket; right, a shady forest path.A small stream beneath palms and dense greenery on the banks.Aerial roots reach over the remains of the walls – after the hike we stood before the ruins entirely alone.Left, a root on rubble stone; right, lichen and a fern on the wall.A stone arch and reddish remnants of wall among the trees.A pointed fragment of wall rises between slender trunks.A masonry arch in the open woodland – remains of the second coffee finca.Left, exposed roots; right, a smooth reddish trunk.Palm crowns above the forest canopy under a grey sky, in black and white.Tangled branches, creepers and large leaves.A red classic car on the bend – the motorway was surprisingly good, and so was the country road.Right on time for sunset in the Viñales Valley: mogotes above red, fertile earth.Evening light on the limestone hills – Cuba’s finest tobacco grows in these fields.
