THE AUTHOR’S NOTE:
When I started this blog, I wrote a few travelogues. So, if you’re interested in those, by all means—keep reading! 😊 However, as time went on, I shifted my focus towards travel stories and witty guide-like posts to help you plan your adventures. If you wanna know more, check out my homepage!
After sightseeing in the bustling streets of Havana, we headed to the tiny village of Viñales. Located southeast of the island, Viñales is famous for its lush tobacco plantations and limestone monoliths. It’s a gorgeous places under UNESCO World Heritage protection.
Every travel guide is filled with endless paragraphs about the wonders and beauty the valley can offer—especially if you decide to go horse riding in Viñales. Naturally, we decided to try it for ourselves.
Our adventure started first thing in the morning, as our guide picked us up with his horse cart to take us to the place where the actual tour started.
Unlike elsewhere in the world, traveling by a horse–drawn cart is common here, as are bumpy old roads. Riding in the cart gave us a glimpse into 19th-century travel from town to town. TBH, the 19th century wouldn’t fit me.
Luckily, the ride wasn’t too long, and soon, we arrived at the starting point.
But before the tour started, they kindly made us watch how local cigars are produced. Of course, after they had been neatly wrapped, we were offered to try and buy some. Mind you, the prices skyrocketed rather quickly.
Afterward, we finally met our horses ( = caballos, sp.), Ranchero and Palomito.
It had been over 15 years since I last sat on a horse and only Bojan’s second time. Regardless, the locals handed us the horse-halters, and with a slap to the horses’ buttocks, we were off.
Bojan was rather lucky, as Palomito was a “couch potato of a horse” – steadily trotting along the road was enough for him, moreover, he was much more interested in chewing the leaves than getting Bojan from point A to point B.
I, on the other hand, had the exact opposite problem. It seemed as if Ranchero would drink a pack of Red Bull before the start of the tour, and it showed.
He quickly became annoyed when another horse tried to get in front of him, and each time someone tried to overtake him, he started to go faster and faster. Therefore, to put things into perspective, I was constantly being thrown from one side of the saddle to the other, and I honestly hope that no one was there to film that mess of a ride!
As some tracks were rather narrow and steep, I was just glad that I managed to hold on to the saddle AT ALL.
The whole trip was supposed to last four hours or so, but we stopped in between for quite some time.
They showed us some of the Cuban plants on the local farm and the production of coffee and local rum, which was pretty interesting and a nice addition to the horse riding tour!
Despite initially expecting to spend the entire trip riding, my buttocks were ultimately grateful for the breaks. 😀
Read next: A journey to the beach – or at least we thought so (Cuba Travelogue 4/5)
Want to read more travelogues? Then check these out:
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Havana, ooh na-na
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Our yearlong honeymoon
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Wales – a land of sheep, rain, and grandpas
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Hiking in Ushuaia – do’s and definite don’ts