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1. Simon Bolivar: Liberator of Bolivia, Peru & Venezuela.
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Day 2: I woke at 0500 & couldn't get back to sleep; running through my mind was the boxes of cigars I was hoping to find & how best to fill my 100 stix limit. At 0615 a flock of birds arrived to feed on the tree in the courtyard, they made a heck of a din for an hour or so. By 0800 the kids were arriving for school, which is just two doors down from our hotel, them little dears screamed & shouted until 0850 when they went in & we went to breakfast. If staying at the Tejadillo Hotel, ensure you ask for a room at the back.
After breakfast of omlette & fruit we went walkabout. We headed towards the sea & to capture the Fort across the mouth of the Harbour el Morro -on film. Just before we got there we were hailed by a cabbie called Frank, with a horse & carriage. Guess he caught me in a buoyant generous mood (little did I know how much this little trip was to cost), so I only knocked him down from 40 to 30CUC. I said I didn't mind where we went but I wanted to end up at the Conde de Villanueva Hotel so I could visit the cigar shop. No problemo!
Frank gave us the full guided tour & as we passed the Partagas factory, I said I just wanted to check the factory was actually open rather than just the shop, as rumour has suggested. When I went in & saw the tours were underway. I had a quick look in the shop. Lots of very attractive, expensive trinkets in there & plenty of cigars, although no Boli Cab of 50. Frank introduced me to a friend of his who could get us some cheap cigars. I told him I wasn't interested in fakes or knock off's & was going to buy the real thing. So he changed his tack & said he belonged to a Cigar club with a VIP lounge where they had custom made cigars of the highest quality.
Now if you have been a member of this site for a little while, you would have heard many times don't buy from the hustlers & touts, it's either rubbish or stolen & either way without official receipts you might not get them out of the country. So I was trying to be polite as possible but remaining firm I wanted to go to the Conde'. We continued the tour with Frank & low & behold his friend meets us in a plaza with his carriage, which he hands to a mate & then leads us through the back streets...
As I am also dragging my wife around, I am getting a little exasperated but blow me down if we don't end up at the Conde' ! Yes he took us through the shop & opened the VIP room at the back & opened the drawers & showed me some magnificent looking custom rolled cigars. Now I am in a bit of turmoil. He wants me to buy these & they don't have labels, therefore they are not fakes - as they are not pretending to be something else but of course I have never had one & their offer to try one is wasted as there is no way I can smoke one of those monsters without a several beers & a couple of hrs. The wife is already looking uncomfortable as other people smoking wandering about.
So I said first of all I wanted to check out what the Conde' had in stock of the regular lines. I spoke to one of the staff & he said he hadn't seen Boli CG x 50 for a long time & didn't think any other Habanos would have any on the island. I found two boxes of Party series du Connoisseur No3's - 2007, now discontinued. So although this went against my general plan to buy the most expensive selection I could, thus hopefully saving the most money on European prices & took both boxes. That only left 50 stix left to choose.
I asked about Monte Reserva No2 & Behikes, they had neither. Back in the VIP room it's clearly decision time, Frank & his buddy are puffing away & the wife is going green at the gills. After examining the different vitolas on offer, I decided to take a leap of faith. They looked fine, they smelled great & the Conde' has the best reputation so I guessed their customs must be worth a punt. I took a selection of 6 stix of 4 vitola, turning down the largest ring gauge models, like the Elephanta? Cost 240CUC, ie avge 10CUC each.
Afterwards left they left at the Santa Isabella Hotel, where we had lunch on the roof. After lunch I was making several phone calls to meet up with Nic, which as mentioned in the other thread and we managed to, back at the Conde'. Here I lit up the oldest cigar I took with me, a pre-Rev Farach. It would have been a fine starter & I was in the mood to stay longer but when Nic mentioned taking us to the flea market, suddenly my wife woke up & decided it was time she started her share of the shopping!
That evening we stopped by a smaller restaurant, with very good value menu. We had a good meal & it was pleasant enough until one of the local boys decided to kick off & attack one of the waiters at the entrance to the garden. Suddenly table & chairs are tipping over & fists & feet were flying, just a few yds behind us. Unfortunately the only exit was past them so we waited & once it spilled out on the street, we slipped out before the cops turned up & started joining in. A bit of local colour to end the evening. At least no one used a bottle or a knife.
SAM_2652.jpgSAM_2657.jpgSAM_2656.jpgSAM_2655.jpg
SAM_2658.jpg
ffice" />Day 2: I woke at 0500 & couldn't get back to sleep; running through my mind was the boxes of cigars I was hoping to find & how best to fill my 100 stix limit. At 0615 a flock of birds arrived to feed on the tree in the courtyard, they made a heck of a din for an hour or so. By 0800 the kids were arriving for school, which is just two doors down from our hotel, them little dears screamed & shouted until 0850 when they went in & we went to breakfast. If staying at the Tejadillo Hotel, ensure you ask for a room at the back.
After breakfast of omlette & fruit we went walkabout. We headed towards the sea & to capture the Fort across the mouth of the Harbour el Morro -on film. Just before we got there we were hailed by a cabbie called Frank, with a horse & carriage. Guess he caught me in a buoyant generous mood (little did I know how much this little trip was to cost), so I only knocked him down from 40 to 30CUC. I said I didn't mind where we went but I wanted to end up at the Conde de Villanueva Hotel so I could visit the cigar shop. No problemo!
Frank gave us the full guided tour & as we passed the Partagas factory, I said I just wanted to check the factory was actually open rather than just the shop, as rumour has suggested. When I went in & saw the tours were underway. I had a quick look in the shop. Lots of very attractive, expensive trinkets in there & plenty of cigars, although no Boli Cab of 50. Frank introduced me to a friend of his who could get us some cheap cigars. I told him I wasn't interested in fakes or knock off's & was going to buy the real thing. So he changed his tack & said he belonged to a Cigar club with a VIP lounge where they had custom made cigars of the highest quality.
Now if you have been a member of this site for a little while, you would have heard many times don't buy from the hustlers & touts, it's either rubbish or stolen & either way without official receipts you might not get them out of the country. So I was trying to be polite as possible but remaining firm I wanted to go to the Conde'. We continued the tour with Frank & low & behold his friend meets us in a plaza with his carriage, which he hands to a mate & then leads us through the back streets...
As I am also dragging my wife around, I am getting a little exasperated but blow me down if we don't end up at the Conde' ! Yes he took us through the shop & opened the VIP room at the back & opened the drawers & showed me some magnificent looking custom rolled cigars. Now I am in a bit of turmoil. He wants me to buy these & they don't have labels, therefore they are not fakes - as they are not pretending to be something else but of course I have never had one & their offer to try one is wasted as there is no way I can smoke one of those monsters without a several beers & a couple of hrs. The wife is already looking uncomfortable as other people smoking wandering about.
So I said first of all I wanted to check out what the Conde' had in stock of the regular lines. I spoke to one of the staff & he said he hadn't seen Boli CG x 50 for a long time & didn't think any other Habanos would have any on the island. I found two boxes of Party series du Connoisseur No3's - 2007, now discontinued. So although this went against my general plan to buy the most expensive selection I could, thus hopefully saving the most money on European prices & took both boxes. That only left 50 stix left to choose.
I asked about Monte Reserva No2 & Behikes, they had neither. Back in the VIP room it's clearly decision time, Frank & his buddy are puffing away & the wife is going green at the gills. After examining the different vitolas on offer, I decided to take a leap of faith. They looked fine, they smelled great & the Conde' has the best reputation so I guessed their customs must be worth a punt. I took a selection of 6 stix of 4 vitola, turning down the largest ring gauge models, like the Elephanta? Cost 240CUC, ie avge 10CUC each.
Afterwards left they left at the Santa Isabella Hotel, where we had lunch on the roof. After lunch I was making several phone calls to meet up with Nic, which as mentioned in the other thread and we managed to, back at the Conde'. Here I lit up the oldest cigar I took with me, a pre-Rev Farach. It would have been a fine starter & I was in the mood to stay longer but when Nic mentioned taking us to the flea market, suddenly my wife woke up & decided it was time she started her share of the shopping!
That evening we stopped by a smaller restaurant, with very good value menu. We had a good meal & it was pleasant enough until one of the local boys decided to kick off & attack one of the waiters at the entrance to the garden. Suddenly table & chairs are tipping over & fists & feet were flying, just a few yds behind us. Unfortunately the only exit was past them so we waited & once it spilled out on the street, we slipped out before the cops turned up & started joining in. A bit of local colour to end the evening. At least no one used a bottle or a knife.
SAM_2652.jpgSAM_2657.jpgSAM_2656.jpgSAM_2655.jpg
SAM_2658.jpg
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