Havana

Primusduvel.

What was the name of your casa particular in Vedado?

I just got back from my trip to Havana. Here is the short report to the extend I can remember things, since I didn't take notes. Bear in mind that the purpose of our trip wasn't just for mongering.

We got our Mexican visitor visa at TIJ airport (260 pesos) and they took the visa card from us at the time of departure at MEX. So we had to get a new one on our way back to MEX. This time at no cost. Once we arrived at HAV a plain cloths guy approached us and we went thru some questioning. The questioning was routine and the guy was very polite. Then a supervisor showed up and asked some of the same questions, again very polite and welcoming. We didn't have a hotel reservation and told them we were going to stay at a casa particular. For some reason that we didn't ask they asked us to make a hotel reservation at the airport and stay our first night at a hotel. And we complied, $40 a night for Hotel Vedado. More review later on the hotel. Then on the way out the costume agent stopped us and asked a few questions, some of them same questions, again very polite and welcoming. They didn't search out luggage and we got out. I would say the whole process took us about 1. 5 hours. We took a minivan cab to Vedado for $20. But before that we exchanged some money (Euro) at the airport kiosk.

The Vedado hotel is nothing special. I would say probably a 2 star hotel with American standard. But the location is good, very close to a few bars, specifically La Zorra why el Cuervo which we like a lot because of its music, almost no muchachas there, mostly tourist and some locals that can afford these kind of things. On another night I noticed a few guys that came with their "dates" though. The entrance fee is 10 CUC but you can spend that towards the stuff you eat / drink at the bar. I recommend this place for listening to some nice jazz in a cozzy atmosphere.

We decided to head to Capri, which we later realized was closed due to the renovation of the building. On our way there my buddy started asking this guy directions and not knowing the game fell in his trap, so we are following this guy to a "cool" bar "full" of chick. It turned out to be a Spanish bar with Barcelona and Real Madrid stuff hanging from its wall (can't remember the name). The place was as empty as it gets but kinda cool. So the bartender took our drink orders and the "guy" took our girl orders. Hahaha. I should give it to him for bringing the girls sooner that we thought and being kinda funny and not bugging. The girls were 7-8s. So my overexcited friends decided to settle for what they got and not go anywhere else. I had no objection since I was no less tired than them after a full day of traveling, specially with a red-eye fllight to MEX. We bought a round of drinks for the girls and negotiated the price to 40 CUC plus taxi. Then headed to a house in Havana Vieja in separate taxis to finish the business. I am not sure but I think we paid $30 for 3 rooms. The service was great so I decided to get the girl's number for keep it as my emergency contact. Haha. And yes, I used my the emergency contact the next day before heading out for partying.

2nd day: We found a casa in Vedado for $70 a night. 2 rooms w A / C. 2 showers, kitchen and independent on the 6th floor with a nice large balcony. He also converted the living by adding a bed and a fan, so we each had our own room. No extra charge. I called my chica from last night and had a round with her before we headed out to Casa de la Musica. 40 CUC including taxi plus some gifts. In the line to get into Casa de la Musica we were behind these two hot girls that looked like typical club goers. Later in the club one of them politely and non-aggressively asked me if we wanted accompany. Huh! I felt being at the bottom of the learning curve. So I answered no since we hadn't scanned the place yet. Later we invited them over to our table and we hung out for some time. Turned out my chica was a 23 year old nurse from Camaguey, in Havana for two weeks to make some extra cash. She was fun but hard on the price (80 CUC). She didn't take my 40 CUC offer, so I told her I understood she had to make money and I didn't want to waste her time. And told her my offer still stands if she can't find anyone else. She left and came back in 10 minutes. LOL We left later on to out casa and all had a great time there.

I will write more about other places in a separate post. But overall, I liked Havana a lot and will definitely go back. It is not the easiest trip but really loved the country. Plus the quality of the girls is very high. That said, from what I have read in this forum there are probably better places to go if the purpose of the trip is solely mongering.

Hit me up if you have any questions.

The girls from Camaguey are beautiful and lots of fun for the most part.

I've been told its a beautiful place to visit.

[QUOTE=Zebel; 1209143]I just got back from my trip to Havana. Here is the short report to the extend I can remember things, since I didn't take notes. Bear in mind that the purpose of our trip wasn't just for mongering.

We got our Mexican visitor visa at TIJ airport (260 pesos) and they took the visa card from us at the time of departure at MEX. So we had to get a new one on our way back to MEX. This time at no cost. Once we arrived at HAV a plain cloths guy approached us and we went thru some questioning. The questioning was routine and the guy was very polite. Then a supervisor showed up and asked some of the same questions, again very polite and welcoming. We didn't have a hotel reservation and told them we were going to stay at a casa particular. For some reason that we didn't ask they asked us to make a hotel reservation at the airport and stay our first night at a hotel. And we complied, $40 a night for Hotel Vedado. More review later on the hotel. Then on the way out the costume agent stopped us and asked a few questions, some of them same questions, again very polite and welcoming. They didn't search out luggage and we got out. I would say the whole process took us about 1. 5 hours. We took a minivan cab to Vedado for $20. But before that we exchanged some money (Euro) at the airport kiosk.

The Vedado hotel is nothing special. I would say probably a 2 star hotel with American standard. But the location is good, very close to a few bars, specifically La Zorra why el Cuervo which we like a lot because of its music, almost no muchachas there, mostly tourist and some locals that can afford these kind of things. On another night I noticed a few guys that came with their "dates" though. The entrance fee is 10 CUC but you can spend that towards the stuff you eat / drink at the bar. I recommend this place for listening to some nice jazz in a cozzy atmosphere.

We decided to head to Capri, which we later realized was closed due to the renovation of the building. On our way there my buddy started asking this guy directions and not knowing the game fell in his trap, so we are following this guy to a "cool" bar "full" of chick. It turned out to be a Spanish bar with Barcelona and Real Madrid stuff hanging from its wall (can't remember the name). The place was as empty as it gets but kinda cool. So the bartender took our drink orders and the "guy" took our girl orders. Hahaha. I should give it to him for bringing the girls sooner that we thought and being kinda funny and not bugging. The girls were 7-8s. So my overexcited friends decided to settle for what they got and not go anywhere else. I had no objection since I was no less tired than them after a full day of traveling, specially with a red-eye fllight to MEX. We bought a round of drinks for the girls and negotiated the price to 40 CUC plus taxi. Then headed to a house in Havana Vieja in separate taxis to finish the business. I am not sure but I think we paid $30 for 3 rooms. The service was great so I decided to get the girl's number for keep it as my emergency contact. Haha. And yes, I used my the emergency contact the next day before heading out for partying.

2nd day: We found a casa in Vedado for $70 a night. 2 rooms w A / C. 2 showers, kitchen and independent on the 6th floor with a nice large balcony. He also converted the living by adding a bed and a fan, so we each had our own room. No extra charge. I called my chica from last night and had a round with her before we headed out to Casa de la Musica. 40 CUC including taxi plus some gifts. In the line to get into Casa de la Musica we were behind these two hot girls that looked like typical club goers. Later in the club one of them politely and non-aggressively asked me if we wanted accompany. Huh! I felt being at the bottom of the learning curve. So I answered no since we hadn't scanned the place yet. Later we invited them over to our table and we hung out for some time. Turned out my chica was a 23 year old nurse from Camaguey, in Havana for two weeks to make some extra cash. She was fun but hard on the price (80 CUC). She didn't take my 40 CUC offer, so I told her I understood she had to make money and I didn't want to waste her time. And told her my offer still stands if she can't find anyone else. She left and came back in 10 minutes. LOL We left later on to out casa and all had a great time there.

I will write more about other places in a separate post. But overall, I liked Havana a lot and will definitely go back. It is not the easiest trip but really loved the country. Plus the quality of the girls is very high. That said, from what I have read in this forum there are probably better places to go if the purpose of the trip is solely mongering.

Hit me up if you have any questions.[/QUOTE]Only 2 posts and one fine trip report! Much appreciated. Thanks.

Do you recall the details of the vedado casa?

[QUOTE=Zebel; 1209143]I just got back from my trip to Havana. Here is the short report to the extend I can remember things, since I didn't take notes. Bear in mind that the purpose of our trip wasn't just for mongering.

We got our Mexican visitor visa...[/QUOTE]

[QUOTE=Jonesie;1210089]Do you recall the details of the vedado casa?[/QUOTE]Of course I do. I am in my late 30s so my alzheimer attacks happen rarely and usually don't last long. LOL Let me know what info you need, my full membership is not in full force yet, so I can't send PMs.

[QUOTE=Sammytheman;1210037]Only 2 posts and one fine trip report! Much appreciated. Thanks.[/QUOTE]Thanks Sammytheman. I am impressed also. 2 posts and I already made a friend here.

Now, more on the trip. (with less typos this time, so help me god LOL)

I need to clarify that my Spanish is very basic and is limited to asking and answering some questions, making some comments and a little more. I certainly can't tell my life story. With that said, I believe while knowing the language will take me a long way, not knowing the language can't be a show stopper. A little bit of charm sometimes works just as well if not better.

Club Rio in Miramar:

We took a cab ride from Vedado to Rio on a Monday or Tuesday night. Arrived around 10pm and the place was packed with girls and not so many guys. Some tables are reserved but you can get them if you order bottle service. We were not much into drinking that night so we got a table in the back. The girls were mostly 7s and 8s, some 9s and a few 10s. They are very aggressive and some won't even stop bugging you while you are sitting and having a conversation. It is more entertaining than annoying if you take it with a grain of salt. You will be the star of the moment till the next group of guys show up, so take advantage of that. The place gets really packed around midnight and it becomes more like a dance club from that point on, but you still can pick up working girls. We ended up inviting three girls to our table and negotiated the price while chatting about other stuff. We started from 80 cuc and settled at 45 cuc plus taxi. Now when it comes to negotiating I tend to keep it short, sweet and respectful. I don't think anyone wants to wear himself out and spoil the fun by tying to squeeze the heck out of the deal. I personally take the +- $10 approach. More or less like gambling, except that with the hobby there is always a happy ending (for the most part). So I ended up with a 19-year old fake blonde pro with tight tanned body and cute face, I would say an 8 or with more beer 9. My other two friends got two semi-pros at the same rate. Overall good experience with the club and the girls but we didn't go back since my friends thought it was a bit too crazy. LOL I think everyone should go RIO at least once. I would have gone back if we had more time and my friends were game. The girl that I had was fun, crazy in bed and quite a performer.

One thing I noticed in our encounter was that if you are hanging out in groups and have few girls at the table, the less pro girls usually leave the negotiation to the pros. I heard this quite often 'whatever the other girls agree to, I will be ok with. ' Just make sure you don't end up in an endless circle. We always paid our girls the same and it kept the encounter drama free. We almost ran to a drama situation at the casa when one friend treated his girl with more gifts but it was nothing outrageous and we managed it out.

To be continued.

On a side note, I highly recommend the 1-day tour of Vinales for 55 cuc. They pick you up around 8am from a major hotel and drop you off around 7pm. The details are more appropriate for another forum.

This forum has been a great source of information to me and I hope I can pay my dues by my contribution.

Cheers!

The address, dimensions, shared vs independent.

[QUOTE=Zebel;1210201]Of course I do. I am in my late 30s so my alzheimer attacks happen rarely and usually don't last long. LOL Let me know what info you need, my full membership is not in full force yet, so I can't send PMs.[/QUOTE]

[QUOTE=Jonesie;1210264]The address, dimensions, shared vs independent.[/QUOTE]Calle H, #318, Apt. 12. 2br, one large one medium size. 2 bathroom, one large one small. Small dining area, mini fridge in both rooms stocked with beer and soda at a cost, a large fridge in dining room. Medium size living room with 20" TV. Galley kitchen with all kind of dishes and pots. The apartment is independent but a little strange for bringing over chicas. The entrance to the building opens with a key so you have to be down there to open the door for your guests. Then you take the elevator up to the last floor (6th) and once you walk out of the elevator you pass by the owner's apartment. So your coming and going won't go unnoticed. The owner lives with his family, meaning he may object to heavy partying and going overboard.

Sorry, you are out of luck on dimensions. Let me know if there is anything else.

One other place that was fun enough that was worth visiting again was Yas Club (Jas Club, Jazz Club?). This place is in Vedado and right across from Melia Cohiba hotel. It is in shopping center (Galerias de Paseo). Ask any cap driver and they'll take you there. The entrance is 10 CUC and like most places you use that as credit towards buying food or drinks. You may run to two or three girls in the stairs or where the shops are. Don't settle for them just yet, unless you are a gambler. Once inside you will not see so many girls and the ones that you see are fairly discrete, meaning they are no arss chewing like the muchachas in Club Rio or Casa de la Musica. This is a quite upscale bar with fascinating music. Definitely not a mongering paradise. If you see a girl there take is as the icing on the cake but I certainly wouldn't go there to find a muchacha. Also a nice place to take your "date."

Few lessons that I learned:

- If you need to ask someone for information, your best bet is asking mid-age or older folks. The young guys will most likely have a hidden agenda. Which I don't blame them for but simply don't welcome. Now if it was a girl I would definitely be anxious to put that agenda to action. LOL.

- If you are mongering by yourself, avoid the 1-hour casas in Habana Vieja late at nights. I was told by a casa owner that jumping is not uncommon late at night and we were lucky because it was 3 of us.

- Always always always, like any other country, carry good amount of change. You will save a lot specially on cab rides.

- We never tried picking up on Malecon. You see quite a crowd there at nights and it becomes a scene, also very tempting to go and melt in. I was told by one of the locals that the chances are very low. Foreigners will stand out like sore thumb and this is a risky place for locals to socialize with foreigners. (it seems to be ok anywhere else though!)

- The Playa del Este is a nice beach and has a great vibe over the weekend. It is very fun, specially if you can melt in with the young folks. There are also beaches in the same area for family and even gays. Watch our for the later. LOL.

- If you see a HOT girl with a guy don't let that push you back. I would start a respectful conversation and see where it would take me. Sometimes the girl is up for an offer, and if not, you just made two friends. With that said, I think people that hit on the other guy's girl are out of class, regardless of where in the world they are. But having a chat to discover the relationship is understandable, I hope.

I leave the crossing the border to San Diego story for some other time.

Havana review is 5 words or less: I will definitely go back.

Will be in Vedado, beginning Novemebr 9 for a week. Anybody else on these dates?

[QUOTE=Zebel; 1211311]One other place that was fun enough that was worth visiting again was Yas Club (Jas Club, Jazz Club?). This place is in Vedado and right across from Melia Cohiba hotel. It is in shopping center (Galerias de Paseo). Ask any cap driver and they'll take you there. The entrance is 10 CUC and like most places you use that as credit towards buying food or drinks. You may run to two or three girls in the stairs or where the shops are. Don't settle for them just yet, unless you are a gambler. Once inside you will not see so many girls and the ones that you see are fairly discrete, meaning they are no arss chewing like the muchachas in Club Rio or Casa de la Musica. This is a quite upscale bar with fascinating music. Definitely not a mongering paradise. If you see a girl there take is as the icing on the cake but I certainly wouldn't go there to find a muchacha. Also a nice place to take your "date."

Few lessons that I learned:

- If you need to ask someone for information, your best bet is asking mid-age or older folks. The young guys will most likely have a hidden agenda. Which I don't blame them for but simply don't welcome. Now if it was a girl I would definitely be anxious to put that agenda to action. LOL.

- If you are mongering by yourself, avoid the 1-hour casas in Habana Vieja late at nights. I was told by a casa owner that jumping is not uncommon late at night and we were lucky because it was 3 of us.

- Always always always, like any other country, carry good amount of change. You will save a lot specially on cab rides.

- We never tried picking up on Malecon. You see quite a crowd there at nights and it becomes a scene, also very tempting to go and melt in. I was told by one of the locals that the chances are very low. Foreigners will stand out like sore thumb and this is a risky place for locals to socialize with foreigners. (it seems to be ok anywhere else though!)

- The Playa del Este is a nice beach and has a great vibe over the weekend. It is very fun, specially if you can melt in with the young folks. There are also beaches in the same area for family and even gays. Watch our for the later. LOL.

- If you see a HOT girl with a guy don't let that push you back. I would start a respectful conversation and see where it would take me. Sometimes the girl is up for an offer, and if not, you just made two friends. With that said, I think people that hit on the other guy's girl are out of class, regardless of where in the world they are. But having a chat to discover the relationship is understandable, I hope.

I leave the crossing the border to San Diego story for some other time.

Havana review is 5 words or less: I will definitely go back.[/QUOTE]Obviously you crossed to Tijuana from San Diego. How was that experience? What about coming back? What charter did you use to fly? I am going same way for the first time? Did they shake you off at the border coming back? I want to bring some cigs back too! L.

[QUOTE=Zebel; 1211311]Few lessons that I learned:

- If you need to ask someone for information, your best bet is asking mid-age or older folks. The young guys will most likely have a hidden agenda. Which I don't blame them for but simply don't welcome. Now if it was a girl I would definitely be anxious to put that agenda to action. LOL.

- Always always always, like any other country, carry good amount of change. You will save a lot specially on cab rides.

- We never tried picking up on Malecon. You see quite a crowd there at nights and it becomes a scene, also very tempting to go and melt in. I was told by one of the locals that the chances are very low. Foreigners will stand out like sore thumb and this is a risky place for locals to socialize with foreigners. (it seems to be ok anywhere else though!)

- If you see a HOT girl with a guy don't let that push you back. I would start a respectful conversation and see where it would take me. Sometimes the girl is up for an offer, and if not, you just made two friends. With that said, I think people that hit on the other guy's girl are out of class, regardless of where in the world they are. But having a chat to discover the relationship is understandable, I hope.[/QUOTE]Good bits of advice. I always avoid younger people too when asking someone for information, especially males.

There are apparently several areas of the Malecon where there are security cameras, so Cubans are hesitant because big brother is watching, and you know in Cuba they are.

As far as the HOT chick with a guy thing is concerned, your advice is spot on. I once met a chick in Holguin who was with this guy. The three of us hung out together for a while, and then he just faded away and the chica and I hooked up. I looked back on the evening later and it seemed that the chica was definitely in charge, and they guy was there to deflect any potential attention from cops, I guess a couple attracts less attention than a young single woman. All I did was buy him a beer when the 3 of us sat down, and I don't even recall saying goodbye to him, he just disappeared. However, tact is very important here, and I would not try this outside of the big cities / heavily touristed areas.

[QUOTE=Velasco;1212109]Good bits of advice. I always avoid younger people too[/QUOTE]Hahaha! I remember this old white man in shorts that I asked for direction to a restaurant. He ran away so fast, he was about to get hit by a passing car! LOL! Was it you? Jokes. I guess it all depends. I try to avoid people who approach me because I find the odds much better if I approach them, regardless of age. All Cubans are out there to make cash off tourists. As a matter of fact, my old casa owner tried to charge us $1. 25 for each can of beer that he bought for $1 downstairs at the gas station. Asked him why? He says because it is convenient for us LOL!

[QUOTE=Start123;1212023]Obviously you crossed to Tijuana from San Diego. How was that experience? What about coming back? What charter did you use to fly? I am going same way for the first time? Did they shake you off at the border coming back? I want to bring some cigs back too! L.[/QUOTE]Crossing from San Diego to Tijuana is just a walk thru. I did use Otay Mesa crossing since it is closer to the airport. There is an Immigration Office to your right once you get to the Mexican side. You can get your tourist card here but they will tell you it is easier to get it at the airport. And that is what I did. I was told that there is a charter flight to Havana from Tijuana but I chose not to use it. I don't like charter flight. They limit your travel a great deal, specially with cancellations, delays and limitation of one flight per day, or in this case per week, if I am not mistaken. I took AeroMexico with connection in Mexico City and it worked out nice.

Coming back is another story by itself. Keep in mind when you get to Mexico City on your way back they put a entry stamp on your passport. So when you cross the border is a bit of luck. I have a Sentri Card that came with my Global Entry so I didn't have to show them my passport book. I suggest you get a passport card which will do the same thing, you just can't skip the line with it. I had a rolled painting in my hand that drew the officer's attention and then a series of questions. He even ask me if I left Mexico during my trip and followed by asking if I went to Cuba. (WTF!) But I was finally let go with no secondary and luggage inspection. My other friend with a passport book just zipped thru. But they got my third friend on the hook, opened his luggage and he brought back was from Havana and not a single thing from Cuba. So they force him to go back to the Mexico side and give them to someone, which he does. Lucky that old lady with all those Cuban cigars, rum and more. Then they ask him about the passport stamp and he made a mistake today by going thru immigration when he got to the airport. (an obvious bullshit story) At this point they know what is going on but let him off the hook and he is out, without most of the stuff that he bought.

So if I have one piece of advice it is to get a passport card. It doesn't cost much and comes very handy even in other situations. We also used Otay crossing and now I think maybe San Ysidro was better since it is usually more crowded. The other thing that I may do is when I get to Tijuana leave my Cuban stuff there and cross the border with my luggage. Then go back and get my stuff. This way I draw less attention and if they inspect my luggage I am not caught red-handed. LOL.

Don't let this stop you for going to Cuba. The experience is well worth it. And so are the girls.