Here's a report from early summer in Havana. Total of 7-8 days.
First off, from what I have read I thought no one spoke English. I was surprised how many people actually knew English and for those who didn't, I used google translate. Downloaded Spanish for those times when the internet stopped working due to blackouts or traveling to more remote areas. I stayed in Old Havana and Vedado.
I started working on Badoo way too soon. A few days before, 1 week at the latest is all you need, but you could just show up and start shooting messages. All say they want real relationships, but almost none rejected money for fun. Had two dates who wanted a relationship but both asked for money when leaving for their business or their mom's birthday, etc; their asking was right around the asking price for p4 p. They had no issues with just hanging out in the casa for the date! I was more than happy to give them what they wanted (about $50 give or take considering the fluctuation of the currency). Decided to just negotiate there on out. I tried Bumble and Tinder but wasn't as useful. Didn't get as much hits on Instagram, but many of the dating app girls had IG so they are on there, you just got to be patient with them seeing your messages whether that's DM or comments, but my IG game isn't that strong to start with and you probably have to start much sooner than the dating app!
Walked Prado and there are a lot working girls hanging out just walking, sitting, and such. You can people watch on the Prado, day and night, they will sit near you and start small talk before maybe ask for a drink of water, a lighter, etc, then if you want a little fun. Those that approached while sitting were not the best lookers. A pimp approached and propositioned his girl, which was cute but 10 or so years beyond my preferred age range, and priced too high, and he had other girls walking the Prado. As I was making my way through my last block of the Prado before calling it, I spotted a girl being approached by guys but she kept walking. Our eyes met and I thought she was underaged so I was getting ready to just call it a night before she called me out. Tiny 23-24 year old that looked much younger, checked her ID twice, and had my CASA host check it as well! Advanced English skills. Not sure if it was a sellers market, as there seemed to be plenty of Prado girls, but this girl was definitely the cream of the crop. She told me she is picky and I believed her as I watched her turn away two guys. I walked the Prado one night only, the rest were during the day. All but the Prado girl provided GFE with DFK and DATY. The two girls that wanted a relationship both provided a very sensual shower experience, but all actual fun was in the bed. The shower was too small!
Walked San Rafael 2 nights starting from Parque Central to Parque Fe del Valle. Many folks people watching and just hanging out at the park both nights. Couldn't tell if there were any working girls. The walk to and from Parque Fe del Valle had a few working girls but they were not up to par with what I was looking for.
Never quite made it to the nightclubs or bars! It's on my to-do list!
My trip consisted of paying everything in pesos. If anything was dollars or euros I would would just ask to pay in pesos. To simplify the exchange rate of USD and Euros, many places including girls just consider them as equal rates. I did money exchanges with my casas and delivery service. Seemed like all my casas provided money exchange. Found a kid off one of the Facebook groups that literally ran throughout Havana providing money exchange delivery service while also hustling side jobs. The kid provide good but not great rates mostly due to the fluctuating currency. I actually got a pretty very good rate from him an hour later as the dollar value fell. Limited English but it worked! Very non threatening skinny kid, and there are others off FB groups. Have heard of people paying everything in dollars as the best route, but as I'm not living on a pension or loaded with cash, paying in pesos in general went much farther even though it required a little more effort.
Paid everyone in pesos and the girls seemed to be okay with it. If they proposed in dollars, I just asked for pesos and they were more than happy to give in pesos. Saved a couple of bucks that added up to a free fuck.
Bought a SIM card at the airport, later found out its a tourist SIM card and is data only. Usually not an issue as you can still use Whatsapp or Telegram, but I was not able to use La Nave because I needed a confirmation text or something. Transportation is expensive unlike other latin countries, and La Nave helps with not needing to negotiate as a non-Spanish speaker. If getting a SIM card, make sure its not a tourist SIM. Took me many hours to finally have someone who spoke English to clarify that with me. The tourist SIM was $35 compared to the local SIM which was, I believe, less than $10.
Electrical blackouts are very common and a way of life! Stay in Old Havana closest to the tourist areas to reduce the risk of blackouts. I had one blackout while I was in Havana, but it was due to a crazy thunderstorm! Got an awesome top floor penthouse casa but the blackout forced me to walk up 13 flights of stairs, than as I reached the 12th floor, the power came back on and the elevator opened. Usually I would just wait but it was midnight and I needed sleep! Traveling to the typical cities such as Vinales and Trinidad included daily blackouts so be warned. My Vinales casa host told me a couple had to leave because they could deal with the heat from not having the AC running, and my casa had external power for a fan.
Met up with MikeyVee123, standout and chill guy and a cigar aficionados! Hung out for a few days chatting, did a tour together, and such, definitely made getting my bearings with Havana and Cuba easier!
One more thing, I've read about folks bringing lots of $1 bills as tips. However, I found this to not be the case as I was given back the $1 bill and asked for pesos. I guess it reduces the need for them to find a money exchange.
Overall, I loved Cuba for all its craziness and the people are great! There is a lot of hustlers, and everyone seems to need money for their infant daughter or mother! The girls are beautiful and come in all shades of color from very white European to black as ash girls!
