Cuba #5

Pretty much finished Kerouac's Desolation Angels this afternoon. I'm in the lobby bar, drinking and reading. It's been pretty nice here -- average temperature is about 28-31, but windy, so it doesn't feel very hot. The mosquitos are really biting down here, and the resort's got a tractor driving around in the morning, blowing insecticide fog on the lagoon and around the resort perimeter. Unlike at the Brisas last year, the closest town is Morón, about 90 minutes away. So there's not much to do outside of the resort, save for paid excursions. We're pretty much trapped here under a brief haze of DDT. Luckily the wind blows everything over to the Tryp resort, down the road.

There's this terrific lunch place at Mélia: an open-air thatched roof hall with an enormous barbecue pit. Last night (Cuban Day or something), there were about six roasted pigs and an ocean of seafood to be had. It's kind of disheartening being a vegetarian in Cuba, although there are still many different things for you to eat. Unfortunately, at this BBQ, the best you can get is spaghetti with butter, unless you choose from the salad or desert bars.