The biggest headache in planning the Cuba trip wasn’t the itinerary, flights, or visa. It was money. Due to the official embargo, Cuban banks do not recognize U.S.-issued debit and credit cards. So, paying with credit cards and withdrawing cash through ATMs is absolutely not possible for anyone using American […]
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There were two types of reactions to my last post about visiting Cuba and bringing gifts of hygiene supplies and medicine: “Did you really have to bring soap and pills with you? I thought Cuba had everything by now…” Or “Wait… You went to Cuba? Is that legal? How did […]
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There is a conversation that happens in every country we visit. The locals earnestly ask, we honestly answer, the locals are thrilled, and by the end of it, everyone is happy. But this one time, it went off script. “How do you like Cuba?” the taxi driver asked, flashing us […]
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Last month, we did something irresponsible. Are you ready? We paid $15 for a cup of coffee. Yes, frugal backpackers who run this blog did that. Before you judge us for the splurge, all I can say is that we did it in the fancy, four-story Starbucks on Chicago’s Magnificent […]
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There were three things I knew about Jamaica before our trip there: Bob Marley, legalized weed, and beautiful beaches. I was wrong about one out of three. No, this is not a post unraveling a giant conspiracy theory that Bob Marley was actually a Puerto Rican or a tedious list […]
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