Excursión

Fewer times have I felt more Yuma than our last weekend in Viñales, Pinar del Río. We arrived on Friday afternoon and stayed for two days of exciting activities in this small town in the Valle de Silencio. Although we looked strange horseback riding through town and struggling to salsa at the casa cultural, my favorite activity occurred far from view in the underground paradise of the cuevas de Santo Tomas. The ten of us donned our hard hats with headlamps and descended into complete silence and darkness to marvel at the world inside the mountains. These caves had been used in the past as a Palenque for runaway slaves and as a refuge for rebel soldiers fleeing Batista’s troops. The entire system of caves extends for over 45 km through the mountains of Viñales, although we were only able to visit a few galerías in the span of three hours. Although Viñales is a tourist haven, few have been able to enter this untouched wonder. The highlight came deep within the cave, after passing hundreds of stalactites and hidden corners, when we were able to enter a silent room of crystals and calcium formations in the form of little tiny protrusions on the cave floor. We entered in groups of three and had to kneel and waddle to move, as the “salon” was so small. It took my breath away to see these marvels tucked away inside the mountain and imagine the people who had come through before.