As you exit the station at Cienfuegos you are literally bombarded with people offering you transport and accommodation. In the end we opted for a taxi drive to our casa in a vintage Chevrolet- it was so cool!

Our Casa is the most expensive we have stayed in so far and I have to say that, having read the amazing review it was given in the Lonely Planet, I felt a little disappointed on arrival. We were told there would be hammocks (none!) and a swimming pool. Now technically it did have a swimming pool but as a turtle lived in it there wasn't a cat in hells chance I was getting in, especially after it bit Jackie's toe which she'd been dangling in to cool off.

In the evening we ate a great meal in the Casa and were joined by a lovely Australian girl called Emma. Emma had already organised a private tour to El Nicho for the following day and asked if we wanted to join her. We agreed and met in front of the casa the following morning at 8am. Emma spoke to the driver and he agreed to take us all for $60 which as $20 each was slightly cheaper than the official Cuba tours trip. We drove about an hour to the lake and then were led, hand in hand I might add, down to a small rickety boat. We sailed for about 45 mins across this vast lake and then took a small walk to a pathetic waterfall and pool. The 2 guys were a bit creepy at this point as they just sat and watched us swimming. On the way back Jackie had a worrying conversation with the boat driver which resulted in a light bulb moment - the boat was not included in the $60. We waited until we were back on terra firma and lo and behold the guy started demanding $50. After much discussion we gave the taxi driver $40 and the boat man $40 and told them that was it. The whole thing left a bitter taste in our mouths but also taught us a valuable lesson.

In the evening we decided to cheer ourselves up by having a drink on the roof terrace of Palacio de Valle and then by going dancing at Club Cienfuegos. We had a really good night with a live band and a small taste of dancing the salsa with a local.

The following day we got a bit of a shock when we actually got kicked out of our Casa for not spending enough money with them on their food and drink. After the initial shock we started to look at this as a blessing in disguise as we were both unhappy where we were and it gave us an excuse to move. We decided on a lovely old casa in the centre of town run by an elderly couple. On arrival we were both given a black cat necklace and the following day, after breakfast, she gave us a ring made out of a shell!

We had an almightly storm that day which pretty much wrote off the afternoon. The rain was so heavy it was almost flooding the balcony we were on. The old couple love cats so Jackie was in her element as she loves cats too.

Jackie was bitten really badly by mosquito's in Cienfuegos - take a look at the photos for a snippet of her many many bites!

From Cienfuegos it was back to Havana for a few days and then on to Mexico.