This week I took a trip that changed the way I measure time, and I am not talking about hours or minutes, but about pauses, sighs, that breeze that hugs you without warning. That trip was to Varadero, and my base of operations, my little earthly paradise, was the Hotel Solymar.
I remember the exact moment I walked through its doors. While in many hotels you are greeted by air conditioning or the bustle of the reception desk, here the absolute protagonist was the greenery. I looked up and was left breathless; the Solymar lobby is not just a passageway, it is a dream vertical garden. From a ceiling that must be more than five stories high, dozens of potos cascaded down, those hanging plants with heart-shaped leaves that seem to whisper to the rhythm of the wind.
The vines came down boldly, almost brushing the heads of the guests, creating a natural curtain that filtered the Caribbean light. It was like being inside a secret grotto where the jungle and luxury shook hands. You did not need to go outside to feel like you were in the middle of nature; that green lobby was the hotel's lung, and I already knew it would be hard for me to leave.
But of course, the real magnet was just a few steps away. Access to the sea in Varadero is, in itself, a dreamlike postcard, but from the Solymar you experience it with a special intimacy. Going out through the hotel's back door and sinking your feet into that white, fine sand, which looks like flour, was a ritual I repeated endlessly. The sea was that enormous turquoise mass that changes color depending on the sun: sometimes emerald green, sometimes cobalt blue. Swimming there feels like being in a giant natural pool, without chlorine, only with that salt that heals the soul.
And speaking of pools, the hotel's pool is no slouch. That mix of curves and shiny tiles reminded me of 1950s movies, with a retro but impeccable touch. I spent entire afternoons floating, a cocktail in hand, watching the sky turn orange at sunset.
However, one of my favorite spots was its coffee shops. Here the word glamour is no exaggeration. Solymar has achieved that Cuban balance between casual and sophisticated. Sitting at one of its little tables, with the light filtered by the hanging plants peeking through the windows, was like being on a European terrace but with the rhythm of the Caribbean.
And the coffee... Oh, the coffee. I do not know if it was the saltiness in the air, the humidity, or the magic of the place, but every cup of Cuban coffee I ordered there had a body and a foam that transported me. It was that deep, dark, and sweet caffeine that awakens all five senses. I drank it slowly, watching people pass by, feeling part of something vibrant.
But if there is something that Solymar gave me that I would not trade for any presidential suite, it was the chance to breathe. You feel your lungs truly expand, that stress dissolves in every breath of iodine and wet sand.
I will come back. In the meantime, I am left with the echo of that breeze and the image of that lobby covered in potos, moving slowly as if the hotel itself were breathing to the rhythm of the Caribbean.
🌊 𝑻𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒌𝒔 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈! 🌊
𝑰𝒇 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒅𝒐𝒏’𝒕 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝒎𝒆 𝒚𝒆𝒕, 𝑰’𝒎 𝒂 𝑪𝒖𝒃𝒂𝒏 𝒏𝒆𝒖𝒓𝒐𝒍𝒐𝒈𝒊𝒔𝒕 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒘𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒆𝒓, 𝒂 𝒎𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓, 𝒂 𝒘𝒐𝒎𝒂𝒏, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒂 𝒅𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒎𝒆𝒓 𝒘𝒉𝒐’𝒔 𝒇𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅 𝒊𝒏 𝑯𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒂 𝒃𝒆𝒂𝒖𝒕𝒊𝒇𝒖𝒍 𝒔𝒑𝒂𝒄𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒐𝒂𝒓.
𝑨𝒍𝒍 𝒕𝒆𝒙𝒕 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒊𝒎𝒂𝒈𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒎𝒚 𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒈𝒊𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝒄𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔, 100% 𝒉𝒖𝒎𝒂𝒏-𝒎𝒂𝒅𝒆 (𝒏𝒐 𝑨𝑰).
𝑩𝒂𝒏𝒏𝒆𝒓 𝒅𝒆𝒔𝒊𝒈𝒏𝒆𝒅 𝒃𝒚 𝑳𝒖𝒎𝒊𝒊.
𝑳𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒑𝒐𝒔𝒕? 𝑼𝒑𝒗𝒐𝒕𝒆, 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕, 𝒐𝒓 𝒓𝒆𝒃𝒍𝒐𝒈 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒄𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒊𝒕𝒚! 💙
