Giving thanks🙏.

 On the last Thursday of November each year, Americans make a big hullabaloo about giving thanks.

 But it's something we Jamaicans were taught to do daily.

The thing I give thanks for none stop is good health.

I usually try to get some exercise  before going off to stuff myself😁.

Having a bicycle sure helps in that quest.😁

Anyway since I am unapologetic food lover, I head to Michelle's mom, Miss Norma, one of the greatest cooks on earth, on that American holiday.

Miss. Norms

But we don't do turkey as it looks too much like a creature that flies very high and nuh work pon Sunday, that we have at home.😁

That's mine😁

Michele birthday was the 22nd and her loving sister Melissa bought her a cake.

We had lots of fun as usual.

Yup, I got a stomach full and had lots of fun on America's Thanksgiving Day. 

So did DJ Shaddy, as he wrote the hilarious lyrics below and used AI to create this song about the day.

 It's on you tube at:

https://youtu.be/QMFQBtKuIVM?si=grq_PNg4db5wunBs

On Friday it was on to Sebring for more food and camaraderie with my best friend Sunshine and family 😁.

Sebring is a small, quiet city of around 11,000 people, where black bears roam at night. Yup they see them on their cameras but I have never seen one although I would love to. All I ever see are deers 😡

It's some 3 hours away in the northwest of Florida and on Friday morning before I got there it was 48 Degrees.  Luckily it warmed up before I arrived.

Houses are far apart in Sebring 

It's peaceful there.

Since I was in no hurry, I took a longer and more scenic route which I had discovered years before, while going to nearby Lake Placid to a caladium festival. :JOAN, MY VIEWS.: Caladiums galore https://share.google/d4UTWkhQucCSMI44O.

That area is a Trump red neck country and as if to remind me, there was a huge billboard with his picture on the road. Anyway that reminded me to keep within the speed limit as the last thing I need in life is to be stopped by a red neck police.

This route took me through area with campgrounds, fishing attractions and  huge ranches with thousands of cattle grazing peacefully.

It was nice to see them getting stung by the Trump economic policies they voted for as at least one third of the farms  had " for sale" signs out front.

Ribs by Cardiff.

It was a pleasant, quiet weekend with friends and although Cardiff is not a pork eater, he did ribs for me♥️.

That made the long journey even more than worthwhile.😋

Poor Santiago de Cuba.

New houses in Santiago

The streets of  the city of Santiago de Cuba remind me of the streets of some in San Francisco in that they descend steeply to the bay but that is where the similarity ends. For most of poor Santiago is now one big, derelict, depressing mess. 

This is because it has yet to recover from the extensive damage done by Hurricane Sandy in 2012. 

In fact according to the Cuban hurricane organisation; "Reports from the area after the passage of Sandy spoke of widespread damage, particularly to Santiago de Cuba.  Throughout the province, 132,733 homes were damaged, of which 15,322 were destroyed and 43,426 lost their roof. Electricity and water services had been knocked out, and most of the trees in the city had either been ripped off their roots or had lost all their leaves. "

Monument at General Maceo Plaza of the revolution

While the historic, official  buildings and monuments are in pristine condition, obviously restored and repainted since the hurricane, the residential areas including most of the 132,000 homes seem to have had very little if anything done since the devastation although I will admit that Santiago is the only place in Cuba I have seen brand new homes. 

These are just across from the 26 de julio museum and I had thought they were offices or some other type of official buildings until I saw the lady who works in the bathroom at the museum entering one and she told me she lived there.

Anyway, the historic districts are a must visit when you go to
Cuba as there is so much to see and learn.

On the other hand, the  historic city centre  is the only place I have ever seen beggars  and persons pestering you to buy everything from tours to services, after four visits to Cuba.

However, the province of Santiago de Cuba itself is really beautiful, lush, expansive, with thousands of acres of healthy cane fields, billowing ranches where horses and cattle seem to roam without a care in the world while the  looming, variegated and historically important Sierra Maestra mountains hover protectively on the periphery.

Despite how depressing some of the city now looks however, I am indeed happy that we undertook the over 170 km ride  from Holguin in our smooth running 1953 Chev  (driven by Rashell) to once again visit that historic province which remains the home of so many Jamaican descendants .

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The magnificent cathedral