CARISTAS

Tranquil route skirts the Sierra Maestra mountains east of Santiago.     YES, I RODE a scooter in Cuba again.    And yes, a year ago I warned that this could be dangerous in a country of poor roads and potentially serious consequences should you be in an accident, including not being allowed to leave  until a slow-moving investigation is completed. Similar warnings exist for scooter and moped rentals in Bermuda , Thailand and many other tourist destinations.    Again, my excuse is that the roads I was on – east of Santiago, but not as far as  Guantá namo  Bay – were largely empty but for the occasional horse cart or herd of goats.    And while this year's Orbit II scooter from the Sanyang Motor Co. ran like a sweetheart, a happy contrast to the gummed-up machine I rode last year, its wee 50-cc gas engine still limited my top speed to "relaxed." Horse carts are more common than cars.    I w...

    DON'T DO it, some sites warn. The roads are terrible. You’ll hit a cow and be forced to remain on the island – in a beachfront room? – until you pay the government thousands of dollars. ( Update : Yes, in a beachfront room, it turns out, but you'll have to pay for it). Stick to resort buses and licensed taxis, advises the Canadian Foreign Affairs department. “Avoid driving in Cuba, as driving conditions can be hazardous,” it declares here .    I say, if you’ve driven in Vancouver or Sudbury or Montreal – let alone Europe or Asia  –   you’ll do fine in Cuba. The pace is relaxed, your fellow road-users are courteous, and traffic ranges from moderately busy (Havana) to where-is-everyone? light (most other places).    Plus, in your rental car, you can set your own route and timetable, and you’ll meet interesting people along the way.    Of course, in a country like nowhere else, some aspects of driving are bound to be different. So...