We were in a Lyft on our way to the meeting point and running a few minutes late. Farouk called my cell phone and I looked at the Lyft computer and told him we were 1 minute away. When our driver dropped us off, we didn’t see anyone who looked like a tour guide or a tour group. It wasn’t obvious at all where we were supposed to meet. We thought maybe the driver dropped us off a block early so we started walking. We spent the next 15 minutes walking back and forth looking for our tour. I tried to call Farouk back but my call went to voice mail. Two tour guides from another tour company stopped their tours and graciously tried to help us. At the other tour guides suggestion we called Farouk again and finally he answered. To my complete shock, he started yelling at me about being late, and that I told him we were 1 minute away and that he had already given us the address and finally explained they were inside the restaurant. When we finally found the restaurant and joined the group about 15-20 minutes late for a 3 hour tour, Farouk refused to look at us or acknowledge our presence. It was like we didn’t even exist.
Aside from Farouk’s rudeness, the tour was mediocre at best. He didn’t give any information about the food or drinks we were tasting, and he walked by several things without explaining them until someone asked about them (the stars on the sidewalk and the monument about the Bay of Pigs invasion). Farouk didn’t even mention the monument when we walked by it on the way to a grocery store / bakery. It was only after the grocery store when I asked about the monument, and then he proceeded like he was just about to explain it (which may have been true, but he could have at least mentioned that he would explain it later). Although it seems he has made friends with some of the local vendors, he did not seem to have an in depth knowledge of Cuban history or customs or American history for that matter. (He is from Europe). Sure, he has memorized certain facts, but when the questions from the group were more subtle or nuanced, he didn’t add much to the discussion. Farouk has a soft voice and didn’t use a microphone so I was straining to hear the whole time. He had no sense of humor or personality. Perhaps he was having a really bad day, but our experience was unsettling (not being greeted or acknowledged and being reprimanded) and disappointing. We wished we had used a different tour company to explore the charming Little Havana neighborhood.