In 1959 Cuba changed forever. A young lawyer named Fidel Castro had been fighting for years to oust the evil dictator Batista. He rallied the farm workers and University students who wanted a better life. You can see the appeal Castro had at the time. He preached about a revolution and promised free education and health care to all, sounding much like a certain Presidential candidate does today. Unfortunately, Fidel Castro’s new system repressed the people and cut off relations with the United States for more than 50 years, creating a country that is basically frozen in time. Until now. Last week the country was full of optimism. For the first time since 1928 an American President came to visit. The excitement was palpable. People crowded the streets to catch a glimpse of Obama. They gathered in local bars to watch this historic moment on television. And in a dramatic change of fashion everyone smiled and embraced the Americans. Nobody can be quite sure what this will mean for the future of Cuba but one thing is certain: Cuba is on the brink of a major change.
Like many Americans my husband and I thought we should see Cuba “before the change.” We were lucky enough to book a last minute trip for a quick getaway to Havana without the kids. It was amazing. The culture, the history and the music were unparalleled. We roamed the cobblestone streets between the four major squares, snaked our way through the back alleys filled with children playing baseball and danced our way through the salsa music scene in Havana. Around every corner we met new and interesting people. One night we were
led to the back of a dark and dank building by a working class man to see how the people of Cuba really live. We found an entire extended family living in one room with no air conditioning, one bed and a small ice box. This is what life is like on the $20-$30 a month Cubans make. It was heartbreaking to witness. We passed out baseballs to kids on the street and felt like Santa Claus on Christmas. Children were so thrilled with something we take for granted here in the US. We met a fifth generation tobacco farmer who is required to sell 90% of his crop to the government.
We chatted with our driver who spent his life restoring old cars just to make a living, putting them above his wife on his priority list. And
we learned from our only English speaking tour guide why the Cuban people don’t just rebel again: Because they don’t know any better. She claims that the people of Cuba do not even understand what Capitalism or Democracy is. The entire time I just kept thinking about how much their world is about to change.
We also met other tourists who were as eager as to see Cuba as it teeters on the precipice of change as we were. We met a woman from California studying International Relations. She got a divorce and decided to head to Cuba to find herself. We met a man from Switzerland who lost his job as a Chef, packed up everything and came to Cuba for a month. Clearly if you want to transform your life there is no better place to come than a place that is about to go through its own major transformation.
Cuba is a challenging place. You cannot use an American credit card or ATM card so you have to travel with cash. (the exchange rate is better if you bring Mexican pesos than American dollars) All the hotels and restaurants are owned by the government which means they are mediocre so you have to seek out private homes to rent (Casa Particular) and family restaurants to dine at (Paladar). The only internet that exists is excrutiatingly slow wifi at hotels or in the park and you have to pay to use it. Your American phone does not work. And hardly anyone speaks English. My husband says that Cuba is a place that sucks you in and then spits you back out. It can be challenging and intoxicating at the same time. But if you chose to go at this very special moment, this time of change and transformation I can assure you that you will not be the same when you leave.
We can only hope that all of the change that is coming will be for the better. I would hate to see a Starbucks or a McDonalds in Cuba. I hope the American influence will raise the wage and the standard of living for the common people, not just the Castro family. And I hope someday we can return to a place that embraces technology and progress without losing its heart and soul.
“You may say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one. I hope someday you’ll join us. And the world will live as one.”
― John Lennon