Cuba!!! (Part 1)

Last fall, my granddaughter Elona applied for a study abroad program in Cuba, for her public health major at UMASS.  What an amazing opportunity for her to study the very different public health system there!  Of course my daughter and I immediately decided we would take this opportunity to go visit Cuba while she was there.  When would we ever go to Cuba if not to celebrate Elona's birthday in mid March?

I know it sounds crazy now, but as the time approached, and COVID began to make us all anxious, my daughter and I discussed whether or not to go.  Weighing what we knew at the time, we decided we had our tickets and we were going to go, despite concerning news about risks, limitations on travel, and flights being cancelled.  If you recall, it was a very fast ramp-up to full social distancing, and we really wanted to see her in that anxious moment, to make sure she was OK.

At the time, my little camper and I were traveling in Arizona.  I left Dougla/Prieta on the border and drove up to Las Vegas, where I was able to park/fly/stay at a hotel.  They had room for both my car and camper to be safely parked.  On March 13 I flew overnight to NY, met my daughter at the airport, and by the next afternoon, we were at our lovely AirBNB in Vedado, a once elegant Havana neighborhood.

Our BnB was the second floor of this house.

My bedroom had a balcony, a TV and air conditioning (which I didn't use).  

View into the dining room and kitchen.  

The hallway.  The apartment was airy with high ceilings, balconies, tiles, French windows -- lovely!

My daughter chose this apartment on Air BnB (Iscas's House) because it felt like Havana architecture.  Many other places looked super modern and new, and could have been in any city in the world.  Our hosts were a lovely woman and her son.  We learned that, after the Revolution, the Cuban government gave many homes and buildings (some mansions or embassies) which were vacant after wealthy or political people fled, to families.  In the decades since, some families have been able to live in their house and maintain it and other families have not.  On each block in Vedado you can see a beautifully maintained house, next to one that is mostly derelict, next to one that is shabby, next to one that is holding its own.

Some of these homes look perfect and some are really neglected.

Vedado is also the neighborhood where Elona's program was housed, along with several other study abroad programs.

Elona and her roommates in front of their residence.

The courtyard inside their residence -- prettiest dorm she's ever had. 

Elona was an excellent tour guide, who had learned a lot about Cuba in the short time she had been there.  She told us that, after the fall of the Soviet Union, funding for building repairs really dried up and the whole of Havana began to quietly crumble.  An entrepreneur approached the government and said, "Give me what money you have for building repairs and I'll start renovating Old Havana and turn it into a tourist attraction."  So that is what the government did.  Square by square, the Old Havana neighborhood is being renovated and is now full of tourists from Europe and Asia, and a few from the US.

Mini cabs only used by tourists.  

Fancy shops for tourists.  Cubans would never shop here.

There really are alot of vintage cars in Cuba!  I thought they would mostly be for tourists, but  even outside Havana, about every fifth car was vintage.  Some were in mint condition like these, and some were not.

Street musicians in Old Havana

Old Spanish cannon are used extensively in the renovations of Old Havana - symbolizing the new Cuba turning the
colonial militarism of the past into a peaceful present.

Drinks at the rooftop restaurant of a swanky tourist hotel in Old Havana.  

Tourism is the second biggest part of the Cuban economy.  So what is the first?  It is medical brigades to other countries.  Since the revolution, Cuba has built a respected educational system.  People from all over the world have come to study and bring their expertise back to their home countries.  The director of the children's project in Nicaragua where I volunteered took courses in Cuba.  And Cuban doctors are well known worldwide.  When a country asks Cuba for a brigade of doctors, that country pays Cuba for their services.  Cuba pays the doctors what they would make in Cuba and keeps the rest.  The doctors get to travel, see the world, and help support their country.  There were already Cuban doctors serving in Wuhan China when the coronavirus broke out.  They were successful in treating some patients by adding a kind of interferon to their treatment.  This medication was developed by Cubans, working with a Chinese company, and has been used successfully for treatment of HIV and Hepatitis C.  During this COVID crisis, brigades of Cuban doctors have deployed to Italy and other countries desperate for additional medical help

In general, the Cubans seemed to be doing alright.  They are making the best of the US embargo.  Everyone talked about how having an embargo  has impacted their economy.  An embargo from trade with their historical trading partner and the nearest large market  Fancy commercial goods aren't plentiful, but everyone seemed to have housing, food (there were shortages of some foods on some days), a job and healthcare.  I saw very few homeless looking people.  However, Elona says there is a whole strata of people who have fallen out of the social safety net, perhaps because their family got too large to live in the house they were given, or because they are working jobs outside the official sector.  I wasn't able to find out what percentage of the population are in this category or learn more about how they live.

In the five nights we were in Cuba, we packed in a lot.  One day, Samoa and I walked to a large and ornate cemetery.  

This area was for minor heroes of the revolution.  

Then we went to the beach.  The water was delicious and clear.  Each section of beach was tended by a small business.  You paid for your chair and umbrella, you could ask them to bring you a drink or food, and they minded your things while you were swimming.

A guy walked by with a tray on his shoulder, carrying a bottle of rum and coconuts which had been prepared with a machete.  The man opened the top of the coconut, inserted a straw and you drank some of the coconut milk.  Then he filled up the coconut with rum:  a CocoLoco.  Yummmmm!

Musicians strolled by looking for someone to pay them to stop and play.  Vendors walked by selling hats and bags.  Very festive and peaceful.  Many people there were obviously tourists.

One night we wanted to hear live music.  So we went to two famous bars in Old Havana, where Ernest Hemingway used to hang out.  First we went to La Bodeguita where they say they invented the mojito, and theirs were delicious!  Then to La Floridita:

They say they invented the daiquiri here.  Had to try these, too.  Tasty!

The Cuban capitol at night, modeled on ours, but taller (they will proudly tell you).

The music in both bars was great.  Wonderful night on the town.

This post was getting really long, so I'm sending Part 1 here and Part 2 soon.