¿¡Viva Cuba!?
One would need a lot of adjectives to describe Cuba.
Fascinating, beautiful, soulful, incomprehensible, interesting (the one I heard most often), sad, happy…
I asked myself one question repeatedly… how?
A Cuban doctor earns close to 25 Euros per month. An auto mechanic (the one who gave me this information either to share the truths of his country or to appease my touristy questions) earns around 15 Euros per month. The government gives each Cuban individual 2.5 kgs of rice per month, one chicken per family of 4, one bar of soap per family of 4, half a liter of cooking oil per family of 4, 7 eggs per person per month. A Cuban, with all his principles, rejecting the materialistic and capitalistic ideology of the “American way of life”, is supposed to manage his/her life with these contributions.
And then comes the tourist.
The tourist is given a different currency manufactured specifically for him, with a ratio of 25:1 compared to the currency used by the locals; the tourist stays in 3 to 5 star hotels or with a family authorized by the government, avails of a car, internet and a mobile phone (with internet, i learnt on my last day!), a variety of food and gets to look at how the people in this principle-driven country live. Welcome to Disneyland, I felt like I was being told by the government.
For the first time in my life, I was asked on the streets if I had a spare bar of soap to give away.
I asked myself one question repeatedly… how?
Experts say it’s illogical how this country has survived economically. The motto of the Cuban is “we’ll manage”. The Cuban will do what he can to help his fellow Cuban earn a peso.
The country survives on tourism and its relationship with Hugo Chavez. Cuba offers its medical expertise to Venezuela for free in return of “oro negro” (black gold), as the oil brand is called there.
The country survives on music to feed its soul.
Ry Cooder wrote “In Cuba, music takes care of you and rebuilds you from the inside out.”
As I walked by the sea-front Malecon stretch or old habana, I could hear trumpets and guitars being played. I could move to Havana, just to be able to go to "La Zorra y El Cuervo", the jazz club in Vedado, everyday.
As I walked in the streets of La Habana and Trinidad, I felt like I was reliving the India of the 1980s.
And then the water is turquoise…
Fascinating, beautiful, soulful, incomprehensible, interesting (the one I heard most often), sad, happy…
I asked myself one question repeatedly… how?
A Cuban doctor earns close to 25 Euros per month. An auto mechanic (the one who gave me this information either to share the truths of his country or to appease my touristy questions) earns around 15 Euros per month. The government gives each Cuban individual 2.5 kgs of rice per month, one chicken per family of 4, one bar of soap per family of 4, half a liter of cooking oil per family of 4, 7 eggs per person per month. A Cuban, with all his principles, rejecting the materialistic and capitalistic ideology of the “American way of life”, is supposed to manage his/her life with these contributions.
And then comes the tourist.
The tourist is given a different currency manufactured specifically for him, with a ratio of 25:1 compared to the currency used by the locals; the tourist stays in 3 to 5 star hotels or with a family authorized by the government, avails of a car, internet and a mobile phone (with internet, i learnt on my last day!), a variety of food and gets to look at how the people in this principle-driven country live. Welcome to Disneyland, I felt like I was being told by the government.
For the first time in my life, I was asked on the streets if I had a spare bar of soap to give away.
I asked myself one question repeatedly… how?
Experts say it’s illogical how this country has survived economically. The motto of the Cuban is “we’ll manage”. The Cuban will do what he can to help his fellow Cuban earn a peso.
The country survives on tourism and its relationship with Hugo Chavez. Cuba offers its medical expertise to Venezuela for free in return of “oro negro” (black gold), as the oil brand is called there.
The country survives on music to feed its soul.
Ry Cooder wrote “In Cuba, music takes care of you and rebuilds you from the inside out.”
As I walked by the sea-front Malecon stretch or old habana, I could hear trumpets and guitars being played. I could move to Havana, just to be able to go to "La Zorra y El Cuervo", the jazz club in Vedado, everyday.
As I walked in the streets of La Habana and Trinidad, I felt like I was reliving the India of the 1980s.
And then the water is turquoise…
Pics of Cuba: http://picasaweb.google.com/lakhwani.manoj/VivaCuba
posted by manu at 6:28 AM
6 Comments:
on the last day! :P
wanna go to that jazz place!!
Russians have special sentiments for Cuba and Cubans... how many songs are dedicated to 'the Cuban brothers and sisters', to 'the island of Freedom', to 'the island where dreams come true'... and now I feel we betrayed them... well, even after the fall of the Communist regime the new Russia could do something for their brothers and sisters... but we did not.
The people seemed to have a mixture of sadness, happiness and pride in their attitude. Tourism is helping them a lot.
But it is hard for me to believe that they will continue to follow their principles for a very long time!
You have to wonder about how much soap, rice, eggs and chicken people actually need.
Has an abundance of all those comforts made people in the west, happy? I'm not so sure
Well yes, you're right. I guess those of us who have it, don't need that amount of comfort we use.
But i noticed envy in them when they looked at the tourist.
And the country is on the verge of bankruptcy. Not that non communist countries such as Iceland and Ireland are not too!
and I took the use of soap for granted, until i went there!
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