Excelencias Turísticas del caribe y las Américas
From the Thames to the Caribbean
DURING THE ELEVEN MONTHS THAT THE BRITISH OCCUPATION SPANNED, CUBA
LIVED AN INTENSE ECONOMIC BOOM ENCOURAGED BY SEVERAL MEASURES TAKEN BY THE ENGLISH RULERS. CENTURIES LATER, TRACES OF THAT PRESENCE STILL
LINGER IN THE CUBAN IMAGINATION
Without any attempt to appeal to revisionism, the indelible nature of history entails the association –as a milestone of the British presence in Cuba- to the brief stay they had on the island following their seizure of Havana back in 1762. Amid the unwavering need to consider those British forces as foes back in the day, it's still worthwhile to recognize the genuine pride shown by the British officers, especially in the face of courageous Captain Luis Vicente Velasco, one of the most outstanding commanders of the Spanish Royal Navy, who died heroically while defending the Castle of the Three Kings of El Morro.
But, the Cuban character bloomed in the face of adverse circumstances. The locals could not refrain from making the most of what had happened in an effort to enrich our vernacular heritage. That British occupation paved the way for a number of expressions that have lived out to date in our popular speech, such as “la hora de los mameyes” (the time of the mameys) to warn the moment when the English occupiers showed up always dressed in their reddish uniforms and coats, similar in color to the pulp of that delicious tropical fruit called mamey. For analogy with the legendary bravery showed during the British occupation by militiaman José Antonio Gómez de Bullones, also known as “Pepe Antonio”, the expression “hacer las cosas de a Pepe” (do things Pepe's way) popped out, meaning to act by force or contrary to an order. Also, even if you were a supporter of the Spaniards or if you maintained an attitude in favor of the English, you were asked back then if “you were working for the Englishmen?
ENGLISH MASONRY IN CUBA
The origins of this fraternity on the island harks back to a document dated in 1763 during the British occupation, issued by the 218 English Military Lodge of the registry of Ireland, ascribed to Regiment 48 of this armed body. It is a certificate of Master Degree on behalf of Alexander Cockburn. The French presence in the late 18th and early 19th centuries encouraged and extended the creation of the first Cuban lodges, as well as the foundation of the 103 Temple of the Theological Virtues in Havana, on December 17, 1804. The latter was granted the patent of recognition from the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania. However, the practice of the York and Scottish rites in our country still continues today.
MUSIC JINGLES FOR ICE CREAM AND CHILDREN’S GAMES
Without having the slightest idea about the titles of certain musical pieces, or their authors and lyrics, since the mid-20th century Cubans –like much of the world- quickly identify the proximity of ice cream carts. A stereotypical polyphony in tones characterizes the advertiser's sonority of this always-well-received merchandise. Universalized perhaps by force of habit, themes such as: Home Sweet Home; Oh, My Darling Clementine; Oh, Susanna; Happy Birthday or some other excerpt from the great
BRINDAR POR CUBA
Reiterar no siempre acusa sinonimia de limitada tenencia. Sucede, en realidad, con las cosas que hacen época, resultan inevitablemente dignas de ser evocadas. Así se nos manifiesta la novela del afamado escritor británico Graham Greene, Nuestro hombre en La Habana, llevada con igual nombre a la cinematografía universal. Varias de las locaciones donde tuvo lugar el rodaje de este filme guardan relación con el buen beber cubano. En uno de los pasajes de esta obra se presenta la siguiente descripción:
«En el bar Sloppy Joe´s, Wormold fue aprobado por el servicio británico” (…) “Por alguna causa, esa mañana no tenía deseos de encontrarse con el doctor Hasselbacher para el refrescante daiquirí matinal. Algunas veces el doctor se mostraba un tanto demasiado alegre, de modo que se detuvo un momento en el Sloppy Joe’s en lugar de ir al Wonder Bar”.
Tan respetables han sido los bares cubanos que el mismísimo Henry Graham Greene (1904 – 1991), llegó a decir:“Conozco el bar de hombres en el Waldorf Astoria; el Bar Savoy, en Londres; y el Bar Americano, en París. He tomado Whiskey en Shepheards; Ginebra y Angosturas en el Gran Oriental, en Calcuta. Conozco los Piscos Sours del Hotel Carrera, en Curazao. He visitado el Adlon, en Berlín; el Bristol, en Viena; la casa Chianling, en Chungking; el Plaza, en Buenos Aires. Pero, dentro de mi experiencia,“La Florida”(hoy Floridita), es el máximo bar en la tierra.”
¿Y LA MÚSICA, QUÉ?
La historia de las artes ha demostrado, secularmente, que la genialidad en sus primeros pasos va escoltada por el escepticismo y la falta de costumbre que por lo general suscitan la audacia, lo novedoso y la inminente posición de percibirse como ajeno a los modelos sociales vigentes. Así acontecía cuando los jóvenes “de antes” filosofaban, hasta bien avanzadas las últimas décadas del siglo XX, sobre la supremacía de Los Beatles, Rolling Stone, LedZepellin y Deep Blue. Nada carente de polémicas transitó el proceso de asimilación oficial de estas anglófonas agrupaciones, hasta lograr el respaldo por convencida aceptabilidad de quienes les correspondió comprenderlos en Cuba: medios, creadores e intérpretes musicales, artistas de la plástica, cineastas, cinéfilos, escritores, poetas y autoridades (inclusive) complementaron las preferencias de legiones de los fans insulares.
¿SE SIENTEN BIEN ENTRE LOS CUBANOS?
Además del comportamiento del mercado turístico inglés, con sostenido crecimiento estadístico –casi duplicado– desde 2014 hasta 2017, destaca la fidelización de estos visitantes en varias instalaciones hoteleras de la mayor de Las Antillas. Varias entidades turísticas inglesas operan con Cuba, como la Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA), Thomas Cook y British Airways, al igual que han brindado valiosas acciones de capacitación para el personal que se desempeña en la industria cubana de la hospitalidad.
Por cuanto inglés visite a esta Isla Grande, no se nos podrá negar que apostemos por una expresión similar a la de Mc. Cartney, en ocasión de su inusitada presencia: «¡Gracias. Todo bien!» O, igual de placenteramente recibido, lo exclamado por Mick Jagger, en ocasión del concierto de Los Rolling Stones, ofrecido el 26 de marzo de 2016, ante cientos de miles de entusiastas espectadores: «¡Hola Habana, buenas noches, mi gente de Cuba!». European classics, act as catalysts of the joy of eating the icy delicacies. And within these artifices of music marketing, the piece London Bridge Is Falling Down, which dates back to 1774 and describes with a sticky song the fall and reconstruction of the famous London Bridge, is also heard in the streets of Havana. It was also sung in Cuba, in elementary schools, as part of children's games and as an educational resource to exercise the English language:
London Bridge is falling down / Falling down, falling down / London Bridge is falling down, My fair lady
TOAST TO CUBA
Reiteration is not always synonymous of limited tenure. It happens, in fact, with things that mark a time and are inevitably worthy of being evoked. That's the case of the novel Our Man in Havana, by celebrated British author Graham Greene, taken to the big screen under that same name. Several of the locations where the shooting of this movie took place are related to good Cuban drinking. In one of the passages of this work, the following description is presented:
“At the Sloppy Joe's Bar, Wormold was approved by the British service” (...) “For some reason that morning he had no wish to meet Dr. Hasselbacher for his morning daiquiri… so he looked in at Sloppy Joe's instead of at the Wonder Bar.”
So respectable the Cuban bars have become that Henry Graham Greene himself (1904-1991), had to say: “I know the bar of men in the Waldorf Astoria, the Bar Savoy in London, and the American Bar in Paris. I have drunk Whiskey in Shepheards; Gin and Angostura at the Great Oriental in Calcutta. I know the Pisco Sours of the Hotel Carrera in Curacao. I have visited the Adlon in Berlin, the Bristol in Vienna, the Chianling House in Chungking, the Plaza in Buenos Aires. But, in my experience, “La Florida” (today Floridita) is the greatest bar on earth.”
AND WHAT ABOUT MUSIC?
The history of the arts has secularly shown that geniality's baby steps always come along with skepticism and the lack of habit that usually arouses with audacity, novelty and the imminent position of being perceived as an alien to ongoing social models. This happened when the youngsters of yesteryear philosophized, until well into the last decades of the 20th century, on the supremacy of The Beatles, The Rolling Stone, Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple. The process of official assimilation of these English-singing bands was never short of controversy. The process carried on until the bands garnered the support, by convinced acceptance, of those who were tasked with comprehending them in Cuba: the media, music songwriters and performers, fine artists, filmmakers, moviegoers, writers, poets and even the authorities, who complemented the preferences of legions of island fans.
DO THEY FEEL GOOD AMONG CUBANS?
In addition to the behavior of the British travel market, with sustained statistical growth –almost twice as much- from 2014 to 2017, the loyalty of these visitors to several hotel facilities on the largest Caribbean island stands out. Several UK tourism companies operate with Cuba, such as the Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA), Thomas Cook and British Airways, thus providing valuable training actions for personnel working in the Cuban tourism sector.
For every Brit who visits this big island, we cannot be denied the chance to utter an expression similar to that McCartney's during his unexpected presence here (Thank you. All good!) or just what Mick Jagger cried out during the Rolling Stones concert on March 26, 2016, before hundreds of thousands of enthusiastic fans: ¡Hola Habana, buenas noches mi gente de Cuba! (Hello Havana. Good evening my people from Cuba).