My trip to ‘support Cuban people’ proves a real eye-opener
I’m just back from a trip to Havana, Cuba, that has made me question everything I’ve ever heard about this island.
After all, since Cuba and the U.S. have had a tortured diplomatic relationship, most of what I’ve heard about Cuba was designed to make me see Cuba as the bogeyman.
So when former President Barack Obama eased the travel restrictions that had been imposed since the Cold War, a lot of people jumped at the opportunity to visit the country.
Although I missed that boat (President Trump reversed most of the Obama-era policies related to Cuba), I learned from a small travel group that there is still a legal way to travel to Cuba.
You have to apply for a visa under the category “Support for the Cuban People,” a sort of winkand-nod that allows U.S. citizens to visit Cuba without breaking any laws.
Still, people traveling on such a visa are supposed to interact with Cubans beyond the usual courtesies exchanged with tour guides. My journey was a revelation. Because despite its long estrangement from the U.S., Havana, the country’s capital, is a proud city that took what little it had and made something valuable out of it.
For instance, take the old Fords, Chevrolets, Buicks and Chryslers that are still on the road in Cuba.
Meanwhile, in the U.S, a restored 1962 Chevrolet Bel Air is listed on ClassicCars.com for $122,995.
The idea that Americans are spending that kind of money to own a car that Cubans are using as the family car or as a taxicab is pretty funny.
Frankly, seeing row upon row of these functioning Classics made me a bit ashamed of how easily we dispose of perfectly good items just because they aren’t the latest models.
Throughout Havana, there were sightings of people making the best of what they have.
Sitting in a café grabbing lunch, I noticed a very elderly man with a walking stick.
I hadn’t seen that before despite the broken sidewalks and cobblestone streets in some areas of the ancient city.
In fact, it seems like Cubans don’t have the bad knees many of us suffer with.
I watched the old man as he slowly squatted to sit on the curb. From his bag, he pulled out an arm’s length of bread and meat wrapped in white paper. After making a sandwich and eating his meal, the old man gathered his bag and struggled to stand upright again.
It wasn’t long before a passerby stopped to help get the man on his feet. The stranger slowly walked the old man to the other side of the street and propped him up against a light pole before crossing the street again to fetch the man’s bag.
It was the most caring act of kindness toward the elderly that I’ve ever witnessed.
Later that night, I sat on the veranda of the Roc Hotel Presidente and people watched.
The historic hotel was built in 1928 and is Havana’s first skyscraper. It is located across the street from a town square and is around the corner from where I was staying.
As darkness fell, a crowd gathered.
I watched as hundreds of young people — teenage girls in school uniforms, boys on skateboards and young couples walking hand in hand — strolled through the plaza as music from the hotel’s jazz performers filled the air.
Despite the huge crowd, there were no loud arguments or jostling or fighting or anything else that would make you think trouble was about to break out.
There wasn’t even a police car in sight.
There was only the ritual of young people promenading in the plaza on a warm Havana night. What a wonderful sight.
I’m so used to young people misbehaving so badly in public that you have to call 911 to restore the peace that I couldn’t believe my eyes.
According to one of the tour organizers, the teen gathering takes place every weekend without any problems and without adult supervision.
Amazing.
Whatever the Trump administration thinks Cuba is still getting wrong, these are people who seem to have gotten the most important things right.
IT WASN’T LONG BEFORE A PASSERBY STOPPED TO HELP GET THE MAN ON HIS FEET . . . . IT WAS THE MOST CARING ACT OF KINDNESS TOWARD THE ELDERLY THAT I’VE EVER WITNESSED.