CUBA
Trip Start
Jun 05, 2006
1
94
Trip End
Jul 15, 2007
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Oaxaca City,
Mexico
Saturday, January 21, 2006
Barber
So they are forced to find other means of income. People find other ways to make money "under the table." Hustling tourist and prostitution are 2 of the big ways that many people survive. Unfortunately most of my interactions on the streets where with the above. It makes walking down the street a task. I do not dislike or blame the people for this I blame the system that created these people. Tourism is the main source of income for Cuba. The Government wants the money that tourism brings to the economy but they do not want the tourists. They want you to come for a week take a taxi to a government resort spend all your money and then fly home. Tourist pay sometimes as much as 500 times the price that locals pay. Cuba is unjustifiably expensive. They do not want you to see the reality of the situation and expose the people to the freedoms of the outside world. Everything that a tourist does is monitored by the government. They do not want tourist interacting with the locals. Tourists are not allowed to take buses with the locals, ride in private cars, and sleep in private homes. They do not want them to be exposed to the outside world. They are only allowed to watch 4 monitored government TV channels and when Internet is available is also regulated and to expensive for them to afford ($7hr.) Home computers and satellite computers are banned. Tourists are the only real connection that locals have with the outside world. Nothing is easy or does not involve waiting in Cuba.Cuba was a great once in a lifetime learning experience.
Cinefuegos Street
It was a challenging 3 weeks but I did manage to meet a few nice people while there. I spent 5 days with a really nice 32 year old Cuban guy named Israel. He did not speak much English but was a great incite on daily life in Havana. He actually spent 1 month in Guantanamo Bay prison after him and his 6 friends where picked up out of the ocean while trying to paddle there tire constructed raft to the USA. I could not wait to leave while I was there. I even thought about trying to push up my flight. Looking back on my time in Cuba I have mixed feelings? It is a passionate country with great energy on the verge of a BIG Change. I am glade I was fortunate enough to see it before it goes!
Interesting fact: Only 1 out of 1000 Cubans own a cell phone!
My possible 2006 travel plans.............
I am returning to the USA around March. I will be in the states for 2 months for my sisters wedding and Jazz Fest.
Sometime in early May I plan on heading back to the Middle East/Africa. This is a rough outline of my possible travels for 2006.
Turkey, Iran (if the planets align and I get a visa,) United Arab Emirates, Oman, Yemen, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, South Africa
I'm a wanderer I have no place or time
I'm just drifting on this lonely road of mine
And if you like you can come along with me
But I promise you that I am not the man I use to be
But I promise you that I am not the man I use to be
-Marc Broussard, "The Wanderer"
As Always I hope this finds you well where ever you are in the world. Thanks for following allowing on this crazy journey. I hope not to offend anyone with my writings. This is just my thoughts on the world that I am living in. If anyone reading this would like to be added are removed from this list send me a line! Always remember that trying to make a "silent fart" with headphones on is a risky endeavor!
South of Nowhere, North of Nothing......... Be the Love Generation. ~Johnny Nomad
Johnny Nomad would like to thank the following underwriters who make the "Johnny Nomad Experiment" possible.....My Reef Flip-flops, Bob Villa, Lil George's on going quest for weapons of mass destruction, My backpack, My 2 pairs of boxers, Cheese, Foxy 2297, Hurricane Katrina, Hurricane Wilma, Micheal Jackson's monkey, barato cervezas, My uncle Chester's trust fund, My Ipod, and last but not least my mommy and daddy.
Comments
Good to hear from you...
I was beginning to wonder if you had added me to the list. Great insight into Cuban life. It is often hard to gage a situation from the news media, but hearing it from a friend helps put it in prospective.
P.S. I see you took my advice the the blog.
great site
parties are happening bring yourself home
dad
The married man speaks
Hey Johnny,
You keep traveling and I'll keep living vicariously through you....
Taylor
As always a riveting read
Heovos azules a.k.a Johnny Nomad itīs always good to read your perspective on the world. I feel I am learning as YOU travel. Oh well at least have been there and done that with you at some points along the way.
Some thoughts from here in Murcia, Spain...
Thereīs no sun without desert, 'Agua para Todas'. Murcia: donde vive el sol PERO donde muere el agua...
Looks fabulous!
Love the new travelpod. See you at Andrea's festivities.
Margaret Thompson
What does it take?
Does it take your older sister getting married to get you to come home for a visit? Satch and I must really 'rank' We look forward to having you back home for another hot second.
Ayia and Sanchez (the almost newlyweds)
Your Arab/Israeli friends beckon a visit
Yo Johnny. Good to read the site and just wanted to say that you really need to visit the bedouins in Israel but I doubt you are going back to Israel right now. Enjoy your travels my friend!
Russ Thornton Athens, Ga ...now Jacksonville Bch, FL
Interesting.....
I loved your detailled insight on Cuba and it's people. I'll be bookmarking your travelpod to see what else you have to say....good luck on your travels! Zento.
As a fellow traveler to Cuba...
...I agree with your insights. I was there on an official humanitarian basis, so we interacted with a lot of local officials, as well as the people in the community. Everyone was very friendly. We avoided a lot of discussions of politics, but we were told that Cuba tells their people that the US will be invading sometime soon. Cubans are also wary of what changes may come whenever Castro is gone. They know there will be changes, and with things being the same for so long, many will not deal with it well. Many of the Christians we met in Cuba have been imprisoned or restricted in their activities, yet continue to live faithfully.
From another perspective: I loved the food in Cuba. Lots of black beans and rice, but also good chicken and pork, as well as guava paste and cheese. I also had some homemade peanut candy that was great! And the coffee! Wow! Good stuff.
Hi
Hi Johnny
Your story had put a smile on my face. I really enjoyed reading what you have to say. I am to a wonder and some day I well fine my way, just like you Johnny. Tak care and I hope to hear more of your story.
Gui
a bit harsh
I thought your summary of 3 weeks in Cuba was more than a bit harsh. As someone who has also been there, I think you owe your readers some clarification.
To say you are put in jail for your thoughts or speech in Cuba is totally incorrect. There are maybe a hundred or so people in Cuba that could be classified as political prisoners. Yet nearly every one of them were arrested for crimes relating to their being paid by, or having been assisted by foreign governments for the 'freedom' work. There are thousands of dissident in Cuba who have never been arrested because they sty clear of foreign (US) funded programs seeking to topple the regime. Like it or not, after Helms-Burton, Cubans had to pass laws to protect themselves from a powerful government bent on regime change (and who has not been shy about interfering in the past). I wonder, ofall the unhappy people you met, did any say they wanted to become capitalist or have a US style (money) democracy?
It is not propoganda, Cuba has the second highest human development for their GDP in the world. They rank at the top of Latin American in nearly all health and education indicators. Everything necessary to live is free, or charged in pesos, so no one gets left behind (no hunger, no homeless, little crime, etc.) It is true there are some problems with some non-essential imported goods. But I know soap, for example, can be bought in regular pesos (but people increasingly want the imported soap).
I am surprised you found prostitution and hustling such a problem. I never saw it - besides a couple people selling cigars. We talked to plenty of nice people just wanting to show us around or speak english - for nothing. We'd exchange addresses, phone numbers and went out to dinner and dancing with some folks we met. But compared to the in your face destitution, prositution and hustling in Mexico, for example, Cuba does not compare.
I don't know why you say locals can't ride buses with tourists. It depends on what bus YOU chose to ride. There are expensive touristy ones and cheaper local buses, like any place. And tourists certinly are allowed to sleep and eat in locals homes - much more than in other countries (they have ot be licensed of course).
I could go on and on about how the embargo impacts these things, including internet and cel phones (the US does not allow hook up to the fiber optics cables) -and how Cuba is working with Venezuela to fix them. But this is enough for now. Cuba gets many things wrong that we take for granted. But they also have solved things we still struggle with - and have managed to preserve a beautiful country, create a new generation of highly skilled people and diverse industries (bio-med, computer science, etc) that put them in an excellent position after the embargo falls.
Re: a bit harsh
Re: Re: a bit harsh
im from oriente cuba and believe there is very little that you can buy the first thing communist do is to make it diffucult to survive by doing this you one concern is survival and not conspiring i send 75 to 100 dollars every month to split amongst cousins aunts uncles etc with this they buy a little coffee and whatever else they can find as far as trying to survive ihave a cousin living in new york who while in cuba was making jeans (pants) he purchased 4 yards of denim (black market) and received 4 years in prison if i were you i would learn a little more before speaking if given a chance most cubans would leave tomorrow
I'm sorry
I'm sorry that you seem to have missed a lot of what's really wonderful about Cuba. I think if you go anywhere looking for confirmation of what you already believe, you are likely to find it.
I have been to Cuba too. I went alone. Not being American, but having lived in the US for just under half of my adult life, I had heard both extreme sides of the story, so I went to see for myself. I stayed in a private home (casa particular) and spent my days walking 15-20 km per day, taking pictures and talking with anyone who'd talk to me.
The vast majority of people I met are not unhappy - rather the opposite. The vast majority of people I met did not try to scam me, beg from me, or complain to me. The vast majority of people I spoke to for longer than a half hour had no problem telling me what they really think of Fidel, and the general concensus was about as positive or negative as any I've heard from people from any nation about their government: some things are good and some things are bad and that is that. Certainly the general feeling I got was easily more positive than the general feeling I get from Americans regarding their own current government.
Our friend from the Oriente here would leave in a heartbeat, and there's plenty more like him - but there's plenty more like him in any poor or developing country on earth. The question to ask is not whether he'd leave to go to the US (or England or France or Spain), but whether he'd be as eager to go to Puerto Rico - because in the best-case scenario, that's what Cuba would be like today if Fidel had never happened - or to the Dominican Republic or Haiti.
I was joined on my run one evening by a 40-ish Cuban guy who spoke impeccable English with a stunning Harlem accent: upon my asking, he said he had lived in New York for a number of years, but had decided to return to Cuba because he preferred the pace of life there and the Cubans' helpfulness. So much for Cuba being horrible.
People young and old, male and female routinely went out of their way to be helpful to me. A guy I didn't know gave me some of his pizza for me to try and promptly walked off - I guess I looked thin to him? Someone walked 3 km with me in blistering heat, to show me how to get to a place I had asked directions for, but vehemently (and politely) refused my offer to buy him a cool drink as a thank you. I don't think their situation is quite as dire as you think.
If you only go to the touristy areas, sure, there is a ton of hustling. If you go to the non-touristy areas, even looking as decidedly non-Cuban as I look (especially with my big-ass dSLR hanging in front of me), there is no hustling, only smiles and gentle curiosity. Sure, internet access is expensive, but 7 CUC an hour is honestly unheard of even in the fancy hotels, the Cubans pay different rates (as you know and already mention yourself), and anyway, of 4 Cuban households I know a little better, 3 have internet access in their homes or that of a neighbor, legally or semi-legally but not blatantly illegally.
For a guy who claims to be a 'silent observer' who genuinely 'want[s] to understand,' I think you were quite hamstrung by your preconceptions regarding Cuba. I am sincerely sorry you couldn't wait to leave. I would have happily traded places with you for any amount of time.
useful
you remind me of when batista was in power according to most americans it was great no problems the american officials would visit by spending the day playing golf at the country club and then would say how great evrything was going do you know that there is a person on every block that reports all movements going on in you house whether it be a birthday party domino game etc and i guess you saw how prosperus the country is the beatiful city of havana looks like a ghetto and the rest of the country is destroyed it always amazes me how many wrongs you can find in the US and seem to miss in other countries try standing in the center of havana and call castro an SOB guess what we wont see you for a couple of years it just bothers me that there are so many useful idiots out there
Re: useful
goodhands,
I did not insult you or anyone else and I do not appreciate you insulting me by calling me an idiot.
I did not play golf and I did not go to any casinos or resorts or the Tropicana - I find them all offensive and disgusting and I am appalled by the Cuban government's practice of not allowing Cuban citizens in. I did not just stay in Havana, I traveled over exactly half of Cuba. I did not eat in the fancy restaurants - I ate WITH the family whose house I stayed in, or in PESO restaurants, and on a couple of occasions in the homes of people I met.
I do know about the comites, and I think they are monstrous. I am perfectly aware that you can't stand in the middle of the street and bad-mouth Fidel. On the other hand, freedom of speech is a relative concept in the societies that most brag about it, too. I can think of at least 4 examples of bad things happening to people (like losing their jobs) who dared to speak publicly against the war in Iraq, but this is not the place to discuss it. If you don't believe me, I'll be happy to give you all the info and links someplace where we're not hijacking somebody's blog.
Johnnynomad did not enjoy Cuba as a visitor. I, on the other hand, did. Neither of us was there as an oblivious culture-challenged tourist, so I think both our opinions are valid. This is a travel blog, which people thinking of visiting Cuba might read, and as my genuine viewpoint was so different from johnnynomad's, I thought I would share it with his readers. I think you, too, agree that bilateral presentation of the facts is better than unilateral. I don't have a political agenda here.
All that said, I would like to tell you one last thing: as you admonish me that things may not be as good on the inside as they look on the outside, please keep that in mind for yourself, too. You have not lived in the type of society you crave. I really hope you will. Until then though, you can't know its ugly sides and it sure looks glorious on the outside. Maybe you'll prefer it. I tried it and I didn't. That makes neither me nor you an idiot.
I wish you luck in your quest and peace with your ultimate decisions.
Re: Re: useful
goodhands, I re-read your original post and realized you did leave Cuba, so you're obviously happy in your new surroundings. I'm sorry I missed that the first time around. I stand by the rest of my post exactly as is, including my wishes for peace with your ultimate decisions.
Re: I'm sorry
Re: Re: I'm sorry
keep your eye on chavez and morales of boliva chavezs venezuela is already having food shortagaes both following fidels advise these guys are obviousley blind cuba is in ruins and so will their countries be in time and there are some revolts going on in boliva now if you happen to see the motocycle diaries they painted che gueverra as this compassionte doctor the guy was a killer thats why he was trapped and killed in bolivia my apologies to the rest of the folks who read this site i did not mean to turn into sounding board so i will quit the political issues again my apologies-----------------------
In reply to:
Re: useful
Re: useful
my apologies i did not mean to imply that you were an idiot please again accept my apologies regards goodhands
Re: Re: I'm sorry
yes my friend you are right people in cuba are ecstatic being there --------------------------------
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