Cuba
— Havana
Spotted at a pit stop from Trinidad to Varadero
Decaying walls, preserved history —Havana
— Trinidad
Bold — Trinidad
Father and son — Destination unknown
“I quit my job 4 years ago to pursue my dream of being an artist. It was the best decision I ever made.”
Local artist — Cienfuegos
Graceland — Varadero
I admired this dusty DeSoto in a quiet alley. Collectors would go nuts if they could get their hands on the cars in Cuba.
A Cuban man I met told me “All Cubans are scientists and engineers, because when something breaks, we don’t get another one.”
Cuba is filled with classic cars, but it’s not littered with the flashy pink or deep red convertible you have in mind. Although they exist, they aren’t what your everyday Cubans drive. The highly-maintained convertibles can be seen driving your basic tourist down the Malecón or around Old Havana.
"Laborious, revolutionary and cultured town." — Matanzas
On my flight from Newark to Havana, I was sitting next to a Cuban woman named Adriana.
Adriana was surprised that I was travelling alone, but she assured me I would still have a great time in Cuba. She didn’t speak much English, and my Spanish was rusty to say the least, but we still managed to learn a lot about each other and exchanged photos of our loved ones. She gave me suggestions on things to do, things not to do, and places to go. As we drained the batteries of our smartphones chatting through Google translate, I realized that she was my first impression of Cuba. She insisted that I ride back with her family to their house after church, and even offered me a place to stay. I had already booked my accommodations and didn’t want to intrude as she was visiting home for a short period.
Adriana took me under her wing when we arrived at the airport. Unfortunately, her bags took a very long time to show up on the conveyor belt. We were approaching our second hour and I considered parting ways, but I decided to stay with her. Finally, after her bags came out, we headed towards the exit only to be greeted by a few of her family members. The first thing she did was give each of them a piece of chocolate, then introduced me to them as her new friend. Their family friend, who is a taxi driver, put our bags in his old school car as we crammed in. As soon as we began driving off, the wind rushed through my hair, and the first song that started playing was Despacito; and as overplayed as that song was, it still put a smile on my face, and gave me the feeling that my vacation had commenced.
Adriana’s mother gave me a piece of her candy bar called maní moledo. When she saw how much I loved it, she gave me the whole thing. We went to church, and I had no idea what I was doing, but it was nice to tag along. She kept asking for my phone, so she could take photos of me to send to my mom. One was of me washing up with supposed holy water. I just went with the flow. After church, we got some pizza. I didn’t think pizza would be the first meal I had in Cuba, but it was pretty good. Turns out Cubans love Italian food. Afterwards, we went to Adriana’s home where I was introduced to more family. Her nephew converted my cash at great rate, multiple family members gave me their phone numbers in case I needed anything. I was so humbled, and wanted to give Adriana something in return, but all I had was a bag of dates. She ended up loving them, then hugged me goodbye.
Ernesto; bike tour guide — Havana
Luis and two of his friends run an Airbnb experience in Havana where they give tourists bike tours of the city.
"Right now, I can be a businessman in Cuba. Businessman is a bad word. I don’t like this word because business-people don’t generally care about our society, our country, nature. I am very aware of all of these things, but I am also an entrepreneur. I know that many problems in our country can be solved if people like me do independent things to make the economy grow without losing the strong government we have. For example, with our bicycle business, I don’t have a license for it. I only have a license to fix bicycles. If someone comes for an inspection, they are going to charge me because I don’t have the proper license to do what we are doing now, and what we are doing now is a very important thing, it’s a very nice thing. We are making the economy grow by offering a very nice service for tourists. It’s a very nice recreational activity. We allow people from the outside to get to know Cubans. It’s very good for the country. So right now, our service is illegal. This is because this past July, our government banned said licenses. What I’m trying to say here is that many people that have left Cuba lost their businesses due to politics. This is something we need to change. People that don’t fight need to respect the people that fight because not everybody wants to make sacrifices. It’s easy to just leave the country and start elsewhere. There are people that decide to stay and make a sacrifice. The government has many tools to destroy you economically and socially, so I understand the people that left the country, the people that don’t want to be politically involved and want to live a simple life."
— Pinar del Río
I spent my birthday climbing, exploring caves and riding through the valley of Viñales. I learned about the tobacco, rum, sugar and climbing in the region. After a long day, I returned to my homestay, and just when I thought she couldn’t be more hospitable, my lovely host Yanara surprised me with a cake.
Turns out she got a glimpse of my birthday when she was writing down my passport information upon check-in.
Yanara runs a “casa particular” (home-stay) in her home to financially support her parents. Every morning she walks into town for poor internet connection to manage her bookings solely on her phone. As difficult as it is, she still manages to be a kick-ass host. She even offers hiking tours to her guests. I was humbled at how welcoming and helpful she was. Despite my broken Spanish, we managed to talk for hours as we got to know each other. I could go on and on about her, but I will never forget my experience in Viñales... most importantly, we both gained a friend.
Sonia; bike tour guide — Havana
The Cuban Countryside—
The region of red fertile soil, smooth Guayabita rum, endless tobacco farms, rich fruits and tranquility.
Dusk — Trinidad
I was interested in seeing what the deal was with Muslims in Cuba. When I was standing outside of the Abdallah Mosque in Havana, I was greeted by some lively young women who encouraged me to come inside despite me not having the proper attire. They did not have any spare hijabs or skirts at the time, so they gave me what is known as a dishdasha or thobe; the long robe worn by Muslim men. I put that on and wrapped my kufiyah around my head into a makeshift hijab. It was a different experience, a little comical, in a good way. It was the most comfortable I have ever felt inside a place of worship. Honestly, the high quality of the interior took me by surprise too.
I asked to speak to the Imam who then shortly greeted me. We sat down and I proceeded to ask him questions about Islam in Cuba. At first, I could feel he was hesitant about my curiosity as some of my questions were politically charged.. but I couldn’t blame him. The Imam, of Egyptian descent, made his journey over to Havana a couple of years ago (2015) to “help spread Islam”. He claimed that the number of Muslim converts are now at a staggering 10,000.
A day in the life — Havana
Ronaldo's balcony — Havana
— Havana
People-watching — Havana
Climbing came to Cuba in the 90's. Generally, the climbers that come to Cuba are from North America.
Henry is a local climbing guide in Viñales. He has been climbing for eight years and says he enjoys the challenges that come with it. We hiked for about 25 minutes in the blazing heat before reaching our shady climbing spot. We climbed in multiple spots; a continuous hike and climb. I've never been surrounded by so many mosquitoes in my life. They buzzed over me the entire climb up, but just for a few moments, the view made me forget all about them.
Layers— Bay of Pigs
Crocs — Zapata Peninsula
Ronaldo runs an Airbnb in the heart of Havana. His casa was the first place I stayed in Cuba. He was incredibly humble and loved to talk. The balcony was my favorite part of his home because it overlooked the city. It was a lovely place to drink the coffee he made while absorbing the morning sun, and watching the city wake up.
"I have many tourists that come stay in my home. Some are very nice like you, but then there are those that come and say we need to paint the buildings so it looks nicer. We like it the way it is. Cuba is for the Cubans and for the Cubans only."
When the Soviet Union fell in the 90’s, Cuba lost its major supplier of fuel, fertilizer and food. Food was scarce and Cubans reverted to using traditional methods of farming since the chemicals disappeared. During this “special period” in the 90’s, the government offered state-owned land to people as long as they used it to grow food. There are now over 10,000 urban organic farms in Cuba. It was interesting to see a country with significantly less resources than ours thrive in organic farming. GMO’s are outlawed in Cuba, however, there is a chance that chemicals make their way back over to the island. Organic farming is an organized system that Cuban farmers take pride in and hope to maintain if American agriculture companies attempt to make a presence and sell their products. —Viñales Valley
Plaza de la Revolución is the administrative focal point of Cuba. A massive steel mural of the iconic Che Guevara is mounted on the Ministry of the Interior. Here, millions gathered for political rallies, speeches administered by the Castro brothers and the victory celebration of the Cuban Revolution [January 1st, 1959] “Until victory, always” — Havana
Kite surfers — Varadero
— Trinidad
Varadero to Havana
An unutilized school bus calling for the end of the U.S. blockade on Cuba — Varadero
Pt.1 — I met Jack at my casa particular in Varadero. He's a Canadian sailor that is always up for a good conversation. He shared his past with me which I found so interesting. Unfortunately, Jack's wife passed away from cancer only two weeks after discovering she had it. He was in Cuba to clear his mind. In his suitcase he brought household supplies that belong to his wife to give away to those that needed it. He also brought a lock of her hair, but he wasn't sure what to do with it at first. Then one day he and one of the casa owners bought a plant together. He buried the lock of hair into the soil and the owners told him they would care for it until they die. I thought it was a very kind gesture. Jack and I talked for hours every day. Turns out he was once a sailor for one of the prince's of Saudi Arabia, which I found to be so random yet cool. We shared our experiences in the Middle East and hope to meet again in the future. We still keep in touch via e-mail.
Pt. 2 — "I've never gotten a tattoo before, until now. Who would've thought it would be in Cuba."
Jack is a sailor, hence the anchor. April 8th, 2017 was the day his wife passed away.
Misty morning— Pinar del Río
— Havana
— Viñales Valley
Museo de la Revolución (Museum of the Revolution) — Old Havana
As I made my way through the museum, I overheard a group of Americans on their guided tour admit their lack of knowledge on Cuba's history. The tour guide constantly surprised them with facts about Cuba's history. There is a general misunderstanding about Cuba from the American people to say the least. After I made my way around the museum, I sat outside to eat the maní moledo I bought earlier. A few minutes later, the group of Americans were escorted out by their guide, and she sat down on the front steps to talk on the phone. I waited for her to finish her call, then I sat down next to her to ask her a few questions.
She has been giving guided tours around Cuba for 10 years and absolutely loves it. Originally, she thought she would be working for the United Nations, and even studied three languages thinking she would have a more serious job. She told me usually there would be a three hour wait to get inside the museum, but because of Trump's recent actions, tourism has significantly decreased. She said most Americans that come to Cuba have a change of heart, because they end up seeing Cubans for who they really are; kind, welcoming and hardworking people. The most difficult part about her job is dealing with tourists that don't realize what they're getting into when they come to Cuba, as it is far less luxurious than most countries. Even though I ensured her I wasn't a journalist out to get her, she wouldn't give me her first name; so, here's to Mrs. Rodriguez.