Hello from Cuba (2) - Rain in Vinales
Hotel Havana Libre, Tuesday April 5, 2005, 6:24 pm
So Saturday I had already planned to go to Vinales, a beautiful
area in the province of Pinar del Rio, 190 km west of Havana.
I took the Viazul bus from the Havana
station, which is a modern bus network more or less for tourists
and the one way fare is US$12 (way too much for the locals,
most of whom end up taking local taxis or the cheaper and
less reliable, more decrepit Astro bus system).
My reception in Vinales.
A young Cuban man sat down beside me in the bus terminal and
tried to offer me accommodation in his private home in Pinar
del Rio (one version of the shadow economy which is centered
around tourists).
After I told him I already had accommodation, he started to
talk to me about life in Cuba and how hard it is and that
is extremely difficult to survive economically. He told me
he only makes US$24 a month, working for the national(ized)
telecommunications company. He also said that recently financial
transfers from Cuban emigrants, particularly from Miami, have
been cut back to US$100, which works out to CUC 92 (Cuban
Convertible Pesos, which used to be 1:1 with the US Dollar)
and that soon US$100 would work out to even 8% less. He basically
just spilled over with unhappiness about the economic situation.
Vinales on a sunny day.
The trip to Vinales was about 3.25 hours long and along the
way it started to rain. Vinales is known for its beautiful
limestone formations, the "Mogotes", box-like mountains that
grow straight out of a flat valley floor with often vertical
walls and hundreds of limestone caves.
Probably 30 or 40 people were waiting at the bus stop in Vinales,
all owners of private bed and breakfasts (or "casas particulares")
ready to pick up tourists staying with them. My hostess, Sandra,
a beautiful young woman of 28 years, was there too with a
sign saying¨"Susanne - Canada" on it. It's a strange feeling
arriving in a foreign country, in a strange town, not knowing
anybody, and seeing your name printed on a sign first thing
you arrive.
Church in Vinales.
My hostess took me to their Casa Particular, a simple colonial
2 bedroom house, with a brand-new bathroom for the guests,
and an old decrepit bathroom (without sink or toilet seat)
for the owners. My hostess had to work and I was very tired,
and it was raining anyway, so I slept for a few hours until
I received my home-cooked dinner directly in the private house.
In a conversation with the young woman I found out that she
makes the equivalent of US$13 per month (and a simple pair
of Jeans costs US$20!), so she supplements her income with
the bed and breakfast (another one of the few private types
of business allowed). The night cost me US$20.00 and the dinner
with drink was US$10.00 for a complete dinner with chicken,
arroz
congri (rice with black beans) and salad. The food was
very simple and not particularly spicy or tasty.
We had a fascinating conversation and I found out that women
today, despite economic hardships, have it a lot better since
the revoluation. Cuba is a traditionally a country with a
lot of machismo, and the revolution has done a lot for women.
They now receive educational opportunities and can obtain
education and work which was very difficult before. Many of
the educated women work in ministries or universities and
have a fairly decent standard of living.
I received a few explanations about the relations between
men and women in Cuba (e.g. that modern educated women no
longer accpet those machista attitudes of Cuban men, but that
there are still many traditional young women without self-esteem
or education that are more or less at the mercy of their boyfriends/husbands).
I also found out that it is not allowed for a private bed
and breakfast owner to employ a maid (due to their exploitation
in the past), but that everybody does it anyway, since people
have to work full-time to make a living and don´t have time
to manage the day-to-day chores of running a small hospitality
establishment in addition to working outside the house.
My hostess' common-law boyfriend told me about the medical
system in Cuba, that he had a benign tumor in his tibia (after
having been a national calibre rower and basketball player)
and that he received an implant in his leg consisting of coral,
from 2 of the most well-respected doctors in Cuba. His operation
was based on new surgical techniques from the US and since
the operation his life is almost normal, he walks completely
normally, except he can no longer run or play basketball.
All Cubans I have met so far are extremely proud of their
country's achievements in public medicine, public education,
literacy and opportunities for women and minorities (while
at the same time some of them are quite vocal about all the
economic hardships and other restrictions imposed by the government).
Definitely some interesting insights....
Interesting and useful books about Cuba:
Related Articles:
"My
Post-Cuba Reflections: Appreciation and Balance"
"Cuba
is Calling - Why I selected Cuba as my language study destination"
Hello from Cuba (1) -
First Impressions"
"Hello from Cuba (2) - Rain
in Vinales"
"Hello from Cuba (3) - Hiking
Vinales and Exploring Nature"
"Hello from Cuba (4) - Bureaucracy
Galore - The University of Havana"
"Hello from Cuba (5) - Another
Mind-Twisting Experience"
"Hello from Cuba (6) - The
Student Experience and Political Insights"
"Hello from Cuba (7) - Fun
and Recreation"
"Hello from Cuba (8) - Bicycle
Rides, Camellos and Cannon Shots"
"Hello from Cuba (9) - Havana
Neighbourhoods"
"Hello from Cuba (10) - A
Country Excursion"
"Hello from Cuba (11) - Inside
a Cuban Home"
"Hello from Cuba (12) - Contrasts
and Contradictions"
"Hello from Cuba (13) - Exploring
Downtown Havana"
"Hello from Cuba (14) - Field
Trips and Interviews"
"Hello from Cuba (15) - Getting
ready to say 'Goodbye, Havana'..."
"Hello from Cuba (16) - The
final day"