Cuba is awesome... well for me

I got a little sick L. Kind of a cold mostly, but I’m always a snot monster so it doesn’t really matter. I’ve been sleeping really weirdly and having crazy dreams, but last night (Feb 9) I slept basically all night without any problems. Everyone says they’re having weird dreams and waking up several times, I think it’s the carbon monoxide in our systems and the scary AC units that randomly spur in the middle of the night and sound like a hurricane.

The weirdest dreams so far:1.I was like awake, but not really, but maybe?? And I thought my roommate was having a seizure, but then it switched and I couldn’t move my body I could only talk and I wasn’t awake and I could hear things. And I said I can’t move my body and my roommate was like yeah… that bus hit you pretty hard… and so I like forced myself awake and like pinched myself and did some Inception craziness and was freaked out for like an hour in bed. Like I dreamt I was in a COMA this is the second time this has happened in my life. Scary.

2.We were at an airport (I think in Pittsburgh but it was definitely not the Pittsburgh airport) and I was like you guys that went by so fast, like it just felt like a week, like… we didn’t do anything? And everyone was like I know, right? So weird. And I was like well maybe when I look through my pictures I’ll be like yeah I did stuff… then we tried to get our luggage but the baggage claim rotating belt thing was a spiral so all the bags just ended up in this big pile in the middle. Then I woke up and I was like yeah I have like 3 more months here. I had the same dream in Nicaragua. So weird.

A few days ago Lou (aka Lindsay Kramer) and I walked to Habana Vieja from our neighborhood of Vedado. If you walk along the Malecon (the famous highway that runs along the ocean, look it up online and you’ll probably recognize it) it only takes like 20 minutes to get to the middle of the super touristy center of Havana. We decided we wanted to walk deeper into Habana Vieja, outside of the super clean touristy areas into where people actual lived and worked. It was completely different. Walking just a few blocks outside of the tourist traps of restaurants and monuments we were met with the stereotypical decay of Havana’s colonial legacy and the general ‘poverty’ (I don’t know how to judge poverty here). The streets were narrow and then wide, brick and cement; there were little shops that sold sandwiches for $5 moneda nacional (which equates to about 20 cents); doors and buildings falling apart and built all on top of each other. It is truly beautiful in its decay, and yet terrible because people still need and want to live there. I can take pictures of fading paint, chipped stone, rotting doors, and still admire its beauty, but I can’t actually imagine living in that situation (although I really want to).

The communism here is an absolute mystery to our group and even the residents. We met two guys named Raizel and Julian and we’ve hung out a few times on the Malecon. We asked them questions about communism, youth culture, racial relations (they are both black Cubans), and about various Cuban terminology. When we said we didn’t understand communism here, they replied “we don’t either”. We were all a little taken aback (is that the right phrase?), but I can barely understand how the U.S. system works, I just play it as I go, so it’s basically the same here for Raizel and Julian.

If you have money here you can buy basically whatever you want, but the average wage is about $10 - $30 USD a month, so materialism definitely isn’t rampant for the majority of the population (again just speculating, I hate making definitive statements). Our tour guide told us about the ration booklets everyone gets and how it’s basically a book of coupons that you can use to get rice, beans, meat from government sponsored stores. She said most times it wasn’t enough for the average person, but at least it was a start. That struck me. In the U.S. we fight to the death to defend capitalism, but ignore those who are part of a capitalistic system and are screwed over. Here, capitalism exists. You can buy what you want basically whenever you want, if you have the money, so if you need more food, you can buy it, if you need more food and have no money, you can’t, but at least you have the rations. Here you get a little help, a little start, so even if your wages are too low to fill your stomach or your children’s, you get a head start. Although… there are shortages and most residents aren’t guaranteed the quantity allotted to them on the ration cards. Then again, nothing is ever perfect.

Everything is pretty regulated: there are basically two types of domestic beer and a few types of rum that are all state run and operated. You can buy Absolut vodka, wine from abroad, Jameson—for a hefty price—but you still can if you want. There’s also just a plethora of U.S. based products which is just so confusing. How far does this embargo go? We aren’t allowed to travel and visit a different culture, but U.S. companies are allowed to use this culture as another market? Again, just speculating, but I’m an impressionable 19 year old boy so… así es la vida.

Rai, Lou, and I talked the most on the Malecon. When we asked him about race and what it means in Cuba, he explained it definitely exists but in a psychological way. He said if he was Lou’s boyfriend and they wanted to go to a fancy club or restaurant, he would most likely not be allowed in. We told him about all the events that were happening in Pittsburgh and how most of them related to race in Cuba. He was impressed, but I don’t know how much was understood. Later in the night (or maybe a different night? The nights at the Malecon kind of blend together…), some police showed up, it was rumored because some tourist got too drunk… haha. Anyway, Rai affirmed with us that we are tourists and he is our friend and he is not causing us any trouble, just in case the police asked because he is a black Cuban/Cuban in general. It was really depressing, but the police didn’t bother us so it was less disturbing.

After my whole project on race in Cuba, it’s still hard for me to see any inequality (I mean, I have only been here a week) but listening to Rai and Julian it was interesting to hear that it definitely exists and in some cases is so prominent that it prevents him from entering a place. He assured us that the racism wasn’t institutional so much, he has the same freedoms as everyone else, but on the psychological level, who knows what could happen.

We asked him further about the 50+ regime of Castro and if he agreed with it. He shook his head and said not me, nor him, nor anyone on the street. I didn’t delve further—asking him what he wanted to see change or anything, and I sort of forgot what else we talked about after that. Whoops. Next time: plunge into the topic of Castrology (I coined it, I think it’s funny) and see what Rai or anyone would like to see change and what they think/know/anything about Cuban politics.

I am awaiting a plethora of people to talk with about life here in Cuba and I am hopeful to share it here, unless the Cuban government gets a hold of this and deports me… very possible. AAHHH! That would suck.

This is probably the most interesting so far. I am going to write more in the future about my classes and stuff. I’ve only had one week of classes so far (HAHA) so when I get a more regular feel for them/regular feel for what my actual life schedule is I’ll write about it. But I will give a few teasers:

1.I have a four day weekend starting at 1 pm on Thursday and lasting until Tuesday until 11:30 (until February 28^th when I actually start my 4^th class) HAH

2.I am doing an independent study (with Lou) with Dr. Antonio Martinez who was apparently president of the Ibero-American Council on Anthropology (I haven’t googled this or anything/it was said in Spanish so I’m still a little confused) BUT it’s an independent study for Physical Anthropology, so no Phys Anthro at Pitt HOPEFULLY.

3.The campus is actually beautiful and has a staircase/alma mater/entrance akin to Columbia University; has a shrunken version of University of Minnesota’s main area with all the buildings surrounding a common area; every building is beautiful and has columns basically which me gustan; just there is so much green and nature there and everywhere.

Until next time, my faithful readers (if you exist)!

Chau,

John