Inner Cuba

In Cuba there is a serious transportation problem, becoming more patent in the countryside. We rented a car, which was somewhat difficult due to the offer/demand ratio (we ended up renting a small battered one with no trunk lock for a small discount... given the circumstances it was a sweet deal, all we had to do was park the car with the rear a few inches from a wall... peace of cake!).


Although feeling good as luck had struck us, our mood would soon change: we were all set to find out the real difficulties cubans endure. A little after leaving Havana, we started seeing a lot of people next to some men in yellow jackets. They would wave down passing cars and assign one or more of the waiting persons according to the destination of the stopped car. We were never waved down since rent-a-cars have distinctive license plates and maybe those men have orders not to "bother" tourists. We went through some mixed feelings: we could had stopped if we "really" wanted to help... but we'd like to stick with our selfish plan without any delays or detours. We didn't stop. Not until this woman with her son by the side, visibly tired, hungry and walking on the berm of an isolated dirt road, locked her eyes with ours.


For the fortunate ones, distances are made easier by bicycle, horse chariot or even by car. The majority of cubans though are in for long waiting times or lengthy walks on a daily basis.


Returning to Havana from Viñales via one of Cuba's main freeways is a difficult task, especially at night and under a thunderstorm. There are people walking, bicycling, etc, in both ways. The secret, although not full-proof, is driving on the leftmost lane. A little after pulling over to take this photo, the freeway becomes a one-lane road without any warning sign. Luckily, the gravel slowed us down. We never drove at night again.

Contrast #1

Food rationing in Cuba. Every year since 1962, cuban families are given a Libreta de Abastecimiento, a booklet stating the portions of food that each family can buy at the local bodega at subsidized prices. Those portions vary according to the number of persons in each family and their ages. The government states that the amount of food each cuban is allowed to buy through this system comprises a third of the daily needs. The other two thirds are hard to get with an average monthly salary under $17 USD, as the prices soar outside the food rationing system. Careful meal planning is thus required, giving little space for futile needs to stem. You can see it in their eyes.

"8 de la manãna, Havana, Cuba"

The taxi driver barely payed attention to the traffic. Anyone on the sidewalk could wave him down and asked him if he would go some place for some pesos. It was up to him deciding whether the small (or big) detour, since there were other people on board with different destinations, would compensate for the pesos he had been offered. No hurries. Moreover, nobody on board seemed to bother.

What could be an uninteresting shortest path from A to B turned out as an apparently random sequence of streets, with different persons hopping in and out. A man holding a mango (possibly is lunch), a couple noticeably in love... All of us (sometimes a total of 7 persons) fitted inside the typical 50's american car.

Once in downtown Havana, the cigar / rum / paladares (family run restaurants) / accommodation (and other "commodities"...) vendors are by the dozen. If you reject some or all offers, you get an unresented smile and a warm "hasta luego" in return.


In one of the busiest streets in Havana, this woman gently asked if we would go to the groceries store and buy powder milk for her baby. At first, we were kind of apprehensive: where exactly is the store? just there, she said.

For obvious reasons, it was difficult to deny such request... even though we figured a big-iron-muscled-cuban boyfriend was waiting for such pure souls in some alley... but sometimes a "western" mind plays tricks on you. We were/are so embarrassedly wrong... At the store counter, though, one other woman immediately joined us. Well, powder milk for two babies then... no problem. They told the man behind the counter what they wanted and he swiftly took care of the order. He looked busy... As soon as we started realizing that maybe they had (a lot) more babies, they said an embarrassed thank you and a quick goodbye, and walked out the door with their hands full of bags filled with powder milk packages.

The bill was steep. But a far cry from cubans' needs. It seemed more than fair.