"Running Commentary"

Cuba, 1993

    After retiring from teaching at the relatively young age of 57, my mother packed her bags and traveled the world. Of the seven continents, she only missed one – Antarctica. Once in a while we played a game – I would name three foreign countries hoping to find one she hadn’t visited. “How about Borneo,” I once asked, thinking the remote Southeast Asian country was a winning bet. “Nope!” Mother playfully responded. “I spent time in Borneo.” And so it went.
    Among Mother’s favorite trips was a 10 day excursion to Cuba in 1993 – well before the US lifted travel bans to that fascinating, Caribbean island nation. In going through Mother’s personal effects recently, I discovered an interesting hand-typed account of her trip. Today, I’ll share some of it with you – in Mother’s own unembellished words.
At the time, Mother was 72 years old, two years younger than I am! When Genevieve Heath died two months ago at the age of 100, Concordia lost a fascinating woman who yearned to experience distant cultures in far off horizons.  
Would you like to travel to Cuba? (Ahem!) The “other” Cuba, not the one in North Central Kansas! Want to go back in time? Fasten your seatbelt.
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    I have just returned from a most unique and unforgettable trip to Cuba. When friends asked me, “Why Cuba?” I answered, “Have passport, will travel.”
    My son Jim and his wife Carol planned this trip during their Easter vacation and invited me to go along. The US requirements for travel to Cuba are limited to educational seminars or publicity research. After my retirement from teaching 16 years ago, I was befriended by our local newspaper editor who kindly gave me a letter of introduction and press card in order to cover my eligibility to obtain a visa.
    From California, I flew to Miami and spent the night. On weekends, there is only one chartered flight to Cuba – a 50 minute flight. I was excited and ready to go.
    We had been told not to take any food into the country; however, when a friend of Carol’s learned of our trip, she begged Carol to take some food and vitamins to relatives desperately in need of both. To accommodate the request, Jim, Carol and I all limited our clothing so we could take on extra weight for those needed supplies.
Fortunately, nothing was confiscated and we made it through customs. Some food items that made it into the country – powered milk and tins of ham. Apparently, packing food supplies for Cubans is a common practice.
    One person didn’t fare so well going through customs – she attempted to smuggle in money. We were allowed a maximum of $100 per day, but that woman had a stack of $100 bills placed in various places including a hidden pocket in the back of her Levi jacket. More money was hidden in her glasses case. She held up the line for 45 minutes until the customs agents could do a strip search.
    There are two monetary systems in Cuba – the American dollar and the Cuban peso. The dollar was for tourists; the peso was for Cubans. However, American cash is readily accepted everywhere.
    After we checked into our Cuban hotel, El Presidente, we changed clothes and took a bus ride to Varadera Beach. In all my travels, I have never seen a more beautiful beach. There was a barrier reef about 50 yds. offshore, so the waves were gentle and the water refreshingly cool. Not bathwater warm – just cool. The water was heavenly. The scenic landscape extraordinary.
    We were a motley assorted group of educators, ten in all. None of us had met before we checked into our hotel in Miami. That first night in Cuba, we got back to Hotel Presidente for a late 8:30 dinner – all of us ready for a good night’s sleep after all the excitement.
    Two meals per day were included in our tour package, always served buffet style and pretty much the same every day. Breakfast was served at 7:00 and included the usual – eggs, ham or sausage, toast, choice of fruit and a glass of juice plus some little pastry tarts with apple filling. Delicious!
    Dinner always included cabbage of some sort, a salad with perhaps potato or corn with coleslaw. Meals were very satisfactory; however, lunch was something else. We were on our own for lunch and depending on where we ate, we were limited to three choices of sandwiches: ham, toasted cheese, or ham and cheese. No other choices – that was it.
    At 8:00 Monday morning we were to meet with the Minister of Education for a question/answer session on Cuban schools. We soon learned about “Cuban time.” 8:00 might mean 9:00, or even 10:00. Our trip was held up by the late arrival of our tour guide. We then learned he lived two hours away. He had no car and had to depend on the bus or hitchhiking to get to the hotel.
    Throughout our trip transportation in Cuba was unpredictable. Bicycles were a common with motor scooters a close second. Hitchhiking was common as well. Only 10% of the people owned cars.

Note:  Next week, Part two of Genevieve’s trip to Cuba. Pssst!  It’s OK now to unfasten your seatbelt. Until Friday!  Rmykl@yahoo.com