Reflections on Cuba
(Originally posted June 2014)
So, how was your trip? After several years of writing these post-trip updates for my friends and family, this has been one of the most challenging experiences to summarize. While participating in the Witness for Peace Education Delegation allowed me to visit Cuba, opened doors to speak with a variety of individuals and organizations and to process with a group of intelligent, conscientious and accomplished educators, I’m left with more ideas and new wonderings than ever. Certainly this is, in part, a positive feeling to be encouraged to continue the journey towards understanding the balance of Cuba, the United States and their balance in the world, it’s difficult to put into a few paragraphs.
My first glances out of the airport seemed like most any other international destination. Families crowded around a sliding glass door waving and greeting arriving relatives. Stepping past I felt transported back in time with the vehicles of the 1950s waiting in the parking lot and the streets are void of McDonald’s, Starbucks and the only billboards demonstrate Cuba’s continued patriotism towards the revolution.
One of the main focuses of the delegation to Cuba was the education system. Cuba education system is free from birth through the university and Cuba graduates more professionals than they know what to do with. In our time we visited education professionals (primary, secondary, music schools, universities,community centers, medical school and popular educators working the community). Although outside of the official classroom doors, the movement towards Popular Education is taking hold in community and church organizations. Many conversations with education professions from Cuba and our small group have provided me with new ideas and understandings and have reenergized me for planning this next school year.
The delegation also included many other aspects of Cuban life and culture. Another interesting focus was the country’s health care system, which despite of an embargo causing access to medicine and medical technology to be sparse, Cuba maintains a life expectancy comparable to that of the United States. We met several passionate doctors and medical students that serve their local communities and that will also care for the health of people in Africa and around the Americas. In terms of arts and culture we attended a performance of a spontaneous theater group, live salsa music and dance lessons, visited an artists commune and enjoyed several nights out in Habana, walking the malecón and dancing salsa. Other visits included the experts at National Center for Sex Education, a crocodile breeding facility, the US Interest Section, Afro-Caribbean religious leaders and conversations with economists and journalists.
Towards the end of our experience we had the opportunity to leave the city of Habana and spend some time on the southern coast of the island. During our days in Ciénaga de Zapata we visited a secondary school, swam in the crystal blue waters of Playa Girón and Playa Larga (yes, we swim in the historical Bay of Pigs). We stayed at privately owned bed and breakfasts on the beach, eating meals listening to the waves. In the evenings we enjoyed the company of our group and our leaders, sipping piña coladas, cuba libres and cerveza, swaying in hammocks and walking on the beach.
Overall the time in Cuba was a fantastic opportunity to travel to a unique country. Latin American atmosphere yet sheltered from the United States’ mass influence over all aspects of society. It both enjoys and struggles with a political and economic isolation from its northern neighbor, the embargo that affects ever Cuban on a daily basis. The Cubans and their culture are vibrant and welcoming. I’m appreciative of the chance I had to visit and observe a small piece of the island and I look forward to the prospect of returning some day.
There’s a lot more that I’ll come back and write about later, such as the role of young people in Cuba, how recent changes in policy are changing the island nation, how patriotism compares to the US but for now, here’s a start and some pictures to enjoy.
