A personal view of progress in Cuba

A friend of mine, Dominic Hourd, recently spent a month in Cuba where he stayed in residential Havana rather than the tourist areas. Dominic kept a diary of his stay which he sent to me – I think you will find it interesting to read his thoughts on the ideas of progress and happiness… 

My trip started with paparazzi , no, not me, the Cuban Royal ballet star Carlos Acosta was on my flight.

I’m not sure ‘turning left’ was a good idea -such luxury on board before Cuba? Plus, I couldn’t get away from an Iranian lady complaining about her million pound flats which were taking up too much of her time to manage -my heart bleeds …

On arrival at my ‘casa particular’ (completely in the middle of residential Havana -no other tourists here), the owner gave me an introduction welcome, or rather introduction warnings; he was willing to give me a key to the front door, but it’s against the rules for a foreigner to have a key to a Cuban home, he informed me I should left and right for any police or nosey neighbours before putting the key in the door -some of the neighbours are members of the socialist party and look out for those who break rules. I found my welcome very exciting -very filmic, but then it was my first evening and I didn’t have to live with this for the rest of my life.

My host also informed me that if I wanted to bring back a friend to the house, he would have to (by law) take a copy of their ID and report them to the local authority for visiting a foreigner in another house.

A brief line on the pillow -well, I use the word pillow loosely -hundred of tiny pieces of foam in a sack ­welcome to Cuba.

The first morning I realize why Che Guevara and Fidel Castro had beards -shaving in cold water is no fun!

Breakfast was perfect for me, lots of fruit and not your apples and oranges either. The host asked me what I would like for dinner that evening, I said I loved fish, meat, potatoes, rice and vegetables. The host advised me that chicken was plentiful for tourists, but Havana hadn’t seen any potatoes in four months -the trucks from the potato farms had broken down and there were no spare parts available.

Evening dinner and as I sat down, four large plates of food appeared -all the courses at once, but the first course of lentil soup filled me, I couldn’t refuse the other courses -he had been queuing most of the morning to buy the ingredients and cooking all afternoon. I sat forcing the food down with a false smile on my face as he sat on the sofa watching me eat.

The thin toilet paper made me smile -it reminded me of a trip to Romania with Mum about 25 years ago, there is actually a lot of similarities between Cuba now and the old Eastern Europe 15 years ago.

As my current addiction is the gym, I couldn’t go four weeks without going, so my host introduced me to the local gym. It was ‘Cuban’ gym, in England it would be described as a dirty garage with a few rusty pieces of old equipment. I had to go into the back room to talk about joining. The agreed fee was 15 pesos -that’s about £10 for the four weeks. The guy running the gym couldn’t believe I was happy with this fee -I handed him the 15 pesos, which he of course pocketed -this was the equivalent of a month’s salary.

The police are everywhere in the residential area, they seem to be driving round every corner -looking out for anyone breaking the many rules/laws. When the police are not about, Cubans love to come up to me to talk; it is very rare for them to have the opportunity to talk to foreigners.
I have only been to Old Havana once so far, 1find it just too touristy -you could be in any Hispanic City – it is a shame 95% of tourists only get to see Old Havana or Varadero beach.

I have always seen Fidel Castro as a loveable figure -fighting American dominance and loved by his people, similar to Che Guevara, and it is true that his picture is in every office and state run shop, but this is more through pressure rather than personal choice. There is fear in Cuba -fear of the authorities -maybe not as much as in China, but there is strong control on Cuban’s movements and activities. I (unofficially) hired a tour guide one day and we had to walk on separate sides of the road if we saw a policeman. He was from a different city and if he was stopped, he would have been fined for being in a different city without good reason . Unfortunately, later that evening, he was arrested and imprisoned overnight for being with me.

The Cuban people are occasionally given hope by new reforms, but as soon as new liberating ideas come into force, new rules come with them with government officials taking brides. Many nurses and other government workers are quitting their profession to work with tourists because working with tourists in any capacity gives them the opportunity of getting a few extra pesos in tips -the only way they ca n supplement their income and treat themselves to items such as toothpaste and soap (which are in short supply and very expensive).
Although Cubans are frustrated, on the other hand, they are friendliest and happiest people I have ever met -they live for their families and their music.
Havana is a city that equals Florence/Venice in the beauty of its architecture , but these beautiful buildings are crumbling and falling down because there is no government or private money or the materials to renovate them.

I am loving the staple Cuban diet of rice beans and chicken, I could it for breakfast, lunch and dinner, oh, yes, I am….

The gym, there are more Afro Caribbean than Hispanic guys -no apparent reason apparently, but I am intrigued how these two groups mix so well -there is no divide -everyone is equal here -maybe that is the communism? I am treated with kindness and respect, but I wonder if an Afro Caribbean guy attending a gym frequented by white guys would receive the same???
I have noticed quite a few guys wearing all white -picture this: White shirt, white trousers with white shoes, oh, and not forgetting carrying a white umbrella! Yes, they look SO CAMP, however, going white is not the new pink or rainbow flag, it is a commitment to an African religion; they have to wear white for a year.

Living in a ‘casa particular’ means I really get to experience real Cuban life -last night was early to bed because there was a power cut -this didn’t affect central Havana where tourists stay. I was then woken at 2.00am by cheers in the streets as electricity was restored -apparently it could have been off for days. In the morning, the host apologized because there was no bread for breakfast because the area had run out of flour. However, not all bad news because excitement is in the air -rumours are spreading that trucks are being repaired and they may have potatoes arriving this afternoon.
I have found a lot of problems with the way Cuba is run, but I have never met so many people who smile. They are not free to travel, they don’t have enough food, they don’t have money to buy anything for the home, not that there is anything to buy, and yet they seem 100% more happy than British people who have so many materialistic items.
Another positive aspect to Cuban life is how safe I feel. I walk in the most run down areas of Havana ¬day and night and yet there is no crime. If there are any ‘youths’ on the streets, they are either playing football or baseball-this obviously is why so few people are overweight -they are not sat with laptops, they are either playing sports or dancing. Also, there are no fast food outlets!

On entering the gym, the custom is to shake hands/greet all those you know or have spoken to before. Luckily, it’s a small gym, otherwise my hour’s workout would be over before I’ve even warmed up. The first time I took part in this custom, I wasn’t sure if the greeting was going to be knuckle to knuckle, palm to palm or a formal handshake. My first attempt went all wrong and it ended up being a rather camp twist of the wrist followed by a soft slap. Their memory for moves (which is good due to their dancing skills) is far too good and this new camp greeting continues. I now dread the first five minutes of going to the gym as I have repeat this flamboyant ‘hello’. I have two fears; 1. They believe this to be the standard British greeting (honestly, it really does look worse than air kissing) or 2. The greeting catches on in Cuba -what have I done??

I realised today why the streets feel so different (apart from the crumbling down buildings around me). People talk to each other. No-one walks around wearing ear phones or talking/texting on mobile phones. I also haven’t heard one argument in the street. Life seems have stuck in the 50’s/60’s, but that is what is so appealing -there has been no ‘progress’ and that seems good!

A first for me -my host was not happy and was shouting at a friend. He later apologised and explained that an inspector has visited him at 8.00am (it was a Saturday) and spent two hours trying to find faults with his house, so he could fine him (the fine would be pocketed) -the alternative would be to simply bribe the inspector. But the inspector doesn’t even cover the area any more, but he still visits ‘casa particulars’ and could still shut someone down. Running a ‘casa particular’ is one reform which enables Cubans to work for themselves to earn more than the standard wage, but every week there are new rules, higher taxes and more inspectors to bride them.

I am confused as to the best for Cuba’s future. They have nothing and yet have so much in the way of friendliness, kindness and happiness. I fear this would be lost with progress, because progress would mean the introduction of computers, mobile phones and McDonalds.