Cuba
Know before you go
For Americans, Cuba is what feels like an unobtainable bucket list item. From grade school on they teach you all sorts of scandalous drama about Cuba. Is it real? Go find out.
The Cuba we experienced was nothing like the one we heard folktales of as children. It is an incredibly richly cultural place that is pleasantly cut of from US corporate culture, unlike most other places on earth. You can see a KFC from the Pyramids of Giza, but you won’t find one in Havana. Cubans are beautiful, soulful people. Havana is a sprawling city full of nostalgic cars and Spanish colonial architecture butting up to beautiful modern architecture. There are quirky bars and restaurants, and museums all over. The art scene is alive and well. It is a through and through, lively place. But it also feels oddly calm and safe. There are elderly people out in the street playing chess on folding tables, and female European students walking down dark streets alone and unthreatened at midnight. We wandered aimlessly and not once did we feel unwelcome or in danger. The public transportation, as far as we discovered is hardly existent, so it can be difficult to find your way around the large island. We only made it a little ways out of Havana, and that is my biggest regret about our trip to Cuba.
When I go back, I intend to see much more. You might be wondering how hard it is to go? Many people know that a few years back relations improved enough that Americans could visit legally. This is only half true. When we went, there were 12 reasons that the American government could approve you to visit, and none of those reasons were tourism. We read in blogs that they aren’t lenient about it either. For example, if one stated that they were going to “Education Purposes” or “Family”, they would absolutely be required to furnish hard evidence in order to receive that approval. We considered making something up and trying our luck, and then thought better. Cuba wants your tourism. You are welcome there as far as they are concerned, if you follow all of their rules of course. So we flew to Cancun, walked around the Airport to find the Cuba table, bought a visa for like ten US dollars, and flew there the next day. It was easy, and just illegal enough to be fun. On our way back into the US, we were only lightly questioned about it, and mostly out of pleasant curiosity.
When I go back, I intend to see much more. You might be wondering how hard it is to go? Many people know that a few years back relations improved enough that Americans could visit legally. This is only half true. When we went, there were 12 reasons that the American government could approve you to visit, and none of those reasons were tourism. We read in blogs that they aren’t lenient about it either. For example, if one stated that they were going to “Education Purposes” or “Family”, they would absolutely be required to furnish hard evidence in order to receive that approval. We considered making something up and trying our luck, and then thought better. Cuba wants your tourism. You are welcome there as far as they are concerned, if you follow all of their rules of course. So we flew to Cancun, walked around the Airport to find the Cuba table, bought a visa for like ten US dollars, and flew there the next day. It was easy, and just illegal enough to be fun. On our way back into the US, we were only lightly questioned about it, and mostly out of pleasant curiosity.