Impressions of Cuba: More than just a beautiful summer get-away

Impressions of Cuba: More than just a beautiful summer get-away

Beach parade in Grand Memories, Varadero, Cuba
(PHOTOS: HG)

By Mila Astorga-Garcia

Cuba had always been on our list, so when the opportunity came to travel this summer, we jumped at it.

We had heard of its beautiful beaches, the affordable all-inclusive accommodations in resort hotels, the historical sites, the old world architecture, vintage cars, the culture, music, dance, the famous rum, the cigars, and the coffee.

Except for the cigars, we had a taste of all these, and more.

A huge thanks to my daughter Kalayaan and her Cuban-Canadian friend Mabel, we found ourselves billeted in a beautiful hotel-resort Grand Memories Sanctuary in Varadero, with all its top upgrades – a fitting place for a get-away for our belated anniversary trip.

Che Guevara’s image in Revolution Square

It had all the works: a suite that looked like a complete condo, a swimming pool overlooking our balcony, the fine-dining restaurant and lounge bar also within our view, a beautiful private beach steps away, lots of fitness and fun activities. We even had a designated private butler for matters like arranging room and laundry service and private tours. Not used to such amenities and attention which overwhelmed us, we found ourselves making friends with the resort staff, that by the end of our eight-day stay, we knew them by name, and they, us. And they even shared a bit of their lives, showing pictures of their children and families. Hola! we would always greet each other, oftentimes with friendly hugs.

We traveled to this country for the first time with the intention of maximizing what we could experience and learn from its history, culture and people in that brief visit. Our objective was to visit Havana and stay for at least a day or two or even longer, but we learned hotels and food in the city were more expensive than in Varadero for tourists.

90th birthday exhibit at Museo de la Revolucion

So the best thing to do was join the day bus tour to the city, where tourists from various hotels in Varadero were picked up and brought to famous sites, with only brief stopovers in selected historical places, a cigar shop, market, a street stand for snacks, and a famous restaurant for lunch. We however had a very authoritative lawyer for a bus tour guide that we learned a lot from her exciting animated accounts told with amazing candor and humor, that the two-hour drive to Havana seemed like a few minutes. Through her, we learned about Havana which we would never have known from reading. We took notes, as we enjoyed the sites and sounds of the vibrant City where 57 years ago, Fidel Castro and his revolutionary army marched to victory and overthrew the dictator Batista.

Since the bus tour gave us only a quick glimpse of the city, we yearned for more of Havana so upon arriving at our resort, we requested our debonaire-looking butler friend, Hanoi, (named after the liberated city in North Vietnam, as he was born around the time South Vietnam won the war against the Americans), to arrange for us a whole-day tour in a car with a tour guide.

Hanoi just knew the right contacts. At the exact appointed time of 7 a.m., we were greeted in front of the hotel lobby by a gentleman who looked like a skinny version of George Clooney in his dark glasses. He introduced himself as Yofren. “It’s just like saying ‘your friend,’ “ he quickly disarmed us as we tried to pronounce his name with difficulty, and he pointed to a shining red 1955 Chevy parked at the curb. “That’s our car, and my brother-in-law, Raidel, will drive us anywhere you want the whole day,” he added.

Havana Cathedral, oldest church in Cuba

That trip turned out to be a highlight of our first Cuban visit. Like kids in a candy store, we eagerly savored all the vignettes, anecdotes, and insights of Cuba’s culture and history, as told to us by this university English professor who now loved his job as a tour guide.

We visited the Revolution Square the second time. On one side stood a formidable tower made of pure Italian marble which our guide said was built by the Mafia to be the center of a Las Vegas type entertainment strip — a plan sanctioned by Batista which was instantly aborted with the victory of the revolution. At its front now stands tall a statue of Jose Marti, Cuba’s national hero. Two government buildings around the square featured on its facade huge outlined images of Che Guevarra on one building and Camilo Cienfuegos on another, the country’s war heroes. We were told the square where people would gather to listen to Fidel’s speeches, which sometimes lasted six hours, could hold a million people.

We toured the Museo de la Revolucion, where there was a special photo and art exhibit of the life of Fidel Casto who had just turned 90 years old in Aug. 13 – where captioned photos from his childhood, his student years, his revolutionary struggles and victory, up to his latest public appearances, were meticulously curated and archived.

Inside Ernest Hemingway’s favorite watering hole: La Bodeguita del Medio, Havana

We learned that Fidel Castro is mostly heard than seen in recent years, especially since the turn over of the country’s leadership to his brother Raul. One time a touring foreign journalist asked why he just could not meet with Fidel Castro for an interview. “Are you kidding? Even we do not know where he stays, with the hundreds of attempts on his life by the American CIA ,” was the answer.

We noticed that every Cuban we had a chance to talk with, admired and respected Fidel, proud of the kind of society he built for the country, where education and health were accessible and free, and food subsidized.

One noticeable issue for us was the “deprofessionalization” of professionals, like our tour guides who had opted to work in the tourist industry due to much lower salaries in the lawyering and teaching professions. They were not complaining, however, for they said they enjoyed the perks very much, although they had to work hard to earn more. (“To each according to his work,” I thought)

Paintings of classic cars

In Cuba, education is free from kindergarten to elementary, high school, university until PhD, no matter what course you take. However, salaries are low. Thus, our server, an economics university graduate, preferred a hotel restaurant job, just so she could get a higher take-home pay supplemented by service tips which were pooled and shared equally with everyone in the team. She said she was happy because her family had food (subsidized), shelter (you could own a house for as low as US$3,000 with no property tax after it’s fully paid), free and accessible quality health care (one of the best in the world, which focuses on prevention), and free education. Still, by Western standards, Cubans are poor.

Many confided that to supplement their income, they would engage in handicraft work at home, then sell their products in local markets. A restaurant waitress said she would do nail service at home after her daytime work shift.

Proud mom Cecilia and daughter law student Amanda

One aspect of Cuban life we were impressed with was their medical system. Cuba has the most number of doctors in the world in proportion to its population of 12 million. That is why they are able to send several doctors to countries devastated by natural calamities. Cuban doctors working in other countries send home money remittances. They are recognized as one of the country’s biggest sources of revenue fuelling the economy.

Doctors work for some time in foreign land where Cuba has relations, then they come back after a few years able to invest in a house for their family. They come back to become community-based doctors or specialists. Cuba also welcomes poor medical students from countries with whom it has relations, to study medicine for free in that country. The graduating doctors then go back to their country of origin to practice the profession.

Eduardo, Lidissy, Yolidaine, crafts people at a tourist market

In Cuba, a preventive community-based health care system exists, with the doctors living with the people they serve. A doctor lives on the second floor of a house, while the first floor is a community clinic where he holds meetings like pre-natal and post- natal meetings with mothers. He makes house visits twice a week. Hospitals are for emergencies or more serious ailments. We were amazed to visit one of the biggest hospitals in Havana to see it very accessible, clean, and with a huge waiting room filled with empty seats, as everyone is attended to right away.

We had the chance to eat in a cozy restaurant where the owners, cooks and servers belonged to a family living on the second floor, while the first floor was turned into a dining area, with live entertainment by a Cuban musical trio. Yes, entrepreneurs do thrive in the country.

Our eight days in Cuba were one of the most wonderfully enriching travel experiences we’ve ever had. Was it the place? The amenities? The food? The sites? The beach? (Despite its gorgeous beauty and clean water, would you believe we spent only one afternoon to swim?) It was all these.

If there was ever one reason this trip was so special, it is because of one sure thing we learned: Cuba, despite the continuing U.S. embargo and the Western conventional idea that socialism is never good, is holding up as a proud little socialist country with generally poor but happy people who do not have to worry about their children’s safety, food, education, health and the future. Yes, there is more to this beautiful tourist paradise than meets the eye.

So blissful we were of our experience that during our last night in the resort, after we dined and took souvenir photos of our new friends – from the chef to the servers – we decided to relax at the lounge bar for the best espresso we had every tasted, to the live music of Romantic Night, a talented musical duo. As they serenaded us with the song, “When I Fall I Love” with our espresso coffee cups raised, we cheered to our happy 47th, spent in a country with a glorious history, a caring society, and gracious people.

Fans, hats, pins and car plates

Lawyer-tour guide Di (left) with our tourist bus driver

Pablo Gonzales Villanueva (General Manager, Grand Memories) and Francisco Jose Garia Diaz (Sanctuary Manager)

With hotel staff, from left, Hanoi, Mila, Delia and Abel

At the beach with writer friends from Canada: ManasiJoshi, G. Mambo, Sarah Israr and friend

New friends in the Sanctuary Restaurant, Grand Memories Hotel: Aileo, Annalay, Yudisley, Yunialys, Jessica, Viccenso, Yuniel

Romantic Nights saxophonist Ariel Mestre Silva plays “When I Fall in Love” for celebrating couple Hermie and Mila Garcia, accompanied by pianist Osvaldo Consuegra Suri (not in photo).