friday favorites-cuba edition 08.24.18

Happy Friday Dear Ones. 

This week has been a crazy one with starting the one month countdown until I leave the dental school and head off on my away rotations. On a more relaxing note, I got to spend the first part of this week in Cuba. Since that was clearly a highlight of the week, I thought I'd share some of my favorite parts about Cuba. 

Pride 

Nothing impressed me more than the pride that the Cuban people took in their country. On a daily basis, the locals would call out to us and say "hey, how do you like my country". They were so proud to share their homes with us and welcome us to be apart of their world. It's rare that you can visit another culture, country, place and feel so genuinely immersed within it. 

Time Warp 

I was excited to visit Cuba so that I could have a chance to experience a new culture. What I didn't initially realize that visiting Cuba also means visiting another time. It's a complete throwback to a simpler life. There is internet available, but it's difficult to come by, which means people aren't walking around with their faces glued to their smart phones. 

Community 

Without a doubt, I've never witnessed such a great sense of community. I would take a step back just to people watch. All the locals clearly knew each other in a given neighborhood and took the time to stop and chat and interact with each other. I remember seeing some very young children playing in the street and a squabble started up between three boys. Two random adults who happened to be walking by got involved and moments later the boys were playing again happily amongst themselves. I couldn't help thinking about the fact that in America, I would never dare discipline someone else's child. Nor would any responsible parent allow their young child to play in public without direct supervision. But here everyone works together. There is a completely different sense of safety and community here that I can't help but admire. 

Diversity 

With being apart of an interracial couple, I feel like I'm ultra aware of the presence of diversity or lack there of in most cases. In Cuba, I saw everything from blonde hair with light eyes to dark chocolate skin tones. There is such a mix and diversity amongst the people all intermingling together. 

The Romanticism 

We visited Cuba to celebrate our 5th marriage anniversary and could not have picked a more unexpectedly romantic place. Strolls through the colorful streets of Havana, evening mojitos on a rooftop, the constant call of salsa music. I loved every moment of this special visit to Havana. 

Visiting Cuba was one of the most safe, interesting, yet challenging travel experiences that I've ever had. So everything else that happened this week pretty much pales in comparison. 

More from Cuba 

the great debate about visiting Cuba 

Havana-Day 1 

Havana-Day 2 

Sunset at El Morro Castle 

And More to Come!

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