Trip of My Life - Cuba (Day 1)

I was born in Cuba many, many years ago. How many? Too many. And that’s how long it’s felt not having seen my family there, in fact, noteven having any memories of them apart from pictures. Most recently, thanx to technology, I’ve been able to speak with them over WhatsApp and, at times, video calls. This “trip of a lifetime” occurred on my birthday this year when my mother, father, my beautiful wife, and I departed Fort Lauderdale for Santa Clara, Villa Clara, Cuba. Our final destination would be Cabaiguan, the town I was born,
population of about 16,000 people today.

It was exciting to see the land I was born as we approach Santa Clara airport. The butterflies were starting to accumulate in my stomach. What would I say to them? How would I act around them? I figured it would come to me and just to be myself. I wanted them to like me as I’m always conscious about first impressions. We finally landed in Santa Clara airport when the plane was promptly surrounded by airport and immigration officials. It was a bit unnerving, especially as we disembarked the aircraft onto the tarmac. We asked one of the airport official lady’s for a wheelchair for my dad. It was then that I observed the very helpful and friendly nature of both the airport and immigrations uniformed folks. The lady who obtained the wheelchair for my dad stayed with us all through the customs check-in, baggage claim and to the airport exit doors. My mother started to give her a $2 tip, but she refused. My mother being who she is as a person that doesn’t take “no” for an answer insisted she take the tip.

We looked around and immediately saw my two cousins (Yamila and Yalina, my older and younger cousins, respectively) and my uncle Cuso (my mother’s brother) whose name is actually Heriberto but somehow he acquired the nickname of Cuso from friends and family. I had this sudden wash of emotion seeing my family for the first time with my own eyes and not on WhatsApp. As is the custom with Latinos, we hugged, kissed, and cried :) I immediately started taking pictures with my iPhone to capture these once-in-a-lifetime moments, but I also wanted to experience it and not be stuck behind a screen. However, one of the moments I captured made me cry a little - the moment of my mother seeing her brother for the first time in over 18 years! They have always been very close and this was amazing to experience for Kristina and I.

Cuso surprisingly reached out to shake my hand, but I had none of that. I gave him a big, strong hug! He promptly asked me if I wanted a beer - there happened to be a bar across the street from the small Santa Clara airport exit. There’s no question that we need to toast and celebrate this momentous occasion. We ordered several Presidente beers because they were out of what I came to absolutely love later - Cuba’s local beer, Cristal!

We all hung out, catching up as if we’d had dinner the night before. It’s amazing how the family bonds just manifest among people who’ve longed to see each other for so long. I left Cuba when I was 2 years old and no memory of these people. Yet it felt so familiar and loving. Now, Cuba is well known around the world for all of its 50s era cars. This isn’t necessarily by design, but by necessity. You can’t simply head over to a Toyota dealership and pick up a new late model Camry, so the Cuban people must be resourceful. Many of these cars are in amazing shape because of the rebuilding routine and care given by their owners. If they need a new alternator, I’ve heard they must machine new parts, wind the coils and effectively rebuild or create their own replacements parts. The Manny, Mo, and Jack auto parts center is generally non-existent, especially in the non-tourist centers like Havana or Varadero Beach. We got into our hired car (an amazing looking vehicle) that sat all 7 of us.

The driving experience was unique, to say the least. You must understand that the prevailing wisdom of Cuban economics is such that there is a scarcity of infrastructure renewal or investment, especially insofar as state-owned and tourism areas, which receive the lion’s share. So to state that our lumbar regions were particularly strained with the combination of not-terribly-efficient suspension of our 50s era car AND the condition of the road is an understatement. We arrived mostly in one piece, then the real fun began! My family had whipped up a homemade birthday cake and gifted me a bottle of THE most amazing rum on the planet, Ritual by Havana Club. Needless to say, this first day back in the land of my birth was both an emotional and gastronomic feast of epic proportions! Just wait til day 2...