A month ago we were in Cuba for a vacation and it was great. We both felt recharged by the week away. It has been three years since we visited Cuba together and we weren't even sure we would go in 2012. We both booked a week of vacation, set a ceiling for our trip, and decided that if we couldn't get that price we wouldn't go. But Cuba is inexpensive compared to other southern destinations and so we were able to return to a resort we had visited before -- not the cheapest, but not the most expensive.
We have come to sun destination travel later in the game, too busy in the earlier family years clipping coupons and praying that appliances wouldn't break down around the time that the dance fees came due. Now we have more disposable income and can make these choices.
I still feel a little queasy when we do this though, not because of the food but because of who is cooking it and serving it, and cleaning my room, and doing everything else around the resort. Cubans are poor by North American standards, making twenty five to thirty dollars a month. My vacation is affordable in part because these folks make so little, and I'm deliberately deceiving myself to think otherwise.
On our trips we have taken consumer goods with us which are not affordable or next to impossible to obtain for Cubans. One year we took lengths of cloth and sewing supplies for a sewing cooperative and passed this things on through a church connection. We take toothpaste and brushes and clothing each time. We were couriers for someone in the congregation this year, carrying a bag of reading glasses to be passed along to a staff member at a nearby resort who distributes them. The last two trips I took guitar strings and gave them to musicians at the resorts. And we choose to tip at every meal and around the resort.
I am still uncomfortable at the disparity between my affluence and their poverty. I wonder what the cook is thinking when a semi-drunk, overly-friendly Canadian blathers on to him in a loud voice (apparently it is easier to understand English if the person is shouting.) Why do they have money and I don't, he may well be asking. I keep expecting to see Jesus in a nearby pool chair casting a baleful look my way and pointing to justice passages in scripture.
There is a long and thoughtful article in the latest Walrus magazine about the million or so Canadians who travel to Cuba each year and the ethics of our vacations. I encourage you to read iit. http://walrusmagazine.com/articles/2012.04-travel-on-tipping-in-cuba/
What are your thoughts? Should I just lighten up and enjoy myself? Is it more helpful than hurtful to be a tourist in Cuba? Canadian tourism is one of the largest contributors to the Cuban economy.
2 comments:
I, too, went to Cuba and stayed near Havana. I went through a few too many back alleys and off the tourist path, and was shocked at the living conditions of most Havanans. They lived in absolute squalor, although I did notice that most seemed relatively well dressed.
I do cringe at the behaviour of tourists in countries like Cuba. Far too many of us either forget or don't care about what locals endure.
It just reminds me how lucky I am to be living in Canada, and to be able to live such a comfortable lifestyle. I try not to take it for granted.
Your blog captured our experiences in Cuba. On our second trip to Ciego d'Avila, a hotel staff member took an interest in helping us trace some family roots, and could not have been more generous. Tony took us to his home (very rudimentary clean)to meet his parents, and to his uncle's "farm" where I observed poverty which I will never forget. We also met a very talented classical pianist who was entertaining mostly disinterested tourists in a hotel bar. She was a lovely woman - teaching at the nearby university and probably at the top of her game. I felt very badly that she would not likely have the opportunity to pursue her career beyond the confining shores of her country. I wonder what the Cubans think when they watch Cnn.....
Post a Comment