Cuba, Here We Come!

“How could you even consider traveling to Cuba?”

We have been asked this question several times since booking a 2019 cruise that included a day in Old Havana. Quite honestly, the Cuba excursion is why we chose this itinerary. We have many reasons for wanting to travel there, not because we want to say we have been to Cuba, but for many of the same reasons we travel to other locations: to meet the people, experience the culture, explore daily life, capture images that represent our fondest memories, and appreciate the diversity of our planet. Every time we travel, our own world expands and we grow in our humanity in ways that can’t happen in a virtual visit or through the pages of a book.

“Yes, but why Cuba?! How could you even consider supporting that government?”

Why Cuba? The Caribbean is a paradise and each time we visit an island in the Caribbean we marvel at the beauty of the ocean and diverse ocean life, the vibrantly colorful plant life, and the beautiful and welcoming people and their artistic talents, history, and daily life. Each of these islands has claimed a slightly different model of governance and we have never missed an opportunity to explore, learn from, and appreciate any of them. 

We recognize that Cuba is controversial, yet it’s not the structure of their government we were wishing to explore. It is a reality we must face while planning: our paperwork must be in order, we must pre-purchase an excursion and consider the currency that we can use there, we must pay hefty fees to acquire the tourist visa, and so on. These are also all of things we must do before we visit many other countries. Our passports and paperwork must always be in order, not so much for the entry of most countries, but for the ability to reenter our own country! The fee for visas and passport stamps can be as little as $2.00 for Grand Turk in the British West Indies, or as large as $50 for Uganda, East Africa. When Berlin, Germany was still split between the East and the West, there were many rules about traveling to East Berlin that included acquiring a visa, exchanging a minimum amount of money, and being required to leave any extra money behind as you exited the country – all things Steve still remembers doing, still to this day. Adhering to the requirements of various countries is not a new experience for us. Instead of asking “why” we usually ask “why not”?

The human rights of fellow global citizens is a concern whether we are in Colorado or Mexico and we do our best to bring some light into the lives of others. This might mean that we share a slightly larger gratuity or purchase a souvenir from a local independent vendor. Visiting Cuba offered us another opportunity to learn from and appreciate the people with whom we interact.

A favorite Edwin Markham poem seems to speak to this reciprocal mindset: 

There is a destiny that makes us brothers,
None goes his way alone.
All that we send into the world of others
Comes back into our own. 

We will continue to share experiences about the preparation for a day in Cuba before and after we travel. Happy Walking!