Visiting Cuba for The First Time

You know what it is to finally meet the other half of your family almost two decades later? You’re about to find out!

We had communicated through email for years… Never through social media or regular text message because it’s challenging to use wifi and data. In the island, people are very limited in their resources and how much they can make in their profession. But when you have a family like mine, we help them in any way possible.

The Shortest Flight Ever

Our flight was exactly forty-five minutes. We buckled up, took off, the flight attendants passed out water, and we prepared for landing. Quickest flight ever!

My cousin met us at the small airport in Santa Clara, Cuba and we literally had the longest group hug ever. We all introduced ourselves and drove to his house, which just so happened to be my dad’s childhood home. We met my aunt and were super excited to get to know the towns where my family lived.

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After an exhausting day, we went to relax and unpack our luggage.

Playa Cayo Santa Maria

The place we stayed at was beautiful. It had all the Cuban foods we grew up with and wow… all homemade. From the mangos to the croquetas (a bread crumbed fried food roll usually made with ham), mojitos, guayaba (a pinkish paste made from guava), rum, and endless pastelitos (Cuban pastries of all sorts). There was so much food!

The water was extremely clear in the beach and it was so relaxing to explore.

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We rode the catamarans, swam around to the tiki bars, and just hung out with each other. The only Cuban locals allowed in the area were those who worked there. Families weren’t allowed to bring their people to relax with them.

Also, fun fact: in Cuba, while their currency is the peso, they had different currency for tourists called CUC. Of course, they charged the tourists more because the CUC was like a gold mine for them but Cuba’s prices for locals weren’t the lowest either. I understood then why our support meant a lot to them to live that comfortable lifestyle. Thanks to the American dollar…

House to House

We would drive around visiting family from house to house because everyone lived in other parts of the town. Visiting Sancti Espiritus, where my dad was born was a treat because we truly saw where his school was and how everything looked like for him (obviously with a few more decades taken into account).

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The photo on the right was the view from the backyard of my cousin’s house. It was insightful to see how they lived– with minimal air conditioning, access to wash and dry clothes, and transportation. The houses all look very old and broken down. But I love the spirit of their culture there. They take a lot of pride in it!

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I really appreciated coming to visit the other half of the family because it feels more real. We truly are very privileged in the States and we sometimes disregard it because we don’t know or have not experienced how others live.

If you ever visit Cuba, I recommend:

• Take medicine! More than you usually would, especially for your tummy, because the water isn’t as filtered as we have it in the States and it can mess you up for the rest of the trip. We probably visited every bathroom we could because some of my family got messed up bad. If this does happen, I encourage you to take toilet paper as well…
• Someone in the group should know how to drive stick shift because a great majority of the rental cars are still stick shift.

It’s a beautiful country and the experience was unforgettable thanks to my family. I absolutely loved getting to know Cuba, playing dominoes and learning more of their day to day life.

XOXO, Mel