Some Interesting Facts

Here are a few tidbits about Cuba that we learned and found interesting:

Cubans are among the most educated populations in the world.

As a communist country, all of people’s basic needs—housing, food, medical care, education—are provided by the state.

The average monthly salary is 20 CUC.  Raul Castro has evidently removed many restrictions and there is beginning to be a non-government-owned economy so that people are now able to earn additional money privately. 

While the general state of buildings, streets, and parks was run down in our eyes, there were no homeless people or disabled people begging on the streets, as we have seen in so many places.  No one really  “bothered” us, except a few hustlers in Old Havana where we were invited into shops, restaurants, etc. frequently.

There is also very little crime.  We never felt unsafe walking around Havana.

There is no free press.  We never saw a newspaper.  We were able to get CNN on the hotel television, in English.  Evidently it is not available to the Cuban people in Spanish.

There were posters, building murals, billboards around town proclaiming things like "VIVA LA REVOLUTION!" and remembering Che or Marti.  Even though it has been more than 50 years, it is very much a part of the Cuban culture.

Internet access is very limited and controlled by the government.  At the hotel we were able to purchase time-limited access but those who did found it to be painfully slow and difficult to use.

The Cuban people we spoke to were friendly and gracious.  Cuba has a vibrant tourist industry, but guests aren’t typically Americans.  Germans, Mexicans, Canadians, etc. visit regularly, but we were a bit of an oddity.

Without cell phone usage or internet or newspapers, we felt a bit cut-off from the world while in Cuba; however, it allowed us to relax and decompress in a way we haven’t in years--not a bad thing!