Cuba: Are you on the fence?

Had to laugh at some of the comments by those who have obviously not been to Cuba..."slums", "Walmart island", "restrictions."

 

I just got back last month from a cruise to Cuba - it was fantastic!! We docked in all the ports and spent 2 days/1 overnight in Havana, 1 day in Cienfuegos and 1 day in Santiago de Cuba. There were no police or monitors roaming around and no one cared where you went or what you did. Only time I saw any police or military was at the military cemetery where Fidel Castro and Jose Marti are buried. They just stood around and didn't bother us at all.

 

It's true that many of the buildings are crumbling, but they're not slums - just old buildings that the government hasn't kept fixed up. The people dress very modern and clean - they look like anyone in a civilized society, not like a third world country. They're all on their cell phones, have the Internet and many are on Facebook! They're a happy people and enjoy meeting Americans. We sat in a park in Havana (with no other tourists around) watching people out walking their dogs, children kicking soccer balls around and attended a church service. We watched a 15 year old girl having her quinceanera photos taken in several beautiful outfits, had our hair trimmed at a local beauty salon with other customers, went to a dolphin show, had lunch at a small paladar, bought cigars & rum at a local shop, rode in 3 beautiful classic 1950's cars, shopped in a drug store, visited a small pharmacy museum, and had a Cuban coffee on a rooftop terrace.

 

The Cubans we met while we wandered around were friendly, kind and many knew English. We asked questions about their lives, culture and government and they asked us many too.

 

Although I wouldn't want to live in their form of government, they said they were happy with it. They said they like not having to pay for education through college, medical care, food, housing, cheap electric and they get a small amount of spending money (about $30/mo/pp). And they can now have their own small businesses or second jobs to make more money. Their only complaint to us was that they would like to be able to leave Cuba to travel. My advice is to visit there yourself before making assumptions. I certainly hope to return for another visit someday.

We had a wonderful trip to Cuba and would ho back in a heartbeat. We had 4 days in Havana and then boarded a Cruise that was 7 days, curcumnavigating the Island with 4 stops. My impressions were positive, as the poster above.

The US embargo has been a much bigger problem for Cuba than I think most American I read here seem to know or understand. Not just an embargo on travel, but the embargo on importation of food and other necessary supplies has been devastating for all these years. Not only is there no trade with the US, but the US discourages their other trading partners from cooperation with Cuba. So there is poverty, the food is often quite dull, limited choice in shops. But for American people to complain about this and to blame the Cuba goverment is ironic and disheartening.

An American on our cruise - just before Obama's visit - was overheard saying: "When we get Cuba back..."

With all the downside, if I was forced by circumstance to live in poverty, I would move to Cuba. Housing, education, health care and basic food needs met. The streets are generally lively and safe and the people, although poor are dignified and relatively happy. A HUGE step up from poverty in the US or Canada.

Your poll only seems to cover reasons not to go. There’s no choice on it for “We’re booked for a cruise to Cuba, and we’re excited about seeing it!”

Your poll only seems to cover reasons not to go. There’s no choice on it for “We’re booked for a cruise to Cuba, and we’re excited about seeing it!”

I suppose that would fall under the last option, wouldn't it?

I suppose that would fall under the last option, wouldn't it?

Not really, mom. "Something else" suits both positive and negative. :confused:

Just 65 votes out of over 1500 views, and only 5 of those votes were for "something else"

The notable absence of a "yes, we're going" option.

And "we've visited already" doesn't tell us whether or not those folk thought it was worthwhile or whether they plan to return.

An interesting thread & interesting responses, but - sorry, Carolyn :o - not a well thought-out poll

I've posted my experiences, but didn't answer the poll.

JB :)

I’d love to visit Cuba but every cruise I’ve looked at ranges from Expensive to “are you f-ing kidding me?”.

Im thinking very hard of doing a 5 night RCI with an overnight in Cuba on NYE

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Laughing, Marchie1053.

Stay warm....

Carolyn

We returned mid-December from a 46 nights Cuba & Caribbean Cruise that included an overnight in Havana. The Old City was fantastic, very safe and very hospitable.

 

We had the added bonus of accompanying a German passenger with autistic tendencies (powerful combination!) on a birthday celebration on the first day in Havana. He couldn't grasp the concept of a 'Pub Crawl' so we went with his interpretation - 1 beer at 1 bar in 1 hour and then back to the ship to watch the movie under the stars. It actually turned into quite a fun night trying to curb the 'get another round in' and adhering to Werner's timetable :evilsmile:.

 

We're off again on 17th January (too cold in Scotland), but I doubt that the new cruise will be able to match the delights of Cuba, the underpinning mind-numbing bureaucracy, and the bonus of our German friend! But we'll try :)

I’ve always wanted to go, and started researching as soon as cruises became available, but then put it on hold as it started to somehow feel exploitative at this stage. Maybe once the tourism dollars are more widely distributed.