Fun times

Hello all,

This is going to be a long one…so bear with me. Sorry for the long time between updates! PS- I’m putting bit of news this up front since this is a giant post and you might get bored. News is getting leaked little by little here that on February 24^th it will be announced that Raul Castro has beat Fidel in the vote that happened here on the 20^th and will assume the position of President and Commandante en Jefe. He has given some speeches in the last year that indicate changes on the horizon and this news seems to solidify that train of thought. So, it’s not official yet, but that’s the way it’s looking right now and I’ve heard it from a few sources.

This weekend we ventured to the beach, Santa Maria, about 15km outside of Havana. It is absolutely gorgeous! Clear as any Caribbean beach could be, white sand, palm trees and palm branch huts. We went swimming for about 2 hours, tried body surfing the waves, but I didn’t catch too many good ones. The water was pretty warm, but it’s still the winter here, so it had a little chill to it. All of the Cubans were laughing at us for going to the beach in January. It’s all good, we had fun and I ended up with a bit of a tan…yay! After that I got to talk on skype with the fam and Clairita, so all in all it was quite a good day.

Sunday we hung around the house for a while and I did laundry (in the sink!). Then I got a phone call from Dad and Lizzy, we got to talk for a while and could actually understand each other for most of it, which is awesome for international calls here. Mark and I went for a run down on the Malecon in the afternoon and found a pick up soccer game between the beautiful Hotel Nacional and the US Interests Section. He joined in, but they told me that I couldn’t because I’m a girl and the game would be too rough for me. Machismo is still pretty prevalent, and they weren’t very physical at all, except for one…who did a bicycle kick straight onto cement. That was crazy. After dinner, we went downtown for a celebratory march for Jose Marti’s birthday. It was AMAZING! There were thousands of people by the university with tin can torches and shouting traditional slogans and quotes of the revolution. I had a long talk with a 10 year old and her mom all about the march and its meaning and Cuban schooling. It was nice to get that perspective. I also got a talking to by a random teenage boy for not knowing that the song that I was dancing to was a rumba and not a salsa…apparently I can salsa? The whole march was ridiculously energetic and one of those scenes that you can only see to believe, so I’ll link pictures when I can. Until then, check out Mark’s videos at www.vimeo.com/653910 and www.vimeo.com/653767

Monday we started classes. First up was the Rise of Cuban Nationalism, aka history of Cuba, with an awesome professor named Rosa. From what we’ve gathered, she was very active in the revolution…I think there’s more to that story, so I’ll try to find out. We learned a lot about the history that I wouldn’t have otherwise known and it definitely reflects some of the cultural patterns that I’ve been observing. After that we found a great peso restaurant with malanga (like potatoes) sandwiches…so good…and only 6 pesos (aka....24 US cents). Next up was international relations with Carlos. He is amazing, definitely my favorite professor ever. He spent about an hour doing introductions and told us all about his family and how they’re coming to Havana with his new granddaughter and he’s going to be a gushy grandfather and bring her into class. Plus, he’s been an ambassador to about 8 different countries and makes Cuban international relations ridiculously interesting. As if that wasn’t enough, he’s going to put me in contact with the Cuban National Institute of Sports, Physical Education and Recreation, which is the governmental ministry of sports so that I can get a feel for sports diplomacy. SWEET!

Tuesday was my first Spanish class. I tested into the Introduction to Cuba course, which is an advanced studies course taught in Spanish by a panel of rotating professors. It sounds like it will be pretty cool and cover a lot of topics, like economics, international relations, religion, Cuban politics, race relations, and gender studies.

**oh…side note** through all of these classes we’ve lacked a classroom. The university is under construction and ran out of room for exchange students. So we’ve been on the patio of the UNC residence and in their cafeteria. It’s worked out fine and been a fun se la vie experience, pues eso es Cuba!

Class ended at 10:30, so we went back to Santa Maria beach for Lauren’s 21^st birthday. It was a bit chilly, so we mostly tanned and read. Unfortunately, it’s still possible to burn if its cold…I forgot that one. So I’m as red as a tomato, yeeeeah. Oh well…at least I’m not winter white anymore! We came back to ANAP (our house) for dinner, then had a fiesta for her b-day and learned to salsa dance. Unfortunately sometime in there, Cate and my room flooded, so Katie and I played plumber and diagnosed that we have a leaky pipe between the sink. ANAP gave us permission to fix it, since their repairman couldn’t come until the next morning, so we shut off the water lines that run to and from the sink, then realized we didn’t have a wrench to do anymore. So we mopped and called it a night. All in all, we were pretty proud of ourselves on that one and used our new Cuban know-how to improvise. Woot woot!

Wednesday we had culture class at the Ludwig Foundation, starting with Cuban architecture. Our professor was interesting and showed us different ways to identify the time period that certain buildings around Havana were built in. Part of the class is also site visits, so we went to Habana Vieja and explored some of the pre-1900s architecture in the plazas there. Class ended at noon and I went for a run down random streets and somehow ended up in the next suburb over, Miramar. Apparently it’s a lot closer than I thought. I cam across a beautiful temple that’s by itself on a jetty that heads out from the end of the Malecon into the ocean. The sun caught its gold tiles just right and it was one of the coolest things I’ve seen here yet. Plus, it was in my line of sight with a sign that congratulated the Communist Party on a great 50 years of the revolution…a pretty awesome combo. After the run, I explored further down the Malecon and discovered an Adidas store (no Cuban track jackets!?!?!), a sports clothing plaza, a peso bookstore and a flea market. Then I met up with Cate and Lauren for some free internet that was expiring that day, but got cut off pretty quickly, so it was just enough time to copy and paste emails before the wind got the best of our connection. We were greeted back to ANAP by a flooded room again, apparently the repairman turned on the water lines and fixed the wrong part of the pipe. So we repeated the drill of Tuesday, but it wasn’t as bad this time around and was made completely better by a perfect sunset over the ocean.

Today we had another round of history and Introduction to Cuba, which were unfortunately the same lecture, just in different language. They were still interesting, but I think group consensus is that we could use a break from all of that tonight. For lunch, we found an agro (agricultural market) 3 blocks away from our house that has to go boxes of rice and beans, with salad and lime juice for 10 pesos (40 cents) AND chocolate, coconut twist soft ice cream for 1 PESO! THAT’S ONLY 4 US CENTS!!! So that’s pretty much my new favorite place in Havana. It also has fresh fruits and vegetables that are all in pesos, so between that, peso pizza and malanga sandwiches, I’m set for life.

All in all, things are going well. I’m still in awe that I’m in Cuba, but things are becoming to be a little more normal everyday, like seeing 50s cars and guards in commandante hats. It’s fun at dinner that we are all getting a sense of the neighborhood and can know where other people are talking about or how far things are from each other. People are getting to know us in the neighborhood, so the cat calling is decreasing a bit each day and we are making friends. I’ve made friends with Alejando, our receptionist, and the security guard outside of our residence, who is the most adorable 70-ish year old man ever, named Jose, and he and I talk about baseball together. We’re all also learning how to play dominoes, salsa dance, and Mike and I think that we’re going to take boxing lessons. The intricacies of Cuban life are slowly but surely coming along, like how to call a peso taxi versus a tourist one, how to know when an advertised party is real and when it’s a hustle and where you shouldn’t talk politics. Other random things, Js are really difficult to pronounce here like we do in the US, so people have reverted to calling me Yenny or poco…yup yup, or the best one is rubio aka blondie/white girl. Coffee is wonderful here, I’m hooked. As we experience more things, different perspectives about Cuba are developing, but who knows…it’s still early on.

On tap for the next part of the week-Intro to Cuba class tomorrow around noon, swimming in the Riviera pool tomorrow afternoon, chocolate museum Saturday?, visiting Mike’s aunt and uncle on Sunday and learning how to cook Cuban food and salsa dance.

SWEET! We just had a black out in the hotel while I was loading this to the blog! That was awesome!

So…that’s about it for now! Update again soon!

xxx,

Jen

Orientation Week Part 1

Orientation Week Part 1

Hey!
Still alive here in Havana and having a blast. I am definitely starting to get the hang of things here and loving it. Viva Cuba Siempre!

We started our welcome week orientation yesterday by meeting the students from UNC Chapel Hill. They’re living about a 10 minute walk from us near to the University of Havana. We all walked to la Universidad and met our academic advisor, Milagros Martinez, who gave us a warm welcome to the school. As a group, we walked up a set of long stairs on the main campus up to the Alma Mater de la Universidad de Habana. The statue has open arms and is the face of the higher education system of Cuba, which is held in high esteem. After that, we met in the Jose Marti building for an introduction to the school and our courses. It all sounds exciting and will start next week.

After that, we went to the bank, got our student ID photos taken and had lunch. All of that was on Cuban time, meaning that it went at a slow pace, like the bank took an hour and a half, digital picture development was 50 minutes (which wasn’t too bad) and a leisurely lunch, which was actually a really nice change. A singer and guitarist serenaded us during our lunch and I got to play their gourd to accompany them.

We had some relaxation time at the residence, which turned into a laugh-fest in Cate and my room about nothing and everything. Dinner was exceptional, with fruta bomb, rice and beans, fresh tuna, plantains, custard and Cuban coffee. I am seriously enjoying this food. We headed to the bar to hang out for a while and watched soccer with the bartenders for the rest of the night.

Today, we had a tourist day in the suburbs of Habana. First, we went to Miramar (which means Oceanview, but ironically there are buildings all along the shore that prevent any view from the district) and saw a scale model of the city, including every single building with incredible detail. Then, we headed to Old Havana for the afternoon. We had a fun lunch with waitresses that salsa danced and crazy Cuban pop music videos. In total the meal took over 2 hours for sandwiches and kebabs, which was crazy, but fun. On our way back to meet the group, Martin, Joe, Mark, Katie, Cate and I stumbled upon la Plaza de la Catedral. It is an absolutely gorgeous square with brightly colored buildings and cafes that lead up to a colonial-era ornate Cathedral. Then it started raining…a lot. So we cancelled our tour of Habana Vieja and headed home.

We sat out on our porch for a while, which has turned into one of my favorite places in the house. The chairs are incredibly comfortable, there’s a nice breeze and it’s a perfect for hanging out with everyone. Then we went to la Rampa, one of the main streets here in Vedado to buy some music and ice cream…aka my favorites. Both were incredible. So was dinner, more fruit, rice and beans, meat, fried sweet potatoes and salad.

Cuba is great, definitely a lot to learn, but it’s been great thus far. We’re very fortunate in the place that we’re living and the opportunities that we’re being exposed to, but it’s also very clear that that isn’t possible for many of the people that we meet. The food ration card is very limiting and isn’t enough to live on, but on the other hand, it’s something and medical and education are completely paid for by the state. So there are a lot of interesting things here. The way I’ve kind of come to explain it is a beautiful, organized jumble. We’ll see if that lasts.

Anyway, I have to head off, but I’ll talk to you all soon!

In Havana!

Hi Guys,

I’m here safely in Havana and sitting in the lounge of the Melia Cohiba, a 5- star hotel that’s about a 15 minute walk from our residence.

Everything has gone smoothly. We boarded the plane at noon and landed just after 2. Apparently AU Abroad mixed up and Cuba is actually on the Eastern Time Zone, not one hour ahead. So same time as the east coast, no problems. Both of my bags arrived safely and they had free carts at the baggage claim (one beauty of socialism). One snag, my camera broke when it fell out of my hand during the security check in Miami, so I’ll buy another one ASAP. We got in 2 vans and drove about 20 minutes to our residence.

Our house is absolutely gorgeous. It’s a two floor yellow and white cement house with two balconies. We take up the whole second floor and Cate and I are staying in the first room from the stairs, which is also the closest to the second floor balcony. NICE! We also somehow scored the biggest room, with three twin beds, a huge closet and an opening above that which is big enough to stand up in and fit a mattress (aka…our new fort) We have a nice bathroom too just for our room, although it has no hot water at the moment. I got all unpacked and am starting to settle in.

It was about 80 degrees here today with a nice wind, so it was pretty much perfect. It’s cooled off to about 70 since then, which will be good for sleeping.

We walked to the Malecon tonight, which is the boardwalk that runs along the ocean and all the way into downtown Havana. The waves are HUGE! I’m talking like splashing 10 feet above the break wall big. Tomorrow we have a tour around the University and go through their official reception for new students. There is a statue called the Alma Mater at the top of the steps that lead into the University and each freshman class walks up the stairs together at the start of their schooling there. They are doing the same for us, so we and UNC will be officially initiated by tomorrow at 10. After that its some meetings and free time.

Cuba is almost exactly how its pictured in guide books. Colorful, old cars and lots of communist slogans painted all over. The buildings are in a bit of disrepair, but people seem thrive in the constant invention of new ways to fix things up. There are also a bunch of new cars, but most are state-owned taxis. I’ll send pictures as soon as I can.

The food has been amazing so far. We have family style dinners at our residence. Tonight was 4 courses: 1.) bread, papaya, and guava 2.) black beans and rice 3.) Turkey and Potatoes 4.) Custard with cinnamon. It was amazing and I’m convinced that I’ll gain 15 pounds within the next month!

Anyway, its been a good start to the adventure and I’ll try to get on asap to give you more updates of the first week! Love you!

~Jen

Miami

Hi everyone!
I'm here in Miami and safe and sound in my hotel room for the night. It was hard to say goodbye to home and everyone there, but I'm getting excited for one heck of a trip. The group is amazing and we're already having a blast and ready to experience everything Cuba has to offer.

Flights down to here were a little messy. It started with a 45 minute delay in Albany that made me just late enough to miss my connecting flight in DC. That plus the pilot wouldn't park the plane until everyone rebuckled their seatbelts...wierd. So after a fun 4 hour layover, I headed to Miami on a plane being flown by Captain Kirk (no joke...and he played it up the whole flight). My bags were there no problem and people helped me get them to the hotel after they saw me carrying those giant things. We went out to dinner near the hotel and got a hamburger...my last beef for 4 months! Then came back, filled out some paper work by the pool and called home. Then, we decided to watch Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights with the group, which was wonderfully ridiculous and we're all going to take salsa lessons.

Tomorrow we leave the hotel around 8:30 and start the 2 and a half hour check-in process. Everyone send good thoughts that my luggage will be the right weight!! We take off at about noon and will be in Havana by 1ish. Apparently Cuba doesn't follow Daylight Savings Time, so even though we're in the same time zone I will be one hour ahead of the US. So me landing at 1 in US time equals 2 in Cuba.

It looks like I might be able to access the internet more than I thought because I have wireless, so I'll post again as soon as possible. Until then, love you all tons and talk to you soon!

~Jen

Heading Off

Hey all,
Things are starting to gear up as I get ready to head to Havana. I'm set to leave on the 19th, then after a night with the AU Staff, travel to Cuba on the 20th. Many things to do, but its getting exciting. I just found out that the bank that we are relying on for money during the semester shut down unexpectedly, so lets hope thats the only change in the next few weeks. I'll keep this as up to date as possible and include pictures, but we'll see what Cuban internet cafes allow! Update soon.
~Jen