We spent our “spring break” on the east side of the island, known as el Oriente to Cuban people. We woke up early last Thursday morning to catch an airplane from Havana to Santiago de Cuba. It was about a two hour journey, and would have been an 18 hour bus ride! After getting settled into the casas particulares, the group headed out to visit the Moncada barracks, where Fidel really made a name for himself in 1953. Him and a group of revolutionaries attempted to attack the barracks, but the mission failed miserably and many were killed or kept and tortured. The barracks were turned into a school right after the Revolution in 1959, and it’s also the site of an incredibly interesting museum. The docent who guided us through the barracks made sure to emphasize and re-emphasize the heroic efforts of the revolutionaries, and made sure we knew how the captured were tortured. I found that aspect of the museum to be incredibly fascinating. Another eerie aspect of the Moncada barracks is the fact that all of the bullet holes are still visible on the facade of the building. There hasn’t been any effort to repair the building, perhaps to serve as a constant reminder to the people the struggles that Fidel and his revolutionaries had to endure to make Cuba as it is today. We also visited the cemetery where Fidel’s ashes are buried in Santiago, which is pictured here. His memorial a giant rock with his name in all caps, and that’s it. No dates, no epigraph, or any further information. There was a massive line waiting to visit his grave and I’m really glad I got to see it.
After two days in Santiago, we all piled into some old Jeeps and hit the road to Baracoa, the easternmost city in Cuba, and the first place that Christopher Columbus landed. The town is small and was damaged severely in Hurricane Matthew last October. The whole time we were there people asked us if we could donate any clothes or resources to them, and had many tragic stories to share of the hardships they’ve faced since in the aftermath of the hurricane. That was a difficult aspect of the trip for me, because it’s something that we have not yet witnessed during our time in Havana. While there is limited access to resources in Havana, there’s a way that people obtain things, since there is constant tourism and a booming black market. Since Baracoa is more isolated though, they certainly have more trouble obtaining even simple things like pens, or towels. Viewing this contrast between east and west was a bit jarring, but important nonetheless. The dynamic between tourists and the villagers is so complicated, and the interplay of privilege and poverty, and the reliance of both parties on each other for a) economic gain (for villagers) My favorite part about Baracoa was visiting a cacao plantation. Baracoa is the chocolate capital of Cuba! We got to learn about how cacao beans are produced, from the picking process, to fermenting, to roasting, to eating! We got to taste some pure hot chocolate, which was so good. There was no shortage of chocolate in the town, and everyone also took home some pure cocoa butter. There’s a lot of sugary desserts in Havana, but not much good dark chocolate, so it was certainly a treat.
We are back in Havana now, and the Lewis & Clark spring break trips as well as some family and friends are coming to visit. I am in shock that we only have a little over a month left on this journey. It’s flying by and I am learning so much everyday.