So, now I've been here for two weeks...

Dear family, friends, former professors and former colleagues,

*For those who I’ve met through friends and for those who I met over the past couple of weeks while traveling through Boston, Cancun and Trinidad: I am currently entering my third year at Sarah Lawrence College, a small liberal arts school in Bronxville, New York, which is about a half hour outside the city of New York. I major in Spanish, Anthropology with a focus in Latin American Studies and, more recently, I’ve dipped into Film. My research for my Anthropology and Spanish classes have significantly been narrowing as I have just—more specifically, this past December—begun to focus my conference work, an independent research project, to exploring the MS-13 gang this past semester through documentary film alongside a recent graduate of Sarah Lawrence College, Ella Scott (Class of ’08). I hope to, at one point or another, take a camera over to L.A. to film at the gang’s source. For a general overview of what the MS-13 gang is according to other documentarians, check out the film “World’s Most Dangerous Gang”, which you can find (for FREE!) online if you google the title. Para que los que no entienden inglés, no se preocupen! Esta película quebrará ninguna frontera de idioma!

Though, for now, I’ll be studying at the Universidad de la Habana for almost four months. I’ll be back in the US for two months and then I’m off again to study with SIT (the School of International Training) in Bolivia.

Si alguien absolutamente (yo digo absolutamente porque no tendré mucho tiempo en las semanas venideras. Clases empiezan este viernes) necesite este e-mail en español, dime, por favor para que todo el mundo pueda entender mi experiencia aquí. ☺

Sunday, August 17, 2008

I’m excited to tell you that I made it to Cuba (despite the fact there were hurricane warnings the day I was flying into Cancun). We arrived at our casa, Hotel de ANAP at Calle C e/ 13th and 15th, at around 5 or so, leaving just enough time to unpack in our rooms (see picture #1 below). An hour later we settled down for dinner. I describe this aspect of the day for the sake of showing you what a typical meal here is like. It was not a lezamiana meal, but, all in all, it was good. What was set on the table even before we arrived were the following: crackers, diced papayas and guavas, avocados and incredibly ripened bananas. After hearing so much about the lack of food in Cuba from Ms. Ella Scott, a former student of the SLC in Cuba program, I was kind of worried. Fortunately, a few minutes later, plates and bowls of fried chips (most likely yucca), pork, black beans, rice and fried bananas were placed before us. When my friend, Katiana, mentioned how she would learn how to like papaya for the sake of having more enzymes in her digestive system, one of the administrators of the SLC in Cuba program, Shanti, said something along the lines of: “Don’t enjoy it too fast”. I have a feeling this will be our meal for the next four months.

After finishing up, we headed out to the beautiful Malecón (see beautiful Malecón below). It wasn’t long before we spotted a music group across the street, which, soon after, proceeded to come up to us and serenade our group’s número 1 mamasita, Helen Daley, with one of my friends, Diana Bruk’s favorite songs, “El Cuarto de Tula” por Buena Vista Social Club (see embarrassing moment-of-the-day below). If you have not heard this song, please download it immediately, if not their entire self-titled album. If you were a Middlebury student this past summer, it is likely I have already burned a copy for you since I am head-over-heels for this Cuban band. In any case, I will try to put up the video of my favorite 3 minutes of August 17th, 2008 very soon.

Monday, August 18, 2008

I took my Spanish placement test today…and it looks like I got into the advanced level. Muchísimas gracias a Arantxa, Carolyn, Esther, Priscilla, Sra. Adams y Sr. Berger. I roamed around la Universidad de Habana for about a half hour or so afterwards. While shuffling from class to class, I spotted some posters for doctoral programs in Brazil, class schedules and advertisements for parties. After looping around the balcony on the second floor, I bumped into an adorable old woman with lenses thicker than the glass they use to make Coke bottles. As she struggled to open what I thought was a classroom door (it had no sign), she asked me if it was my first time at the University. Since we became friends so fast after our brief conversation, she invited me into the set of bathroom stalls she takes care of. She was so proud of how well they functioned, she demonstrated to me how they worked. I later discovered a $0.25 peso was the price. Fortunately, I didn’t have to pay.

During lunch today I met a new friend. His name is Antoni. Esther, don’t get too excited: he’s four years old. After the group chatted with him and his mom for about a half hour or so, he invited himself upstairs to play. It seems he’s very multi-talented. He can do cartwheels, tell jokes—he can even fly like Spiderman (see adorable picture of my current roommate, Andrea (Alex, you’re still my #1) and Antoni below). To calm him down a bit since he was going faster than the speed of light, one of the girls in our group asked him, “What is your favorite color?”
“Look!” he exclaimed as he pointed to the color of his skin.
“No, your favorite color.”
“Oh…red.”

Kimberly Howard, I thought of you the moment he said: “¡Mira!” I’m not going to lie.

I asked Antoni if he wanted to read one of my favorite books about my city (love that dirty water): “Abran a los patitos” or “Make Way for Ducklings”. It’s a cute children’s story about a mother duck that navigates her eight ducklings around Boston—more specifically the Beacon Hill/Charles River area—while “Señor Pato” isn’t home. I actually have a copy of this book in Spanish. I bought it at Schoenhoff’s in Harvard Square for those who are interested in buying this book—or any book in a different language, really. Harvard Square is in Cambridge, Massachusetts, by the way. I mention this fact for those who are not from the States. I know Teresa, from Germany, knows this because she studied at Harvard for a summer, but maybe not Yianna, who is from Greece.

At any rate, Antoni’s response to the end of the story was: “That’s their house?” referring to the riverbank alongside the Charles in Boston, “but they don’t have a television!” My response was: “Do they really need one?” He simply replied, “Well…yes, of course!”

It’s an interesting question asking oneself about necessities for human life—and I’m referring to the real basics: what are factors that are absolutely intrinsic to living? I bet you don’t ask yourself that question everyday but after living in Cuba for two days now, I can definitely say that television is not at the top of my list of priorities, nor even on my list. Getting a decent amount of hot water to take a shower this morning was a blessing. My friend, Ella, told me before I left: “it is not possible to eat healthy there”. I’m just glad I have something to eat.

To give a better example of what it’s like for the Cuban population, as the difference between our living habits are quite different, I’m going to give you a couple of examples of what the Cuban health system looks like according to other resources:

New York Times: “Dr. Robert N. Butler, president of the International Longevity Center in New York and Pulitzer Prize-winning author on aging, has traveled to Cuba to see firsthand how doctors are trained. He said a principal reason that some health standards in Cuba approach the high American level is that the Cuban system emphasizes early intervention. Clinic visits are free, and the focus is on preventing disease rather than treating it.”

“Dr. Butler said some of Cuba’s shortcomings may actually improve its health profile. ‘Because they don’t have up-to-date cars, they tend to have to exercise more by walking,’ he said. ‘And they may not have a surfeit of food, which keeps them from problems like obesity but they’re not starving, either.’ ”

The Cuban-American National Foundation: “The founder of Havana's International Center for Neurological Restoration, Dr. Hilda Molina, quit her position after refusing to increase the number of neural transplant operations without the required testing and follow-up. She expressed outrage that only foreigners are treated. Dr. Molina resigned from her seat in the national legislature, and returned the medals Fidel Castro had bestowed on her for her work.”

“Referring to the growing disparity between health care provided to ordinary Cubans and that offered to tourists and high ranking Communist party members, the exiled Cuban doctors noted that they ‘wish that any one of us could provide tours to foreign visitors of the hospitals Cira Garcia, Frank Pais, CIMEQ, and Hermanos Ameijeiras, in order to point out the medicines and equipment, even the bedsheets and blankets, reserved for regime elites or dollar-bearing foreigners, to the detriment of our people, who must bring their own bedsheets, to say nothing of the availability of medicines.’ "

So those were polar-opposite examples but that’s the media for you. At the least, from what I’ve researched thus far, I can definitely say that Michael Moore’s ideal depiction of the Cuba healthcare system in his documentary, “Sicko”, is far too simplified. I can’t say I can blame him since he not only had to go through the U.S. Dept. of State to film in Cuba but also, as one of my friends, Adam G, nicely put it: “he had to paint a pretty picture” because of his position as a documentarian in Cuba. Although I’m not the biggest fan of Moore’s latest documentary, “Sicko”, I highly recommend watching it. Despite the fact he’s very radical in his opinions—but that’s Michael Moore for you—it’s worthwhile seeing it.

Néstor and Esther: I’m sure you’ll all be happy to know that I also met Néstor’s nephew, Alexis, today. For those who do not know Néstor, feel free to check out his blog online: http://penultimosdias.com/category/colaboradores/nestor-diaz-de-villegas/. I met him this past summer while attending Middlebury’s Spanish Language Program and his wife, Esther, who was my theatre professor. Both are amazing people. I actually am capable of ending there because that’s all you need to know about the two of them for now.

P.S. Adam Bazari! I also discovered today that the same architect who designed Columbia University also did the blueprints for La Universidad de Cuba. I added a picture below so you can make the comparison once you’re back at school.
ALSO ADD PICTURE OF GARDEN BELOW (‘RD’ pic, Patricia’s pic)

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

Pictures of Plaza de la Revolución & Political Propaganda around the area

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

For the first time, I walked around La Habana alone (insert theme song of “Jaws”). And where was my final destination, you ask?: the house of the mother of my former theatre professor at Middlebury: Esther.

At 958 Calle 21 e/ 8 y 10, I met Esther’s mother, whose name is also Esther, her father, one of her nieces, Patricia and several other members of her family whose names I don’t remember at the moment (I think I may need to write down an index to keep track of her family).

Since I didn’t bother bringing toiletries to Cuba because of the weight limit, 44 lbs, I asked Patricia where I could get some cheap shampoo. So, Patricia and I bonded while searching for cheap shampoo. She showed me around one of the more commercialized areas of La Habana: 23rd and 10th. As we wandered and weaved, she explained to me how prices went around these parts.

For those who are not aware: there are two currencies in Cuba. There is Moneda Nacional and then there is CUC. I’m not sure exactly when CUC, which are convertible pesos, were implemented but I know that it was sometime after one of my Middlebury professors traveled there about six years ago. I’m going to guess that it entered into the Cuban economy sometime after the US dollar was abolished in 2004. Don’t quote me on that because it is just an assumption. In any case, to convert one’s currency to the convertible peso, one must pay a commission of 10%. As for the Moneda Nacional: 24 (23 on the street) convertible pesos (MN) is worth CUC$1. That’s the end of my educational bit for today.

By the end of the day, around 6 or so, I discovered I spent four hours with Esther’s family and had to run home to catch dinner. I have to say that I cannot wait to spend more time with them. I promised myself I would try to stop by as often as possible even though classes will be starting soon. My grammar class will be starting on September 9th, as will my Biology class. So pumped, Ella!

P.S. Our driver who took us back from school to ANAP sang us Nat King Cole’s “Mona Lisa Smile”. Apparently the Cuban writer of this song earned around somewhere around $10,000 for it. Who was the songwriter? This is not a trivia question. I don’t actually know the answer. Neither did our bus driver. Let me know if one of you find out.
P.P.S. Please don’t ever listen to Nat King Cole’s version of “Quizas, Quizas, Quizas”. It is physically painful to listen to.

Thursday, August 21, 2008

Last night I went to the Cuban Hip-Hop Festival where I finally met another filmmaker. He told me to give him a call after I travel around Santa Clara, Trinidad and Cienfuegos this weekend. We’re going to meet up at one of his friends’ house to edit his most recent film. I have to say I’m excited to see how he’s going to edit four hours of film.

As for today’s touring around Cuba: we tried to check out the Cigar Factory but, according to the guards, they just let in their last tour group at around 2:15. So, instead, we walked inside their gift shop to see where the magic happens. I politely asked this good woman (see picture below) if I could take a picture of her rolling a cigar. It’s truly an art. ¡Mira!

I also went to the Barcardi Building (see picture below). You know, all you architects, that you cannot compare that brilliant work of art to another building. As for what we did there: well, since I attend a crazy liberal arts college, the drinks were on Sarah Lawrence. I had an espresso while watching the Olympics. In hurdling, Dayron Robles, a Cuban, came in first! Crazy to believe but two Americans came in second and third. What a sight to see, I’m telling you!

Saturday, August 23, 2008

Pictures of our day in Santa Clara (Ché Mausoleum), Group picture

Waterfall: El Salto Cahuani

Topes de Collantes (area)

This is what happens when you leave your clothes, towel and map on your bed at the Hotel, Las Cuevas, in Trinidad

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

While in Trinidad for two days, I met a medical student, Taiera. I was invited into her house after asking her mother where I could find a salsa lesson at a good price. This didn’t happen but, good thing, because Taiera helped me feel a bit better about the research I plan to do at CEDEM, the research center us Sarah Lawrence students will be working at for 6 hours on Fridays starting this week. There’s a study center specifically for healthcare nearby our house so, since I will most likely not have classes on Mondays, I’ll be able to do my CEDEM research there as well. She also told me where to get a license to formally interview medical students and professors—including her. Considering the fact I’ll be here for less than four months, that didn’t sound like the greatest idea. I confirmed that with one of my directors, Suzanne, today and she said it’s not something that’s plausible considering the short amount of time we have here.

As for other people who I encountered in Trinidad: I met “bolero woman”. She sold me my sister’s new bolero and then led me next door into a painter’s house. She asked one of the two painters that were present if it was possible for me to take pictures of their work since she spotted my camera and he said it was all right. So, of course, I awkwardly walked around taking pictures (see them below).

“So,” one of the painters said, “you’re American.” A little over a half hour later I realized I was late for my next group meeting in the Plaza Mayor. We exchanged information and I told Lester and Lázaro that if they were to come to La Havana, they should e-mail me.

We left Trinidad early Sunday morning to visit the Valle de los Ingenios, where some of the original sugar plantations were back in the 19th century. To keep a steady flow of sugar cane on one plantation, 64 of these sugar mills, “trapiches” in Spanish (see below) were required. And for one machine to function, 6-8 workers were needed. The trapiche that you see below was made in 1884 in Buffalo, NY. And the drink that a few of the girls are sipping on below is called “guarapo”. It contains the juice that comes from sugar cane. Sometimes rum is added to it, or juice, but here it was straight up guarapo.

Below you’ll see a few pictures of a guard tower. It was possible to climb so that’s exactly what we did. Take a look at the view.

We left Valle de los Ingenios shortly after this climb and, about two hours later, we arrived at El Niche. As you can see in the pictures below, it is almost impossible to believe that this exists on earth. There were at least four waterfalls there. Zak, I’m sorry to say that I wasn’t able to jump next to one of them since it wasn’t really possible but I did jump off a relatively large rock. I wish I had a picture of it so you could see, but I had to leap and swim to get to that end of Los Niches so I couldn’t take my camera.
Interesting excerpt from “Patchy Blockade”, an article on the embargo from one of the more recent issues of The Economist:

“Although the embargo has manifestly failed in its objective of removing Fidel Castro’s communist regime, in 1996 it was tightened by the Cuban Liberty and Democratic Solidarity Act (better known, after the legislators who sponsored it, as Helmsburton). This attempts to apply the embargo to foreign companies and individuals. Its extraterritorial pretension riles even many of America’s closest allies. It has notably been invoked to ban the directors of Sherritt, a Canadian firm which runs Cuba’s nickel mines, from entering the United States. (They included a former editor of The Economist). But in deference to those allies, the Act’s draconian Title III, which gives Americans who owned property in Cuba before the revolution the right to sue foreigners who now invest there, has been waived every six months, first by Bill Clinton and then by George Bush.

A tightening of America’s bank regulation after the terrorist attacks of 2001 has become a bigger impediment to those wanting to do business in Cuba. The United States considers Cuba, along with Iran, North Korea, Sudan and Syria, to be a “state sponsor of terrorism” (though without any recent plausible evidence). Whatever they might think of the Cuban embargo, banks around the world do not want to run afoul of antiterrorism laws.

In 2004 UBS, a Swiss bank, paid a $100m fine (without admitting any liability) for providing new banknotes to Cuba and Iran. In 2007 ING of the Netherlands, which once boasted that it was the first big bank to open an office in Cuba, abruptly closed there. This year, directors at the company which has exclusive rights to import Cuban cigars to Britain, were surprised to receive a letter from Floyds TSB, their long-time bankers, suggesting that they take their business elsewhere.”

Ouch. Fin.

P.S. I had to leave for dinner 15 minutes after the DNC started on Monday but CNN played it over again later that night and, after Ted Kennedy’s speech, I fell asleep. I have yet to see Michelle Obama’s speech. How was it? I ask because I don’t have time to watch it online as prices for internet access here aren’t exactly cheap.

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

On the way back to La Habana from Cienfuegos yesterday, I finished Morton Rhue’s “The Wave” for the second time. Please read this novel: “Ron Jones, a former high school teacher from San Francisco, attempted in 1969 to teach his pupils the realities of fascism by encouraging them to form a kind of classroom Hitler Youth. This movement became so popular that the life of the whole school was affected. Jones later wrote down his experiences with his history class, and published this as a report entitled ‘The Third Wave’ ”.

While reading this book, I thought about Milgram’s experiment and, as it turns out, small excerpts of Milgram’s findings are in the back of this book. “The Wave” was given to me by a German friend of mine, Teresa, who used it as a reference in one of her classes in Berlin. The edition I have is specifically written for German students, as it has footnotes of English vocabulary at the bottom of each page, so I don’t know if American editions of the book include the same citations at the end for further reading. So, I’ll give them to you:

An excerpt form No Substitute for Madness. A Teacher, His Kids & The Lessons of Real Life. Covelo, Cal., Island Press 1981, pp. 2-3. Copyright 1976 by Ron Jones, 1201 Stanyan St., San Francisco, CA. 94117.

I include the address in case you want to write to him since he’s a pretty interesting guy.

Selections from The Origins of Totalitarianism by Hannah Arendt, New York: Harcourt, Brace and Company, 1951, pp. 301, 305, 316.

I remember reading excerpts from one of her other works earlier this year on WWII. When I get home in December, I’ll take a look at the syllabus from my old Anthro class.

An excerpt from Obedience to Authority. An Experimental View by Stanley Milgram. Copyright 1974.

If you’re interested in Milgram’s experiment and have yet to see any of the original footage of his experiment, I highly recommend watching Ghosts of Abu Ghraib, a film about the America’s human rights violations committed in Iraq. I don’t want to say anything else because I don’t want to ruin the ending but, I must say, I was just as surprised in the end as I had been when I saw the conclusion of The Lives of Others, which is another film I also highly recommend. It won Best Foreign Film at the Oscar’s a couple of years back, I believe. Go to www.imdb.com for more information about all of these film titles that are flying at you…forgive me for sounding like a commercial.

For those who want to read up a bit on Cuba rather than read my blathering, I’ve left a few websites at the bottom for you. I hope you enjoyed reading this so far. I’ll keep letting you know when I update this blog. Hope all is well where you are.

Info about Cuba in English:

If you want just a better overview of diplomatic relations between Cuba and the States, you can “wiki” or “google” this phrase or go to the U.S. State Department site: www.state.gov/www/regions/wha/cuba/

Tourist Information on Cuba: I actually have Lonely Planet’s book on Havana with me. It’s very informative, actually, as its facts range from the history of Cuban architecture to old street names (before the revolution) to the best radio stations. It’s been great to have for a newbee (“someone new in town”) like me. www.lonelyplanet.com/dest/car/cub.htm

“Revolution: Five Visions”, a documentary that entails the stories of five Cuban photographers, including one who followed Fidel during the Battle of Santa Clara if my memory serves me correctly…

As for those who are in New York, or who are planning on taking a trip to New York:
Center for Cuban Studies: www.cubaupdate.org/index.htm

This is especially for the Klinger family, as they have a relationship to the University of Texas: www.lanic.utexas.edu/la/cb/cuba

Información sobre Cuba en español:

Dónde tendré mis clases, Universidad de la Habana: www.uh.cu

Diarios de Cuba:
www.granma .cu
www.juventudrebelde.cu

Revista de Cultura Cubana: http://www.lajiribilla.cu/

Sitio web para la Fundación del Nuevo Cine Latinoamericano: http://www.cinelatinoamericano.org/

Situación del “Cuban 5”: http://www.granma.cubaweb.cu/miami5/index.html