Comments on: My First Impressions of Cuba

By: Stella the Travelerette

Stella the Travelerette — Thu, 19 May 2016 02:35:41 +0000

Thank you for sharing your experiences. I am dying to go to Cuba. I think it’s interesting to hear about how people were more interested in financial security than freedom. I had similar experiences talking to people in Russia. (Russians weren’t necessarily deluded about Putin’s flaws, they were just happy that the economy was better than it was in the 90s.)

By: thetravelsista

thetravelsista — Thu, 19 May 2016 02:22:00 +0000

In reply to Colby. The Cuban people are some of the nicest and warmest people you'll ever meet. You definitely should visit.

By: thetravelsista

thetravelsista — Thu, 19 May 2016 02:20:56 +0000

In reply to Brianna. The island is truly a land of contradictions. It's beautiful, but it's also suffered from years of neglect, so it's not the typical Caribbean vacation spot. Nonetheless, as far as culture, music, beaches and safety goes, it rivals or exceeds other Caribbean locations.

By: thetravelsista

thetravelsista — Thu, 19 May 2016 02:13:52 +0000

In reply to Erika. Yes, I found the people to be surprisingly open and willing to talk. They are excited about Americans coming to visit and really want the riff to be over. The increased tourism can definitely be a double-edged sword for Cuba. It will be interesting to see how it all plays out.

By: Erika

Erika — Wed, 18 May 2016 15:43:09 +0000

It is always interesting to hear about a place through the eyes of locals, rather than from what news sources would want us to believe. I think there is so much misconception in the US about Cuba and I would love to get first-hand insight into the realities of the island. With tourism growing, it will be interesting indeed to see if people begin to abandon jobs in other sectors for jobs in tourism. That could have huge implications in sectors like healthcare, education etc.

By: Brianna

Brianna — Wed, 18 May 2016 15:20:19 +0000

Thank you so much for sharing this side of Cuba. I fear many Americans will visit expecting it to be another Caribbean Island, so I appreciate you actually trying to get to know the country and its struggles

By: Colby

Colby — Wed, 18 May 2016 14:38:45 +0000

I definitely admire the residence of the people in this country and can’t wait to visit someday soon!

By: Ivana

Ivana — Wed, 18 May 2016 13:27:50 +0000

I knew the wages were low, but not *that* low. How sad. I found it mind blowing when I heard years ago that certified physicians would often change career paths to work in tourism because it paid more. Interesting to see how vastly our two societies differ.

By: Nadeen

Nadeen — Thu, 21 Jan 2016 07:06:06 +0000

I’m glad you enjoyed it and that you were able to spend time with locals. It’s always been interesting to me to know what they think of Americans. Those wages are very sad. I realize that’s why a lot of professionals fled Cuba. Hopefully the economy improves with more tourism.