#9 entry-museum of Guanabacoa and more of Havana

This day we are off to the Museum of Guanabacoa.

 This is where there is a display of religous levels of different cultures.  I was not allowed to take pictures so it is very difficult to comprehend what is actually happening. I will give the short version.

 In 1600 the slaves came to Cuba and with the mix of Africans, Cubans, and Spanish the religion they adopted first was Catholic.  From there began La Regla de Oche o Santeria religion. In this creed the Orishas (deities) and the ancestors are worshiped. Their main function is to protect their devotees and guide their lives.    Every home has  an object called gavato (i think the name is correct) that stays behind the door. It symbolizes the opening of roads or the body.  The main person that is picked is called the "Edabu" who predicts the future and after 7 days will dress in white.   There are nine Gods in this religion and when you are born, one is picked for you. There is a person that is above the nine Gods and he is called Babalawo. He predicts the future and has always been a man.

   

The other rooms we visited had other cults or religions. Some had bones and herbs and  covered their faces to represent their ancestors going back to 1839. This is only a tip of the iceberg and by no means starts to tell the story.

 We are outside the Museum which is on the right.

 Here we and the natives are standing waiting to go into the bank to exchange some CUC for CUP.

The rest of these pictures will tell you the story of the conditions of Cuba. So take a minute to study them.

We are off to  a co-op.
Ciao:-)

Cuba #8- Lectures on the energy and global climate impact..economic model in agriculture..community project Muraleando

Our day started back at the Jose Marti Center for more lectures. Today we are learning about "updating the Cuban economic model in agriculture and alternative Energy and impact on global climate change in Cuba.

I will just give a few facts.  30% of the property belongs to the state which only 25% is cultivated and 70% owned by individuals and cooperatives with 43% being cultivated.

Land grants are for 10-25 years. There are about 11 million people: life expectancy of 72 for men and 80 for woman.

 Cuba produced mostly sugar and tobacco.  They import three times of what they grow. The water has a big affect on growing. water source is primarily what they collect and the rain. It is not from desalination plants. Our professor mentioned that if we have a war in the future that it will probably be over water.
Cuba has to pay up front and sometimes in advance for imports from the United States.  Not being able to buy on credit has put the country at a great disadvantage.

Here are the ration cards that are given for the year. It is worth 12% of the products that they can pick up at the corner market such as coffee, sugar and other things. The other food they need is paid at regular prices. Havana needs potatoes and the south needs bananas.

This is one of our professor on the subjects of Cuban economic model in agriculture and alternative energy and the impact of global climate change in Cuba.
In 1920 an electric plant was built in Havana and is still the primary source for the city. In 1991-1995 there were "special times" (following the fall of the Soviet Union) that you only had electricity for 4.5 hours.  This meant no water and definitely no hot water!  They still have times when the TV will relay no electricity for the day. Solar energy is now being thought about for a viable source.  The professor is of the belief that in time and with new battery technology that Cuba could generate 100% of its electricity from solar!

       We are taking a break for lunch before going on to a community art project called Muraleando.

We arrive at this community project to see beautiful art on the walls and in the area around buildings.

Below shows a picture of the beginning of the project.

This is our contact for the project. He was very proud of all the work that had been accomplished here. The project started with a run down water cistern which a group dug out and claimed for their project.

They used everything that was thrown here and more. -- used tires, broken glass, rebar, broken metal parts, car parts and many more things.

We have been taken to the top of the water cistern where the locals play music and dance. They were quick to get us up and dancing.  We then went down to the art gallery below where we bought art, photos, jewelry t-shirts and other wares.

Here you see this is a good spot to rest and watch. The children are coming home from school. You will notice that they are wearing uniforms.  Every school has a different color.

We are off to the center of town where there is a plan to go to the local market and buy more treasures.  I bought a a magic box that has a secret opening, a drum, hummingbirds, an instrument for Brent and other things.
See you on the way
Ciao :)

Cuba #7 entry-waterfront

We are traveling around Havana and are on our way to the waterfront. 

Here we have the Jesus Christ Statue that is blessing the city from the other side of the bay, much like the well known statue of the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil.

The Plaza de San Francisco de Asis 1628. This square was started to help supply water to the ships trading.  The goods were brought here and traded.  This is also known for the place where the Spanish immigrants arrived to Cuba.

This the only time that I saw anyone dressed in an island dress. I really expected to see more of this but what I saw was the same clothes that we all wear " active wear" !

Mozart statue off on the side street.

Touching his hand is suppose to bring you good luck.

The statue behind the front one is a person made up. They look so much alike.  A little girl came up to him and he put his hand out.  She was so surprised...

The ladies resting.

The group found a little shop to do some shopping.

The picture to the left is the hotel where Hemmingway stayed and worked. We went upstairs but didn't go into his room.
 His villa where he lived till 1960 when he moved back to the US has been unchanged. The house and the belongings have been left to the Cubans and you can not go into the house but you can look into it. In 2006 11,000 of his works were sent to the JFK library for digitalization.

Moving down the street. Never sure who is real and who is not!

           A view of the ships that were in the harbor. I didn't expect to see cruise ships here

 especially so  many.

This is a picture of the Morro Castle of the Three Kings of Morro. The Spanish raised this fort between 1589 and 1630 to protect the harbor. In 1762 when the British invaded the city this castle defended to every last man.  In 1845 the lighthouse was built. 

This picture makes my husband just shake his head.  There isn't a place that I travel to that I don't take a picture of the ambulances.  Just my thing.....

Health care is paid 100% by the government. There is also 1 Doctor for every 133 people and he will have his office within the block for each neighborhood.

I took this picture of the light because it is different from anything we do.  The number on the light counts down the seconds until the light changes to the next color. So if it is in red numbers, that light will be red, green goes with green and amber with amber. You always know how long you have....once you figure it out 

On the way home our bus driver took us through a neighborhood that had used its energy and time to do mosaic on the walls. It was beautiful but I wish we could have seen it in the daylight.  It was spectacular.
What will our adventure be tonight in the hotel...one never knows.
Ciao:0

Entry # 6- Life in cuba- transportation

I felt life was very hard for these people. I had many different emotions for the way I saw things here. For those that know me, they know that I have traveled the world and have been in many third world countries as well as well developed ones. The world and its people are so interesting and so is every single spot. 

One of the things that has bothered me is the means of transportation. I love the carts on the roads hauling its owner's goods.

and I love seeing the cart trotting on its busy way....

or the "car pooling" with Dad

                                                      or the car pooling with a group...

But what bothered me most was seeing the "cattle car" effect of transportation. It was the inhumane way of transporting hard working people stuffed into a vehicle standing and in some cases no windows to breath in the heat of Cuba. This one below was the better bus as our guide told us.--50-60-70 people to a bus.

Or the "cattle bus"below taking its passengers to their destinations.  The cab are the most expensive, the

The cab are the most expensive, then  these little cabs that you see below, the horse buggies, then the cattle like buses.

The regular bus below.

And of course we have our bus or the tourist buses. The roads that are in Havana are these big two lane highways which can handle the tourism but the further away you go the narrower and ruttier the roads get. These roads are not made for the buses.

It is going to take more money and a lot more years to get ready for tourists.

 Ciao :-)