Getting By in Cuba

The Cuban people still remain resilient and hopeful amid changing political and economic circumstances of which they assert no control. With an average monthly income of approximately $20/month, yet the highest literacy rate in the Americas, many of the most educated Cubans make more in the tourism industry than as engineers or educators.

With embargoes and lessened support by past allies Russia and Venezuela, rations are a part of everyday life for Cubans. Carefully controlled Libreta de Abastecimientos (supplies booklets) indicate maximum amounts of basic foods each Cuban can purchase- if the goods

Availability & prices
posted in bodegas

are even available. Our friend, Gaby, shared how difficult it is to follow a recipe as chances are high that one or more ingredients will be unavailable. Consequently, Cubans spend a lot of time in line. Word spreads when items are available and trading is the best way to secure necessary supplies.

I’m not sure if it is because of the country’s socialist attitude or years of paternal government care, most Cubans seem to pleasantly and diligently go about their lives without the sense of aggressive urgency that you see in other nearby islands like Jamaica. But pockets of entrepreneurship are appearing. Casa Particulares, privately-owned B&Bs often part of individual’s homes, are popping up daily and private restaurants often offer the best meals you’ll enjoy during a stay. This also allows you to direct funds to residents rather than government agencies- a major tenet of the latest US restrictions for tourists.

The US Embassy in Havana

With media control, ingenious Cuban’s get their entertainment and news through “the package”. The Package is a weekly data delivery of an odd assortment of media for consumption by Cubans. Perhaps “Game of Thrones”, “House of Cards” or “The Bachelor”- who knows what the selection criteria is for The Package. Some pick up the weekly thumb drive of data at a nearly local bodega. Another cottage industry has a young techie coming to homes to install the data onto laptops for home consumption. Most households have an established system whereby they can widely share The Package and share the costs among several families. I guess it is a lot like Netflix passwords, isn’t it?