Sunday, December 18, 2005

El Ultimo Dia

Well, it’s our last full day in Cuba and it has been an adventure. We’ve had lots of computer problems so many our blog entries have been destroyed. Such is the nature of the beast, I guess. I will recreate them with photos upon our return home.

Some of the highlights of the trip have been the many people we’ve met and befriended. While in Santa Clara we spent time with Arnaldo and Elena, discussing documentaries, politics, and ecology. We had a beautiful vegetarian lunch made by Elena and her mother, his mother in law, a lovely woman who shared stories of her love and knowledge of herbs for ailments. The spread was amazing, which included eggs, rice, beans, salad, etc. It was divine. Nicole and I have had the best meals in the homes of our Cuban hosts and friends, and we are so grateful to them for that, considering that being a vegetarian in Cuba is very difficult. During our lunch we learned how difficult it has been for Cubans during the Special Period, details that often get skipped when discussing bigger politics. Needless to say, life for Cubans since the fall of the Soviet Bloc is difficult, and often they are unable to find the very basic things we take for granted. Though I am considered a poor person in the United States, by the standards I am rich, and this is so disturbing to me. Anyway, Arnaldo also arranged two screenings of Bloodletting there in his amazing city, one with a group of documentary filmmakers, many who have received awards for their work. It was an amazing evening of discussion and I wasn’t even nervous during the entire Q and A session, how unusual for me. The warmth and professional appreciation was amazing, and there is even hope that the documentary may show on Cuban TV. Will keep you posted on that, and will update up further on more details on that screening with a podcast on the website, for those interested in seeing how amazing insightful and sharp the Cuban documentary filmmakers and critics are.

Nicole and I were also lucky to have had Arnaldo show us the mountains with his wife Elena in their province, and we saw a cave, though did not venture in due to Nicole’s affinity to draw bats. We hired a taxi with enough power to drive up into the mountains, which were beautiful. Of course, if anyone knows me that was a challenge due to my motion sickness, so as the joke went throughout the day trip, I left my mark in a few places. Between ascending and descending in the mountains and curves I got very sick and through up a few times. Elena and Arnaldo were so kind to stop at a pharmacy and they and Nicole got me bottles of ginger extract for like 30 cents a bottle. So, I spent most of our day trek shooting video, sucking down the ginger extract, which Arnaldo assumed I liked because of the alcohol. What a great sense of humour he has, and while I spent the rest of the trip ralphing up my guts up in front of a beautiful museum in Trinidad, and along the road back to Santa Clara everyone laughed at my illness, making jokes, and easing the tension. It was like we had found a piece of home with Arnaldo and Elena. When Nicole and I left the next day we didn’t have the chance to say good bye to our new friends, due to some snafu at the bus station, and we were saddened by that. Arnaldo is a kindred spirit and artist that I hope to continue collaborating with in the future. More details on him later and what an amazing filmmaker he is, even though he loves the mountains that made me puke up my guts.

Nicole and I returned to Havana and spent the next day hanging out with Las Krudas, eating their lovely food, and watching Showtime DVDs of the L Word, a show Nicole and I have never seen. What a trip to watch it in Havana. We also spent a day at the beach, Playa Santa Maria, or a little east of it. Nicole was the one who insisted we trek there because I was worried about finances but with her gentle prodding we went and it was worth it. The beach was where regular Cubans went, so we avoided much of the tourist trappings that can be so prevalent here in Cuba. We sat on the beach watching the crystal clear blue ocean water while avoiding the Portuguese Man of Wars, jelly fish beings that have long tentacles and a terrible sting which I suffered from. Ouch. I also had a Cuban cop ask me for my passport because he thought I was an Afro Cuban hanging out with a tourist, that being Nicole. When I told the cop I was from L.A: he didn’t believe me, which has been happening often during this trip, having Cubans from all walks of life think I am Cuban and event comment that I look like someone in their family or their neighbour. What a trip. The beach day ended with Nicole and me watching an Afro Cuban family play a game with a ball, something in between Keep Away and Dodge Ball. It was great. They seemed so familiar to me, playing competitively and yet warmly, with sharp senses of humour, like African Americans. We returned that night and hung out at the Malecon at night, drinking Cuban ron, meeting a few gorgeous Cuban men together, being serenaded by a talented independent musician, and having a lovely evening with the full moon illuminating everything. What a treasure.

Well, there are more details and my internet time is costing us a lot of money so I must end this for now. We have shot more that 200 photos, which we will share with you, so stay in touch with the blog even when we return.

My last piece of information is that tomorrow we fly home, and we are hoping to return without any melodrama, given that we entered Cuba illegally, based on U.S. laws, so keep your fingers crossed that all goes well with our re-entry. We are getting rid of anything that has Cuba on it but are prepared to tell the truth to U.S. Customs if asked. Pray for us. Until our next entry, ciao from Havana.

Lorna

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