Most Out-of-the-Way Holiday Celebration

MOST OUT-OF-THE-WAY CELEBRATION

How does Christmas in Cuba sound to you? In 1996 we celebrated Christmas twice. The second time was at home on Christmas but the week before it was in Cuba. That was the first and only time I have visited the home land of my parents. And, the entire trip was a series of double edged swords.

We arrived at the airport during the after hours. The airport looked exactly like what you would expect a Cuban airport to look like. And, it smelled like what you would expect a Cuban airport to smell like. After security checked our bags we left and met a relative at the parking lot.

The relative, my grandfather’s brother, drove us to the house in a 1950’s Chevrolet. I thought it was cool that he owned a classic car, but quickly realized that no one in <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" />Cuba owned a car made after 1959.

Well, anyway, the trip to the house was a long one. The airport was in Havana, but my family lived in Pinar Del Rio. Pinar Del Rio is a farming community in Cuba. So, after an hour or two we finally arrived.

Although it was like 3 or 4 am the house was packed with people waiting for us. Some of the people were family, others were friends, and a few were random people who came for the free food. I expected these people do be tired since it was really late, but they were wide awake. We all hanged out till the morning.

A few hours later I quickly realized that the trip was a double edged sword. Cuba is a beautiful country. And, it was great to meet family members that I did not know. However, I am a city boy (born and raised in Miami). The farm was too quiet, too empty, and very little was going on.

One of the few things that kept me entertained were the relatives in my age group. We hanged out a lot and played baseball occasionally. What was fascinating was the difference in culture. Kids in Cuba are very mature for their age. I guess you have to be if you live in poverty. I was just a silly kid who went to school and watched cartoons. These kids had to wake up early in the morning and help out in the farm.

Now as for the Christmas celebration itself it wasn’t much different from the way we celebrated at home. The entire family was there and we ate pork with rice and black beans. The difference, of course, was the location.