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Hello from Cuba (5) - Another Mind-Twisting Experience


Article by: Susanne Pacher

Hotel view, Venice, the Bride Of the Sea , Mobile Alabama Havana Libre, Friday, April 8, 2005, 2:47 pm I am sitting here at one of the most famous hotels also related, Pomona, King of the Mountain Race , Tips & Tricks To Save Money On Your Next Cruise in all of Havana, after I just withdrew Can$250 (200 CUC, Pesos Convertibles) from my Mastercard. No big deal, you say..... Until you realize that the average Cuban makes between US8 and US also related, Living Like A Native In Morelia, Mexico , The Victoria and Alfred Waterfront - One of My Favorite Places on Earth 30, not an hour, not a day, but for a whole month! My professor for instance told me that she makes about US$18 or so a month, so the amount I withdrew is more than a year´s salary for a university professor.... I am feeling really weird about this and I also want to get most of the cash into a safe as soon as possible. I am simply unable to walk around with a year´s salary in my pocket...They talk about the "inverted pyramid" here, where a waiter in a hotel Try also, Holiday in an apartment rather than a , Living Like A Native In Morelia, Mexico makes much more (due to tips Try also, Fifth Wheel Camping Trailers , European Masks from tourists) than a brain surgeon in a hospital... The economic situation here definitely is the dominating topic. Just standing in line a young black man started to speak to me and told me that he has a degree in physical education, teaches martial arts at the national level and inevitably the conversation came back to the dire economic situation: the local Try also, How To Choose Your Villa Holiday Interior Design , Tribals of Jharkhand, India refrain is "Hay que luchar", - daily life indeed is a struggle around here. There is no toilet paper around here, so having read about the shortages I brought my own little Kleenex travel check out, Things To Remember Before You Rent A Car , The Charm of an S. T. Dupont Lighter packs from Canada You may also consider, The Charm of an S. T. Dupont Lighter , How to spend less when you find your hotel in Rome . At the University and in the whole country You may also consider, The Top 5 Amenities of a Miami Beach Hotel , Vacation Apartments, The Good And The Bad. there is tremendous shortage of writing paper. Basic things simply dont exist, or if they do, they cost a lot of money Try also, Improve your Golf Game by Learning The Secrets of The Golf C , Things To Remember Before You Rent A Car for locals goto, Vacation accommodations: vacation rentals vs. resorts , Living Like A Native In Morelia, Mexico on the black market. As a result, a tourist also related, Fifth Wheel Camping Trailers , Pigeon Forge Cabins is always pretty much a target. There are "jineteros" who try to lure you to a restaurant goto, Car Travel Safety Tips For Your Next Road Trip , Pigeon Forge Cabins or bed and breakfast goto, A summer wedding , Caribbean Cruise Specials - Feel Free, Feel Great! (in return for a commission from the owner), therer are "jineteras", local goto, Family Travel Made Easy , Living Like A Native In Morelia, Mexico young and good-looking Cuban women that seek contact with tourists, goto, How to spend less when you find your hotel in Rome , Vacation Apartments, The Good And The Bad. some of them straight prostitutes, others just looking for the occasional financial favour and entertainment opportunity. Many local tourist You may also consider, Virtual Walks of Europe - A Unique Travel Experience , THE REAL RACE - A Unique Adventure Tourism Experience - Launches This Australian Autumn/Fall employees try to take advantage of their contacts with tourists view, Fifth Wheel Camping Trailers , Fifth Wheel Camping Trailers and there are definite rip-offs. 2 days ago I went to a state-owned restaurant You may also consider, Virtual Walks of Europe - A Unique Travel Experience , Caribbean Cruise Specials - Feel Free, Feel Great! at the far corner of the famous Coppelia Park. See, A summer wedding , Advantages And Disadvantages of Bus Conversion Motorhomes The food and service were horrible. I chose Arroz Congri ($3), a salad ($3), and a mango juice ($1), totalling $7. When the bill came I saw a total of $9.85 ($4 each for the salad and the rice and $1.85 for the juice). I made the waitress aware of the situation and she acted as if it had been an error and did correct the bill after all. But a less alert tourist view, Ultimate Sports Entertainment Announces Sports "Answer to Disney Land" , Pigeon Forge Cabins would have paid 40% more than what was stated on the menu. Sometimes it feels like you are a "walking wallet" and I have developed a certain suspicion as to to the sincerity of some of the approaches by the locals. check out, Our Visit To Orchard Country Winery In Door County , Family Travel Made Easy On the other hand, I realize, that with the $10 or $20 people that people make here a month, they are unable to live for more than a couple of days, so their economic reality forces them to try to make money goto, The Great Barrier Reef , Fifth Wheel Camping Trailers any which way they can. Services check out, Renting Town Houses in Orlando Florida , Hiring a car abroad - it's not just the car insurance you ne for tourists check out, Virtual Walks of Europe - A Unique Travel Experience , Noise Cancelling Headphones Are Not Just A Travel Accessory - They're A Travel Necessity and even locals goto, Family Travel Made Easy , Caribbean Cruise Specials - Feel Free, Feel Great! barely exist. I have been trying to rent a bicycle for the last 4 days. There were 2 contact phone numbers for bicycle rental places view, THE REAL RACE - A Unique Adventure Tourism Experience - Launches This Australian Autumn/Fall , Ultimate Sports Entertainment Announces Sports "Answer to Disney Land" in my Lonely Plane Try also, So You Want to Sell Your Timeshare , Travel To Stowe Vermont - Ski Vacation Capital Of The East t Travel also related, Things To Remember Before You Rent A Car , Shooting High Definition Stock Footage in Italy Guide. I have been trying to call both numbers numerous times - no answer. A co-student of mine has been trying to link me up with the owner of his bed and breakfast You may also consider, The Victoria and Alfred Waterfront - One of My Favorite Places on Earth , Hawaii Vacation in February? Don't Miss These Local Events who has a new mountain also related, Belfast - A Quick Guide , Fliying to Barcelona Airport? Please Get Me Out of Here bike. For 4 days I have been trying to reach this individual until I finally connected with him yesterday and I rented the bike view, The Charm of an S. T. Dupont Lighter , European Masks for $3 a day. But of course, you absolutely cannot leave the bicycle alone anywhere because it will be stolen and resold in a second. As a matter of fact, I "tipped" my hotel also related, The Top 5 Amenities of a Miami Beach , The Charm of an S. T. Dupont Lighter security guards a few dollars to look after my rented mountain view, Virtual Walks of Europe - A Unique Travel Experience , Belfast - A Quick Guide bike particularly well, because anything of value "disappears". Yesterday, my friend Pedro and I went to eat in a Paladar (a privately owned restaurant). As a gesture of appreciation for his time and his insights I had given him a red baseball cap with "Toronto" written on it. He forgot it at the restaurant, Try also, Improve your Golf Game by Learning The Secrets of The Golf C , The Victoria and Alfred Waterfront - One of My Favorite Places on Earth but within a minute and a half we became aware of it and returned to the restaurant. view, So You Want to Sell Your Timeshare , The Truth About Auto-Transport Companies The baseball cap was already gone, which made him very sad. He told me that it would be resold today for $8 (almost a monthly government salary). For the most part, people here are unable to travel, check out, Noise Cancelling Headphones Are Not Just A Accessory - They're A Travel Necessity , Hiring a car abroad - it's not just the car insurance you ne even local view, Improve your Golf Game by Learning The Secrets of The Golf C , Improve your Golf Game by Learning The Secrets of The Golf C ly. Due to the "periodo especial" since the collapse of the Soviet Union (and the associated financial support for Cuba) gasoline is expensive and scarce, and there is not even enough for the local view, Family Travel Made Easy , Hawaii Vacation in February? Don't Miss These Events Havana transit system. So if you want to take the "GuaGua" you sometimes have to wait for 2 or 3 hours since there are so many people lining up for the local Try also, Car Travel Safety Tips For Your Next Road Trip , Virtual Walks of Europe - A Unique Travel Experience bus and there are not enough buses available. Having a private car check out, Improve your Golf Game by Learning The Secrets of The Golf C , Rehoboth Beach For A Vacation Of Fun In The Sun or access to the Internet is a luxury You may also consider, SPRING BREAK IN CANCUN , Visit Big Bear California that only extremely few people have access to and I have heard different stories on the street also related, Top Ten Most Searched Cities in 2003 for Online Hotel Listings , Improve your Golf Game by Learning The Secrets of The Golf C that a regular Cuban person actually is not allowed to have access to Internet. As a foreigner, it´s very difficult for me to gauge which of these stories are true, whether it is truly prohibited or simply extremely difficult to get. Either way, I have noticed that people are still very careful about what they say around here. On the other hand, despite all these hardships and limitations on personal freedom, I have noticed a really amazing friendliness and a great sense of humour in the people. People approach me, ask me questions, without the immediate possibility of selling me something or expecting money You may also consider, Travel To Stowe Vermont - Ski Vacation Capital Of The East , Things To Remember Before You Rent A Car from me. There seems to be a natural curiosity about foreigners around here, maybe because the possibilities of travel check out, So You Want to Sell Your Timeshare , Pigeon Forge Cabins don´t exist. The professors at the University have been great and truly seem to enjoy the interaction with all the international students. When you get to meet people one-on-one (not in a government-owned restaurant), it is indeed a fabulous experience. view, Translation for the global travel industry: attention to detail pays , How to spend less when you find your hotel in Rome Last night my friend and I took an extended walk in a park check out, Caribbean Cruise Specials - Feel Free, Feel Great! , The Great Barrier Reef after sun Try also, Top Ten Most Searched Cities in 2003 for Online Hotel Listings , Top Ten Most Searched Cities in 2003 for Online Hotel Listings set, talking, discussing, comparing notes about our respective cultures. See, Translation for the global travel industry: attention to detail pays , Hawaii Vacation in February? Don't Miss These Local Events And it was completely safe, something that you wouldn´t dare to try in a park view, Family Travel Made Easy , Top Ten Most Searched Cities in 2003 for Online Hotel Listings in Toronto. Even downtown, you see young, very attractive women, dressed up in really sexy clothing, walking around by themselves at 11, 12 at night. Immersing myself in this ultra-unique contradictory culture goto, How To Choose Your Villa Holiday Interior Design , Ultimate Sports Entertainment Announces Sports "Answer to Disney Land" has been such a precious, unique and paradigm-shattering experience, check out, Venice, the Bride Of the Sea , The Truth About Auto-Transport Companies and even though I have only been here for a week now, I feel like I have absorbed and learned so much.... It is so different from regular life in Canada You may also consider, Our Visit To Orchard Country Winery In Door County , The Truth About Auto-Transport Companies that it feels like everyday I am entering into a foreign universe, a completely different world, You may also consider, Caribbean Cruise Specials - Feel Free, Feel Great! , Renting Town Houses in Orlando Florida but I have to say, I have never felt so alive......


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