Life In Havana

Life in Havana

I’ve been living in Cuba for about a year now with a couple months in Canada on and off. Why Cuba, of all places you ask? Well first off, it’s for my job. If I didn’t have work here there would be no realistic way for a Yuma* to live here. Cuba is pretty cheap, right? Wrong. That’s a pretty common misconception amongst Canadians.
Yes, the all-inclusive vacations are cheaper in comparison to most places and the veggie markets are a vegetarians heaven (pricing wise) but other than that, the reality is that if you are a ‘tourist’ you pay tourist prices. Cubans have it cheaper, and rightfully so but the government figures that if you can afford to move her voluntarily then you should have the money to do so.

I’m not going to tell you about my job or how it allows me to be here; I’m pleading the fifth as the Americans say. But I will tell you why I chose Cuba. To be honest, I actively sought out a job in Cuba, it didn’t just fall into my lap.

I’ve been coming to Cuba at least once a year minimum since I was 18 years old. I fell in love with the people, the vibes and, let’s be honest, the heat. I am Canadian after all. I always loved the island to vacation on but I never thought seriously about living there. I also saw the poverty and hardships. One day the travel company that I got hired with decided to send me to Varadero, one of the most touristy parts of Cuba. Of course I accepted, I’m not crazy. I was there for about three weeks and met some of the most amazing friends. Because of this and my amazing program director I was eager to be placed in Varadero once again when the summer programs rolled around. For the next three years I continued to get placed in Varadero for every program. And then the Cubans started to make fun of me.

“It’s been three years and you still don’t know Spanish? Pinga, Leah!” My Cuban friends would make fun of me and I realized that they were right. I googled ‘Learn Spanish in Cuba’ and one of the programs with the best reviews was a place called Jakera Cuba. I decided to do their 4 week ‘Learn Spanish, Dance and Culture’ program in Havana. It was one of the most rewarding and amazing experiences of my life. (I will talk about this more in a later post.) Then came the job and after that, I never left.

One day about 4 months after my Jakera program we had one of our patented rooftop parties and I didn’t know it then but I met my future husband. It only took me chasing him a few more months and finally he was mine. Of course I had to fall in love with a Cuban, one of the most difficult countries to live in. A few weeks ago he asked me to marry him and I said “porque no?” Just kidding Honey. It was one of the best moments of my life.

And here I am, a Cubadian. Trust me, living in Cuba is hard(more about that in future posts) and for most people, downright impossible. But visiting is so easy. Experiencing the beauty and culture is so easy. So come on, get off your butts and join me. #becubadian.