When you think of Cuba several obvious things rush to mind right away. Fidel Castro. Communism. Che Guevara. Cigars. Rum. 
Trade sanctions. Music. Salsa. Crumbling colonial
buildings. Cubans face particular technical challenges that citizens of most other countries do not. Decades of US
sanctions have resulted in what could be called a “ make-do society” where things that break are either
repaired or stay broken.
History of Cuba
Cuba is the size
of England and has a population o
f 11million.There were people he
re since the time of the building of our monuments in the Boyne Valley. But there is no evidence of a civilization to
match the Mayan, the Azt
ec
or
the Inca. These early people were hunters and gatherers.
About the time of the arriva
l of
the Normans 1169, the Tainos lived in villages of circular huts in central and eastern Cuba. They grew tobacco, cassava
and cotton and practiced a
religion. They were a peaceful people and
were totally un
prepared for
the consequences of the arrival in 1492 of Christopher Columbus and eve
n less prepared for the cruel actions of Diego Velazquez who landed in Guantanam o Bay and set
up 7 towns across Cuba in
the early 16th century. By the end of the century the entire Taino people were eliminated through massacre, slavery, disease and suicide.
Cuban Slavery
From 1512 until
1886 Cuba was in slavery. Settlers were brought in from Spain, the Canary Islands, France and Italy. Th
ey were given large tracts of land
and large numbers of slaves from Africa. From 1500 until 1762 slavery was the system used to produce large herds of
cattle and vast amounts of
sugar for export.
1762 England took Cuba as part of the campaign of the 7 years war. There was now free trade,
machinery, enlightened
management and greater
freedom for slaves was granted. Cuba prospered under British rule but within 11 months unfortunately Cuba was returned to Spain in exchange
for Florida. 1886 slavery
was abolished and Cubans began their campaign for freedom led by the renowned revolutionary Jose Marti who was killed in 1895.
United States involvement in Cuba
February 1898 the United
States battleship ‘Maine” blew up in Havana harbour. The
United States accused Spain of sinking the ship and declared war. The Spaniards were swiftly defeated and gave up Cuba to the US in trust for the Cuban people.
1902 United States army was withdrawn and the new Cuban Republic was launched, though United States took a stake in Guantanamo Bay an area they still hold to day. From 1925 to 1958 Cuba was ruled by presidents several of them made themselves dictators and most of them owed their positions to Fulgencio Batista a sergeant who gained control over the army. Cuba was a playground for rich Americans who controlled the bars, casinos a
and brothels. Cuba depended on Spain USA and Russia down the years. They held the wealth of the country and it
did not filter down to the ordinary peasant. The countrywas ripe for revelution.
Fidel Castro comes to power
1957 Fidel Castro with the aid of Che Guevara defeated Batista. Under Castro Cuba became a Communist
state.Thousands of people left the country and their businesses and lands were confiscated by the government. The United States did not welcome a communist state so close to its shores.
1962 an international crisis brought the United States and the U.S.S.R to the brink of war. President Kennedy USA accused the U.S.S.R. of setting up missile bases in Cuba threatening the peace of
the western hemisphere and a
week later the U.S.S.R. agreed to remove the bases. A major crisis was averted.
After the Revolution
January 1st 1959 was hailed fifty years ago as one of the happiest day in the life of every Cuba
n when Fidel Castro and his guerrillas swept down from Sierra Maestra and delivered the island from the corrupt and
brutal dictatorship of Batista. It was a time of great hope.
The principles of the revolution, free education, free medical care for all and land reform were very idealistic. You can have a by pass operation with a top class surgeon without paying a cent but you pay for medicines. Many Cubans receive much needed medicines from relatives in the U.S. as medicine is expensive and unaffordable to many of
the poor. Doctors are well trained but lack equipment and
medicines. Thee are 55,00 doctors in the country but recently Castro’s government agreed to send up to 20,000 doctors to South America in
exchange formuch needed oil.
Living Standards
Living standards are dire.
Women and children look for
soap, creams, shampoo, biros and pencils on the streets. Ration books are used. Our
tourist guide George showed us his well thumbed, heavily marked ration book listing how many grams of what each person could buy at cheap prices at the government ration shops. They have very little money for decent food; cooking oil, soap, coffee, milk for children, toothpaste, beans, rice, chicken, pork and potatoes are all
rationed. The rations only last three weeks and then the people are obliged to buy food at the farmers market where prices are higher.
The Landscape
We visited Vinales in the north.
The area is fertile and beautiful. Bananas, mango trees, pineapple, watermelons, tall pine trees, rice fields a
nd tobacco barns grace this lush valley. Giant masses of limestone covered in thick
tropical vegetation rose up like ancient gods into the clear blue sky. Vultures circled over
head. We took a subterranean boat ride in an under ground stream through El Indio limestone cave. A member of our group had a near miss when she stepped into 6m of
murky water in the dark cave. The landscape varied as we traveled through the country.
We visited Havana, Santiago
de Cuba, Camaguey,
Cienfuegos, Santa Clara and Trinidad. They are cities of decadent grandeur, many Spanish colonial buildings with long supporting columns and typical Spanish
architecture are crumbling. From a distance they are picturesque but up close you often see grime and smell the plumbing.
There are numerous war memorials erected in tree lin
ed parks and plazas. 3 bed roomed apartments - gray drab Russian style blocks with household washing hanging from the balconies abound. In the country the houses are small wooden or
concrete-block houses with thatched, galvanized or red tile roofs. To supplement their income people rent rooms to travellers in the small towns
and villages.
Yet there are signs of revival in Havana – shiny new hotels,
new Korean built taxis, drivers in crisp shirts and ties. Restoration is being carried out in some colonial buildings. Tourism is on the increase and contributes more than sugar cane. Tobacco and the famous Cuban cigar is also a fast growing business
