In Cuba, Nothing Seems to Change

Ariel Glaria Enriquez

HAVANA TIMES — Roberto is an old neighbor who always talks to me about the same things over and over again.

That Havana is falling apart more and more and is becoming more inhospitable;
There are very few pleasant places where you can go;
The ones that do exist are very expensive;
Going to the beach is a sacrifice;
Having milk for breakfast is a luxury;
Dressing properly is also a luxury;
Wages aren’t enough to buy clothes;
If you buy clothes then you don’t eat;
You spend all your money on food;
In spite of this, you still eat poorly;
Wasting time is the best way to not feel what is happening;
Young people have nothing to do;
They don’t believe in anything;
The world is full of problems;
The only place where nothing happens is here in Cuba;
Transport is good one day and bad the rest;
Everyone wants to live in Havana because outside of the capital, everything is a lot worse;
We criticize everything;
We are never satisfied;
Nearly everyone we know has left the country;
We have become a very complicated people;
Cubans who live abroad don’t understand us;
We overwhelm them with out complaints;
In spite of this, they still tolerate, help and miss us;
Medicine is free but taking care of a sick person is more expensive than a trip to the moon;
We contradict ourselves in everything;
We don’t listen to others;
We believe we are always right;
There isn’t any, its finished, there was never any;
We seem to be suffering an epidemic where we talk about the same things over and over again;
Even though Havana is in fashion, none of this will go to you or me.

Julio, another old neighbor, repeats the same things to me, and these are the same things that are always going round and round in my head.


Ariel Glaria


4 thoughts on “In Cuba, Nothing Seems to Change

  • There’s a pile of truths on that list.

  • How come that this beloved son of the soil does not see anything good in his country? How come the USA tourists speak so highly of the country? How come so many people are flocking the country for the Professional Medical service it offers? How come the writer did not criticize the draconian, illegal, world condemned economic blockade the USA has imposed upon the country? How come he did not mention the heroic deeds carried out by the country to far away lands which suffer natural disasters? How come he did not mention the Teachers who have travelled to remote parts of countries, teaching its inhabitants to read and write? How come he did not mention the Doctors who are in remote corners of countries bringing medical attention to people who have never seen a Doctor in their lives? How come he did not mention the liberation of Namibia, Angola, Ethiopia, Mozambique from the tentacles of the Dracula Apartheid system and helped in the freeing of Nelson Mandela who was imprisoned for 27 years for fighting the venomous Apartheid system? It is totally impossible for this person to be a TRUE SON of the country called Cuba? He is either an imposter or a traitor to the cause of the 1959 Triumphant Revolution! There are so many Positive things he can praise, but, like the counter revolutionary that he is, he can only concoct this tripe for the likes of brother Wong to feast upon.How much was he actually paid to come with this garbage? Every Third World Country is grateful to Cuba for training its Professionals free of charge. He seems to be a school dropout, he has so much time on his hand to complain! He did not say what work he does, what qualifications he has; who is he really?

    • Thank for, once again, today’s chuckle.

      Carry on.

    • Have you lived there?


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