The sound of salsa music and energy of cheering and an MC leads me to my first experience wandering the streets of a forbidden land. As I make my way through the crowd in a small plaza, the sun is shining as a spotlight on a group of Cuban children, boys and girls partnered up, infected by the pulsating musica de salsa. These children must come out of the womb dancing because the moves were so intuitive, provocative and contagious. For a country that we were always taught through school and the media is a depressed, restrictive, poor, communist place, I never felt so much joy, creativity and richness in a culture as I did in Cuba. Furthermore, as a salsa addict, I could not be more in heaven with the music heard through out all the streets and salsa clubs all around, in door and out door.There is no way to deny Cuba’s turbulent history, most notably since the Cuban Revolution when Fidel Castro took power and the traumatic transformations that were forced upon the people. Groups were marginalized, imprisoned and even executing for having and expressing differing beliefs and opinions that led/forced hundreds of thousands to flee. Soon after Castro’s takeover, by the end of 1960, newspapers were shut down and all radio and television programming became controlled by the state.
Before embarking on the journey to Cuba, I disappointed many Cuban-Americans who had fled or who are part of families that had experienced the Castro regime and fled and were angry that I would be visiting and contributing any money to him. I apologize for offending anyone but could not be happier for the opportunity to visit a country that has so much potential and inner beauty waiting for the opportunity to explode.
As a Spanish and anthropology major, my passion is analyzing and digging deep in to culture, most specifically the Spanish-speaking populations. Traveling through out Cuba, my friend and I stayed in local houses that are certified by the government to house tourists. It’s a wonderful way to really experience the culture and hopefully get a chance to bond and speak with the family. At a popular salsa spot in Havana we met two dancers that offered to take us to the beach the next day. We took a road trip to the most beautiful, white sand beach and had great conversation where they whispered their anger towards Castro and the fact that they have such restricted access, internet, phone, television, etc., that limits the information they can get and the communication with others they can have. While there is this awareness and consciousness, there is a feeling of powerlessness and hopelessness that there really is no alternative.
One of our favorite experiences was in Bayamo where we met a group of young musicians and artists that invited us to spend the day with them. We went to a lunch where they were celebrating someone’s birthday and then to their art studio where we were introduced to more friends and later to the river where we played like children in the river while the sun set. It is no wonder why this area is often referred to as the birthplace of Cuban Nationality. We all formed such a special bond that day and cried together upon parting. Each person we were with that day had a unique and impressive creative talent whether it was music or painting. It hit me that Cuba is probably the richest country in terms of the arts for that is the only freedom of expression for the people. They cannot speak out, but they have other outlets for expressing their visions, beliefs and inner beings. From Cuba and it’s people we are reminded not only to appreciate our freedoms that we often take for granted but also that there is so much beauty and specialness inside each and everyone of us that not only leads us to develop our own individuality but also to have compassion for others and acknowledge the rights we all deserve as humans sharing this one world.
Our first house we stayed at, the only one planned from Lonely Planet before leaving Costa Rica, led us to our last place who was her sister and a famous jazz musician. Since our ATM card stopped working half way through the almost 3 week trip, and we couldn’t use a credit card for obvious reasons, we explained that we could not afford to pay both nights because we literally had no money left. We even had to pay the cab driver that took us to the airport the last night in jewelry. We scheduled our travels through out the island for overnight so that we didn’t have to pay for housing but could instead sleep during the bus ride and lived off of mostly bananas and avocados for days. While there are places the locals go to eat and pay with pesos, it is extremely difficult for a tourist to get away with that. But, we had no option because we were running low on the lump sum of cash we had luckily taken out before the ATM card crashed. One of my most memorable meals (perhaps sadly) is when Tara and I both scarffed down several Cuban Sandwiches from a place we knew accepted pesos. I never would have imagined a simple sandwich of slightly sweet yellow bread buns sandwiching a light firm cheese with pickles could taste so delicious. I don’t eat meat and couldn’t afford the one with ham anyways, but could imagine the satisfaction of those that do enjoy ham because that looked like a whole different experience there. As you walk through the streets, a cart piled with dead pigs, some being dragged along the pavement may pass you. . .and then you come to the guy with a whole roasted pig on a table slicing and stuffing in to the sweet round buns.
While I hope to one day return to the state and experience the food on a larger budget, my soul was more than enough fed by the people and experiences, where the landscape is indescribable and the individuals make up such an inspirational culture.
Pan Cubano
STARTER
3/4 tsp active dry yeast(1/3 envelope)
1/3 cup warm water
1/3 cup bread or all-purpose flour
The day before baking; mix the starter ingredients, dissolving the yeast in the water first. You want a thick paste when you add the flour.
Cover bowl with plastic wrap and place in refrigerator for 24 hours.
Leftover starter will keep for several days in the refrigerator and can be frozen.
DOUGH
4-1/2 tsp active dry yeast -(2 envelopes or 2 cakes of compressed yeast)
1 Tbsp sugar1-1/2 cups warm water
3 to 4 Tbsp lard or solid vegetable shortening, at room temperature
1/2 batch starter (see above recipe)
1 Tbsp salt
4 to 5 cups bread or all-purpose flour
Dissolve yeast and sugar in 3 tablespoons of water in a large mixing bowl. When the mixture is foamy (5 to 10 minutes), stir in the lard, the remaining water, and the 1/2 batch of starter.Mix well with your fingers or a wooden spoon.
Stir in salt and flour, 1 cup at a time until dough is stiff enough to knead.
Turn dough onto a lightly floured work surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 6 to 8 minutes, adding flour as necessary. The dough should be pliable and not sticky.
Transfer to a lightly oiled bowl, cover and let rise in a warm, draft-free spot until it doubles its' bulk, about 45 minutes. Punch down.
To form the loaves, divide the dough in 4 pieces. Roll out each to form a 14-inch long tube, with rounded ends (sort of like a long meat loaf) Put 2 of the loaves on a baking sheet, about 6 inches apart. Cover with dampened cotton dish towels and let rise in warm, draft-free spot until double their bulk, about 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Lay a dampened piece of thick kitchen string or twine (about 1/8 " thick) all along the top length of the loaf. Bake until the breads are lightly browned on top and sound hollow when lightly tapped, about 30 minutes.
Let them cool slightly and remove the strings. They will leave a distinct little ridge on top. Transfer loaves onto a wire rack for cooling.
Serving Suggestions: Sandwich with swiss cheese and avocado
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