Reflections and Snapshots from Havana

Last Updated on November 22, 2025 by Adrienne

Cuba is less than 100 miles off the southern coast of Florida, but I felt more culture shock there than just about anywhere else I’ve been. It wasn’t just that visiting Havana is a lot like being transported in time, with its many 1950s-era cars and the giant advertisement for Lucky Strikes that greets you at the airport. Or the difficulties of travel in a developing country, although Cuba does present some rather unique challenges on that front – feminine hygiene products are almost impossible to obtain and many public restrooms lack toilets seats and paper. It wasn’t even meeting so many people who spoke glowingly about Fidel Castro, although that was jarring, coming from a country where even most of those who disapprove of the embargo still don’t exactly admire the guy.

Rather, I think the most disorienting thing about my visit was how the image of Cuba that was presented to me seemed so filtered and censored. Habana Vieja (Old Havana) is filled with what looks like beautiful architecture, much of it recently restored and freshly painted. But that’s just the facades of the buildings. If you walk around to the back, you’ll find crumbling walls, chipped paint and piles of trash. Many of the buildings don’t even appear to be in use, although if you try to get a glimpse of what’s inside, doors get slammed in your face quickly. While gushing over the restoration of the area, our guide mentioned in passing that the people who used to live there had been relocated. “What happened to them?” I asked. “Don’t worry,” she replied. “They’re still alive.” I suppose it’s good to know they weren’t murdered to make a pretty plaza for tourists, but it wasn’t an answer to my question. It wasn’t the only time I felt like I got the run-around.

One day we heard a talk by a local political science professor and writer (incidentally one of the most interesting parts of the trip for me – our itinerary was otherwise packed with music performances and visits to visual artists, and while I enjoy those things, they got repetitive quickly for this left-brained bookworm). He lectured us about how Americans are misled by the Cuban-American lobby, and assured they really do have academic freedom and freedom of the press in Cuba, and that citizens are free to criticize the government without repercussion. Yet he also spoke enthusiastically about the government and all the great things it has done for Cuban citizens, so it’s a bit of an understatement to say he didn’t exactly prove his point.

It’s hard to know how much of this is because I took an organized group tour (a “people-to-people” educational exchange, which is the only way for most Americans to legally travel to Cuba). Probably some of it can be chalked up to that. But my extensive pre-departure reading (a post about everything I read to prepare is coming up soon) suggests that it’s pretty difficult for tourists to see the “real” Cuba. Ordinary citizens are separated from the tourist industry in a way they aren’t in most other countries, a phenomenon known as “tourist apartheid.” Tourists have a separate currency, shop in separate grocery stores and go to separate hospitals when they get sick. I’ve read that until a few years ago, it was actually illegal for Cubans to be in a hotel, lest they catch a glimpse of CNN or get access to the wifi (although I have to say, I can’t imagine there’s much chance of that – I managed to download email only once the entire time I was there). Things are opening up a bit in this regard, but it’s still harder for tourists to meet regular citizens than it is most places, and Cubans are reportedly reluctant to speak frankly about politics and what life is really like.

I’ve been to poorer countries, and certainly to places where the poorest segment of the population is worse off than they are in Cuba. In fact, there’s a decent argument that the poorest Cubans are better off than those living in poverty in the United States  – at least all Cubans have government-provided healthcare, a fact that they remind you about constantly, as if they are the only country in the world with universal healthcare. But I’ve never been to a place that tries so hard to convince tourists it’s something it’s not, and that really bothered me. I felt manipulated, and that made me very frustrated at times.

Despite my complicated feelings about my trip, there’s no denying that Havana and its people are very photogenic and many of our activities taught me a lot about Cuban history and culture. Just like it would be misleading to share the beautiful scenes I saw without the context, it would also be unfair to share my misgivings about my trip without including any of the highlights. Below are some of the photos I took that best represent my three days there.