I have been trying to get used to being back to frigid temperatures - with freezing rain, flash freezes, and wind chill warnings – after a week in warm, sunny Cuba. We returned in the wee hours of Sunday morning, considering ourselves lucky for not having been stranded in any airport or plane for hours or days as other travelers have been.
We had a lovely time in Cuba with warm, sunny days, the Caribbean sky so blue that you have never seen, the water emerald green and often calm, and palm trees gently swaying in the ocean breeze. Like any Caribbean vacation, we swam in the ocean, built sand castles (winning 3rd place in the family sand castle competition), walked along the beach, swam in the pool, drank strawberry slushies (pĩna coladas for Jaime - I stayed away from the alcoholic drinks except couldn't resist the cervezas at lunch time at the beach restaurant) and ate far too much at the buffet for no particular reason. In the evenings, since the entertainment started quite late for Aveen and Amrita, we would take a stroll in the garden and gaze up at the clear night sky with endless stars visible, and then return to our room to play Uno and crowd around our small portable DVD player to watch Glee.
One cloudy morning, we set out by bus to the nearby town of Veradero. We walked along the stretch of the town, from Jonone Park where wild roosters and turkeys roamed free (and which otherwise looked a lot like Dow's Lake) to the local crafts market where vendors offered to braid Amrita’s hair and drew Aveen in with magic boxes. We watched people driving in motorized taxi/rikshaws and old fashioned cars and horse carriages. We admired the colourful houses painted in bright yellows and turqoises. We found a place to replenish ourselves with Fanta, and I tried to stay away from the stray dogs (which looked more cute than threatening but still brought back memories of mad, stray dogs in India).
Besides the warmth and sunshine and beach, the people of Cuba stand out. Warm and friendly, they try hard to please and help, and they love children. They loved Jaime because he speaks Spanish and Amrita, ruffling her hair wherever she went, because she is a cute, small girl. Visitors at the Resort gave Aveen high fives all the time and patted his back – it turns out they were responding to the different soccer team shirts he would wear. We made friends with a Polish family in this way.
I worried about the poverty in Cuba, wondering how they could make money off the vacation packages offered which were a fraction of the price they would be anywhere else. A tip, even a small one, made people's faces light up and smile gratefully, as did scoring a bottle of ketchup or maple syrup. They were curious what life is like outside Cuba since they cannot leave the country.
It was a lovely escape, though I didn’t completely forget about my anxieties. And now I am back, wondering what 2014 will have in store, hoping that it is better than 2013, and wondering again what direction I am meant to take my life, because I haven’t stopped wanting to know why this all happened to me. Scientifically, it may have been random, bad luck (and then good luck). But, spiritually, I am convinced that there was a reason, and it is my responsibility to find it and do something about it. I just hope I don’t mess it up.
At least I know that starting the New Year in Breezes Bella Costa was a good start.
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