~not quite done yet but still good to read ~

You’ll never guess where I got to go with my class late April/early May of this year! Actually, you probably already did from the title of this, but in case you couldn’t guess, we went to Cuba! Wait, what was a high school history class doing in Cuba, you may be wondering. Well, as I’m sure you’re at least somewhat aware, Cuba has such an interesting history, and we were lucky enough to get to learn about it first hand rather than with some lessons, that don’t mean nearly as much. Along with that, being in Cuba while learning about their history really made us think about everything around us and how their history still effects us today. 

In preparation for the trip we watched a documentary series called Cuba Libre (available on Netflix). This documentary gave us a solid foundation on Cuban history, but the majority of learning ultimately ended up occurring on the trip. 

It was such an incredible experience getting to be in Cuba and seeing how different their life style is from ours. I learned so much about socialist societies and seeing it first hand made it seem so much more real. I am never going to forget this incredible experience. 

During the 16 day trip we got to travel to many different cities. Starting in Havana we next visited Cienfuegos, Trinidad, Santa Clara, Viñales and then back to Havana. After visiting these educational cities we spent the last days relaxing (and doing homework we missed) in a resort in Varadero. 

During our trip we made daily journals where we wrote about our experiences each day. It helped force us to think about what we were seeing around us and make connections we may not have thought about before. I used these journals to create a book with pictures and my experiences from each day. 

*insert journals* 

In every city we got to stay with a local Cuban family, which was honestly probably my favourite part of the trip. It was so great getting to attempt to communicate with them and getting to see examples of Cuban houses and breakfasts. Of course, I realize that the income from running a home stay allows for them to have much nicer houses than many Cuban houses would be, but it was still a great look into their lives. 

We were in Cuba over May 1st which was for sure the most incredible experience of the trip, and one of the most memorable experiences in my life so far. If you aren’t aware, May 1st is a socialist holiday, May Day. It is one of the only days practically everyone gets off work (at least in the morning). There is a huge parade in every major city, where people march in and show their pride to be Cuba. Marching in Havana, we were also lucky enough to be in the city major political figures come to watch the parade. Miguel Díaz-Canal was watching, along with Raul Castro. 

The rally is a show of support for the Cuban Revolution. The streets are completely full, everyone so excited to be there, pushing on each other wanting to not get lost from their people, and wanting to get the best spot. Being surrounded by people waving their Cuban Flags, glowing their various noise makers as loud as they can and cheering for a country they truly believe in was something I never would have been able to imagine. Honestly, I still can’t put into words what I experienced that day, but it was an event I will never forget. 

Of course I also enjoyed all the entertainment based things we did in Cuba as well, such as visiting night clubs, zip lining, swimming in caves and horse back riding. While, yes we did go horse back riding to a waterfall (my Chemistry/Calculus teacher’s new favourite joke), it was also an extremely educational trip. From countless museums to historic sites we got to learn so much during this trip. Having a tour guide with us the whole time (a man named Alistair who in fact did exist!) allowed us to go on walking tours and have a more personalized experience in Cuba. He knew of all the sites, even the non-touristy ones (including the bunkers from the Cuban Missile crisis which you will not find in any guide book) which really allowed for us to get so much out of the trip. Along with that, his extensive knowledge of Cuba, while having perfect English (he’s British) allowed for an easy person to interview and get information from for our projects. 

Of course, it being PLP (and just like school in general) we had a project to complete while we were there. The 12 students who came to Cuba were assigned with making a book about the Cuban Revolution, each section talking about a different event, using a different *historical lens*.

For my section of the book I was working with Stanfield, and we chose to do the bay of pig invasion for our section, using the lens cause and consequence. It was interesting doing the Bay of Pigs because we actually got to go to the Bay of Pigs and swim in it. We also went to a museum about the invasion. It was kind of hard getting information from the museums due to the fact that everything was in Spanish, but we were able to interview our tour guide about the invasion and it’s impact on Cuba, and its relationship with both the United States and Russia. Luckily through talking to people, and learning enough about the after effects, such as the major one, them allying with the soviets, we were able to create a timeline of events which were directly and indirectly caused by the invasion. 

*inset book*

All in all going to Cuba was an incredible experience and I am so thankful I got this opportunity. If you are looking for a trip to go on I would 10/10 recommend Cuba!