I think that what you do is more important than what you study.
The cheap things are often better: laptops, food, hotels, etc.
Often not, though.
Cuba is a beautiful country. I'm ready to leave, for the financial situation (low cash). Also, I'm getting more annoyed by the culture, other than some stand-out individuals. On the downside, there are still a few more parts that I would like to see.
I'm happy to have had the chance to see so much of Cuba, on not much cash. $300 US, much lost in transaction fees and other costs, along with perhaps a few hundred more dollars from PayPal for Airbnb.
You can go far for not much money. Especially in Latin America! :)
It's been quite an adventure!
Walking across Cuba in one direction, then busing across Cuba in a different direction. Tons to see, eat, meet, do, etc.! :)
Tons of feet & face pictures. The important parts! :)
I apparently like the architecture.
It's big, it's bold, it's beautiful.
I like how each building is unique, artistic. It's opposite of US where most buildings are identical copies.
I like how the mangoes, so sweet, fall to the ground. You can pick one up almost anywhere. Here, they taste varied, some like fruta bomba, some like spaghetti squash.
I like the Cuban people more now, after having met a number of them.
On a country farm.
I tried taking a nap.
Now around 1:15 PM Tuesday. Planning to set out on foot at around midnight. 7 km to the international departures. Depart at 9 am.
Things it's common to see a Cuban carrying while walking, biking, or riding a bus: chicken, fan, etc.
Cuban people seem insistent.
They want to be heard, seen, etc.
"oye," "mira," "oiste?", etc.
Maybe explains Fidel's long speeches.
In Cuba, because of the poverty (which is because of communism), also because of the traditional society, people use bike, walk. The cities are more compact than American cities. People eat outside, talk with each other. As a result, it's much more fun, interesting, to walk around Cuban cities. (Also, other Latin cities, probably elsewhere.)
A result of the larger number of people walking, biking, is that car traffic adjusts to pedestrians, cyclists. You can walk down a major street with cars, they'll sometimes go around you.
Here, even elegant women ride bicycles, have to do regular things.
I've had numerous advantageous experiences while traveling in Cuba, many unexpected. Often as a result of mistakes, accidents, "problems."
I think that travel opens one to different environments. The interaction w/ geography & culture other than what one already knew provides different insights about oneself & one's larger (general) environment.
Travel just means going somewhere. You can even travel without physiologically leaving home. As one person mentioned, traveling by Google street view.
After around a month and a half in Cuba, I feel like I've finally started to understand the accent. I don't think I'd gotten to that point in Miami, despite the Cubans there. I may even have picked up some of the accent and vocabulary, even though I still think it's the ugliest form of Spanish. Oiste? ("You heard?") I also have a much better sense of the culture & geography.