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About Polk County itemizer observer. (Dallas, Or) 1992-current | View Entire Issue (March 29, 2017)
Polk County Living Polk County Itemizer-Observer • March 29, 2017 7A Cuba: ‘go see it now before it changes’ Continued from Page 1A While many residents are too poor to maintain their homes, the buildings and streets are clean. “It’s clean, and there is ab- solutely no graffiti. No graffi- ti,” Wheeler said. “Isn’t that wonderful? They have their morals.” As ambassadors, people on the trip were asked to bring gifts for the people they visited in Cuba, Wheel- er said. “The average Cuban citi- zen makes between $250 and $300 per month, so out of that, they have to pay for their transportation, food and their clothing,” Wheel- er said. “They don’t have freezers and they don’t have refrigerators because they are too expensive for them to have, so they have to go to the market every day.” But so are the tourists, and here is one place that Wheeler sees an emerging conflict. She said the mar- ket owners see an opportu- nity to make more money off tourists and mark up prices. The tourists buy the best produce. “What is left is inferior product, and who buys it? The local people,” she ex- plained. “And what happens to the price? The price goes up, so that is the problem that they have.” She added that govern- ment-run stores are often depleted or have just a few items for sale. Cubans may be resource poor, but they are culture rich. Wheeler said she was impressed many times over with the art, music and food. “Music is all around. Peo- p l e a re w h i s t l i n g a n d singing. There’s always music,” she said. She said Cubans seeming- ly can turn anything into art. People make art of recycled coffee pots, build sculptures covered in bright tile, and p a i n t g i g a n t i c m u ra l s, Wheeler said. Then there is the rum — Wheeler said it’s referred to as “Vitamin R” — and she couldn’t resist indulging in a daiquiri on occasion. On one of her free afternoons, she went to Ernest Heming- way’s favorite bar, La Floridi- ta, for lunch. The American writer is something of a national hero to Cubans. His estate has been turned into a museum, at which visitors can get a glimpse of how he lived his life there, complete with his library and typewriter. The frosty U.S.-Cuban re- lationship reaching back decades didn’t seem to influ- ence how Wheeler and her travel companions were treated. “One man came up to a woman in our group and grabbed her by the arm and started singing our national anthem, in English,” Wheel- er said. “That’s their attitude towards America. They are very open to Americans. I didn’t see hostility.” What she experienced in- stead was incredible kind- ness. “I just truly love the Cubans. Their music is just unbelievable,” Wheeler said. “The history is so rich. The people and the food. I can’t say enough. It’s a wonderful place to visit.” Wheeler recommends people interested in travel- ing there learn as much as they can about Cuba and its history before going. She said she wants to go back in about five years to see how it’s changed, but for those who haven’t seen it, the time is now. “It’s just a place that peo- ple need to go see, and go see now before it changes,” Wheeler said. JANET WHEELER /for the Itemizer-Observer Modern tour buses share the roads with colorful classic cars. JANET WHEELER /for the Itemizer-Observer The ocean view from Janet Wheeler’s hotel room in Havana. JANET WHEELER /for the Itemizer-Observer Ernest Hemingway’s typewriter is on display at his farm, now a museum. JANET WHEELER /for the Itemizer-Observer Men gather to play dominos on the street. They are sur- rounded by beautifully designed and painted buildings that have fallen into disrepair. JANET WHEELER /for the Itemizer-Observer People line up outside La Floridita. Ernest Hemingway’s signature is shown on the outside of the bar. This was one of the author’s favorite places in Cuba. Inside is a statue of him next to a photo of him and Fidel Castro. JANET WHEELER /for the Itemizer JANET WHEELER /for the Itemizer-Observer Besides classic cars, another form of transportation on the Cuban streets are “coconut cabs” or “coco cabs,” named for their shape. Boats docked at a harbor in Cuba. Wheeler’s time was split between planned group trips and sightseeing on her own or with friends.