Linda Castillo
It’s insane to believe that only one month
ago I was arriving to Cuba, anxiously awaiting my weeklong journey. As I sit at
home today, I look up at the many things I brought back. While looking them
over, I stop to read a beautiful fan with the words “la perla del Caribe”
written upon it. An artisan inscribed these simple little words to sell his crafts
to many tourists like me; however, little did he know that these four words truly
sum up the essence of Cuba.
Amongst the treasures I brought back, the
one image that sticks with me the most is the cityscape of Matanzas. During the
trip, we took an excursion throughout the city. In the moment I felt the walk would never end,
until it did and then I wished it hadn’t. We traversed the city seeing how the
less fortunate of Matanzas live. These people don’t complain about the way they
live and make do with so little. This is the Cuban way. I can vividly remember a
man on the street, fixing the springs of an old mattress. In the moment it made
me think how the American way would be to replace it and buy a new one. There
are certain things that money cannot buy, such as great friends, a good time,
and an optimistic prospective on life.
Once you walk up steep slopes to the
highest point of the city, you reach the most beautiful view, Matanzas wrapped
in the Caribbean Sea. Cuba truly is a beautiful pearl, even in its not so
pretty corners. Its beauty radiates from its people. These beautiful people are
the ones who help you out with the little they can. They take you out on the
town and befriend you as if they’ve known you for ages. Cuba’s beauty cannot be
captured through pictures, only through experiences and memories. “La perla del Caribe” is more than just that
beautiful cityscape that I will always remember. It is new found friendships, but
most importantly it’s an appreciation for the little things in life.
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