Zach's Reflection

Four things I brought to Cuba, and why they were important:

• My Spanish: undoubtedly the most important thing I brought with me on this trip. After studying Spanish at Poly since the 7th grade, and having spent a month abroad in Spain in the summer of 2015, traveling through Cuba was an incredibly exciting moment to practice and learn. I packed my verbs in my suitcase and carried some extra conjugations in my backpack for the plane ride (just in case). While traveling in Cuba was exciting, it also presented a bit of challenge: the Spanish I hear at Poly is spoken slowly and clearly and is very far removed from the rapid hubbub of Havana's streets. Still, i was committed to improving my speaking, so i challenged myself to speak Spanish whenever possible. For the entire trip, I only spoke Spanish with Sra. Iracheta, our tour guide Denis, and all hotel staff. Above all, I was most proud of how I navigated a market in Trinidad, seamlessly bargaining and chatting with woodcarvers and waiters alike. 

• Water bottle: this proved to be a central piece of my most intense culture shock on this trip. Although I had traveled to Cuba previously with my family, I was reminded of how Cuban tap water wouldn't necessarily be safe for our group to drink. While I would usually just get a drink from my sink at home, I relied entirely on filling my own bottle only with the water from the plastic, store-bought bottles found in the local stores. If the passing of time and change in American opinion towards Cuba continues down the path towards full diplomatic and touristic relations between the two countries, Cuba may need to invest in water treatment, as a greater number of American and European tourists flock to the country. 

• My phone: something without which I would never leave the house at home, my phone proved almost useless in Cuba. While I was glad to have a source of music during the long drives between Havana and the other provinces. Although occasionally our hotels offered wifi cards for a few Cuban pesos, the WIFI was unreliable and usually only lasted for a few minutes. Nonetheless, I actually believe that our trip would've been a lot different had we all had consistent internet access. For all of their amazing capabilities, iPhones can build invisible barriers between people, stifling communication and discouraging spontaneity and the urge to make new friends. I feel that I've made some incredible new friendships and deepened the ones I already had, and I think a large part was that we didn't have our phones to bury our noses in all the time. 

• My masculinity: this one is a little hard to talk about. After studying Spanish for so long, and for being heavily involved with feminism and gender equality work within Poly and beyond, I'd consider myself very familiar with toxic masculinity and it's Latin American twin brother: "machismo". However, it is always a different experience to witness my friends and teachers be catcalled on the street, or be approached and followed through large plazas by old Cuban men. I am very well aware that the exact same thing happens back home also, and yet to see it repeatedly happen to women that I care deeply about was a really challenging and startling experience. I am continually reminded that, regardless of where I travel in the world, the social systems of that country were built to support me and help me, as a man. Strategies for dealing with unwanted comments is not something I packed in my carry-on. We can change this culture and change this treatment: we simply must be willing to hold our fellow men --  our brothers, fathers, sons, friends --  accountable for their words and actions. It's on us.
• -Zach