Economics With A Face

The driver also talked about his family and how his oldest son had just entered the military for his two years of mandatory service. He said after that he was encouraging his son to not enter the police force in Havana as it was not a respected position, even though the pay was relatively high. He told us that all the police in Havana come from the surrounding areas of the country, which was the same thing we had heard from other Cubans during the trip.

In the airport we got our tickets and got hit with a $50 airport tax. Luckily we had enough money left to pay it. I made my way through immigration fairly easy, but Emily took forever to get through. I was starting to get nervous right when she walked through the door. It turns out she was just chatting with nice girl who was examining her passport.

Before we boarded the plane, we started talking to another American that was seated near us. It turns out that while he currently works for the U.S. Foreign Interest Section in Havana, he previously worked for the Cato Institute. Because of his position, he was not allowed to fraternize with ordinary Cubans, but it still sounded like an interesting job. I mentioned that since he had another year and a half at the position, he might be in Cuba for a very interesting time. “Yes,” he replied, “but that is what everyone in my position has been saying for the last 10 years.”

Soon we were on the plane and getting our last views of Cuba from the airplane window on our way to Cancun. It will be an experience that will stay with us throughout the trip.

CONTINUED…

We landed in Cancun and made our way through immigration and customs. At the Hertz rent-a-car counter I asked about a bus to town that we heard stopped next to their lot. The attendant informed me there was a better one called Rivera that only cost $1.40.

As we headed out of the airport there was immediately a different feel from Cuba. Several people approached us and asked if they could take us to town in one of their shuttles or by taxi. But when we told them we were not interested, instead of trying to insistently pursue the sale, all helped us to find the bus we were looking for. Soon we were on the 20 minute bus ride into town.

After arriving in downtown Cancun, we grabbed our bags and set off for a cheap hotel that Josephine had recommended. Unfortunately the guide we were looking at had the wrong address and we ended up walking around in the 90 degree + weather for quite a while before we found it.

We got settled in the hotel and then made our way across town to find a place to do laundry and some internet. Having just survived hurricane Dennis, we were surprised to learn that a new hurricane was now headed for Cancun. What luck. Most ironic was the fact that this new Hurricane was named Emily, but luckily, she was not supposed to arrive until Sunday when we would already be long gone.

That night we ate at a good restaurant in the center of town. As it’s the low season we literally had a courtyard in the back to ourselves. We had some fun talking with both the waiter and two musicians who played us a tune over dinner.

We got back to the hotel, and before going to sleep, Em worked on her journal and organizing the pictures from Cuba, while I watched Mexico beat Jamaica in the Copa de Oro.

(All the names of Cubans in these posts have been changed as a precautionary measure)