Message From Gen in Cuba
The school has managed to put aside a few computers for us that we are allowed to use for sending emails. Unfortunately the connection is quite slow and the access is controlled. we can't get access to hotmail, yahoo and probably gmail. Basically anything that is american. cuba is not permitted to access the submarine cable that north america uses for internet so they get internet through satellite via Canada. I suppose this is one of those reasons for why they love us so much.
I guess the most important thing is that I am well. I have not been sick and everything has gone well so far.
the girls that i spend most of my time with have been great. they are adventurous and a bit of a party group - completely contrary to the type of people with which i traditionally associate. everyday has been planned for us, but in our free time we have taken trips into the tourist district to have a drink and to see the sites. one afternoon we went to the coast and another we went to the beach. we have also been participating in several conferences and cultural exchanges. yesterday we received a presentation about education in cuba and the new projects/experiments that they are working on at this institution. today we had a conference with the fifth year students to discuss canadian culture. we had a cultural night in which the cuban students sang, read poetry, and danced with us. i am really enjoying myself. of course there is a lot that i am seeing that is hard to swallow. there is of course poverty, which has been hard to take in but in true north american style, you become immune to it after a while. the people her are wonderful. they give when they have nothing. they have a sense of community, unity and solidarity that is unique. speaking of which, i went to their may 1st celebration. they celebrate and remember their revolution on this day. fidel came and spoke to the people for a couple hours. it was exciting to be at the square with all those cubans listening to their commander and chief.
the teaching is going alright for the most part. the students are awesome. i'm still nervous about getting up in front of the students though. i teach two more lessons next week and then i'm done. we come back friday around 12;40 or 1;40. unfortunately that might be completely off. we arrived at verona around 12;30, after a 12 hour travel day when we first arrived. oh! thank god for all those camping trips and living in residence. i shared a room with 6 other girls at first with one bathroom that has only cold water. there is no toilet paper and sometimes there is no water. we eat almost the same thing every day but i have yet to become really dehydrated. i haven't been drinking a lot of water but the heat hasn't been bothering me. it is like toronto during the summer. thankfully the nights are cooler and we have air conditioning now.
i have so much more to say, especially from a political science perspective but i think i'll have to leave it for when i get home next Friday. I´m trying to keep a journal but it has not been successful.
I guess the most important thing is that I am well. I have not been sick and everything has gone well so far.
the girls that i spend most of my time with have been great. they are adventurous and a bit of a party group - completely contrary to the type of people with which i traditionally associate. everyday has been planned for us, but in our free time we have taken trips into the tourist district to have a drink and to see the sites. one afternoon we went to the coast and another we went to the beach. we have also been participating in several conferences and cultural exchanges. yesterday we received a presentation about education in cuba and the new projects/experiments that they are working on at this institution. today we had a conference with the fifth year students to discuss canadian culture. we had a cultural night in which the cuban students sang, read poetry, and danced with us. i am really enjoying myself. of course there is a lot that i am seeing that is hard to swallow. there is of course poverty, which has been hard to take in but in true north american style, you become immune to it after a while. the people her are wonderful. they give when they have nothing. they have a sense of community, unity and solidarity that is unique. speaking of which, i went to their may 1st celebration. they celebrate and remember their revolution on this day. fidel came and spoke to the people for a couple hours. it was exciting to be at the square with all those cubans listening to their commander and chief.
the teaching is going alright for the most part. the students are awesome. i'm still nervous about getting up in front of the students though. i teach two more lessons next week and then i'm done. we come back friday around 12;40 or 1;40. unfortunately that might be completely off. we arrived at verona around 12;30, after a 12 hour travel day when we first arrived. oh! thank god for all those camping trips and living in residence. i shared a room with 6 other girls at first with one bathroom that has only cold water. there is no toilet paper and sometimes there is no water. we eat almost the same thing every day but i have yet to become really dehydrated. i haven't been drinking a lot of water but the heat hasn't been bothering me. it is like toronto during the summer. thankfully the nights are cooler and we have air conditioning now.
i have so much more to say, especially from a political science perspective but i think i'll have to leave it for when i get home next Friday. I´m trying to keep a journal but it has not been successful.