1984 Blended: My Experience in Beautiful Communist Cuba

In 2005, I went for the first time in vacation to Cuba. Before leaving for my vacation, my idea of Cuba was that of a gorgeous country, with lots of sunshine and world renowned beaches. However, it is also fair to say that i had heard about the dark side of Cuba, which refers to its totalitarian and oppressive communist regime that  has brought misery and  poverty upon its own citizens. The first day that i got there I remember being exited. The weather was hot and the day was full of sunshine. From the airport to the resort,were I was going to stay, was about ten minutes drive, so I could not see much of  the surroundings. Upon arrival at the resort we were received by warm and friendly staff. While enjoying the food, the life in the resort and the days at the beach it did not take long for me to come across the other side of Cuba. My first encounter with the reality outside the resort was when we went on a day excursion trip. I remember being in shock and feeling like i was exploring some other planet during that day trip. All i could see was destroyed roads, buildings with no windows, and piles of garbage everywhere. So all  i had heard about the life outside the resorts was true. On our way back to the hotel I remember being upset from what I had seen and I started questioning myself if I had done the right thing to have come  there in the first place. In a sense I started to feel guilty, because i was seeing the money that i was spending to vacation there  as a contribution to the dictatorship therefore keeping them in power so they can oppress and control their own citizens. At the end of my vacation I remember leaving Cuba with mixed feelings, because i really had fun in the resort but i was shocked about how poor and underdeveloped such a beautiful country was. Finally, leaving all that paradox behind i remember saying to myself that I would not contribute to the dictatorship anymore, and the only time i would ever go back to Cuba was when the people had the rights and freedoms that we all enjoy in our country.

The Edmund Fitzgerald Song

Lyrics:

The legend lives on from the Chippewa on down
of the big lake they called "Gitche Gumee"
The lake, it is said, never gives up her dead
when the skies of November turn gloomy
With a load of iron ore twenty-six thousand tons more
than the Edmund Fitzgerald weighed empty,
that big ship and true was a bone to be chewed
when the Gales of November came early

The ship was the pride of the American side
coming back from some mill in Wisconsin
As the big freighters go, it was bigger than most
with a crew and good captain well seasoned,
concluding some terms with a couple of steel firms
when they left fully loaded for Cleveland
And later that night when the ship's bell rang,
could it be the north wind they'd been feelin'?

The wind in the wires made a tattle-tale sound
and a wave broke over the railing
And ev'ry man knew, as the captain did too
'twas the witch of November come stealin'
The dawn came late and the breakfast had to wait
when the Gales of November came slashin'
When afternoon came it was freezin' rain
in the face of a hurricane west wind

When suppertime came the old cook came on deck sayin'
"Fellas, it's too rough t'feed ya"
At seven P.M. a main hatchway caved in; he said,
"Fellas, it's bin good t'know ya!"
The captain wired in he had water comin' in
and the good ship and crew was in peril
And later that night when 'is lights went outta sight
came the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald

Does any one know where the love of God goes
when the waves turn the minutes to hours?
The searchers all say they'd have made Whitefish Bay
if they'd put fifteen more miles behind 'er
They might have split up or they might have capsized;
they may have broke deep and took water
And all that remains is the faces and the names
of the wives and the sons and the daughters

in the rooms of her ice-water mansion
Old Michigan steams like a young man's dreams;
the islands and bays are for sportsmen
And farther below Lake Ontario
takes in what Lake Erie can send her,
And the iron boats go as the mariners all know
with the Gales of November remembered

In a musty old hall in Detroit they prayed,
in the Maritime Sailors' Cathedral
The church bell chimed 'til it rang twenty-nine times
for each man on the Edmund Fitzgerald
The legend lives on from the Chippewa on down
of the big lake they call "Gitche Gumee"
"Superior," they said, "never gives up her dead
when the gales of November come early"Lake Huron rolls, Superior sings
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgI8bta-7aw&safety_mode=true&safe=active