Monday, July 22, 2013

"1st World" Woman Living in the "3rd World"

I didn't know much about the world outside the US growing up. I don't know if I just never learned anything about how people live in other countries, or I just didn't pay attention. Either way, I feel like I was really ignorant, and even though I have learned quite a bit these last 4 1/2 years living with people from over 80 countries in the "3rd world," I still have a lot to learn.

One thing I've learned is that not everyone lives like the kids on those ridiculous save the children ads. My friends are very clean, they have fashion, they have culture and pride in where they're from, and they make things work despite their apparent lack of resources. I wasn't necessarily surprised to see how many people look good, smell good and just overall exude confidence and swagg, but it was definitely new to me. I thought people would look "poor" whatever that means, but people look fine. With some cultures, like Caribbean culture and Central American culture, image is everything! People stay ironed, matched up from head to toe, cologned/perfumed, hair always done, always sharp...I can't keep up!

Something people sometimes ask me is how people react to me, being that I'm American living in Cuba, and people think America is the promise land, so why did I leave. I'm not really a typical American in America or outside America, so my experience is very different. I don't want to go into why my American experience has been different, but I will say that, even though I'm the exact same color as many Cubans, with the same hair and everything, very few people think I'm Cuban. It's not like in South Africa, where I could blend in. Cubans have a way of dressing and carrying themselves that makes it kind of obvious who's Cuban and who's not. I usually respond to Cubans, who often think I'm African (I take it as a compliment :-), that I think Cuba is beautiful and I'm very grateful for the sacrifice Cuban people make in order to allow me to study in their country for free. I usually add that MY country isn't paying for me to go to medical school for free, so why not come? Plus, everything that glitters isn't gold so don't get caught up on the hype of the American dream. People have to work really hard, and often the people who work the hardest, make the least. There's a lot of discrimination, profiling, abuse and depression. There are beautiful things too, but America isn't perfect, and I can always use a little break from it.

I really like the noise in Cuba. Being back here, everything feels really quiet. In Cuba, there's music everywhere! There's live music at a lot of cafes. There's a radio with techno or reggaeton at all the cafeterias. The city bus plays reggaeton, oldies from the states (Stevie Wonder, Earth Wind and Fire, Frankie Beverly and Maze!), salsa music, pop music...they be jammin on the bus! It's just a good time. People are always dancing. Here you can only get public music at bars or very quietly in restaurants...it's really an adjustment coming back.

Other than a few other small things to add to the small things I've already mentioned, it's really not that different for me. Yes, I hand-wash clothes, no I don't have hot water or AC, yes I walk almost everywhere or take the bus (sometimes its so full I'm hanging out of the door), yes I recycle almost everything (saving clothes by sewing them shut, using plastic bottles as planters, even turning old yogurt to new with fresh milk), yes I live in small spaces with lots of people, yes we run out of gloves, water, soap, space, sheets and just about everything you can think of except for doctors at the hospital, BUT I am still human, just like the people I live with, and we always make a way to survive and live a happy and dignified life. This experience has been so valuable to me that no words can really express how grateful I am to Cuba and all my friends and family and all the politicians, activists, business and community people who have made this happen! If I could do it all over again, in a heartbeat, I most certainly would!

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