Cuba, Commerce

I have put off writing about commerce in Cuba for months. It wasn't because I did not have anything to say on the subject, rather because there was so much I could comment on. I could write for pages and still leave important elements out. There was also something I found disturbing about economic life in Cuba. I thought some distance from the subject might help put things in perspective. I am not sure it did.

I did not particularly enjoy being in Cuba and that was something of a puzzle to me. The weather was great - for the most part, especially when you consider I was there in February.  So, the weather was great, the scenery was good. Every day I would walk downtown along the Malecon and watch the waves crash onto the seawall with old Havana as a backdrop. The architecture, both in Havana and on my tour, was striking and charming. Diversions – food, music, Mojitos and beer were plentiful and cheap. So what was wrong?

Banner says it all: Work Hard!   A CUC Store

What bothered me was the pervasive feeling of economic hardship that surrounded me - but even worse, that I saw but did not experience directly. The overwhelming majority of Cubans are very poor. Poverty is their life. You see it in the food stores that you pass. There are spaces intended for commerce that are empty or nearly so.  Not because there is no demand but because there is no supply. I passed vegetable markets that had only four or five products on offer in a half empty store. Unlike here in California, where our winter fruit hails from Chile - in Cuba, if it is not local it is not available. Cuba's currency is not convertible and imported goods are not accessible to the average person.

Another  CUC  Store

They were accessible to me, however. I could have anything I wanted.  Anything, because I had CUCs.  CUCs are Cuba's tourist currency. Wherever you come from – Canada, Europe, the United States, Russia - tourists exchange their funds not into the currency used by Cubans, rather a separate currency that has its own economy, its own stores, restaurants, bars and services. In that economy, there are no shortages.  Everything is available.

The Ration Book

At my hotel, breakfast was included in the rate. By our standards, the food would be at best passable, but it was a buffet and hence it was plentiful. There was a chef manning an omelet station. Three egg, ham and cheese omelet? No problem. For Cubans, food is rationed. I was told the monthly allowance of eggs was six. Milk? After age 7 generally not available. Want more cheese in that omelet? Don't worry about what the people making it and serving it will eat.

But it is hard not to. Especially when you're confronted by the disparity and need at every turn. As you know, I wander a lot - not looking for anything, just to see what there is to see. That put me in neighborhoods tourists don't often visit. And clearly I did not look like a local. That made me a target, not of crime (though prostitution is a crime) but for commerce, or for charity.

Long lines & empty hangers

Because I wanted to learn about Cuba, I would talk (as best I could -my limited Spanish, their limited English). I heard lots of stories of hardship - some of them probably even true. Just a couple of CUCs would make a big difference to them and for me it was just the price of a beer. The CUCs open doors for them. With CUCs they can go into the stores that have everything. With CUCs they can get what they need.

But how do you get a CUC? You could rob a tourist - but I never felt at any risk in that respect - even wandering home at night down some very dark and empty streets. Tourists are the goose that lays the golden egg. Crimes against tourists would kill the industry.  The ubiquitous neighborhood CDR's (Committee for Defense of the Revolution) will not let that happen. So you have to coax the CUCs away from the tourists. Sob stories work. Mild scams (Come have a drink with us!) work. Graymarket sales (cigars, cab rides) work. But most reliable is a profession where tourists tip. Wait staff, maids, bell hops, musicians - these all see a steady stream of CUCs. You could be a doctor and earn $80 (US) a month or you could carry bags and perhaps do that in a week. What's a smart, young Cuban going to do?

Got CUCs?

I discussed this with Odalys, my tour guide. She has a daughter at university studying economics who wants to chuck it and become a tour guide, like mom. What should she do? I'm guessing tour guides do very well. Tipping is common practice and I tipped her as if I was tipping a US guide. If the other six passengers on our tour did the same, Odalys made more in tips in five days than her daughter will in a month.

It seems unsustainable. It is terribly artificial. It is creating haves and have-nots and not based on the value of contributions to Cuban society - rather on amusing tourists. It must be contributing to a pressure for change, and the government toys with modest reform. Will it be enough to head off dramatic change? Change is coming. What kind? Only time will tell.