It Was The Best of Times, It Was The Worst of Times -- A 2018 Training Journal* Updated 9/27

[ZellyB]

I meant to post about this awhile back and got distracted.

One of our pathologists went to Cuba a few years ago on some kind of cultural National Geographic tour or something and he thought it was amazing. His wife's father actually fled Cuba back in the 50s, so he and his wife found his FIL's old house and even talked to some old people who still lived there that remembered her father's family. It was pretty cool to hear about.

 

[Keels]

I meant to post about this awhile back and got distracted.

One of our pathologists went to Cuba a few years ago on some kind of cultural National Geographic tour or something and he thought it was amazing. His wife's father actually fled Cuba back in the 50s, so he and his wife found his FIL's old house and even talked to some old people who still lived there that remembered her father's family. It was pretty cool to hear about.

So, I've wanted to visit Cuba for years - especially when they started opening it up for journalists, so I had to really temper my expectations so I wouldn't be let down. I did a cruise that spent a day at sea and a day in Key West before an overnight in Havana - and since I'm a major Word Nerd/Bookworm I spent most of my time visiting all of the Hemingway landmarks ... but Havana definitely did not disappoint. The morning we docked in Havana, I woke up crazy early to go to the top deck to watch as we pulled in to port past the big fort and lighthouse and I got real choked up ... it was surreal to be there, and just crazy beautiful and very much "frozen in time" like . I wish I had been more mobile to actually really enjoy it - but I'm glad that I stuck with the trip even though I was going through everything with rehabbing my repaired heel and Achilles. The first night in Havana, I actually went to an underground jazz club and shared a table with one of my most FAVORITE directors - Peter Berg! It literally took everything I had in me not to beat him down all night with "Friday Night Lights" talk, but I did it!

I'm really looking forward to going back next year for a week or so - just to see more of Havana and to hopefully venture out to explore some of the beaches on the island. The people are so wonderful and kind, and they love to chat about their experiences growing up in Cuba ... and if you think Americans have some hot takes on our country, Cubans have even bigger hot takes.

I would definitely recommend it to anyone looking for something off-the-beaten path - I've got a million more pictures of architecture and gardens, food, cocktails, landmarks, etc. It exceeded my expectations.