The food was odd - I slept at the resort, but during the day took a bus to various cities off the resort and explored. On the resort, it was like they were trying so hard to be something they weren't. There were several restaurants, 5 or 6, and they all had different "themes": sushi, italian, etc. Even the buffet served "American" style food (hotdogs, pizza, fries, etc.). It was awful. No matter how hard they tried, they could not replicate these other countries foods. There were no real condiments, the cheese was questionable, the hamburgers were not beef or pork, the eggs had a weird color and consistency to them, the bread was tough, etc. Going off the resort, I went to a few local restaurants that weren't trying to be anything other than standard Cuban food. It was incredible. The pork was delicious, the bread was sweet, the chicken was juicy, I loved it. They didn't have condiments, and that was fine because the food didn't need it. I think when people complain about the food, it's because they're eating resort food. And for whatever reason, I think the resorts are worried that people won't like Cuban food, so they try to serve other food instead. A word of caution though to anyone considering doing this: my delicate first world country immune system couldn't handle it and I ended up with pretty severe cholera.

One day, I took a bus to a small town that wasn't a tourist town at all (I can't remember what it was called). No one spoke any English, the prices were all in Cuban pesos (instead of convertible pesos). I went to a clothing shop, a pharmacy, a grocery store, etc. It was extremely sobering. No one was begging, but no one was "happy" either. I got a lot of weird and some rude looks (probably for being the only white person). I hear all the time that Cuban's are so happy and friendly, this is also "resort" Cuba, and not real Cuba. Real Cuba is rough, the people are hungry and don't give a shit. They have places to be and stuff to do, just like anywher...

The food was odd - I slept at the resort, but during the day took a bus to various cities off the resort and explored. On the resort, it was like they were trying so hard to be something they weren't. There were several restaurants, 5 or 6, and they all had different "themes": sushi, italian, etc. Even the buffet served "American" style food (hotdogs, pizza, fries, etc.). It was awful. No matter how hard they tried, they could not replicate these other countries foods. There were no real condiments, the cheese was questionable, the hamburgers were not beef or pork, the eggs had a weird color and consistency to them, the bread was tough, etc. Going off the resort, I went to a few local restaurants that weren't trying to be anything other than standard Cuban food. It was incredible. The pork was delicious, the bread was sweet, the chicken was juicy, I loved it. They didn't have condiments, and that was fine because the food didn't need it. I think when people complain about the food, it's because they're eating resort food. And for whatever reason, I think the resorts are worried that people won't like Cuban food, so they try to serve other food instead. A word of caution though to anyone considering doing this: my delicate first world country immune system couldn't handle it and I ended up with pretty severe cholera.

One day, I took a bus to a small town that wasn't a tourist town at all (I can't remember what it was called). No one spoke any English, the prices were all in Cuban pesos (instead of convertible pesos). I went to a clothing shop, a pharmacy, a grocery store, etc. It was extremely sobering. No one was begging, but no one was "happy" either. I got a lot of weird and some rude looks (probably for being the only white person). I hear all the time that Cuban's are so happy and friendly, this is also "resort" Cuba, and not real Cuba. Real Cuba is rough, the people are hungry and don't give a shit. They have places to be and stuff to do, just like anywhere else. The pharmacy in one of the resort towns had doors and windows and lights and fully stocked shelves with a back room. The pharmacy in real Cuba, didn't have any of that. It barely had 4 walls, no doors, no windows, and no light bulbs. Nowhere had light bulbs or glass windows, actually. The pharmacy had two display shelves that were barren: less than ten boxes total. Not 10 types of boxes, 10 boxes total. Down the street there was a goodwill that was just a massive pile of used clothes on the sidewalk, and inside was just a mess of things everywhere. There were families hoarding the place, children in rags or underwear. I didn't take any photos of this town at all, because it never felt appropriate. It was real, third-world communism without all the propaganda and shiny gloss from the tourist towns. It broke my heart, but was by far my most favorite experience. I will never, ever forget that day. And I am so glad that they are lifting the embargo, my heart truly goes out to all of those people.