To begin, I should mention that I am a person who tends to be quite sentimental about past experiences, particularly ones that are unique. As I reflect back on these amazing two weeks, I consistently look back and smile. Every time I flip through the photos on my iPhone, I stop to look at all the pictures taken while a tourist in Cuba. Cuba. That tiny embargoed Caribbean country ninety miles South of Florida. According to my conservative friends, a former extension of Satan’s physical manifestation, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. A country that most of the world had diplomatic relations with except for the United States (up until a few years ago). I have wanted to visit this little isolated pocket of embargoed culture since sophomore year of high school, when President Obama normalized diplomatic relations with Raul Castro and the Cuban government, extending his hand to a place every president since Eisenhower has, in some form, deemed absolutely and thoroughly evil.

I cannot help but smile and simultaneously be sad – my stint in Havana was short and intense, like leaving a hot tub, jumping into a freezing cold pool, and returning to the hot tub almost immediately. It was fast-paced and packed with adventure. The other students and I likely averaged just 3-6 hours of sleep per night, because we wanted to experience everything we could in these short two weeks. Nobody made the trip to sleep in Havana. I can honestly say that there fewer dull moments on this trip than there are fingers on my right hand.

Our stay in Havana has definitely aged well on me – at times, I felt ready to return home. While certain things were undoubtedly challenging to adjust to, they just added to the unique character that Cuba has (bearing in mind that my experience as a tourist was obviously very different than that of the average Cuban citizen). For this reason, it will always occupy a special place in my heart. I truly think that Cuba has something special to elevate it above the rest. Economic and political isolation certainly has caused a myriad of problems for the island and its inhabitants, and this was very sobering to witness firsthand. However, I observed that this isolation also created an extremely strong sense of Cuban identity, something that was beautifully intoxicating and fresh. It was probably my favorite abstract thing about our trip.

The culture was so vibrant, alive and open, and being in a place where material things are hard to come by really emphasizes relationships with people. Talking to random Cubans on the street and making friends with waiters and waitresses, who were always excited to meet people from the United States and practice speaking English. These are the things that make me smile and want to return! I cannot say that I have ever been to a foreign country where people made us feel as welcome and actually wanted us to be there (though this could, of course, be a product of still relatively low tourism in the country) then Cuba.

In all, particularly as I sit and immerse myself in memories, hindsight and photographs, it still does not quite feel real that I visited Cuba. Cuba is a beautifully vibrant and energetic place – a true gem. It is so full of life! Additionally, the infrastructure and technology from pre-1959 was also about what I expected. Cuba is one of those interesting countries that has one foot in the past and one in the present, and this is a beautiful thing to witness, as we were immersed in a country undergoing a major transition. The language barrier was not as challenging as I expected – being immersed in Spanish forced us to learn the words and phrases that we needed to get by, and once we had those down we started to pick up some Cuban words, like “Que bola asere?” What surprised me the most, though, was how much Western culture was prevalent, particularly among the younger Cubans. When we went to the club, I heard lots of familiar music; Justin Bieber, Bruno Mars, etc. Modified cars driving around had stickers for aftermarket companies that I am very familiar with in the states. People wore Abercrombie and other brands we know from the states. For somewhere painted as an isolated, poor, oppressed and completely sealed off little island, Cuba had Western culture everywhere. It certainly snuck through the cracks! Most of all, though, was just the atmosphere of the city; everywhere we went was bustling with life and activity, and going anywhere was an adventure. At no point on this trip was I truly “bored,” and this was not what I expected. Back in April, my gut told me that the nighttime adventures would be the fun part, and the group classes and lectures would drag. In this respect, I was pleasantly surprised. Discussions were very interesting and the University of Havana was absolutely stunning. I already miss sitting out on the patio, streaming dial up internet and smoking some Cuban tobacco, as a gentle breeze kept us cool, and Jose, Manuel and Rahul kept us laughing. I will return to Cuban at some point in my life.

To sum up, thank you to our professors and all of our friends down in Havana that made this trip such a blast and the most fun two weeks of my entire life. Five years after adding “visit Cuba” to my bucket list, I can check it off – something I never thought would actually happen. But it did, and I will never, ever forget it. ¡Viva la revolución!