NewsBeat

December 2015 NewsBeat 19 ike many schemes, our plan to visit Cuba was hatched on a golf course. Joe Shaw, the executive editor of the Press News Group in Southampton, and I were playing a round one warm afternoon this past summer, shortly after the U.S. had re-opened diplomatic relations with Cuba and John Kerry raised the American flag for the first time in more than 50 years at the American embassy there. I mentioned Cuba — Havana in particular —had been on my bucket list, and Joe thought it would be good to get there before it turned into the Las Vegas of the Caribbean. I knew very little about the island; but it loomed large in my imagination. I was in fourth and fifth grade during the Cuban missile crisis and the Bay of Pigs; young, but I vividly remember the anxiety in my parents'voices and the drills we practiced in class, kneeling in line in the halls and tucking our heads against the wall in case the bombs were to rain down on Marion Street Elementary School. But there was its storied past also, the Hollywood stars who played in the hotels and casinos, the gangsters who plotted and the political intrigue of the revolution itself. Hemingway and the island bars and fishing for marlin. The Old Man and the Sea. Rum and cigars. Joe emailed me days later and wondered if NYPA would be interested in organizing a trip to Cuba. Instead of he and I and our wives going, wouldn't it be more interesting if a planeload of journalists from New York went down to see a country on the verge — before the changes that appear sure to come alter the island forever. What would we learn? By BRYAN BOYHAN L Cuba: a nation in transformation I made the suggestion to an enthusiastic Michelle Rea who in turn brought in Garry Pierre-Pierre to investigate what the logistics might be. Within about two weeks a rough plan had been put together and by the fall convention in September they had a proposal to put in front of the membership. About two dozen of us signed up, with journalists coming from the East End of Long Island to Buffalo. "… like the parable of the blind men who encounter an elephant and offer very different accounts depending on which part of it they touch, Cuba remains a unique and mysterious animal — one shrouded in extremes and contradictions," wrote Annette Hinkle in her account of the trip for The Express the week we returned. Cuba turned out to be all of that. It is a desperately poor country, its economy crushed by Communism, yet it is one of the most literate nations on the planet, and one which has an enviable medical system. There are crumbling, post-revolution apartments just down the highway from enormous, new luxury resorts that line beautiful beaches. Cubans are free to travel, but few can afford the plane ticket out. The roads are filled with beautifully restored classic American cars, but many of the working class line the highways twice a day to hitchhike to and from their jobs. There are two forms of currency and (at least) two economies, with workers trying to get close to the stream of tourist dollars entering the country. Despite the poverty, there remains a spirit of entrepreneurship. The owner of a cab can make more money than both of his parents, who are doctors. There is a brisk black market where one box of cigars can bring more than a typical Cuban earns in a month — or two. Despite the challenges and obvious hardships, there is a great pride in Cuban culture. Music is everywhere: in the streets, in bars and restaurants, and musicians play all day, wherever and whenever they can. While it became clear to us that you don't go to Cuba for the food, there is an expanding —and, apparently, improving — scene where privately-owned restaurants (many of which are formerly — or even currently — private homes) are welcoming diners to eat locally caught lobster and chicken and pork dishes. And in many cases dinners are served on china with silverware by waiters in white shirts and black ties who deliver linen napkins with tongs to each individual diner. It's a nod to very formal Spanish traditions, even though the restaurant — or paladar — may be at the end of a dirt road or in the renovated garage of a Cuban house. We took the opportunity to see a nation in transformation, and I think it's rare to witness first hand the beginning of what likely will be a sea change for a place like Cuba. We learned that those changes have already begun, and if the U.S. continues to loosen restrictions on commerce with Cuba, the Cuban people — and those who visit the island — can expect to see a much different place in the next several years. I for one would lobby for a return trip. The beaches are warm, the daiquiris cold and the traveling company a pleasure. — Bryan Boyhan is the Immediate Past President of the NYPA and publisher emeritus of the Sag Harbor Expresss

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