Day 2 in Havana

Today was very eventful!

We had two lectures at the schoolhouse. The first lecture was provided by a professor from the University of Havana, who spoke about Jose Marti, who is considered a hero in Cuba because of his lifelong efforts to making his country a sovereign nation. He was a courageous person and persistent to overcoming the obstacles placed in his way. Jose Marti’s journalism was informative to the world about what the Cuban people were going through prior to the Revolution. There were three pieces of literature he created that became a distinguished part of history.

The second lecture touched on Cuba’s history starting before Spain colonized it. Many events happened over time that has led to where Cuba is today. Of course, many of us know that the United States has a strained relationship with this country. The professor, who has a degree in International Relations and teaches at the University of Havana, provided an abundance of information about the events that has happened over time between the two countries. She was very candid but held a neutral stance about each country’s contribution to where our relationship is at right now. Neither country is perfect. And every country has their problems.

After these two lectures, we were able to decompress a little while having lunch at a restaurant called Beirut. Like previous meals we had, the lunch lasted at least two and a half hours and was nice and relaxing.

After the memorable meal, we visited the Revolution Square, which had a giant monument of Jose Marti nearby, as well as the National Library, the Ministry of Interior, and the National Theater, where we saw the ballet the night before.

Our day didn’t end there. We went to the Youth Center, called a+, in Old Havana. They are a nonprofit, which is funded by UNICEF. A group of people who work there provided information about what they do and gave us a tour. The areas of focus ranges from mental healthcare to artistic expression and developing communication skills.

Many from the group finished the day by going to Hotel Habana Libre for drinks and to listen to live music and dance! It was a very educational and fun day!