havana nights...a mini series (parte dos)

sh*t had gotten real, real fast.

we stood in darkness for what seemed to be forever before learning that the electricity goes in and out regularly and that we weren’t actually in harms way.

thank God.

after waiting for three and a half hours for amber’s bag to arrive and a little bloodshed thanks to the person whose luggage tore into the skin of my hand, we finally left the airport.

and surprisingly enough….

our cab driver was still outside waiting for us!

he’s the real mvp.

our host had arranged our pick up, but we thought he would be long gone after having to wait for so long. turns out, yet again, waiting long periods of time was normal in cuba and we were just getting starting.

we arrive to our airbnb and are greeted by our host.

after getting situated and having a brief moment to breathe, we ask her if she can take us to the local currency exchange to convert some cash.

“it’s pretty late now, but we can walk to see if they will be open.”

we immediately head out and she uses this as an opportunity to give us a tour of the neighborhood as we pass by local shops.

we were staying in “chinatown.” the ongoing joke is that there is a chinatown, but no one there is from china.

we turn the corner and she tells us about the local market full of fresh fruit and regular patrons.

breaking our host’s guided tour, was an alarming “abajo, abajo, abajo!”

::translation is down, down, down!::

before any of us could turn our heads to see what the chaos was about, i felt a firm hold on my forearm.

as i looked down to see what was holding me back, i realized it was nothing; rather something… holding onto me!

the dog of one of the solicitors outside of the market had clenched onto my forearm with a solid bite.

my eyes widened and the only sound i could utter was a deep gasp.

the owner quickly pulls the dog back and i immediately check for any wounds.

nothing.

“thank you, Lord!”

“that’s not ok.” said sam.

“he needs to have better control over his animal.”

“i’m just grateful he didn't bite down hard enough to puncture me or draw blood.” i replied.

“this day has already been crazy enough and we still haven’t eaten yet.”

we’d only made it a few more steps in our tour before i feel something against the skin of my thigh.

i look down as sam yells “oh hell no!”

a homeless man alongside the marketplace had groped me.

as i jump back to get out of his reach,

my host curses him in spanish.

she then apologizes profusely and promises that it must be an off day.

“i’m done with this sh*t.” i whispered to sam.

we moved to the street to get out of the way of the locals and to get to the currency exchange as quickly as we can.

when we arrived, we were greeted with a ‘closed’ sign dangling in the window.

“wait. i know of one more place!” our host exclaimed.

we walked to a nearby hotel.

it was just our luck that their currency exchange closed a little later, so we were able to get our money issue resolved.

we asked if she could take us to grab a bite to eat and she excitingly took us to “the best pizza spot in havana.”

after only a few bites of one of the worst meals of our lives, we headed back to the airbnb.

showered, dressed for bed, and stomachs still growling with hunger pangs; we grabbed whatever snacks we packed and called it a night.

as i laid down, i began to recap the day with sam, my roommate during the trip.

in the middle of our conversation, we randomly heard a loud bark.

“is that a dog?” sam asked.

“i hope not. i’m done with dogs for the day.”

“where is it coming from?!” she asked.

she walked over to our window and opened its shutters.

silence filled the room.

“where in the hell is the street? where’s outside? where are we?!” i panicked.

sam grabbed her forehead and sat on the bed.

“i think this is an apartment building within a building.”

“so there’s no direct access outdoors?” i asked.

“i don't think so.” she replied.

“there is no way this is life right now.”

shocked, shaken, and numb i asked her for a sleep aid. i could no longer face my current reality.

she handed me a tylenol pm.

after a few minutes, i gave in and drifted off…

hoping to wake up the next day having had a really, really, bad dream.