Cuba Right Now: Travelling a Country Under Pressure
Cuba is not an easy country to understand – and right now, it may be even harder than usual.
For years, much of Cuba’s fragile economy has depended on support from Venezuela. Cheap oil has kept the lights on, the buses running (more or less), and the system functioning just enough to avoid complete collapse.
But Venezuela is no longer in a position to help the way it once did.
And you notice it almost immediately when you arrive.Not in dramatic headlines or official statements, but in everyday life: power cuts, empty shelves, long queues, and a sense that things are… tightening.
This trip turned out to be slightly different from what I had expected. Not just a journey through cities like Trinidad, Santa Clara and Havana – but a glimpse of a country adjusting, once again, to having less.
I travelled through Cuba over a couple of weeks, mostly using buses and the occasional shared taxi, trying—as usual—to keep things simple and light.
This was not my first time in a country with shortages, but Cuba has its own rhythm. Things work, just not always when or how you expect.
I travelled through Cuba over a couple of weeks, mostly using buses and the occasional shared taxi, trying—as usual—to keep things simple and light.
This was not my first time in a country with shortages, but Cuba has its own rhythm. Things work, just not always when or how you expect.
In the posts that follow, I’ll focus less on theory—and more on what it actually feels like to travel here right now.
From colonial streets and music-filled evenings, to transport challenges and quiet signs of a system under pressure.
Cuba is still fascinating. Still beautiful. Still complicated.
This trip includes
- Havana – beauty, decay, and feeling that everything is slightly unfinished
- Viñales Valley and Las Terrazas
- Cienfuegos
- Santa Clara – revolution, memory, and a slower pace
- Trinidad – colour, tourists, and cracks beneath the surface
- Camagüey
- Santiago de Cuba
(Links will be added as the posts are published.)
Still, I hope you will follow my upcoming posts about a very diverse country. So beautiful, friendly people, and architecture that screams for renovation. It was not all miserable; I had a good time and learned so much.
