History and Culture of the Republic of Cuba, Isla Hispaniola, and Puerto Rico
World Traveler Mag
Off the coast of Florida lies a chain of three amazing tropical islands: the Republic of Cuba, Isla Hispaniola, which contains Haiti and the Dominican Republic, and Puerto Rico. Each of these amazing islands, gushing with natural beauty and rich culture, has a unique history of formation that has a major impact on its culture today. Cuba, the largest island in the caribbean, contains the main island containing the capital, Havana, Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Known as the Pearl of the Antilles, Cuba contains some of the most beautiful beaches in all of the world. It gained its independence in 1902 following the Spanish-American War of 1898, though the country has unfortunately been plagued by dictatorships and communist parties since its formation. Since the Bay of Pigs debacle in 1961, when America tried to cease control over Cuba, there has been an unfortunate 46-year trade embargo that has left the Cuban economy struggling, and contrarily left American lungs healthier.
One of Cuba’s largest economy stimulant and most well known export is the Cuban cigar. If you are a smoker, make sure to try a cigar when traveling the beautiful island. If you aren’t, be sure to enjoy a the lush landscape of Cuba, filled with deep green tobacco fields as long as the eye can see. Cuban cigars are known all over the world as being the best of the best, and have also been smoked by the best of the best for quite some time. An article about Cuban cigars by Time Magazine states, “Though the boom was partly lit by the cigar’s affordability, they soon became a must-have accessory for debonair gentlemen — men like King Edward VII, who, upon assuming the British throne in 1901, famously announced a break with the smoke-free policies of his mother Queen Victoria by uttering the words: ‘Gentlemen, you may smoke.’”
Though many Cubans live in strife from their governmental issues, don’t let that stray you away from immersing yourself in the wonderful culture Cuba still has to provide. Cuba’s national language is Spanish, so make sure you know bits and pieces to get you along the way in your travels. When traveling to Cuba, remember that Cuban Spanish contains a lot of slang. Cubans have given commonly used Spanish phrases their own touch such as changing “¿como estás?” (whats up) to “¿Qué volá contigo?” which literally means what flies with you. Another word to make sure that you stay away from in your travels in Cuba is “papaya.” It seems so innocent right? Just a normal tourist asking for a papaya fruit? Wrong. Papaya is actually a slang word for vagina in Cuba, so they use the word “frutabomba.” Again, Cubans have changed the traditional Spanish language quite a bit, but try your best to speak their language because many Spanish-speakers take that as a sign of respect.
Isla Hispaniola is comprised of Haiti and the Dominican Republic. With the country split in half, Haiti owns the western side and the Dominican owns the eastern. The national language of the two countries is Haitian Creole French (Haiti) and Spanish (Dominican Republic), which dates back to their conquerors at the beginning of their formations. There is an abundance of poverty in each country, and their relations with each other have suffered for many years due to the fact that Haiti still has a lower quality of life than the Dominican Republic. In the past year, the Dominican government decided to strictly implement their immigration laws, sending a vast number of Haitians out of the country and into even poorer conditions. Haiti has a life expectancy of nearly ten years less than the Dominican Republic, which causes large immigration problems with Haitians living in the Dominican illegally. The Dominican Republic’s largest exports consist of gold, rolled tobacco, and bananas and in contrast, Haiti mostly exports lower income goods such as t-shirts and knit clothing.
Both countries have a large amount of economical strife, though the Dominican Republic has the benefits from tourism to their cities of Punta Cana, La Romana, Puerto Plata, and Santo Domingo. Most of the tourism to Haiti in the past years revolves around mission trips to orphanages or small towns, especially since the great earthquake in 2010. The earthquake alone killed nearly 300,000 people and has caused the country great strife ever since. The Dominican Republic also has a large amount of missioners come in every year to help in poorer small towns in the country, but has the benefit of tourism much more than Haiti.
This past summer, I worked as a scuba professional in a small town in the southeast of the Dominican Republic called Bayahibe. After Punta Cana, the town is one of most popular tourist destination in the Dominican Republic because the southern coast of the country contains the Caribbean Sea, which is much nicer than the Atlantic Ocean in the North. I started traveling to the Dominican a short two years ago and have been back three times since. The country has a way of entrancing you with the beautiful colors and landscapes of the island, while making sure your belly is full with their delicious food and not-so-delicious but tolerable Presidente beer. Again, the Dominican people are commonly very poor, but I have seen the joy in their culture as they sing and dance, even though they have nothing but the clothes on their backs.
Music is a huge part of Dominican life. One of the things that I loved most about the Dominican is that you can hear their Spanish music wherever you go. Whether if you’re at a random beach, traveling on the public transportation system, which is nothing more than mini vans packed with twenty five people, or in a beachside restaurant, don’t be surprised when a Dominican male or female starts to serenade you. The sexual culture in the Dominican Republic is extremely overt, though don’t be taken too aback. Underneath all of the schmoozing and cooing is actually a very religious culture. Women in the Dominican usually wear long skirts and covering tops, and on Sundays the whole country celebrates the Christian sabbath with cookouts, beach parties, etc.
The Dominican Republic is truly a breathtaking country, filled with freshwater caves and huge mountains. Off the southern coast of the island lies two smaller islands called Isla Saona and Isla Catalina. Make sure you take a visit to these wonderful places with Coral Point Diving in Bayahibe, and maybe even try out scuba diving! From traveling the island so much in the past few years, I have noticed that the small towns and close-knit communities are a much better experience than the big tourists destinations like Punta Cana. It is so hard to see how a culture functions when you are trapped in the confines of a big name all-inclusive resort. When you travel to the Dominican Republic, make sure you step out of your comfort zone and truly see how the people live. You will be surprised how quickly you feel at home.
Puerto Rico, the farthest east of of the three islands, is ironically owned by the United States. Puerto Rico came into the control of the US in 1898 at the Treaty of Paris following the Spanish-American War. The US control of Puerto Rico has proven as very helpful to the country at large. Immediately after Puerto Rico became an American territory, significant changes such as freedom of speech, assembly, religion, and press, currency, and a public school system were implemented. Puerto Rico has a life expectancy of 79, a mere three years less than the United States, and is also extremely high in comparison to the rest of the Caribbean. This is also largely due to the centralized public health system that was implemented shortly after the US took control of the island. Puerto Rico’s economy relies mostly on federal aid from the US government, meaning that it actually exports very little goods. Like the two other islands, it also benefits quite nicely from tourism to its beautiful beaches, though Puerto Rico shares the scathed economy and bankruptcy problem that Cuba and Isla Hispaniola are plagued with, even with support from the US.
Puerto Rico is one of the most densely populated islands in the world, so it is not lacking in any culture. It is easy for US citizens to travel to Puerto Rico, being as a passport is not needed. For travelers that want to go out and see the landscapes, Puerto Rico should be number one on your list. Puerto Rico is home to El Yunque National Forest, the only rain forest in all of North America. Thousands of tourists flock to the Yunque every year to witness the mountainous gentle rain forest. The rainforest is great for new travelers because it offers wildlife without danger. Since Puerto Rico was formed by volcanic activity, literally thrusting out of the Caribbean Sea, there are no large animals on the island. This makes traveling in the Yunque very enjoyable for novice travelers, being as there are no poisonous snakes or any potentially harmful animals to worry about. Just a short 40 minute ride from the Yunque is beautiful San Juan, the capital city of Puerto Rico.
Founded in 1521 by Juan Ponce de León, San Juan is the oldest city under US jurisdiction. San Juan is known as “La Ciudad Amurallada” (the walled city) and is one of the biggest and best natural harbors in the Caribbean. Be sure to make a visit to the magical city to see the salsa street dancers with their colorful multicolored dresses, flowing with every foot step. The fast beat merengue music can be felt throughout your body and into the cobblestone streets, making an experience not to be missed! Cuba, Isla Hispaniola, and Puerto Rico share many cultural similarities, though each country is still very unique. The ease of Caribbean island lifestyle is invigorating and can be very addicting. Just remember to come home!
Cuisine of the Republic of Cuba, Isla Hispaniola, and Puerto Rico
World Traveler Mag
Caribbean cuisine as a whole tends to share a lot of commonalities. Due to sporadic migration, largely from slavery, its cuisine is comprised of foods from Africa, Europe, East India, the Middle East, China, and native americans. The bones of the cuisine is made up mostly of rice, beans, plantains, peppers, coconut, cilantro, and chicken or beef. Each island in the Caribbean, including Cuba, Isla Hispaniola, and Puerto Rico, seem to have developed their own unique touch to these common main ingredients. These countries have even made their own slang for the same foods or dishes that have a completely different name in a neighboring island. Rice and beans is an extremely common dish throughout the entire Caribbean, though each country has seemed to create their own slang phrase for the same food. For example, in Cuba, one would ask for “arroz congri,” but in the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico, one would ask for “arroz con habichuelas.” In Haiti, one would as for “diri awk pa,” because their national language is Haitian French Creole. All of the rice and beans dishes from each country are almost exactly the same, though each country takes much pride in their cuisine.
Cuban cuisine in Miami has changed significantly from authentic Cuban cuisine throughout the years, due to the sever of relations of the United States with Cuba after the Cold War and Cuban Missile Crisis in 1961. Many tourists in Miami, Florida assume that the Cuban street food is one hundred percent authentic. This used to be the case in the mid 1900’s, but Cuban food in Miami adapted to its American surroundings and Cuban food stayed constant or changed ever so slightly from its Caribbean surroundings. Some staples in the Cuban diet include dishes such as rice and black beans, Cuban sandwiches, and tamarind for desserts, which is a type of lemon lime fruit native to the land.
In Haiti, the most common dish is griyot, which is pork chunks with rice and beans. Haitian food tends to be very hot and spicy from its African roots, which differs greatly from their neighbors food. Dominican cuisine contrarily tends to be lightly spiced. Make sure to try the local street foods in Haiti, including cassava. Cassava is similar to a cracker and is usually accompanied with peanut butter on top.
Dominican food, as stated above, tends to be very lightly spiced, so remember to ask for “salsa picante” or hot sauce when you go to restaurants. Dominican foods are all very natural, with eggs coming from the back yard and fish caught a few steps from home to the beach. Be sure to try foods from the street, which usually are just extensions of residents’ homes into a backyard buffet. Dominican buffets are always filled with conch, fish, plantains, rice, beans, steak, and even spaghetti. One of my favorite dishes I had while living in the Dominican was their lion fish burgers, which just recently became popular due to the influx of the deadly lion fish from eastern Asia. I used to catch the lion fish on my dives in the morning and my adopted Dominican mother would clean the barbs off the fish and fry it up for dinner. Many restaurants do the same, and serve it with delicious fried chips.
When in the Caribbean, always be sure to try as much fruit as possible because the fruit imported into the states is now right at your fingertips. My favorite Caribbean fruits are mango, banana, limoncillo, coconut, pineapple, plantains, and melon. There is an abundance of fruit throughout Cuba, Isla Hispaniola, and Puerto Rico, so it is exponentially cheaper than it is sold in the states. Some websites claim that the fruit in countries with a dirty water supply has the potential to make travelers sick, though I ate the fruit in the Dominican every day in summer and it never once bothered my stomach. Just be sure to bring extra Tums and Imodium in your suitcase!
Due to the lack of processed foods in the Caribbean, the cuisine is very fresh. Never be afraid to try something that doesn’t sound exactly “normal” to you, because when else are you going to get the opportunity to fully immerse yourself in such a vibrant culture? Caribbean culture is very inviting so never be afraid to bargain prices for street food. It makes up half of the fun!
