What is Santería?

Been reading a lot of misconceptions on this topic. Would to like spread some light on this part of the Cuban culture. It is always good to know about cultures and religions around the world. First of all, I do not practice this culture rich religion nor am I promoting it. I’m just sharing what I know about santería being a Latino of African heritage. Can’t speak about everything in this post because that would take a few books. So bare with me to those who know a lot about this topic. I’m just summarizing it.

Santeros dancing photo courtesy of http://www.differencebetween.net/miscellaneous/religion-miscellaneous/difference-between-santeria-and-voodoo/

Santería in Latin America is actually very common. A lot of people who practice it now aren’t even hispanic nor of African heritage. This religion is a mixture of Roman Catholicism and Yoruban religions. It’s main language is Lucumí. Native to the Dominican Republic, Cuba and Puerto rico. This language is like Latin to the Catholics and Arabic to Muslims. Lucumí is a langague mixed with west African words and Spanish. It has too many words and grammatical differences to be called a Spanish Creole. It’s a completely different tongue.

Santería store in the usa photo courtesy of http://pluralism.org/religions/afro-caribbean/afro-caribbean-traditions/santeria-the-lucumi-way/

While in Cuba, I did not want to get blessings from a Santero or santera nor wanted to film their ceremonies. I will explain my reasons later. Most people think Santería is about worshiping the devil. Which is one of the misconceptions. In santería, there’s actually no devil. It’s similar to Pre-Christian religions of the Vikings, Romans and Greeks. There are many gods, so it’s not monotheistic like Islam or Christianity.

Changó, The God of lighting photo courtesy of https://www.originalbotanica.com/blog/chango-shango-orisha-santeria/

The main figure of santería is Changó. Changó is the god of lightning, dance and manliness. The dances you see santeros practicing is to please and get blessings from this lighting god. That’s why the marital arts like capoeria and juego de maní focus mainly around dance. Since, Changó is of Yoruban origin. Which is now manly part of Nigeria. I will speak more about this in detail on another post. Since, I could write a whole book about this topic.

Map of where Yoruba is spoken in Africa photo courtesy of https://www.ucl.ac.uk/atlas/yoruba/introduction.html

So, the history of Santería is very interesting. This religion was created by slaves in order to hide the preservation of thier African culture from the Spanish. They used saints from the Catholic church to trick the Spanish into thinking they were practicing Christianity. The mixture of African religions with Catholicism was very common in the Portuguese and Spanish colonies. In the Spanish colonies, Santería was born.

A santera photo courtesy of https://yagbeonilu.com/santeria-rituales/

Being Hispanic of African heritage from the Caribbean, Santería and other African religions are commonly practiced. Some do it in hiding, others are very open about it. I don’t practice santería because I don’t want to bring spirits into my life. As you all can tell, my life is crazy already. Adding spirits will just complicate things. Also, be careful when going to santeros. You don’t always know their true intentions. They could be bringing negative spirits into your life.

Thank you so much for reading! Much love and safe travels everyone.

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September 18, 2019 17

Finally arriving to Santiago De Cuba

After that stressful encounter and 3 hours of seeing the Cuban country side, I was in Santiago. Cuba’s second largest City. It felt good to have finally made it to my destination. There were times, I thought I was going to sleep in a Cuban jail. It’s crazy to think that was just a few hours ago.

Rooftop of my hostel photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

My first impression of the city was intetesting. It felt like any Latin American city for sure. However, there was a twist to it. The streets curved and zigzaged in a way that could make the most experienced traveler get lost. Also remember, wifi and internet connection here is limited. So google maps can’t help when you are confused in this maze of a city.

Another angle of the roof photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

I got to my hostel, we were all tired. Our local friend was annoyed that the address on the website was off. So, we had to park on the side of the street to call the owner. Everybody was cranky due to the 3 hour long drive. During those three hours, we were all worried about the goverment police having random check points. Which is common in Cuba. However, I should be fine since I’m American. Sadly, my new local friends could be in big trouble.

Sideshot of a buliding next to the hostel I was staying photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

I paid my local friend 15 dollars for helping me out. That extra pay could get him in trouble with the goverment. Someone who could be a police in normal clothing, could say that he ripped me off. Which Cuba punishes locals harshly. The guy saved me 120 dollars, giving him 15 dollars is the least I could do.

The eating area of the hostel I stay at photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

My local friend was giving me an inside view of Cuba. The not so friendly part. The part where it’s own people are valued less than the visiting tourists. Even with everything that has happened, I kept trying to keep positive.

Street just outside of the hostel, I was staying in photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Eventually, the owner picked up his phone. Told us the exact address. We drove to his hostel and said our thanks/goodbyes to the taxi driver. The owner told me the house rules and showed me to my room. While my local friend waited outside, I settled into my room and took a shower. I was getting ready to meet another friend before his performance. After cleaning up, I step outside of the hostel. I couldn’t wait to see what this beautiful and exotic city has to offer. It was time to explore Santiago de Cuba!

September 11, 2019 10

Almost getting arrested in Cuba

Yeah, almost got myself into a world of hurt. So this story is to tell you, what not to do when going to cuba. Trust me, this story will save you the headache. Especially, if you are American.

It all started when I bought my tickets to Cuba. They were for an aiport called Holguin. I would fly from NYC to Toronto and then Toronto to Holguin. Looking back, I should had double checked more information about the Airport first.

Outside view of the airport photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

What makes this airport special is the fact that it’s in the province that Fidel Castro was born in. Being the Communist country that it is, Castro is almost viewed as a holy figure. So of course, this airport would have some national pride to it. Unfortunately, this wasn’t my most memorable moment.

Waiting at the airport’s parking lot photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Got into the immigration and customs line without a problem. Eventually, it was my turn to speak with the officer. Showed him my passport and said everything wrong. At that time, if you were American, you could travel to Cuba for educational reasons. However, you don’t say that to the Cubans. You need tell them you are there for vacation. If you all know me by now, I told them I was there for educational purposes.

To the immigration officers, all the red flags were shown. I got sent into another room where three other officers started questioning me in Spanish. Luckily, I spoke Spanish. I can’t imagine what would happened if I didn’t. They spoke no English, apparently.

After about 20 mins of questioning and convincing, I was eventually let free. Met up with a local friend named Andy. By the way, those 20 minutes were rough. They asked me everything, even about my relatives. This was my first minutes in Cuba and they were already bad. However, I was not going to let this ruin my time.

Walking towards the edge of the street photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Outside of the aiport was where the real issue occurred. Andy and I were looking for a taxi. Holguin is about a 2 hour drive from Santiago de Cuba. Which was the place I would be staying at. Unfortunately, the roads in Cuba are horrible. It would probably take up at least 3 hours.

All the taxi drivers in Holguin are run by the goverment. They were very aggressive. I would say no and they would circle around the aiport just to ask me again. I felt like a dying mouse and the taxi drivers were birds of prey. They all wanted about two hundred usa dollars worth for one way. It’s ridiculous because most of these drivers only get paid about 5 usa dollars a month! They have the nerve to try to rip off/scam tourists!

Sidewalk just outside of the airport where we got harassed by taxi drivers photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Andy and I started walking outside of the airport. He was a little nervous because of the situation. Andy knew that these people were apart of the government and they could tell any police officer false claims. We could end up in jail because of their lies. Ironically, I only had 300 usa dollars worth of currency. American cards do not work in Cuba because of international policies. So, what I had was what I had. We had to find out a way out of this mess. What made things worst, this airport is in the middle of nowhere. Country side for miles, you can not walk on the streets without being watched.

We were about to speak with another driver, when that same driver that has been circling us pulled up. We told him no for the fourth time. This time he was angry. The driver screamed at us claiming he would tell the police. The situation was getting intense.

Back in the airport’s parking lot where we found a kind hearted taxi driver photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

By chance/luck, we found a driver that would take us for about 80 USA dollars worth. The driver was going to Santiago anyways. Andy’s showed off his strong negotiation skills. Sadly, the situation was still not over.

As we got into the car, we noticed the cameras were following us. I didn’t noticed them at first. They were moving everywhere we moved. This was proof the other driver made the government aware of us. Our good hearted taxi driver started to get nervous as he started the car. As what he was doing, was technically illegal. By helping us out with a cheaper fair, he was putting his safety at risk. The cameras were straight on us. We drove out of there as soon as possible. While the goverment’s cameras were following our every move.

After about 30 minutes of driving, we started to feel more comfortable. The tension in the car died down. We were out of the airport and out of that province. The music started and the laughter began. Even with everything dying down, you still felt that the goverment could stop us at any moment.

Thank you for reading! Much love and safe travels.

September 4, 2019 52