Miami to Havana

It is four days after US-Cuba policy changes have gone into effect and I am in a meeting room at the Miami Airport Marriott Courtyard with a group of photographers who are going to Havana tomorrow morning. Kip, our coordinator, is giving us the briefing – in summary: “It’s Cuba; it’s complicated”. Currency (two different national currencies), street manners (feel safe, but be mindful of your wallet), phone/internet prospects (minimal), daily itinerary (soon to change, more than once). Two main hazards to avoid – a) twisting an ankle on ancient sidewalks or falling into a hole, and b) getting hit by a car; it seems that Cubans are not inclined to stop for pedestrians unless in a marked crosswalk.

There is excitement about the changes and more than a little uncertainty about how they will affect us. We are each given us a license granting us permission by the US to visit the country, but it seems that this is no longer needed. Some rum and cigars may be brought back but nobody knows how picky US customs will be about receipts documenting total cost is under $100.

It is now morning and we huddle as a group to check in for our charter flight at the American Airlines counter. Our flight is an American Airlines plane and crew, Chartered by ABC charters which has a license to fly to Havana. The crew is bi-lingual and good natured with a lively sense of humor. After the 45 minute flight. we Land in Havana at a separate terminal dedicated to charter flights from the US and quickly get to customs. The young lady in a uniform notices on my passport that I have been to Africa and she asks if I have been recently or been in contact with friends or relatives from Africa recently – I can see where this is going and the answer fortunately, is no (Ebola is still a cause for concern – although there is none in Cuba). The baggage claim is a free for all, with bags arriving on both conveyors – A and B, with no hint which one will spit out my bag. I eventually come to think that identifying my bag can’t be so hard because 75 percent of the luggage is bundles of stuff in blue shrink wrap – brought in my Cubans and their relatives returning from the States. Mostly soft stuff like clothes, but I see boxes with big screen TV's, microwaves, and other electronics not available here. Among the piles of luggage, I also notice a neat pile of NBC News camera equipment and it is only now that I realize that the US Assistant Secretary of State, Roberta Jacobson, was on our flight – arriving for diplomatic talks with the Cuban Government along with Brian Williams and Andrea Mitchell of NBC. Later tonight, we will see our group on TV, boarding the plane – so that’s what the lady with the iPhone was filming!

After slight worries about finding my bag, I hand in paperwork declaring that I am not sick and am not bringing weapons, illegal drugs or pornography into the country and head out of the terminal into an uproar of relatives greeting arrivals (and their shrink wrapped bundles). The area outside the terminal has the sweet smell of cigar smoke and vintage Chevy cars cruse by looking for passengers, and I know I am here.

Tonight the city sparkles outside my hotel.