Transportation, or rather its absence, is one of the daily odysseys of Cubans. It is neither recent nor unknown to those who live, for example, in Havana, but in times of crisis like those the island is experiencing, the challenge multiplies.
Moving from one place to another in the capital, whether for work or leisure, for necessity or pleasure, demands time, money, effort, and often creativity.
Wheels, vehicles of any kind, become lifelines, objects of desire. And also a constant hole in the pocket.
Therefore, for those who are not cab drivers, or drivers of their own car, options can be compressed — or squeezed — and time can expand towards infinity when it comes to going from here to there, or wherever.
Many walk, others dust off their bicycles in a city without bike lanes, or “invest” in motorcycles or electric cycles, or resist the hara-kiri of an almendrón or the endless wait at a stop.
Some assemble their wagons or wheelbarrows and move the human and the divine by themselves. Others haggle over and over again with truckers and cab drivers, trying to make the hit to their wallet more bearable.
These days, everyone has crossed their fingers and looked to the sky for the announced increase in prices for fuel and passenger transportation. Or it would be better to say additional increases because, since the official announcements, everything has gone even further up. In private media and on the black market.
Finally, the official increases have not come into effect, due to a “cybersecurity incident,” as reported by the government.
Prices that have already risen, however, do not seem willing to back down. And they could even continue their feared rise.
Meanwhile, Havana residents continue trying to move day after day — on wheels or foot — and also looking at the sky and digging into their pockets: their daily odyssey.
