Painting created by fellow delegate, Stacey Edwards

Havana Decay, 2012

Stacey Edwards captures the look and ambiance of Havana with rich colors and subtle use of light. Thank you Stacey for letting me share your beautiful work with others.

Treasures Among Trash

Treasure hunting is a popular past time for the adventurous soul.  My adventurous soul could not resist an opportunity to do a little hunting while in Cuba. I discovered many treasures in Cuba. Not our typical treasure but rather, treasure in the form of the priceless art of children, ancient Spanish forts, true "gems" - the people and a wealth of information. 

There is a mystery that surrounds Cuba. As I searched for the "black X" on the map of my journey I encountered a rather interesting phenomenon. In Cuba there are treasures among treasures. The treasures were not always visible. Buried deep within the crumbling buildings, lying among the city streets, resting in the shadows of the tropical plants, rest the greatest treasures. The treasures that I am writing about are in the form of stories. Many times, I found myself longing for the "walls to talk." 

Since walls are silent, I have two options to hear the stories. The first option is to speak with Cuban immigrants. For example, yesterday, one of my art student's grandmother shared with me her story of leaving Cuba. She looked at the photos that I brought back. Her eyes filled with memories of her teen years in Cuba. Her story is a treasure that provides a glimpse into the past. In a few months, I will be traveling to Miami to capture more of these stories through the art of third generation Cuban-American children and the stories told by their parents and grandparents. The second option for "hearing" the stories was to look for physical clues that could help me better understand the Cuban culture. I found my clues in the dump.

So, did you think this post was going to be about a literal treasure hunt? Well actually, I did manage to dig up a few interesting treasures. I spent the last day of my trip digging for treasure in garbage. 

What treasure could be found here? Yuck! Doll parts and dead chickens.

The garbage was rather unfortunate, however what better way to learn about a culture. 

Under the trash was treasure.

Beautiful Sea Glass 

Was it a rum bottle, goblet, or a jar for medicine? In florida, finding sea glass is a rarity. In Cuba, there were piles of it. If only the sea glass could share its tale. 

Pot Shards

We are left with the untold story of: who ate off this plate, or whose hands cupped the clay of the pot? Were these pot shards tossed aside or taken away? In addition to the pot shards, there is a piece of rock or one might say, a piece of Cuba.

And then... in between the sand and the sea, buried under the trash was treasure. The story is a mystery. How did they get there? Where did they come from? What exactly are they? I will let you use your imagination to analyze these clues.

My adventurous soul will continue to hunt for the treasures found within the stories of the Cuban culture. The stories that have traveled over sand and sea to here in the US.