It always starts with a dream. Then maybe a text. My dream of visiting Cuba likely developed sometime in my teens, with Hemingway and other books and movies from the first part of the 20th century, only to eventually end up on my bucket list of travel destination within reach as Cuba increasingly opened up to tourism over the past decades. The only thing holding me back was that I really wanted to see it with someone, for no other reason than that I wanted to share my impressions and this experience, and Cuba was not on the top of the bucket list of my regular travel companions. Or so I thought until I sent off a text to Andreas back in April to let him know that I was on my way to Stockholm and as a side note dropped a question about Cuba.

Me: “Also wondering if you’d be up for seeing Cuba, before it gets invaded by Starbucks and  Mac Donald’s?”

Andreas: YES! Let’s plan when we meet!

Easy as that!

Reminders of Cuba’s history all over Havana