Two UmonHon Indian relatives dropped in for a lovely short visit!
I had not seen them since November 2018, but for a period of 3 years we saw each other a lot, first as colleagues at the Diabets Programme and then as relatives and then as travellers together to Cambodia, Malaysia, Cuba.
They drove down from Orlando, 200 miles away and I wanted to make sure that our time together was memorable.
It did turn out that way.
I wanted them to have a taste of my everyday life here. We stopped at the Palacio de los Jugos, where young recent immigrant workers from Cuba, work very diligently, while counting their american dreams. I requested the mother of the owner to make us three Cortadito, not too strong but with piping hot milk. We sat down and chatted while sipping Cuban Coffee on this hot day in Miami
They were surprised to see the variety of fresh fruit and vegetables available ..Availability and access and desire are all different among the population in this diverse city of spanish and english speakers.
They had been driving the 200 miles from their hotel in Orlando and it is time to treat them to a good Cuban meal and once again to one of my haunts... i remember them when I was a student here!!
Driving through South Miami and on to Mathieson Hammock where vestiges of pre contact South Florida is maintained in its well preserved hammocks of mangroves. They were interested in the Indian history of Florida and we had a nice chat, including the contact with the local indians with indians of Cuba.
When a visitor comes to my part of the woods, I begin to see the scenery with a fresh eye and I enjoy showing people around this part of the world where I spend time.
I was happy to show my UmonHon friends, A and M, few years ago : Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and also Siem Reap, Cambodia. They have been my guests in La Habana, Cuba twice as a part of their study of the excellent Diabetes Care system in Cuba.
I am sure there would be other places in the future.
It is nice to show visitors the skyline of Miami across the bay from Key Biscayne. I remember my own initial sensations visiting Crandon Park during my university days here in Miami.
Key Biscayne in recent years has been built up and there are strip malls now rather than the quaint shops they used to have. Progress for one person is detrimental to the eyes of another ..
No visit to Cultural Miami is complete without a visit to Cafe Versailles, which is the nest of the anti-cuba hornets, a cupola of subservience to the capitalism and selfishness that denote this particular group of Cubans. I always feel that I am entering a den of vipers, as many of them hold such poisonous views about Cuba which they confuse with the political system there, rather than genuinely wanting a change.
But the coffee is good. Nice to watch the people. I did notice a few visitors with mayan memories etched on to their face.
As befits their personal politics, majority of the people waiting to enter the restaurant were not wearing masks! ah well.. probably not vaccinated either..
They had visited Cuba twice and of course being the original inhabitants of this land and very tolerant of millions of immigrants, perhaps it baffles them to see this abhorrence of the land of your birth or ancestors.
The night was falling. They were not hungry. I had wanted to take them to a Food Truck but they said they were not all in the mood to eat.
They left as the sun was setting for the 200 miles drive back to Orlando. Close to midnight they reached there, having taken four hours to get back.
A lovely day with my UmonHon relatives.
