Since I was little I have always heard stories about how people lived before, back in the 70s and 80s in Cuba, and it is something that has always been commented on from the good to the bad, but I always hear the same thing: They were Better Times. I can only speak from the perspective of a country family like mine, since our origins are in Realengo 18 and for those who do not know, this town is located northwest of the Municipality of El Salvador and borders to the south with the Guantánamo Valley and to the west with the La Comunal-San Fernando highway, whose residents were peasants descended from mambises who settled in these lands.
Según las historias de mi familia en estos años había mucha abundancia de comida, ganado, frutas, vegetales que provenían de fincas repletas de mangos, mandarinas, naranjas, cacao, guayabas, aguacates, guanábanas, cerezas, ciruelas, caimito, canistel, chirimolla, mamey colorado y amarillo, ñame, malanga, mapen y diferentes tipos de plátano como manzano y morado, entre otros. Y era muy común que las casas como la de mis abuelos abundara el ganado como caballos, vacas, carneros, chivos para el consumo o para la venta de la que se podía vivir cómodamente. Sin duda era un paraíso frutal del que mis abuelos, padres y tíos disfrutaron en su infancia y de lo que se sienten muy orgullosos.
According to my family's stories, in these years there was a great abundance of food, livestock, fruits, vegetables that came from farms full of mangoes, tangerines, oranges, cocoa, guavas, avocados, soursops, cherries, plums, star apples, canistel, chirimolla, red and yellow mamey, yam, taro, mapen and different types of banana such as manzano and morado, among others. And it was very common for houses like my grandparents' to have plenty of livestock such as horses, cows, sheep, goats for consumption or for sale from which one could live comfortably. It was undoubtedly a fruit paradise that my grandparents, parents and uncles enjoyed in their childhood and of which they feel very proud.
Luego del pasar de los años mi familia se mudó a la ciudad de Guantánamo en busca de nuevas oportunidades y con esto surgieron nuevas experiencias. En aquel entonces muchos no contaban con electrodomésticos como un refrigerador o una nevera así que cuando el vendedor de hielos salía con su silbato muchos niños salían en la calle en su busca para acompañarlo y comer trocitos que amablemente les brindaban. Algo que también se esperaba mucho era al heladero que vendía cajitas y paletas de helado de muy buena calidad de solo 15 centavos en aquel entonces.
After the years passed, my family moved to the city of Guantanamo in search of new opportunities and with this new experiences arose. At that time, many did not have appliances such as a refrigerator or a refrigerator, so when the ice seller came out with his whistle, many children went out into the street looking for him to accompany him and eat pieces that he kindly offered them. Something that was also highly expected was the ice cream man who sold very good quality ice cream boxes and popsicles for only 15 cents at that time.
En las bodegas por la tan conocida libreta de abastecimiento abundaban muchos dulces, las galletas, sorbetos, caramelos, leche en polvo, hojuelas de maíz, juguetes y disfraces para los niños en fechas como la de los Reyes Magos el 6 de enero, carnes, pescados mensualmente llegaban a las mesas cubanas e incluso llegaban a desperdiciarse, hasta telas para hacer ropa y lo que se necesitara en el hogar. No existían las redes sociales ni el internet así que eran comunes juegos como la ruleta, el burrito 21, la patada a la lata, el juego del pañuelo por solo poner ejemplos. Se veían mas niños jugando en las calles en actividades físicas y recreativas y no solo sentados en la casa jugando con dispositivos electrónicos como ahora es muy común, pues lo más cercano eran los televisores que no estaban en todas las casas y reunirse a ver episodios y novelas era lo más cercano a lo que se hace ahora con la tecnología.
In the warehouses for the well-known supply book there were many sweets, cookies, sorbets, candies, powdered milk, corn flakes, toys and costumes for children on dates such as the Three Wise Men on January 6, meats, Fish arrived on Cuban tables monthly and even went to waste, including fabrics to make clothes and whatever was needed at home. There were no social networks or the Internet, so games like roulette, burrito 21, kick the can, and the handkerchief game were common, just to give examples. More children were seen playing in the streets in physical and recreational activities and not just sitting at home playing with electronic devices as is very common now, since the closest thing was the televisions that were not in all homes and getting together to watch episodes and novels were the closest to what is done now with technology.
El tiempo pasó y muchas de estas condiciones desaparecieron y con esto la abundancia, por lo que se tomó la decisión de mudarse a La Habana donde vivimos actualmente. Puedo contar mucho más, pero la verdad sería interminable, y estoy segura que familias de ciudad igual pueden contar historias diferentes que jóvenes como yo no conocimos. Esta época dorada sigue sin regresar y aunque han pasado muchos años todavía queda el recuerdo y las historias de infancia, las anécdotas divertidas de los que mis abuelos, padres y tíos coinciden en que Fueron Tiempos Mejores.
Time passed and many of these conditions disappeared and with it the abundance, so the decision was made to move to Havana where we currently live. I can tell much more, but the truth would be endless, and I am sure that city families can still tell different stories that young people like me did not know. This golden era still hasn't returned and although many years have passed, there are still memories and childhood stories, the funny anecdotes about those that my grandparents, parents and uncles agree that They Were Better Times.
TODAS LAS FOTOS SON DE MI PROPIEDAD/ ALL PHOTOS ARE MY PROPERTY
TRADUCIDO POR GOOGLE TRADUCTOR/ TRANSLATED BY GOOGLE TRANSLATOR