Dr. Romero in the World

CUBA

Modernized 8-4-99

The idea of visiting Cuba left of my friend Alain Levy, to the one that I knew there in Barcelona for the year 78. In that time he/she worked as Dj. in a local of the Ravines called Jazz Colon (today Fronton Colon). The local in question was frequented by all type of characters of the more patibularios: traffickers, prostitutes, travestís, calorros and other people of good to see.

From then on Alain wrote me more or less regularly from different parts of the world, it followed a course of ESADE in Paris (their city) and the practices consisted on market studies as disparate as that of doors shielded in the Congo or yeasts in Cuba.

Moto with sidecar © by Toni Romero 1996

For this reason, for their mundane knowledge and my liking to the video and the picture, we decide to carry out a documentary in the island but big of the Caribbean. This era my first exit to a non European country, it was impatient to dive in waters with reefs and to know people of culture so different.

We agree to carry out two independent reports, one on the sea and the other envelope the social reality of the island.

We leave toward the Havana in December of the year 93, Second Year of the Special Period that like you will know it was the second year that Russia moved away the economic help to Fidel. These consisted in petroleum and money, fundamental for the maintenance of the economy of the island, in fact when being suspended the whole Cuban system one came practically below.

After the arrival, later a trip larguísimo via Madrid, they transferred us to Shipyard to spend the night and to fly a day following to Long Key. This island with a name that he/she reminds us the movie of John Huston and Bogard, are a tourist colony that little has that to do with the Cuban reality, in him the rationing doesn't exist for what my first impression of the island was quite mistaken.

They installed us in Villa Whim, some dream bungalows in a paradisiac beach of white sands of coral. The submarine fishing it is not specifically forbidden in Cuba, however I made sure asking to the one in charge of renting beach material. He/she affirmed that there was not any problem.

The team that I took was the suitable one, a complete suit of 5 mm. fins Sporasub and my lifelong rifle, a Marlin of the house Beuchat of 75 cm. (junior). Although the truth was scared to death, the tropical waters they were I absolutely unknown, it ignored if he/she would find sharks and it imagined that if it captured a fish and it bled, he/she could have problems.

I equipped myself and making of tripes heart introduced myself in those mysterious waters.

The Havana children's © by Toni Romero 1996

It was wonderful, overcome the first 50 m. of sand the area began of coral with such a quantity of fish as it could never imagine. It was so excited that practically I failed all my shots, it opted for a prey and immediately he/she crossed before my another of bigger dimensions, for what changed objective contínuamente. My first one it captures it was a Jack - fish (serviola) of 40 cm. species that was very family, at the end of the summer, in the Breakwater of Barcelona, it captured asíduamente their mediterranean variant.

The following prey the desubrí in a hole, I saw some gigantic eyes that they looked at me and I shot immediately. When moving away the harpoon I took out with big difficulties a tetrodón (fish globe) swollen of water. This fish is poisonous although Japanese consume it (fuju,), that yes moving away him previously the liver that contains the tetrotoxina. The oriental consider that it is not worthwhile to live without to have him degustado.

To unlock it, I opted to loose the line for the later part of the tahitiana (harpoon) to avoid to harm him more of the one that had already made him. To take out it was easy, to happen again the impossible line. Suddenly I realized that the bottom happened before of my eyes a current was crawling at full speed, to some good 4 knots. Luck that the line of it floats her it was anchored for half of a weight of 1,5 Kg. and it was begun in the bottom, I was this way aground while the sea circulated to my surroundings as a river. One situation of him but stupid, to 100 m. of an unknown beach, with a current of the Host and loaded with preys that bled in a sea tropical.

A catamarán with an Italian that still had more difficulties that me, right came toward me. I made Him signs from the surface and I eat up he/she didn't respond, when passing next to me I approached it without more preambles. The lad didn't have neither he/she devises of managing the skate, and me less, so that we gave a blow of helm toward the bank in the one that we end up beached, before the expectation of the few ones there gathered.

The bungalow had a refrigerator that welcomed my captures for the dinner, Alain is a great consumer of having fished by that that that night we made a barbecue in the beach.

In the afternoon Alain and I were in search of a diving center. The Dive Master was Israelito. As Alain he/she didn't have diving titulación they made him a small training in a pool of which came out happy and with desires of diving to the long and wide of the Caribbean.

To relax we went for a walk for village Whim and we find one couple of Cubans gotten involved in taking out the bug that you/they contained some conches that would weigh as 8 Kg. they prepared to break them and I asked them them not to destroy them to make us with them. We made ourselves friends immediately. The adult is called Chinese and the youngest, the one Boy. We comment the idea of a barbecue with our fishing. Chinese, a great erudite of the sea, agreed and he intended us to fish at night (with line).

Baseball player © by Toni Romero 1996

Around the fire we narrate histories of different seas while those fish were roasted to slow fire. Cuban, Popular cigarettes of tobacco and rum Habanna golden Club as my dreams, makes them to come unfastened those languages and a friendship begin that will last until today. In the night of this dear Caribbean, the full moon illuminated everything with such an intensity like I have never known.

In the morning filming shambles, we went loaded as donkeys, the camera that about 28 Kg weighed. it ballasts, suits and other impediments, they are dragged after a plentiful breakfast with the help of eggs, cakes, mincemeat, fruits, juices and coffee.

A minibús brought near us to a craft that us it would take to the exterior of the bay of Long Key, where we would embark again with the Center of Cuban Diving. The Israelito and the Fat received us radiant. On board several more people prepared there is already to be equipped, we all ignored where they took us. He/she gave the same thing, anyone of the reefs would be good me to begin to rotate.

They tied the craft to one it floats and I eat everything it was clever us we allow to fall for the overboard. The water was not very clear and of a tonality green not very appropriate to rotate. The Israelito descends with a bag of bread and quickly it surrounds it a cardumen of hungry snorers. Once in the bottom this San Francisco of you Seize the it fed with fineness for delight of our eyes. They were my first images submarine of the Caribbean.

I moved away from the group in more characters' search. The corals they were exuberant, although the light was so bad that everything appeared of green and brown color. It didn't have team of illumination for what there was not way to correct it. Gigantic Gorgónias was rocked by the current, while small minnows executed a delicate ballet maintaining their position on them. A fish in white and black with a crest above, it found refuge in an interstice of the rocks (jack - nife fish), it was incredible. The truth is that it was as the books of my very dear Costeau. He/she had the same sensation that when going of fishing, the anxiety made him to move the camera as if is possessed. To the visionar the material would confirm my suspicions.

We returned to earth to eat, lobster with fried rice of spices, yum yum. The banquet was livened up by a Cuban septeto, a band of excellent musicians that interpret the they are, typical of Cuba. Alain that is also a musician, requested them that they interpreted a song called kikiribu mandinga", an authentic jewel. We promised them to record them in video.

The Cuban beer is called " Hatuey ", the bottles of half liter was excellent companions of that lobster that is said less flavorful that the mediterranean one. Certain, only in Europe not we have the sun and that human color that he/she makes that the difference is insignificant.

While Alain was given a nap I gave an incursion in the beach of before Villa Whim. That day the water was like a raft of oil and I enjoyed with the company of a great pelican of brown color that he/she looked at me with curiosity. I imagine that it owed me to see as a black intruder in their beach, nevertheless it tolerated me. With more tranquility did the area with other eyes, he/she didn't also go armed with my submarine rifle. The first thing that got my attention, was a couple of fish angel of about 40 cm. of diameter. I have expert that this species is matched of for life, they didn't show any fear, their eyes resembled those of the chameleons, standing out of their head and moving in opposed addresses. They were of color black with yellow details and their lips rather plump to weigh of the small size of their mouth. To few meters a gigantic one lora of brown color and electric green slipped at little distance of the bottom. Its similar mouth to that of the parrots, is good to pull up pieces of coral that later on crushes with a molar located in the palate, reducing it to pieces of smaller size to be able to digest them. Once gone by the intestinal tract, it evacuates them in form of fine sand.

In the street by Toni Romero 1996

The bottom was compound for coralline formations that you/they went from those - 4m. until the -12 m. resting on a hillside of sand that descended smoothly toward more depths, inaccessible for my limited form physics. In the areas beaten by the current they settled colonies of Gorgónias, of yellow and blue colors, to the capture of microorganisms. Brain corals and red sponges tube as the blood formed a square of madness, the colors of a surrealist painter that mixed with one nonpareil harmony.

When ascending of one of the apneas a shade he/she hung on me, a windsurf iron, the first black surfer that I saw in my life. We greet ourselves and I noticed that it was not only in the water, there was been united an Italian that he/she went in the morning in the boat in the distance. Oh, he/she tranquilizes to know that one not this alone one. I came closer to Italian and I asked him if he/she wanted to accompany me to fish the dinner. He/she simply said yes. I Left to for my rifle and in less than ten minutes it was again in the water.

A hour he/she already had hooked kind of a mere of more of 10 Kg. this time yes that was with the adrenaline at a hundred. It was debated as a beast, I was afraid that you unhooks. I lowered toward him and I grabbed it for the eyes dragging it toward the surface. Once there I finished off him with my knife by means of a cut in the base of the skull. I avoided to make him suffer more than it necessary, I was wrapped even this way in a cloud of blood.

Chinese was in the bank with the Boy hallucinating with the fish to the one that called cají, era of golden color and endowed with a denture potent with teeth caniniformes. Chinese told us that there was a restaurant at the end of the walk where they would cook the fish for 5 $. neither we think it, we left it stops there after a shower. To he/she governs it of the restaurant he/she didn't make him a lot of grace the size of the it captures, it convinced him that we would be several to have dinner, the clan of the Italians that were two couples, a couple of German gigantic, Alain and me.

The big blue © by Toni Romero 1996

He/she had fished to give and to take, the idea that he/she spends hunger in Cuba it was far. Only indications like the looks of the workers and the caution with which they responded to our questions (Alain not you it characterizes for their subtlety), they allowed to sense another reality behind of what saw a tourist. We comment the idea of recording the meeting of the personnel of cleaning. I had the certainty, perhaps enough preconceived, that people's régime that worked there, it was quite disciplinary. Of course the details were very subtle, however it was appreciated in the atmosphere a great control on the personnel.