Havana: Hot Fun in the Summertime

'Going native' is a slow, oftentimes imperceptible process. You might not even notice the subtle adjustments - those natural-for-the-context changes that living in a foreign culture forces over time.

For me here in Havana, the first manifestations were in my wardrobe: hemlines got shorter, heels got higher, and everything got tighter and scandalously more scanty. Gradually, I came to grasp the necessity of the visita (see note 1) and found the natural rhythm of Cuban time (15 to 30 minutes late as a general rule. Such tardiness differs from the Cuban no-show which is a surprisingly common trait to which I have yet to warm). It took me longer to get used to discussing menstruation and death with acquaintances and even strangers, but eventually I did.

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