Part 10. Coupons for food and black market
Amarilis and Fernaris invited us to their place. They live in the very outskirts of Havana so we had to change a number of vehicles from regular taxis and comfortable buses to a truck with holes instead of windows in order to reach them.
While Amarilis was cooking rice with beans, Fernaris ran out of the house and bought some chicken.
- It’s from the back market, -he explained.
The system of coupons for food and other things was introduced in Cuba 46 years ago. For example, only 3 kilos of rice per person can be bought with coupons for 50 centimes a kilo. Everything exceeding the norm will cost from 3.5 and more pesos a kilo.
- 3 kilos of rice per moths may seem too much for Europeans, - says Amarilis. – But we hardly eat anything else.
You can also buy half a kilo of chicken, about 300 grams of beans and 2 kilos of sugar for coupons. The list also contains half a kilo of fish. As a rule, it cannot be bought (it is practically impossible to buy a boat because people may use it to flee, so there is not much fish on the island). You can also buy 100 grams for coffee, 250 ml. of oil, something looking like butter, potatoes and ham.
Coupons are not only used to buy food in Cuba. One tube of toothpaste is given to one family. If there are more than 4 people in a family (it does not matter how many – 5 or 15 family members) they can only buy 2 tubes for coupons. It costs 10 pesos a tube in the black market.
The list also contains two small pieces of soap per family. One piece is for bathing and the other one is for washing clothes. However, Amarilis said that the soap was so stinky that it was impossible to use it.
Everything that can be bought for coupons is used during one week. People have to use the black market for the rest of the month. It is flourishing in Cuba. Everything can be bought there.
The official unemployment rate is 4% in Cuba. However, the first thing I noticed upon my arrival on the island of freedom was crowds of Cubans in streets playing dominoes, talking or just idling. It turned out that the majority of Cubans were jobless. They survived due to stealing and selling things.
For example, it is practically impossible to find beef in shops because killing cows is forbidden in Cuba. However, it can be bought in the black market for about 10 pesos a kilo. Everything sold there is stolen from the state.
That is why people looking for a job are looking for a job that would give an opportunity of stealing. Everything is stolen and sold in Cuba – even answers to university exams. You can exchange the goods for food if you do not have money.
The black market is black but everybody knows about it. The state is overlooking it. Officially jobless people are called “people available for hiring” there.
You should not think about gratuitous assistance in that economic chaos. You can buy cheap and good milk for children under the age of 3 in special shops. Children under the age of 7 have to drink milk of a lower quality.
The Island of Freedom reminded me of a great chaos like in a film about a country after an Apocalypse. It will survive as long as there is something to steal there.
While Amarilis was cooking rice with beans, Fernaris ran out of the house and bought some chicken.
- It’s from the back market, -he explained.
The system of coupons for food and other things was introduced in Cuba 46 years ago. For example, only 3 kilos of rice per person can be bought with coupons for 50 centimes a kilo. Everything exceeding the norm will cost from 3.5 and more pesos a kilo.
- 3 kilos of rice per moths may seem too much for Europeans, - says Amarilis. – But we hardly eat anything else.
You can also buy half a kilo of chicken, about 300 grams of beans and 2 kilos of sugar for coupons. The list also contains half a kilo of fish. As a rule, it cannot be bought (it is practically impossible to buy a boat because people may use it to flee, so there is not much fish on the island). You can also buy 100 grams for coffee, 250 ml. of oil, something looking like butter, potatoes and ham.
Coupons are not only used to buy food in Cuba. One tube of toothpaste is given to one family. If there are more than 4 people in a family (it does not matter how many – 5 or 15 family members) they can only buy 2 tubes for coupons. It costs 10 pesos a tube in the black market.
The list also contains two small pieces of soap per family. One piece is for bathing and the other one is for washing clothes. However, Amarilis said that the soap was so stinky that it was impossible to use it.
Everything that can be bought for coupons is used during one week. People have to use the black market for the rest of the month. It is flourishing in Cuba. Everything can be bought there.
The official unemployment rate is 4% in Cuba. However, the first thing I noticed upon my arrival on the island of freedom was crowds of Cubans in streets playing dominoes, talking or just idling. It turned out that the majority of Cubans were jobless. They survived due to stealing and selling things.
For example, it is practically impossible to find beef in shops because killing cows is forbidden in Cuba. However, it can be bought in the black market for about 10 pesos a kilo. Everything sold there is stolen from the state.
That is why people looking for a job are looking for a job that would give an opportunity of stealing. Everything is stolen and sold in Cuba – even answers to university exams. You can exchange the goods for food if you do not have money.
The black market is black but everybody knows about it. The state is overlooking it. Officially jobless people are called “people available for hiring” there.
You should not think about gratuitous assistance in that economic chaos. You can buy cheap and good milk for children under the age of 3 in special shops. Children under the age of 7 have to drink milk of a lower quality.
The Island of Freedom reminded me of a great chaos like in a film about a country after an Apocalypse. It will survive as long as there is something to steal there.
