I'm kind of bummed about Obama's Cuba trip. But not for the reason you think.

I'm kind of bummed about Obama's Cuba trip. But not for the reason you
think.
Christopher Reynolds

President Obama isn't scheduled to land in Cuba until March 21, but I'm
already getting wistful over the red tape that's likely to be cut. The
truth is, I love the idea behind some of that red tape, and it has
nothing to do with Che Guevara, cigars or cars with tail fins.

Since the Clinton Administration loosened limits on travel to the
island, legions of Americans headed to Cuba have been subject to a
"people-to-people" requirement that visitors can't just flop on the
beach, groove on music, hoard cigars and drink rum.

Under the requirements, Americans are supposed to make sustained and
repeated social contact – to spend face time with rank-and-file Cubans
-- not just government officials and bartenders.

As a result, thousands of travelers have been talking to thousands of
teachers, students, artists, performers, athletes and workaday families.
It isn't a perfect program—in fact it can be maddeningly vague. (Some
details.)

But our leaders' idea was that, in an open conversation, American values
would shine through and the unworthiness of Cuba's regime would be made
clear.

And here's a nice twist: Cuba's leaders liked the idea, too, because
they figured an open conversation would reveal Cuban values and the
silliness of American propaganda.

Anyway, rank-and-file Americans and Cubans have been talking to each
other in ever-greater numbers, which, from where I sit, can only be
good. Because some Americans aren't all that good at talking to strangers.

Until they land on one of these itineraries, plenty of American
travelers "are not accustomed to visiting kids in a school or going to a
community project. Or going into somebody's home," said Tom Popper,
president of New York-based InsightCuba tours.

Too many American travelers, TV travelogue host and guidebook
author Rick Steves said, "just want Lalaland in their travels. They
don't want to get out of their comfort zone."

But so often, the greatest rewards lie just beyond the reach of your
comfort zone (and your selfie stick). And once abroad, people typically
find they have more in common than their governments want to admit.

Many Europeans learn this quickly because they live so close together.
The idea comes more slowly to many Americans, because most of us have
never left this country. (Of about 322 million Americans, only about 126
million have passports.)

So at the moment, to quality for a general license from the Department
of the Treasury – that is, to visit Cuba without any special paperwork –
your trip needs to fit into one of 12 approved categories, including
family visits, professional exchanges, religious activities,
philanthropy, sports competitions, etc. People-to-people educational
activities is one of them.

But the president will visit March 21 and 22, which could ease the way
for more flights, more cruise ships, more mass tourism, fewer
restrictions. And come January a new president will push a new Cuba policy.

Where our Cuba posture gets more friendly or less friendly, there's a
good chance the Cuban people-to-people program will go away. And that
has me a little sad. And thinking about the rest of the world.

What if we travelers left governments out of this and made
person-to-person contact a higher priority on all our trips? What if we
borrowed a few tactics from folks in the people-to-people business?

As it happens, I have a few right here.

Set a local goal. Then get help. Tour operator InsightCuba's guides like
to send travelers to the farmers market with 5 Cuban convertible pesos
(roughly the median weekly Cuban wage) with the assignment of buying all
ingredients for a group meal.

"The idea is to see how hard it is to get together the meal," said
InsightCuba's Popper. Suddenly, conversations with vendors get more
detailed, haggling happens, a little money gets spread around, "and
they'll have an interaction that you don't see at most farmers markets."

Hire a local guide, preferably without a big bus. Consult the web and
guidebooks to find a local guide with good references. These people can
build an itinerary around your interests and make introductions.

In Europe, Rick Steves said, he often pays about $100 a day --"a great
deal for him [or her] and a great deal for me."

Make eye contact and start conversations. After all, what's the point in
trying to pass as a local? In the unlikely event that you succeed,
nobody will explain anything to you. Take your usual precautions when
away from home, but wear your curiosity on your sleeve.

Ask directions, even if you already know them. And allow yourself time
for these contacts to grow into larger adventures.

Make ear contact too. Stash those earbuds. Especially if you're on foot
in a city, you're going to hear telltale sounds. Chase them down (within
reason) and you'll meet artisans working, monks chanting, kids singing,
musicians practicing, animals eating – you name it.

Go to church. Or temple. Or mosque. Most religious gathering places are
happy to see visitors. Show respect and curiosity and a warm welcome is
likely to follow.

Go to college – or a collegiate neighborhood. No matter your age, odds
are good you'll find some people with flexible schedules who want to
practice their English.

Do it alone. Or as a group. As InsightCuba's Popper notes, group trips
can ease access; it's easier for a known organization to book a visit to
a school, for instance. But as Steves notes, independent travelers,
exploring the world alone or in small, self-directed groups, have the
flexibility to embrace serendipity in a way that no larger group can.

Look beyond the usual hotel suspects. At a minimum, personalize the
experience by chatting up your hotel's staff. Better yet, try a B&B or
homestay, perhaps through Airbandb or VRBO. On a homestay in a Cuban
casa particular early this year, Steves frequently found himself at on
the rooftop patio, talking politics with his hosts and other locals.

"If you can go to a bar and meet strangers, that's wonderful," Steves
said. "But there are all sorts of ways you can have these
people-to-people experiences."

If these kinds of contacts boosted profits for cruise companies,
hoteliers and the people who run casinos and theme parks, the travel
industry would do more to make them happen. But they don't.

If it's not really our government's job to make us into citizen
diplomats, this stuff is up to us.

christopher.reynolds@latimes.com

Twitter: @mrcsreynolds

Source: I'm kind of bummed about Obama's Cuba trip. But probably not for
the reason you think. - LA Times -
http://www.latimes.com/travel/deals/la-trb-obama-cuba-sad-people-idea-20160229-story.html