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In Cuba often tourist dollars greatly outstrip the local economy. So you're ending up with a situation where qualified doctors are moving in to tourism - waiter

In Cuba often tourist dollars greatly outstrip the local economy. So you're ending up with a situation where qualified doctors are moving in to tourism - waiters, doormen - to earn more money.

smt88 9y ago
Where did you learn about this? I'd like to investigate in more detail.
- kilroy123 9y ago
  I heard the same thing from locals when I was there. I have no other evidence to support this.
  - wcfields 9y ago
    Same here; evidence I have to support is that the ONLY people with (newer) cars [1] were Airbnb hosts. My host not only owned a late-model Suzuki 4door but also was getting into the business of "flipping" old apartments into Airbnbs/Casa particular. Since he had 24 hour access to the internet (somehow?? [2]) he also acted as the agent for other Airbnbs for people that didn't have access. [1] Of course there were people with the old cars, but these were passed down and are, as I understand it, required by law to act as a mini-bus service. [2] Although internet in Cuba is only officially available by buying a hourly code on a scratcher card from the telephone company and then Wifi is in the parks in Havana, I did notice bootleg Wifi SSIDs when walking the streets. They were easy to spot even without "war-walking" since they are a good 1/2 km from any nearby park and had usually a dozen folks on their phones browsing Facebook or using Skype. I suspect it's either an insider connection at the telephone company OR a clandestine Directway / Hughesnet satellite (there are NO visible dishes in Cuba, I believe it must be illegal).
    - wmil 9y ago
      Key West to Havana is only 170 km or so. Can you set up a microwave / laser link over that distance?
- jwilliams 9y ago
  First and second hand (The most timely: I had close friend visit there ~6 months ago). A quick Google turned up a few articles: http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1995-04-17/news/9504170134_1_taxi-drivers-waiters-parking-lot http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1995-04-17/news/950417013... (1995, but there are other sources). Doctors and other higher ed degrees tend to have a strong English component, which is a plus in the tourist industry.
- dharma1 9y ago
  Same experience here when I was there for a couple of months. Taxi drivers (and some other tourism related jobs) get paid and tipped in dollars. Easily 10-50x the income of a doctor being paid the equivalent of $30 in Cuban pesos
- wmil 9y ago
  If you're not American you can go to resorts in Cuba. The staff will openly tell you. It's possible that they are all lying, but the staff said it and the official gov welcomer said it, so it's likely true.
- gaius 9y ago
  Where did you learn about this? I'd like to investigate in more detail. Visit Cuba and talk to people. The barman, the taxi driver, the bellhop, the waiter can easily earn in a day's tips in hard currency, over a month's wages in local currency, especially if they speak good English. It was the same in Russia when the USSR imploded. The chances were your taxi driver in Moscow had a physics PhD and had quit or was moonlighting from their official job in a research institute...

In Cuba often tourist dollars greatly outstrip the local economy. So you're ending up with a situation where qualified doctors are moving in to tourism - waiters, doormen - to earn more money.

smt88 9y ago

Where did you learn about this? I'd like to investigate in more detail.

kilroy123 9y ago
I heard the same thing from locals when I was there. I have no other evidence to support this.
- wcfields 9y ago
  Same here; evidence I have to support is that the ONLY people with (newer) cars [1] were Airbnb hosts. My host not only owned a late-model Suzuki 4door but also was getting into the business of "flipping" old apartments into Airbnbs/Casa particular. Since he had 24 hour access to the internet (somehow?? [2]) he also acted as the agent for other Airbnbs for people that didn't have access. [1] Of course there were people with the old cars, but these were passed down and are, as I understand it, required by law to act as a mini-bus service. [2] Although internet in Cuba is only officially available by buying a hourly code on a scratcher card from the telephone company and then Wifi is in the parks in Havana, I did notice bootleg Wifi SSIDs when walking the streets. They were easy to spot even without "war-walking" since they are a good 1/2 km from any nearby park and had usually a dozen folks on their phones browsing Facebook or using Skype. I suspect it's either an insider connection at the telephone company OR a clandestine Directway / Hughesnet satellite (there are NO visible dishes in Cuba, I believe it must be illegal).
  - wmil 9y ago
    Key West to Havana is only 170 km or so. Can you set up a microwave / laser link over that distance?
jwilliams 9y ago
First and second hand (The most timely: I had close friend visit there ~6 months ago). A quick Google turned up a few articles: http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1995-04-17/news/9504170134_1_taxi-drivers-waiters-parking-lot http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1995-04-17/news/950417013... (1995, but there are other sources). Doctors and other higher ed degrees tend to have a strong English component, which is a plus in the tourist industry.
dharma1 9y ago
Same experience here when I was there for a couple of months. Taxi drivers (and some other tourism related jobs) get paid and tipped in dollars. Easily 10-50x the income of a doctor being paid the equivalent of $30 in Cuban pesos
wmil 9y ago
If you're not American you can go to resorts in Cuba. The staff will openly tell you. It's possible that they are all lying, but the staff said it and the official gov welcomer said it, so it's likely true.
gaius 9y ago
Where did you learn about this? I'd like to investigate in more detail. Visit Cuba and talk to people. The barman, the taxi driver, the bellhop, the waiter can easily earn in a day's tips in hard currency, over a month's wages in local currency, especially if they speak good English. It was the same in Russia when the USSR imploded. The chances were your taxi driver in Moscow had a physics PhD and had quit or was moonlighting from their official job in a research institute...