Different cultures. / Diferentes culturas.

Remedios, Cuba.

Gold Coast, Australia.

                                                         

Australians travel the world, something that my husband and I enjoy too. In a recent trip we went to Miami, Florida hoping to meet some Cubans now living there.

I was surprised how different my way of thinking is with these Cubans. I thought they lived a relatively similar life to mine, living out of Cuba in America, a country very similar to Australia. But soon I noticed they have not assimilated to the new culture, they talk like they are still in Cuba, and they have not changed their way of thinking. It is hard to comprehend how they do not speak English, living and working in a English speaking nation.

It’s interesting, because my way of thinking has changed so much in Australia, I feel like a new person from what I was before, I feel a happier and more confident person that has left behind a world of low self-esteem and inferiority complex very often seen in Cuba. I have achieved this through reflection, reading and my willingness to be a better person.

I arrived very young to Australia and I had an identity crisis in a new place with new people, different traditions and interests. In order to survive I had to adapt to the new circumstances. It was hard and painful at first but I am very happy now when I see where would I be as a person if I did not change.