read moreOn July 10, after spending nine days abroad, one of the two cultural delegations consisting of the V.I.’s Rising Stars Steel Orchestra’s Pan in Motion Group and two mocko jumbies from the Caribbean Ritual Dancers returned from Santiago de Cuba.
The journey marked the first time a U.S. Virgin Islands delegation was invited to participate in the Fiesta del Fuego, one of the Cuban Ministry of Culture’s most significant cultural events, and it has been taking place for 36 years.
For some of the students, it was their first time traveling outside of the country. They left the Virgin Islands as musicians and performers, and returned as cultural ambassadors with a greater understanding and appreciation for Cuban culture and its people.
Conversely, Cuba has a greater understanding and appreciation for USVI culture and its people.
The history between U.S. and Cuba has been strained for more than 50 years. This year’s invitation provided an opportunity for the Virgin Islands to renew a socio-cultural-economic relationship with Cuba, which could become far-reaching.
Through music, art and conversation, the USVI delegation and the Cuban people were able to gain new insights and perspectives and build and strengthen connections.
Here are some of the impressions the student ambassadors had of Cuba, in their own words:
Irvin Mason Jr., 18, graduated this year from All Saints Cathedral School, and he is a mocko jumbie with the Caribbean Ritual Dancers.
“Cuba made me appreciate more what I have, as a Virgin Islander. You can see the struggles they are going through, everyone works so hard.
It has been amazing to see how the Cubans react to us, they are so friendly. They accepted us into their culture from the moment we arrived.
My favorite experience was the parade. I swear the whole of Santiago was on the parade route. They were energetic. They were screaming, and having a great time. They come out from the beginning to the end, and they stay and watch.
I wonder how they sustain living there. The housing is not the best; the infrastructure is not the best. In the Virgin Islands we have a good life. I personally can’t complain about our life in the Virgin Islands anymore, because there they basically live off of nothing. The only thing they have is their culture, and that is their driving force.
And it is amazing to see that even though they have nothing, they still enjoy life. They wake up every day and they are happy. I did not experience someone who is upset in Cuba.
Appreciate your culture more; appreciate what you have. Learn about it. Embrace it, because there are other places that don’t have as much as we do.”
Julian Dukes, an alumni of All Saints, has been playing steel pan for more than 11 years. He started playing with Rising Stars and then later joined Pan in Motion. He played the guitar pan while in Cuba.
“I felt proud to be a Virgin Islander. I felt proud at the events when we got such a big applause, people would come up to us and ask about the band, where we are from, and if we had CDs. The people were so amazed.
At Guantanamo, once we got warmed up and into our groove, the crowd did not want us to stop. Whenever we stopped, they would shout out, ‘Musica! Musica!’ It was really good, a heartwarming feeling.”
K’Risa Chesterfield, 16, is a senior at Charlotte Amalie High School and has been a member of the Rising Stars for six years.
“When we were in the festival for the parade, we went into the square — they have a square like we have the post office square. My proudest moment was playing the Cuban National Anthem and then playing the V.I. Anthem right after. No one was expecting us to play the Cuban National Anthem. I felt like I was an ambassador for the Virgin Islands. They showed respect to our flag, like we showed respect to theirs. That was my proudest moment in Cuba as a Virgin Islander.
It really hit me when we went to Guantanamo to the West Indian center. We walked in and we saw all these flags, and right there at the door was the V.I. flag from the 50s. And we were holding the flag and it looked drawn on. The texture of the flag was so delicate, you could see rips but they sewed it back up. And I was, like, wow! Look how long the Virgin Islands hasn’t interacted with Cuba. And when we replaced the old flag with the new flag — to see the joy on the people’s faces. There was a lady from the Virgin Islands, and she lit up because the Virgin Islands is her home, and here we are in Cuba — in 2016 and giving them a new flag.
The Cubans are very friendly; they are not afraid to get close. The best performance was the one in Guantanamo. They were really enjoying it and a lady came up to me and said, ‘This is my music.’ She is from Cuba and she told me this is her music.
When we played with the Cuban Steel Band, the performance showed me that music is really universal because they were playing songs that we play at home, oh my gosh. I really enjoyed playing everywhere in Cuba. The people really enjoyed it. I think they loved us.
I would not change the trip at all. I would do it again. I wish to go back to Cuba one day.”
Janelle Hodge, 15, is a student at Charlotte Amalie High School and has been playing with the Rising Stars for six years and is in her third year in Pan in Motion.
“Before I came to Cuba, I did not know what to expect because everyone was telling us that we have to be mindful because they have been shut off from the rest of the world for a lot of years now. And, so we couldn’t be greedy and had to be thankful for what we have because things are parceled. Going to Cuba was not like what I expected. It was amazing. I felt like I was back home. The food was amazing. The different sites were amazing.
My proudest moment was when we went to Guantanamo and played there. I would let children come and play on the steel pan so that they would have that memory. It was awesome being able to share that experience with people younger than me.
Cuba has a bunch of history and people have a lot of pride. It was amazing. You don’t even miss your phone here. I will come back. I want to bring my family.”
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