Partying in Regla
Brandon Davis
This was our second trip to Regla. On the first trip we toured the Church of Our Lady of Regla, the Cuban Black Virgin. We also visited a museum of Cuban history and Santeria or Regla de Ocha. On this trip we came to see a festival honoring the Orichas. To get to Regla you have to take a ferry from Havana Vieja. It is so close you can actually see Regla from Havana. Havana is a port city that sits on the Canal de Entrada. Within the Havana Port at the back of the canal sits Regla. The ferry ride only takes a few short minutes but it takes you to an entirely different part of Cuba. Regla is not as populated, the houses are bigger and the streets are quitter.
The parade was put on by the children of Regla. Dressed in elaborate costumes, the children paraded and preformed ceremonial dances up and down the streets to crowds of hundreds. It seemed like the entire city came out to celebrate with the children. The artist we had met prior, Juan, a resident of Regla himself, arranged for us to have a rooftop view of the parade. It was a wonderful experience. To see such a proud people express their love for the religion that had seen them through slavery and oppression was awe inspiring. There was an audio system that played the songs and rhythmic beats throughout the streets and people danced and thoroughly enjoyed themselves. It reminded me a lot of the Mardi Gras in my home state of Alabama.
After the festival, we were all invited to Juan’s home which was passed down to him from his parents. It was a beautiful two level house not too far from the parade route. Upon arriving, we were given Cuban coffee and eventually rum and sugar cane juice. Cuban rum is especially good. It does not contain all the fillers and chemical extras that commercial alcohol has in the U.S. Then the music started playing….We all unwind, danced and enjoyed each other’s company. Before we knew it was getting dark and breakfast had been all but forgotten. So Juan, Henry and myself set out to replenish the refreshments and get pizza for everyone. We took everyone’s individual pizza order and placed it at the local eatery not far from the house. The restaurant, not being accustomed to meeting the demand of a random 15 pizzas took 45 minutes or so to complete our order. In the meantime, we returned to Juan’s home and continued to enjoy the music and hospitality of Juan. When we returned with the pizzas everything but the music stopped while everyone gorged themselves of the most wonderful homemade pizza. As a cook, I appreciated the quality of the dough, sauce, and toppings used to make the pizzas. It was a true culinary experience. Everything was fresh and homemade. It was one of the best pizzas I had ever eaten.
After we had all filled our bellies, we continued to laugh, dance, and learn about Cuban traditions. The only thing that stopped the gathering was the fact that we had to catch the last ferry back to Havana! Unaware as to what time it was we had to make haste to the port. But the festivities did not end. We sang and laughed all the way to the ferry. Once on the ferry we continued to embrace the experience. I have traveled some but there is no place that I have been that can compare to Cuba. There will always be a special place in my heart for the country and for the people that make it a nation. I will always remember the time I went to “Mardi Gras” in Regla.