I woke up today, and I felt pretty
exhausted. The previous day we worked a full shift of community service, and
today would be no different. We have been volunteering at a place called the
Muraleando. It is a public space where artists create and paint murals, bands
play music, and children learn about the arts. Today, we had to pickaxe,
shovel, and level out a giant pile of rock and dirt. It took us about two hours
to completely level everything, but it felt fulfilling to give back the
community. On the other hand, the sun was excruciating while we were working.
The previous days we were lucky enough to work in the shade, but today was not
the case. I usually never get sunburned, but today might break my streak.
The main event for tonight was
going to a cannon ball ceremony. At 8:30 pm, there is a showing of how a
cannonball is shot out of a cannon every night in Havana, and tonight we
finally went to see the show. The place we went to was called the Castillo del
Moro, and it is a fortress that lines on the bay of Havana. There was a bridge
that linked the mainland to the fortress which lead to a souvenir market. After
you walked through the market, you could climb these stairs and reach the
castle wall. The sight was insane from the fort. You could see the entire
skyline and the fact that it was nighttime made it so much more beautiful
because of all the lights.
The ceremony was more elaborate
than I thought it would be. There were men dressed in 1800’s army clothes and
the sound of a drumline followed the men as the carried a torch from the bottom
of the fort wall to the top. The men were yelling something I didn’t really
understand, but it was supposed to signify a ritual done by the cannonball crew.
There were so many people that crowded the showing that I had to fight my way
through the crowd to even see. Once I was in position, me and the other
millennials around me took out our phones and waited till the men prepped the
cannon. The men stuffed the cannon with gun powder, and eventually the man with
the torch ignited the fuse. The sound from the cannon was insanely loud. It was
probably the loudest sound I have heard from such close range. I was kind of
disappointed that the cannon was only shot once, but it was cool to see either
way. This event was on my Havana bucket list, so I can cross that of my list of
things I want to do before I have to leave in the next couple days.
This is a picture of a clown that was made by the artists at
the Muraleando. It is one of my favorite pieces at the facility.
This is the bridge that connects the mainland to the
Castillo del Moro.
This is the inside of the fortress where merchants sell
little knick-knacks to the people that visit the fort.
This is part of the ceremony. The man with the torch lit the
bottom torches before he finally lit the fuse to the cannon.
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