Cubans are smart, very smart. According to "The Fact Life," Cuba has one of the highest literacy rates in the world at 99.8%.
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The Alleys and Side Streets of Cuba
Cuba has around 37,800 miles of roads. Of that number, close to 20,000 miles are unpaved. That said, some downtown streets may have been paved 40 years ago and not touched since. So, what maybe a paved route, could easily feel and look unpaved.
Read MoreThe Mogotes of Viñales Valley
Viñales Valley was designated as a World Heritage Site in 1999 and is protected by the Cuban Government as a National Park. Due to the area being a World Heritage Site, it is also protected by the United Nations with an international treaty.
Read MoreLife on the Street
Dave Walker lives in his van in Murfreesboro, TN near Nashville. In this 10 minute he talks about some of the things he has seen or heard in the past 8 months.
Read MoreAnimals are Everywhere in Cuba
Animals of all sizes walk where they want to walk. From the nicer restaurants in town where you find dogs inside, to the mom and pop locations in the farmland - animals are everywhere.
Read MoreThe Cars of Cuba
The late Fidel Castro banned imports of vehicles in 1959. Cuba doesn't have an auto manufacturer, so the cars that were imported in the 50's were there to stay. The communist leader also banned the import of car parts, according to the "Independent UK Newspaper."
Read MoreWhat Cuba Could Be
The sun falling on downtown Havana showed the true Cuban dream of success had washed away into the Caribbean years ago. An area that was alive with music, families and more in the 1940's and 50's is decaying as if it was struck by a curse in 2000's.
Read MoreYou are confined to your state - No leaving
Taxi drivers in Cuba are the most open when they talk about the dream of travel. Why? Because they meet travelers from around the world daily.
Read MoreBlue Skies and the Colors of Cuba
Every once in a while I came across that picture perfect setting that highlighted what Havana, Cuba once looked like in the 1940's.
Read More9:30 at Night - Capital of Cuba
Cuba at 9:30 PM Eastern Time: The capital of Havana is only a whisper outside on a Thursday night, other than a few passing cars. As you walk into one of the many apartment buildings you hear kids playing in one unit and as you continue down the florescent lit hallway, you hear the sound of a small yelping dog.
Read MoreA tune for the plants with a touch of aqua
Hours passed as he sat on the curb of a Cuban hotel in downtown Havana strumming his ukulele. As the hours went by he would get up and pour some of his water bottle on the plants directly behind him, one by one.
Read MoreThe Streets of Cuba
You hear songs talking about Havana and you may watch old movies make mention of the romantic capital of Cuba - so you would think it is just that... beautiful.
Read MoreCommunist Vladimir Lenin
In downtown Seattle there is a statue of communist Vladimir Lenin that stands 16 feet tall.
The statue was originally on display in Czechoslovakia in the late 1980's, but shipped to Seattle Washington in 1994 after an American found it in a scrapyard in 1993.
A teacher in Washington told friends and the media that he found a homeless man living inside the hollowed bronze statue.
The goal of English teacher Lewis E. Carpenter was to keep it for its artistic merit. Carpenter also wanted to display the statue of Lenin in front of a Slovak restaurant in his hometown of Issaquah, Washington. However, he died in a car wreck before building his restaurant which means the statue never went up. In fact, the statue made it from Czechoslovakia to America shortly after his death.
In the end, the statue was delivered and the family of Carpenter planned to sell it and have it melted down.
However, the owner of a foundry in Seattle decided to have it displayed in the Fremont area of Seattle, Washington.
In 1995, it was unveiled at the corner of Evanston Avenue North and North 34th Street. In 1996, it was moved up to Fremont Place and North 36th Avenue.
In case you are wondering how much such a statue of a communist goes for... it is for sale with a price-tag of $250,000 on it. Yes, it is still for sale.
On a side note, the English teacher who died before his dream was realized had to take out a new mortgage on his home to pay for the statue to be shipped overseas. That shipping rang in at $70,000. The cost of the statute however, free.
I guess my question, art or not, why would you want a 16 foot communist leader in front of any business? Especially one that is believed to be behind mass killings during his rule over the Soviet Union. That is likely why ever since the statue went up in Washington State, people have painted blood on Lenin's hand and mouth.
Ocoee River
There was lots of action on the Ocoee River this weekend. The river flows through the Southern Appalachian Mountains of the Southeastern United States. Whitewater competitions got underway this past Friday.
Hear the complete story below (5 Min and 45 Sec)....
Gold mining in Alaska
Mining for gold in Alaska was once what made Alaska a place to explore. It put the once nearly deserted state that has the land mass of most countries on the map.
You can find remnants of Alaska's past in areas like Juneau still sitting deep in the woods. This mining car is one of several historical reminders that Juneau was part of the writing of Alaskan history when it comes to gold.
For Alaska, the gold boom started in 1870 or so with the first big loot being discovered in Juneau.
The old White Pass train
The old White Pass train travels the scenic Yukon Route multiple times daily in Skagway, Alaska. The locomotive and passenger cars are on what is called a narrow-gauge rail that originally linked Skagway to Whitehorse, the capital of Yukon.
Read MoreThe busy streets below
The hustle and bustle on a Saturday night in downtown Nashville, Tennessee.
“Beware the barrenness of a busy life.”
Just sitting around smoking weed
On the streets in Canada he was smoking his weed, but then again... he knows what he is doing because as you can see his sign shows that he is a doctor.
His hat read, “Police Box.” The Police Box is a public callbox to call police or for members of the police department to use to contact their headquarters. They were used between the late 1890's up until the 1920's in both America and in the UK. It was also used as a miniature police office for officers to fill out reports in.
In case you are curious, Canada was the second nation in the world to legalize marijuana. It became legal under "The Cannabis Act."
Broke Back, but Sober... Laughter Wins
His Starbucks Coffee had the name Patricia on it, his leftover food on his chair to the left of his foot was handed to him by a passerby, he broke his back.... but, he had humor and sobriety on his side.
Jason, who is on the streets of Seattle, Washington, knows that laughter helps him and others make it through the ups and downs in life.
A 2017 article in Forbes Magazine by David DiSalvo highlighted the pros to laughing and feeling good noting:
Laughter is an endorphin releaser
Laughter forms social bonds
Laughter fosters brain connectivity
Women typically laugh 126% more than men
Men usually instigate laughter
Laughter activates the release of the neurotransmitter serotonin
Laughter helps your heart... it has an anti-inflammatory
“Live with intention. Walk to the edge. Continue to learn. Play with abandon. Choose with no regret. Laugh! Do what you love. Love as if this is all there is.”
Aspire and Inspire
He is blind, but stands singing while skillfully playing his guitar at Pikes Place Market in Seattle. He is known as Strumming Blind Chad.
Success is not about money, it is about inspiring and aspiring to reach your goals, your potential. Perhaps that means learning to play a guitar when you are blind, learning to stand before others and sing... or in Chad's case, both.
“Don’t just create; create to change; change to improve; improve to increase. Aspire to inspire.
Don’t just fit in; make it a point to brighten your corner.”