The Brown & White

With spring break long and gone, what is next? Greek week, finals, and then, Bob's your uncle, the year is over.

So now is the time to apply for as many jobs and internships as your patience can endure. Get busy - many of your peers already have May to August all planned out.

But it is also important to enjoy life this summer. We should all drink and be merry. We should talk to strangers, travel and learn different cultures and languages.

Do not wait until you are retired to enjoy life and discover the human family. By then, it might be too late.

So how does one reconcile summer break, drinking, political activism and the pursuit of a fruitful life? The answer sits just south of Florida: Cuba.

By visiting Cuba, you will become a fully fledged political activist. You will go against the U.S. embargo (this is illegal) and support the poor of the island. Your interactions with Cubans will ameliorate America's image and your money will help improve the population's poverty.

Now is the time. When the embargo falls, Starbucks, McDonald's and Hilton will flood this Caribbean paradise and wreak havoc to its quaint atmosphere.

So go buy a ticket to Montreal or Mexico City. Before leaving, pull out a wad of cash so that you need not use your credit cards. Let's say about $600 to $1,500.

Once in Mexico City, or her francophone sister, go to the travel agent within the airport and buy your ticket to Havana. This should cost about $400 and you might have to spend a night in the city - which is not at all a bad thing.

Don't be afraid to use your American passport. Cuban officials love U.S. tourists and their U.S. bank accounts.

However, you will need to give the name of a hotel in Havana, so look one up ahead of time. Also be prepared to spend about $30 on an "entrance visa."

Once you get your luggage, you will need to rent a car. This will involve haggling in broken English. And if you are not 21, it will also involve some bribing.

No matter what, do not dash down to Havana and blow all your cash on cigars and rum. I suggest you spend another 30 minutes in the airport lobby and do two things.

Convert half your dollars into pesos and save the other half for tips and shady dealings. Stores will want the local currency, but the dollar is still popular amongst the poor.

Finally, go to the informational center and book a hotel outside of Havana. A litany of Cancun-type resorts plagues the northeastern coast. Spending your money at these places does not help the locals, only rich Europeans.

The best bet is the old resorts from the '30s about a half hour east of Havana. The beaches are virgin, and the complexes help you sense what Cuba was like before Fidel Castro - back when Cuba was America's playground.

The staffs at all these places are all very friendly. And the clientele is cosmopolitan: Russian, Canadian, German, French and almost nobody from the United States.

Once you have all this sorted out, the week is yours.

You can drive to Guantanamo, but I do not recommend this; there is nothing to see. You can also go to the central mountains and do some ecotourism. Or you can drive four hours to the western tip and go scuba diving.

At your Havana resort made of crumbling concrete painted pink and green, you will meet some interesting people. Go for a run on the beach and talk with locals who hold beach parties. At night, eat at the beach shacks whilst listening to poor Buena Vista Social Club cover bands.

Visit Ernest Hemingway's house, a U.S. historical monument. Tour the Capitol Building. It has an eerie resemblance with the one we have in D.C.

But most of all, just spend most of your time meandering the city's coastline and suburbs. The architecture is amazing and the youths are dying to talk to Americans.

Also, experience one day of luxury. Go to Parque Central. Buy some cigars and think about how lucky you are.

At this moment, as you sigh in relief, you will forget about poverty. You will even forget who you are. All you will feel is relaxation and that warm feeling you get when you appreciate the diversity of mankind.