Maria's House by wysiwig
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Description
The King Ranch is miles from any major road. It’s relatively remote location makes commuting out of the question. As a result there is a small village on the property for the workers and their families. While a step up from the shack in my previous post “Country Life” they are still pretty basic.
https://www.renderosity.com/mod/gallery/country-life/2665736/
We visited Maria’s house where we were treated to her famous coconut cookies. Here you can see her sewing room with the latest model Singer sewing machine.
Our guide Jorge is a proud Cuban but this was the only time I heard him express shame for the living conditions of these ranch families. He expressed the hope that they would soon have better shelter.
After our visit we were treated to demitasse cups of Cuban coffee. I am a lifelong tea drinker. Growing up I had tried my mother’s coffee. She brewed it
the traditional American way, boiling water passed through ground coffee and allowed to drip into a pot. The coffee would then sit on the stove all day, reheated again and again, until it was bitter and had the consistency of mud. Needless to say I was not a fan. But here I was in a foreign country being offered the people’s hospitality. So I tried a cup and it was wonderful. I was told that the Cubans do not roast their coffee beans like other producers and that makes all the difference. If you are going to Cuba, or know someone who is, get your hands on a bag of whole beans.
Comments (10)
Faemike55
cool pictures - both of them show a simpler lifestyle that we have forgotten. While I understand the aspect of Jorge's shame, there is the point that these people can and do survive under conditions that would put most Americans into a panic.
I love that carriage in the top photo
kgb224
Stunning capture my friend. God bless.
SunriseGirl
This is a great split image of the conditions in which Maria lives. I understand Jorge's shame on one hand, but on the other hand what a beautiful place to live and without reliance on outside influences. There is something to be said for a simpler life in some ways. And how fortunate that you discovered the delicious Cuban coffee.
giulband
Very good documentation !!
Cyve
Great place and fantastic captures my friend !!!
durleybeachbum
So interesting about the coffee! I like instant myself. My mother in law made her tea first thing and the metal pot sat on the stove all day, with similar results... So I am a lifelong coffee drinker!
MrsRatbag
I would prefer a more basic sort of living myself, less to feel worry about, and closer to the land. Although I have to admit I do love some of my comforts, like hot water whenever I want it...
Madbat
My grandma had a sewing machine like that back in the 30's lol. It came with a box of....implements....
netot
When I see those walls and I think cyclones and hurricanes, I feel sorry for those people!
anahata.c
You got some very interesting comments here. When I looked in your gallery, I realized there are some recent shots I haven't commented on...so before I go back to those older shots, I want to finish the Cuba series first.
Real clarity in both shots, esp in zoom. Lots of fine light and deep shadow too. And I like all the linear detail in the top shot (in the carriage, the thatched roof, the leaves, etc). And it's composed in a very balanced way too. The room shot is sweet as well, w/ a kind of cavern as we move down to the floor. Sweet detail; and the light winnowing through is nice too.
As always, your narratives are revealing of many facets of life. While one wishes the people you speak of had more to live with, there's a certain simpleness and clarity that goes with it all which perhaps we citified people romanticize. (And wrongly.) But your pics convey an openness and clarity.
Re that "atomic mud" (what we would've called your grandmother's coffee): She must've known my mother, because my mother did the same thing. My mom SWORE by that stuff---esp by the end of the day. I have never had unroasted beans. Though I don't drink coffee anymore, I'll see if I can try some one day...
Finally, your comment on my "popping up in the morning" was a riot. (Andrea got a kick out of it too, I think.) My college girlfriend used to say, in the morning, "how do you live with that thing?" I told her that "that thing" isn't the most encouraging way to speak of it. Later, that line showed up on Seinfeld, and I swore they stole it from my girlfriend. (They didn't.) Anyway, your comments are always a joy, and I read them in whoever's gallery I'm in.