Other than Humans in Cuba and Mexico

“The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.” ~Mahatma Gandhi

I take too many photographs when I travel. That’s the truth! Yet, when I review the photos I take, they all tell a story than I will remember. Cuba and Mexico had delightful birds, dogs, cats, reptiles, and other creatures. Surprisingly, they all appeared to be in good health and well fed…not like the animals we see in Nicaragua.

The birds of Cuba sang lovely Cuban melodies.

In the Grand Plaza in Patzcuaro, Mexico, we could sit for hours and watch the children chase the pigeons.

The cats in Mexico and Cuba had rooftop communities, but they would come down from their perches above to be fed.

The dogs in Mexico and Cuba were curious, friendly, and well fed. Even if they were street dogs, they were playful.

These critters were all from Cuba, except for the water snake. My favorite was the Cuban Hutia. It has a rope-like tail and long front teeth. The Hutia can grow more than half a meter in length and weigh more than a dog. It reminded me of a giant rat.

The most interesting experience we had was the crab skid in Cuba. I have a few pictures of this wild ride, but it is hard to get the full scope of the number of crabs crossing the road, so this photo is not mine. We took a taxi to and from Vinales to Cienfuegos. On a stretch of the road near the ocean, thousands of crabs migrated across the road to lay their eggs. Then when the baby crabs hatch, they have to scurry across the road to get back to the ocean. This is an annual event in March. We crunched and skidded over crab guts and the smell…oh you can only imagine the smell. The taxi driver had to go slow because it was like driving on ice. Then, he had to stop the taxi and check to make sure none of the crabs got stuck in his tires. Crazy!

A man driving a vintage car reacts as he passes by crabs crossing a highway on their way to spawn in the sea in Playa Giron, Cuba, April 21, 2017. Picture taken on April 21, 2017. REUTERS/Alexandre Meneghini TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY

My impression of Cuba and Mexico based on the other than humans we encountered is that there is some good moral progress going on in both countries…except for maybe the crabs.