16 myths about Cuba that just aren't true

To many Americans, Cuba is enigmatic and exotic — a status due largely to our 50-plus year embargo against the country. And because Internet was unavailable in Cuba for so long, there's a dearth of online information about Cuban — something that the recent loosening of U.S. travel restrictions is helping to rectify, as eager journalists return full of information to impart. (And yes, we hope to be part of that trend; four Oyster employees recently returned from Cuba, and this will be the first of many articles inspired by our trip.)

It's no surprise, then, that so many myths about Cuba persist in American ideologies. We had no idea just how little we truly knew about Cuba before we arrived. These 15 things we thought we knew turned out to be gross misconceptions. 

SEE ALSO: We sent 3 reporters to Cuba for a week, and it was a wild adventure from the moment they arrived

There is no Internet.

We did not expect to find Internet in Cuba at all. All the information we read beforehand suggested that it was scarce, slow, and preposterously expensive, even for tourists. So we kissed our loved ones goodbye and told them to expect radio silence for 10 days. (Because U.S. cell phones don't work either; Cuba can't do business with American companies.) But it turned out that we arrived during an interesting time for Cuba's Internet development — it felt a little bit like the beginning of an Internet revolution. This summer, Internet in hotels cost about 10 CUC an hour (a little over $10), and during our visit in November, the price had dropped to 2 CUC an hour (pretty much universally, because, communism). While this price is still prohibitively expensive for most locals (the average salary is around 20 CUC a month), we saw the better-off Cubans clustering in front of every hotel in Havana to connect to the signal. Almost every hotel we visited in Havana had not only Internet, but also Wi-Fi, at least in the lobby and sometimes in the rooms; the sprawling resorts in Varadero almost all had Wi-Fi in the lobbies (some were getting it added the very week we were there), and occasionally in limited rooms (some luxury resorts had expansions planned). 

So to our surprise, we did use the Internet in Cuba, and though slow, it was perfectly serviceable for sending e-mails, checking Facebook and Instagram, and even reading The New York Times. Facetime didn't work for us, but locals recommend downloading the app imo for video calls and chat before heading to Cuba (it will take too long to download once there). Most of the locals connecting in front of hotels were using imo to speak to relatives outside of the country. In addition, the locals have long been resourceful about working around Cuba's Internet issues by sharing articles, TV shows, and movies on hard drives and memory sticks. Because the Cuban government can no longer blame the U.S. for its Internet issues, Internet conditions will likely continue to improve. 

There is no American television.

We assumed that because American companies can't do business with Cuba, our favorite shows would be unknown there. When a man selling souvenirs told me my purchase would be "legen—wait for it—dary," my jaw dropped. "Are you a fan of 'How I Met Your Mother?'" I asked, and he told me he was, and that Barney was his favorite character. We met several other Cubans who told us "How I Met Your Mother" was their favorite show. Most Cubans are likely getting access to these shows through the aforementioned black market Internet data sharing service, or illegal satellite TVs, though we did visit hotels that carried American channels such as CNN and ESPN. 

You can't bring laptops, fancy equipment or smart phones.

Finding out exactly what was and wasn't allowed through Cuban customs before we left was a bit tricky, especially since the list of prohibited items is subject to change. We found conflicting information on various websites, and were nervous about bringing in our electronic equipment (we'd heard tales of people getting things confiscated with no explanation). The most up-to-date list of permitted and prohibited items can be found on the official Cuban customs website. We got through just fine with our DSLR cameras, laptops, and iPhones. Even though we entered the country with official journalism visas (Cuba has a reputation for, er, not always being friendly to journalists), customs was a breeze. It's possible we just got lucky, though, and a local told us it can depend on the day and the customs official.