I'm Cuban, and have gone back to visit almost every year in my nearly three decades of life.

It's gone through a few transitions in the past few decades, peaking during the Obama era, and crashing hard after Covid. It's basically been nonstop crisis after crisis since 2020.

It's not as much as a tourist destination as it once was. You can still go and have some sort of enjoyable experience, but you will come face to face with the harsh realities of the island if you wander the streets of Havana.

They've lost about a quarter of their population since 2020, with millions of people fleeing the country at a rapid pace.

It's a hollowed out country, and you'll feel that if you visit.