Patience...
Ingenuity...
The Cubans have both those qualities in spades.
But there is one trait
that defines Cubans more than any other
and I found it in the last place I expected -
a sleepy little town called Remedios.
I arrived in late December
just in time for an unusual event.
officially it's a festival
but with an unexpected twist.
The town splits down the middle
San Salvador and Carmen
and both sides go to war.
They do battle on three fronts.
One point goes to the best float.
A second for the Wall of Lights.
And the final point
for the most impressive fireworks display.
But this year San Salvador is in trouble.
Their float isn't close to being finished
and the festival is only two days off.
Though they have a foreman,
they work together as a team.
They even manage to keep
their 50-year-old tractor running smoothly.
The whole of San Salvador is counting on them.
Last year Carmen won
and San Salvador wants revenge.
But not all the action's happening in the main square.
On a quiet back street
behind closed doors
Juan Carlo and his team
have been designing and building set pieces
for the float since early September.
This year's theme is The Ocean Paradise.
All that effort
and once the festival is over
they'll just throw it all away.
But the float is only one third of the competition.
The light wall's worth just as much
and it's just as complicated.
5,000 blue light bulbs alone.
And the heart of the entire display
is the bomba.
It's more than half a century old
and everything depends on it.
Metal strips are nailed to the drum
and make the light bulbs blink
in a predetermined pattern.
If they can keep it working.
The final point goes to the homemade fireworks display.
a few years ago the factory blew up
and three men were killed.
Not much has changed since then.
You won't believe what's coming.
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