Soul’s Code

A happy happenstance in Havana

This is a peak experience. Young, beautiful, smart and citizen-of-the-world Xuan-An Thai, now resident in upwardly-mobile Austin, Texas, won a nice prize from Soul's Code for this submission in this series about a thousand points of enlightenment. In her own words:

In the past couple of months, alone, I've moved from San Francisco to Sacramento, back to San Francisco, to Houston, and am currently living in Austin, Texas.

Simply put, my life is travel. I went to high school in Quito, Ecuador, lived in Argentina for a couple of years and because of my international background have visited many countries all over the world. Meeting new people, changing  jobs, up-rooting my life, and saying goodbye, is my business. I recently turned 21, and am exhausted of moving; however, my travels have enabled me to take vacations to destinations that wouldn't have otherwise been an option. Cuba is a staple example of one of those places.

This past spring-break, my boyfriend and I finagled a clandestine trip to Cuba, departing from the Dominican Republic. Getting lost around the breezy streets of Central Havana, nose buried in my lonely planet travel guide, my boyfriend and I turned the corner . . . and there she was: this lovely, eccentric old woman, making money off tourists (taking pictures with them).

Happiness is a lit Cuban cigar. Having studied my Lonely Planet book front-to-back, I recognized the woman as the face of the quaintly-titled, "Grandma," in the index. I gave her a couple of coins to take a picture with her, and as my boyfriend was taking it, she put her leg up on mine (yowza).

I couldn't help but smile with surprise.

Sometimes traveling so much can harden you into forgetting the beauty and fun surrounding you.

She had the most wonderful raspy Spanish, despite it being difficult to understand. We didn't talk much, but she was so friendly! I gave her a hug and left with a profound feeling of warmth. Like finding family all over the world.

This picture was taken early March 2009.

NEXT: Cosmic Code, Holy Halo