Oye , a Girl From Miami posts: You Know You’re Cuban If… My favorite Cubanism Ileana mentions is:

“you clap whenever your plane lands on the runway.”

Why is that? I figure it’s either: Cubans don’t trust modern aviation or they just love to travel.

For the most part, I find Cubans to be warm and friendly people. They are known for their: cigars, mojitos, communism, Salsa (not the Mexican kind) and going to great lengths to immigrate here.

In 1980, about 125,000 Cuban refugees, many of whom were criminals in Castro’s jails, came to the United States in the Mariel boat lift. President Jimmy Carter accepted them, a decision that was unpopular with many Americans.

Some people say Cubans talk loud, but I have some Puerto Rican friends, so I disagree.

Famous people who were born in Cuba or who are of Cuban descent include: Ricky Ricardo, Elian Gonzalez , Fidel Castro, Andy Garcia, Jeff Bezos and Cameron Diaz.

There are many Cuban professional baseball players in the U.S., but right now I can only remember the Dominican ones.

If you want good Cuban food in Miami Beach, go to Puerto Sagua and order the Palomino Steak with rice and beans. I’ve never been to Yuca on Lincoln Road. You can also try Gloria Estefan’s restaurant, Lario’s on Ocean Drive, but read the Lario’s reviews before you go.

Need more Cuban profiling? Rent “Godfather II”. You can also visit Babalú a local blog that follows Cuban politics and culture.

Update: The scenes in “Godfather II” where Michael and Fredo visit Havana were filmed in the Dominican Republic. My bad.

Gus Moore heads up Miami Beach 411 as site administrator, where he has been helping people understand how Miami works for over a decade. See more articles by Gus >