Iceland's only Cuban
Buena Vista Social Club appearing at Laugardalshöll in Reykjavík in 2001. Guðmundur Rúnar Guðmundsson
What's it like to be Iceland's only Cuban? The question originally appeared on Quora and was answered by Leonardo Moran, author of Cuba: A Leap of Faith and the blog Cuban Lives. Moran was the only Cuban living in Iceland in 2001 and was, for this reason, invited by the President of Iceland to attend a reception with The Buena Vista Social Club.
"In 2001, I found myself in an awkward situation: I was Iceland’s only Cuban. One day I got a call from the Office of the President. This honor is not as unusual as you might think. Iceland’s population then numbered 285,000, not counting puffins. You could run into him at the public swimming pools, at a bar, even at McDonald’s. The Buena Vista Social Club was coming to Reykjavík. He was holding a reception in their honor at Bessastaðir, the presidential residence. I was invited because “you’re our only Cuban.”
Moran goes on to describe the reception, his encounter with the band and meeting the President in this entertaining post on Slate.com.
