After visiting with Mr. Tacher we moved on to the city of Cienfuegos. Within this beautiful city, a small and vibrant community of about 40 people is practicing their Judaism. Rebeca Langus, a school teacher, is the community’s leader and the front room of her second floor apartment (the house has two floors) is the center of the Jewish community in Cienfuegos. She shares this apartment with her husband Ramon and her two sons, David and Danielito. People come here for services, to study Hebrew and Jewish history, and to read the religious texts and other books that Jews from all over have donated. Her son is an artist and we visited his gallery while in Cienfuegos. Several of the people in my group bought some of his works. Rebeca told us “When you are few, there is a responsibility to keep traditions; educating the children is the only way to keep the community alive.” She tells visitors about how pleased she is to be able to practice her Jewish faith and about the challenges the community faces that include the need for medicine and basic necessities of daily life (such as toiletries and underwear), the lack of books about Jewish life, Hebrew and religious texts, and the substandard housing.

She actually is fortunate to be living in such a nice apartment.

CIENFUEGOS SYNAGOGUE

Rebeca Langus and her son	Small Synagogue/living room in Rebeca's apartment
Small Judaica library used by the community

This was a long and yet very fulfilling day for all of us since we once again had bundles of supplies which we happily donated to both of these communities. The day ended beautifully with our settling into a lovely and picturesque hotel on the bay, and a sunset cruise with an open bar.

Our donations were not solely directed towards Jewish groups. The next day we visited an at risk pregnancy clinic where we donated bundles of baby and grooming supplies (shampoos, skin creams, etc.) hopefully making life a little easier for the women who lived there. We then drove on to Trinidad, a city southeast of Cienfuegos. Trinidad is known for its craft market where hundreds of artists are selling everything from clothing to paintings. It was a lot of fun walking through the streets and enjoying the ambiance. 

TRINIDAD

Welcome to Trinidad	Main Square
Craft Market	Vista from Trinidad Tower
Plaza Major
	Potter in his studio