A young Cuban woman living in Costa Rica shared on TikTok her excitement and the impact of her first visit to a Walmart, an experience that led her to reflect on the harsh realities of daily life in Cuba.
"I'm going to put my first time at Walmart into context... I want you to join me in experiencing this because, my love, just look at this: I have never seen a place with so many things in my life," said the young woman identified as @la.cubanita0003 as she walked through the supermarket aisles.
Caught between surprise and sadness, the Cuban woman recounted how in her country she never had the option to freely choose what she wanted to buy. “In Cuba, you can't choose what you want; you choose what is available. You can't shop for pleasure; you shop out of necessity, if there is anything to buy,” she expressed with visible emotion.
The influencer added that, although for many the abundance of shelves seems like something ordinary, for her it was a wake-up call: "Here there is everything, and over there many times there is not even anything. I'm not saying this from a place of envy or resentment, but from a place of sadness."
With a trembling voice, the young woman acknowledged that her first visit to Walmart did not bring her joy, but rather deep reflection: "This place didn't make me happy, it made me think, it made me remember, and above all, it made me miss so much."
Finally, he left a message that has touched thousands of users on social media: “When you leave Cuba, you don’t leave with a suitcase; you leave with a whole country in your heart. I hope that one day abundance doesn't hurt, and I hope that one day what is normal can also be possible there.”
The video, filmed in a Walmart in Costa Rica, has gone viral on TikTok, accumulating thousands of views and comments from Cubans who relate to its testimony and the contrast between the freedom to choose in exile and the ongoing scarcity on the island.
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