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In a neighborhood of Santiago de Cuba, a group of grandmothers listened with fascination to a visitor who had just returned from Istanbul. The questions came quickly: they wanted to know if Turkish men were really as handsome as they appeared on television and if the houses were as large and luxurious as those they saw in their favorite novels.
When they were asked where they would travel if they could leave the island, the immediate response was Turkey.
The scene was described in a report published by Türkiye Today, which explores how Turkish soap operas, known as dizis, have managed to cross oceans and reach Cuban households, where they have become an unexpected window to another world.
Although Turkey and Cuba are separated by thousands of kilometers, Turkish television productions have found a loyal audience on the island, often thanks to El Paquete Semanal, the popular informal system for distributing digital content that circulates each week on memory drives and hard disks.
In living rooms across Havana, Santiago, or any Cuban city, tales of palace intrigues, impossible romances, and luxurious lifestyles have captivated audiences of all ages.
Among the most talked-about names is that of actor Can Yaman, an international star who stars in the series El Turco and has become an idol for many fans.
For many Cuban grandmothers, these television dramas are not just entertainment. They are also a way to imagine other realities.
The report describes a scene that illustrates this contrast. A woman recalled her neighbor's reaction upon seeing a Turkish soap opera for the first time: in one scene, there was a table full of food that was later cleared away to be thrown out.
The woman yelled at the television, "Please, no!"
In a country marked by scarcity and economic difficulties, everyday images for other viewers can provoke a strong emotional reaction. Cuba is experiencing a deep crisis, with prolonged blackouts, food shortages, and a very limited availability of foreign currency, a context that turns these television stories into a form of escapism.
Paradoxically, this cultural bridge also has historical roots. In the late 19th century, migrants from territories of the Ottoman Empire arrived in Cuba, and many of their descendants are still known on the island as "the Turk."
Today, more than a century later, Turkish soap operas are once again building an unexpected bridge between the two countries.
According to Türkiye Today, dizis have become a global phenomenon that brings Turkish landscapes, stories, and lifestyles to audiences around the world, even in places where access to media is limited.
In Cuba, that television glamour arrives through modest screens, amidst power outages and everyday difficulties. But for many viewers, especially the older ones, just one episode is enough to mentally transport them to another place.
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