By Laura Gomez
HAVANA TIMES – In Cuba, many people have had to give up their studies to become street vendors, messengers, and cobblers. Leonel is 24 years old, left his music classes, and now sells peanut cones on the streets of Havana.
When did you realize you had to swap music for the peanut business?
My father used to tell me that living off music, at this time, wasn’t going to bring me anything positive, and in a way, I agree with him. When we found ourselves with nothing to eat, the first thing I did was isolate myself in my room. I didn’t understand what was happening. Until that moment, my inner world had been far from reality because my father took care of everything, including paying for my music classes.
During those days of isolation, I realized that distancing myself wasn’t the way to go, much less turning my back on reality. My father, who had been laid off from his job, advised me to sell my guitar. It was an urgent way to get money to buy food. But I chose to rise above it. Among the many options that came to mind, I decided to sell peanut cones.
How did you come to terms with this change?
The first step was to stop seeing myself as a music student. My classmates, who had different lifestyles, told me they could help me. But that help would be temporary; I needed something sustainable in the long term. I remembered how often peanuts come to the rescue when you’re hungry on the street, so I started looking into price options.
Did you go to the agricultural markets?
Yes, prices in the markets are the same, 300 pesos (just under US $1) per pound of peanuts. Growing them was never an option for me. Can you imagine getting a piece of land in today’s Cuba and buying the seeds? That would be impossible for me.
Did you have the money to invest?
A friend lent me the money, and I paid him back little by little. First, I bought four pounds to test the waters. Then I started buying six pounds and have stuck with that amount. My father told me that peanut cones used to cost one peso, and now they cost 10 pesos. Each pound makes about 47 cones, and I try to fill them well. So, for six pounds, that’s about 2,820 pesos. After deducting what
