Cuba 5: Timeliness

I lost my watch in Cuba. It was secured around the strap of my bag when we went into Varadero on Monday - a handy location for whenever I needed to consult the time - and then all the sudden it wasn't there anymore. I wasn't overly upset about it; I'd had this watch for quite a long time and it has since lost its sentimental value (though not its usefulness). I thought it might actually be good for me to live outside of the tyranny of the clock for a week, and I figured it might provide more of a retreat-type vacation experience. The only problem was that on this vacation time did matter - excursions left at a certain time in the morning, breakfast was only on until 10:30, we needed to be prompt for our supper reservations at the a-la-carte restaurant, I'd wonder how much time I'd been laying with my back in the sun and when I should flip over. As the vacation went on I started to miss my watch more and more. It felt like a loss of control to not be able to keep track of the time, and it frustrated me to have to depend on my friend and her watch.

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I think there's a continuum of "timeliness" - of how on-time each person feels they need to be for things, and how much lateness they think is acceptable and are comfortable with. Vacations are opportunities to see how you and your friends differ in this respect, and I felt like we saw it. It can be hard when one person needs too much time to get ready in the morning and we all miss breakfast. I know how both sides felt because I sometimes I'm on one side of the continuum and sometimes I'm on the other - sometimes I was the one holding us up a bit, and sometimes I was the one anxiously waiting. Both sides are awkward.