A Cuban woman now living in the United Kingdom has taken to TikTok to reveal the everyday items she brought from Cuba, items she still uses in her daily life. Her video has quickly become a gathering point for the emigrant community.
The creator, who goes by the handle @mare_rycroft, posted a 31-second clip on April 25 labeled "things I brought from Cuba part 2," suggesting she's shared similar content before.
Among the items she showcases are a mop stick with its cleaning cloth, a traditional Cuban coffee maker complete with "cubitas" cups, and a bottle of Havana Club rum.
Regarding the rum, she leaves no room for doubt: "This is a must-have; every Cuban has this in their home for sure."
Preserving Cuban Traditions Abroad
The coffee maker and the ritual of making coffee are deeply embedded in Cuban culture, linked to hospitality, conversation, and domestic life. For those in the diaspora, these practices become a way to maintain their home identity across generations.
The cleaning cloth and mop stick, on the other hand, symbolize the ingenuity and culture of reuse prevalent in everyday Cuban life, a response to the chronic scarcity of goods.
Connecting Through Shared Nostalgia
At the end of the video, Mare Ryc invites her followers to share which items they hold onto from their own countries of origin, broadening the conversation beyond Cuba and creating a communal space for migrants worldwide.
This type of content is part of a growing trend among Cubans in the diaspora on TikTok. Sharing objects and rituals from the island has become a way to express identity, nostalgia, and cultural belonging, often under hashtags like #cubanosporelmundo.
Recent examples include a Cuban woman in England who still uses toilet paper rolls to curl her hair, a practice tied to the island's scarcity, or a Cuban man who showed himself throwing away a pair of Nike sneakers brought from Cuba after numerous repairs, sparking a massive response due to the sentimental value involved.
The Emotional Weight of Personal Items
The unprecedented wave of Cuban migration since 2021 has magnified the symbolic importance of these items: many recent migrants arrived with minimal luggage, making each item brought from the island carry emotional and cultural significance far beyond its practical use.
In April, a young Cuban emigrant shared a video of her mother in Cuba smelling her grandchild's baby clothes as a way to "feel" him from afar, another example of how material items help maintain emotional ties between the island and the diaspora.
The coffee maker, cleaning cloth, and Havana Club rum Mare Ryc displays are not luxury items nor essential necessities in the UK; they are, above all, markers of identity that replicate Cuban daily life on British soil.
Understanding Cuban Diaspora Traditions
Why do Cubans bring everyday items when they migrate?
Everyday items carry emotional and cultural significance, helping migrants preserve their heritage and identity in a new country.
What role does Havana Club rum play in Cuban culture?
Havana Club rum is a staple in Cuban households, often associated with social gatherings and cultural traditions.
How do objects help maintain connections between migrants and their homeland?
Objects serve as tangible links to one's past, enabling migrants to maintain emotional and cultural ties with their homeland.