Cuban poet and improviser Yordan Quintero, widely recognized as "El Yayito Ranchuelero" on social media and television, has once again brought laughter and reflection to thousands of Cubans with his latest verse on Facebook. This time, his target is the agricultural fair in his hometown of Ranchuelo, Villa Clara.
In just 23 seconds, Quintero humorously captures a stark reality familiar to all Cubans: going shopping on the island isn't about your wallet; it's about your "luggage."
The piece, titled "A Backpack and a Bag for the Ranchuelo Fair," goes like this: "At this fair, I highlight / that to make a purchase / you'll need to bring / a backpack and a bag. / If Juan nor Paco understood, / I'll make it clear for you: / the backpack is to carry / what the Ranchuelero buys / and the bag is for the money / you will have to spend."
The joke cuts deep. The backpack holds the goods; the bag holds the cash. In Cuba of 2026, that bag needs to be large: a carton of 30 eggs ranges from 3,000 to 4,000 pesos, or even more, a liter of oil can reach 5,000 pesos in some areas, and a pound of pork regularly exceeds 850 pesos.
While the minimum monthly pension is just 4,000 pesos, independent estimates suggest a Cuban family needs about 96,000 pesos per month to meet basic needs. In this context, the "money bag" isn't poetic exaggeration; it's everyday math.
The reel garnered over 254,000 views, more than 9,700 likes, and nearly 400 comments, proving that Yayito Ranchuelero has found his best tool in the décima espinela—a ten-line verse form with an abbaaccddc rhyme scheme—to connect with an audience that sees themselves in every line.
Quintero is no stranger to hitting the mark. Last August, one of his verses about the price of oil in Ranchuelo—which reached 3,500 pesos per liter, compared to the 50 pesos it once cost—surpassed a million views shared by the page D' Canturía.
The Broader Movement of Cuban Poets
The Yayito phenomenon is part of a larger movement of Cuban poets and improvisers who, by 2026, have turned the décima into a chronicle of the crisis. Sindy Manuel Torres from Pinar del Río went viral in August with a piece where frying an egg was considered "ostentation," "sin," and "crime": "I won't apologize, / neither orally nor written. / I know well it's a crime, / whether you're Christian or atheist, / but today I had the desire / to eat a fried egg." Her followers' comments were equally poignant: "And you have electricity!!! Haha and oil!!! And an egg!!!! You are blessed!" wrote one.
In October, Jorge Adrián Betancourt Quintana lamented the disappearance of bread in verse: "Bread is gone and I cry / like a child, my soul groans / knowing that in the Mipyme / there's bread, but at a price of gold."
Agricultural fairs, which theoretically should ease access to food, are not immune to the overall decay. The fair in Sancti Spíritus quadrupled its entry fee in October, as if the spectacle of prices required a higher ticket price.
In his reel's text, Yayito Ranchuelero urges his audience to share the page "so these verses can reach more people and continue to brighten hearts." That a poem about needing a bag to pay for groceries can "brighten hearts" speaks volumes about the resilience of ordinary Cubans—and even more about the reality those verses capture.
Understanding the Economic Challenges in Cuba 2026
Why does a shopping trip in Cuba require a "backpack and a bag"?
The phrase humorously illustrates the economic challenges in Cuba, where carrying cash in large quantities is necessary due to the high prices of basic goods.
What are the costs of basic goods in Cuba?
As of 2026, essential items like a carton of eggs can cost between 3,000 and 4,000 pesos, a liter of oil might be 5,000 pesos, and a pound of pork typically exceeds 850 pesos.