The lack of cell phone cards at my hotel in Cuba sent me on a quest to find them elsewhere.  I was directed to a blue ETESCA cabin ½ a block away.  Perfect!  Nice and easy…or so I thought.

Upon arrival, two lines snaked from the sales window—one short and one long.  Of course, I needed to wait in the longer one.  While waiting, I observed how the people sitting on nearby benches at a bus stop were really just resting until the person “in front of them” approached the window.  At that point, they stood and joined the line again.

I learned that there was no way to accurately gauge the line’s true length.  It was a living being.  In addition, people tired of waiting and went to drink a coffee or savor one of Coppelia’s ice cream cones.   When they returned, we were all still waiting for them—perhaps slightly closer to the window.

At one point, a young lady asserted she was ahead of others because she originally had been behind the man with the bike, who had given up waiting 45 minutes ago.   This claim upset the ladies in front of me and the issue was debated at length.  In the end, the young lady held her ground and purchased her phone card before others.

More than an hour later, I purchased my cards.  As much as I enjoyed interacting with people in line, I bought four cards so I would not have repeat the experience.