La familia* Ruiz said adiós to el Capitán and the sailors, all of whom were very nice to them. In fact that last week they stayed on the boat, although they were not supposed to, because they could not afford a hotel.
They boarded another boat which ironically was filled with people who actually liked Communism, but had never lived it. The ride seemed much shorter and nicer. They had a room, and Miguelito had a small bed instead of a crib. Before he knew it, the morning came that the boat entered NY Harbor—the door to freedom. All of a sudden, the cubanito* saw a huge, green statue, a woman holding up a torch. Mami* burst into tears of joy and was held by Papi*. “La Estatua de Libertad,”* [the Statue of Liberty], an incredibly beautiful and unforgettable sight. The boat landed; they went through immigration where some people were detained, held and not allowed to enter América. Yet they were indeed allowed to enter Freedom. Papi,* Mami* and Miguelito, very tan because of weeks at sea, walked onto the streets of Nueva York* [NY]. Tíos* [Aunt and Uncle] Manolo and Rosa were not there because they did not have a car. Therefore, Papi* said, “Let’s surprise them and take a cab,” as Papi* had some dollars in his pocket. They entered a yellow NYC cab. The driver, to their pleasant surprise, spoke Spanish. He was very nice and welcoming. In fact he soon turned the meter off because he said the trip to Brooklyn would cost too much money. Miguelito saw a very different place with many tall, attached buildings and signs with foreign words. They arrived to Brooklyn, said “gracias”* to the cabby, and surprised Tío* Manolo when they knocked on his door. Los tíos* and primos* [cousins] Manny and Roger, embraced la familia*, and they shed more tears of joy. After an extremely long and adventurous journey, Miguelito had finally made it to freedom—Los Estados Unidos de America!* [USA!]
