A family of 6 people just jumped off a cruise ship to flee their country. And got rescued. This is their story, as told by my dad.

A few months ago, my dad went on a 2-week cruise of the southern Caribbean with his sister and her husband. And spotted a family jumping in the water to flee their home country. He told me that story a few weeks ago, and I found it so crazy that I asked him to write it down so I could share it on Reddit. This is a faithful recount of what he saw.<br><br># Witnesses to the Great Escape<br><br>We recently spent two weeks on a cruise in the southern Caribbean. We visited islands that were formerly Dutch, British, French, and Portuguese colonies. <br><br>I was born in Cuba and fled after Castro came into power. I was lucky to have fled at the right time. The majority of our family stayed behind thinking that Castro would fail. Luckily, my parents believed my brother and me when we urged them to flee with us. Right after our departure, Castro closed the airport and the roads out of the island. Many of the family who stayed behind were never able to escape. <br><br>This made me particularly mindful of the conversations we had on the ship with individuals from the islands we visited. I frequently asked our servers, tour guides, and locals we met about their lives in their homelands. I found that many, particularly those from the islands that are now independent of Britain, France, and the Netherlands, complain about the lack of prospects in their countries. Those from the islands that remained part of their European colonizers seemed more content. I figured that their unhappiness was similar to what we experienced in Cuba. Even though there were many other influences, my experiences in Cuba convinced me that communism is a flawed system. <br><br>One morning while having breakfast our server said, “We are passing by your homeland”. I pulled back the curtain next to our table and saw the coast of Cuba. I pointed out to my brother and sister-in-law. We called our spouses over and explained to them that this was the island we fled over 60 years ago. It evoked memories of our early years in the USA. Our struggles, how much we missed Cuba, and our adaptation to our new life. We recalled our difficulties in finding jobs, moving from one city to another, our sense of loss and discovery, and related subjects. <br><br>## The Unexpected<br><br>The next morning I received a knock on the door. It was my brother. He said, “They are throwing life jackets overboard”. I rushed to the balcony and saw a bunch of life jackets floating in the water. A few minutes later six people jumped into the water. I watched as they treaded water and held hands to stay afloat. We were in the stern of the ship. I watched two crew members throw lines into the water. After a while a boat arrived and six people were rescued. I asked my brother to find out who they were. A few hours later he found out that it was a family of six that had escaped from Cuba. <br><br>Later that day we were talking to our cabin keeper. My brother asked, “Where are they?” He answered, “They are at the infirmary. They had nothing but the clothes they wore.” We decided to go to the infirmary and offer some money and clothing. We were not allowed to visit the infirmary. We were told that we could drop off the clothing we wanted to donate at the customer service desk. We bought some tee shirts, pants, and jackets and left them there. I spent the rest of the day frequently looking out of our balcony into the water, half expecting to see another family or even a dog jump into the water. <br><br>The next morning at breakfast, we asked our server, “Where are they?” She said, “They are_OK”. My brother pressed on. “Did they have a stateroom?” She said, “Yes, they had a room with a balcony”. My brother said, “That must have cost a lot of money”. She answered, “They did not pay for anything.” My brother asked, “Who paid for their passage?” She said, “I don’t know. I don’t want to know. If I knew I might lose my job.” She then covered her mouth with her hand. My brother then asked, “Where are they now?” She said, “They left the ship in the last port and were picked up by a man in a car.”<br><br>I was not surprised. I had heard this story before. I wonder if they made it across the strait.