Celebrity Travel: Go Away With Andrea Navedo

Q. How long have you been studying Spanish?

A. For about 15 years now. I have a tutor and I can speak it fluently. But I'm always studying and learning. I went to Mexico for three months after college and studied Spanish there. And I went to Cuba and studied at the University of Havana. I loved studying in other countries. When you immerse yourself and can't get away with lapsing into English, you get out of your comfort zone and are forced to learn. When I was in Mexico and started to dream in Spanish, I knew that was a good sign that I was learning the language. It was cool.

Q. What was it like being in Cuba?

A. It was a surreal, amazing experience. I went in 2001. The only way I was able to do that was through Global Exchange, which tries to promote third world countries. I went on an education Visa so I was there legally without any issues. I flew out of JFK directly to Cuba on Cubana. It was an old fricking plane that looked like it was from the 1960s. I felt like I was in a time warp. It was quite uncomfortable and I was nervous. It looked like there was smoke coming out of the cabin. It turned out to be steam and vapors. I got there, and they thought I was Cuban, so they asked me a lot of questions. There were a lot of guys with rifles and German Shepherds sniffing all the bags.

Q. Were you nervous being there?

A. I was for the first few days. I felt like I might be mugged. It was like being in a war zone. But then no one was bothering me and I realized I was safe. The people were wonderful and warm. I got to know this one woman who did janitorial work at the University of Havana and she invited me to her apartment in a pre-war building. It looked like it had been elegant at one time. I had to use the bathroom and she taught me how to flush the toilet, 'cause nothing was really working. They would catch rain water from the roof and it would go into a drum in the bathroom. From there, you'd scoop out some water and pour it in the toilet to flush the waste away. Sometimes, these big trucks filled with water would come by and people would throw buckets down to get water into their apartments. I had grown up in the South Bronx on welfare. But when I saw that, I thought, "Wow. I had nothing to complain about. We had heat, running water..." It was an eye-opening experience.

Q. When you travel, do you blend in or stand out as a tourist?

A. A little of both, but I'm often mistaken for being Italian. When my husband and I first met, about 17 years ago, we went to Rome. While he was showering, I was testing out an Italian phrase book, because I wanted to be able to ask for directions correctly in the cab later. I pronounced everything really well, and the cab driver started talking to me so fast in Italian that I couldn't catch up. He thought I was from Rome! My husband is actually Italian-American and he thought I was Italian when he first met me. (Laughs)

Q. What are your five favorite cities?

A. New York City, Boston, Los Angeles. Quebec was cool; it was like being in Europe. And Heidelberg (Germany). I loved all the medieval houses and castles.

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Jae-Ha Kim is a New York Times bestselling author and travel writer. You can respond to this column by visiting her website at www.jaehakim.com. You may also follow "Go Away With..." on Twitter at @GoAwayWithJae where Jae-Ha Kim welcomes your questions and comments.