CUBAN TRANSITIONS

One of the highlights of roaming Havana’s maze of busy downtown streets was the opportunity to stumble upon and sample the wide variety of food being sold on the street. The awesome array ranged from ready to go snacks and small meals sold at window ‘cafeterias,’ produce carts and farmers markets, shopping carts filled with […]

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Since the revolution, many changes have swiftly transformed Cuban society, through extensive programs aimed at various aspects of daily life. One of the most impressive changes is the shift in mindset that has apparently occurred regarding sexual rights and homosexual behavior. Considering that prior to the 1970s homosexuality was punishable by law in Cuba, acceptance […]

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Wherever we were in Cuba, the acronym “CDR” seemed to be too. It was sprayed onto sides of buildings, lampposts, and fences. Even on our rickety horse-drawn cart ride to the botanical garden outside Cienfuegos, deep in rural farmland, “CDR” made an appearance as a rock formation in front of a small run-down house. Many […]

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A fusion of African Yoruba and Spanish Catholic practices, Santeria is a spiritual tradition deeply entrenched in Cuban life. Born from early colonial slave culture, Santeria’s past has been both tumultuous- with its criminalization after the colonial period- and celebrated- in the 1980s the Cuban government declared several Santeria objects national heritage items and Santeria […]

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Believe it or not, there is a cultural transformation taking place in the hearts and minds of the Cuban people and it’s being spearheaded by the  younger generation.  Cuba still has a long way to go, as do Americans, in creating a country that is more sensitive to issues  of race, class, and gender- but […]

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Charmed as I was by the friendliness and wit of the Cuban people, again and again I found myself fascinated with a very different sort of Cuban native: the dogs.  I’d never seen so many stray dogs on the streets before, and certainly never seen them so well behaved. The dogs would look hopefully up […]

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During our afternoon of free time in Havana, I took the opportunity to visit the Museo de la Revolución in Old Havana. The museum is housed in what was formerly the official presidential palace for all Cuban presidents. Fulgencio Batista was the final occupant before the victory of the 1959 revolution. The palace is beautifully […]

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