In the absence of tourist offices where a Cuban citizen can arrange – in Cuban pesos – an excursion in his own country, private resourcefulness has addressed this “market niche.”  During July and August it’s common to find posters advertisting a trip to the Bellamar Caves, Varadero, or the Zapata Swamp.  The organizers rent a… Continue reading Soroa

On the morning of August 13, 2001, I turned on the radio very early.  In a pompous voice an announcer intoned, “Today is the Fatherland’s birthday,” and then proceeded to read an interminable panegyric on the Maximum Leader.   Lying in bed I had the impulse to catapult myself to another galaxy, to escape from this… Continue reading Let others blow out the candles

It’s a long time until I will be ready to retire, still I have read very carefully the proposed Social Security Law that is going to be discussed by parliament.  Like many Cubans, I decided to work without a net and earn my living through freelancing because, to me, the guarantee of a future pension… Continue reading All for one beer

As a little girl I never could pronounce the name of this preschool near my house.  Even today – my study of phonics concluded – I make a mess of the pronunciation of the word “proletaritos.”   How will the little kids inside articulate the name of their nursery school?  Wouldn’t they prefer a more tender… Continue reading Dispossessed preschoolers

I heard screaming and realized that for a couple of weeks she wore dark glasses so that no one would notice the bruises.  Her husband is a militant in the Party and in the neighborhood nobody criticizes his testosterone excesses.  Both are part of a pattern of domestic violence, hushed up in the media, that… Continue reading Coexistence and its dangers

After having squeezed these last few months, I have managed to extract some events that could be called “novel.”  One of the most advertised has been the handing over of idle land to those who want to make it productive.  Under the concept of usufruct — that is the right to freely use and profit… Continue reading A small slice of land and other things

  He drank brandy and watched the vultures that flew, as they did every day, around the Plaza of the Revolution.   It was a Tuesday, the first of August 2006, when he found himself looking over the balcony for the changes that would come. The night before they had read the proclamation on television in… Continue reading Two years

The Havana Malecón* is getting ready for Carnival.  On the Piragua,* tents have been set up for restaurants serving international food and colorful kiosks rise throughout the area.  One can already see, on the pavements and in the portals, the metal structures used for reviewing stands, while groups practice the choreography they will show off… Continue reading Carnivals

  To Felipe, who gave me this metaphor This coming Saturday, July 26, Raúl Castro will speak in Santiago de Cuba.   Broadcasting live on TV, he will address a people who still remember last year’s speech in which he mentioned “structural changes,” “a glass of milk for everyone,” and “the fight against the invasive marabu… Continue reading Forced landing

Working in cyberspace and developing our own projects on the Internet, raises all the issues of citizenship that are too big for Cubans to handle.  We haven’t been able to become citizens in the real world, so we find it difficult to act like citizens in the virtual world.  In this case, there are no… Continue reading Cyber-mutilated