English Translations of Cubans Writing From the Island
14ymedio, Zunilda Mata, Havana, 5 July 2018 — A few yards from the busy Rampa in Havana’s Vedado district, is quiet Humboldt Street, once filled with dozens of tourist and Cuban diners who came in search of the paladar (private restaurant) Huron Azul, now taken over by the authorities and converted into a state restaurant. “Ten … Continue reading “Huron Azul, Ten Years Since the Fall From Grace of a ’Paladar’”
14ymedio, Marcelo Hernandez, Camagüey, 19 October 2017 — The historical center of the city of Camagüey is once again recovering one of its emblematic attractions, although it is not an old church, a park, or one of the many museums in the city. Paladar 1800 reopened after having been closed for ten months due to a … Continue reading “Paladar 1800 Resurges After Owner Released from Prison”
14ymedio, Luz Escobar, Havana, 16 June 2017 – The closure of three private restaurants in Havana last week has sparked doubts among owners of food service businesses. The fact that the three paladares – private restaurants – were rated “excellent” on Trip Advisor, one of the most important travel sites on the web, has fueled … Continue reading “Three “Paladares” Closed Were Among The Best Restaurants In Havana”
Ivan Garcia 25 January 2017 — In the poor and mostly black neighborhood of San Leopoldo, cradle of the picaresque, clandestine businesses and the sex trade in Havana, is found La Guarida, probably the best private restaurant in Cuba — which are known as “paladares.” The business is run by Enrique Nunez, a telecommunications engineer converted … Continue reading “Havana ’Paladares’, Between Glamor and Poverty / Iván García”
14ymedio, Miriam Celaya, Havana, 16 November 2016 — Rarely does the official press offer journalistic work of any interest, so a report that was published a few days ago is greatly appreciated. The work was published following controls recently directed by the Government to a total of 32 private restaurants in Havana (“Private Restaurants in … Continue reading “The Power and Paladares*, an Ambiguous Relationship / 14ymedio, Miriam Celaya”
(A Contribution to Travel Literature) That the facilities for obtaining patents for small services trigger a headlong rush among Cubans you already knew. The restrictions on private enterprise, and chronic shortages, plus the deep social (and stomach!) vacuum left by inefficient state enterprises that have monopolized the trade, was an antecedent too pitiful to not … Continue reading “The War of the Paladares (Restaurants) / Francis Sánchez”
Each day in Havana a new fast food joint appears, or a pirate CD stall, or a place that sells religious objects. These are three businesses that proliferate in the city during this spring-like month of February. But they are not the only ones. Signs both rustic and well-designed advertise appliance mechanics, shoe repairers, seamstresses, … Continue reading ““Paladares” in Havana Pose a Threat to State Restaurants / Iván García”
Private businesses have opted for imported citrus because the island’s lemons “are small and hard.” 14ymedio, Natalia López Moya, Havana, 12 April 2025 — When dancers in the last century moved their bodies to the catchy beat of Ignacio Piñeiro’s “Échale salsita!” (Add some salsa!), they imagined not only adding more fun to the moment, … Continue reading “Add Some Sauce, but Without Lime, It’s Very Expensive”
In its eagerness to extract more dollars from foreigners, the Government forces them to pay with plastic and prohibits them from using cash. 14ymedio, Natalia López Moya, Havana, 22 March 2025 — A tourist enters the cafeteria of the Grand Aston Hotel in Havana and is immediately approached by an employee who warns him that … Continue reading “The Clásica Card, A Trap That Scares Away Tourists in Cuba”
UNE announced the “total disconnection” of the Electrical System The Antonio Guiteras power plant had scheduled maintenance, but it did not last until the scheduled date With the country in darkness and the economy paralyzed, Marrero says that Cuba “is not yet in a bottomless abyss” 14ymedio, Havana, 18 October 2024 — The Cuban Ministry … Continue reading “Cuba Will Remain Without Electricity at Least Until Saturday”
14ymedio, Pedro Espinosa, Cabaiguán (Sancti Spíritus), 6 April 2024 — Those who live in Cabaiguán, once one of the most prosperous municipalities of Sancti Spíritus, claim that the town is divided into two. Depending on your budget and whether or not you have a relative abroad, you can live in the rich part – with … Continue reading “Cabaiguan Endures the Crisis Thanks to Canary Island Emigrants and Onions”
14ymedio, Madrid, February 29, 2024 — “In Cuba there is enough flour to drown in, but the State doesn’t have any.” Everyone knows it, and María confirms it. She spends the morning sending messages to several contacts – found through social networks – to buy the raw material, with which she makes bread, pizzas, cakes … Continue reading “Cuba Has No Bread, but ‘You Can Drown in All the Flour’”
14ymedio, Miguel García, Holguín, 12 November 2023 — The red earth is everywhere. Stuck to the soles of the shoes, tucked between the boards of the houses and also on the bricks that come out of the oven in the Cayo de Mayabe community, a small town of potters who work outside the law and … Continue reading “In the Cuban Province of Holguin, a Town of Potters Lives Outside the Law”
14ymedio, Natalia López Moya, Havana, 8 November 2023 — With seven years in the United States and a butcher’s trade, Yoandy returned to Cuba this October to spend a few days with his family. In addition to their embrace, this 46-year-old from Villa Clara encountered serious problems when it came to paying for products and … Continue reading “In Cuba, Tourists Distrust Prepaid Hard Currency Cards and Prefer to Pay in Cash”
14ymedio, Yunior Garcia Aguilera, Madrid, 9 August 2023 — No one hated private business in Cuba more than Fidel Castro. In his 1968 speech announcing the Revolutionary Offensive, which nationalized all remaining small private businesses in the country, he called business owners lazy, hangers-on, exploiters, privileged and lazy. Spooked by his own shadow, he vented … Continue reading “To Have or Not to Have Private Businesses”
