José Lassa – Translating Cuba

An Old Havana Resident Blocks His Street in Protest Against the Poor State of his Home

Aguilar Medrado asked to speak with the mayor, but they sent him the police and state security.

After one o’clock in the afternoon, when we visited the scene, Aguilar had already been detained by officials. / 14ymedio

14ymedio, José Lassa, Havana, 19 June 2025 – Lázaro Aguilar Medrano’s patience came to an end this Thursday. The resident of Calle Aguiar/Muralla in Old Havana cut off the traffic in the morning demanding a reply from the authorities to his claim about the poor condition of his home. However, in place of council officials it was the police and State Security who turned up, this newspaper was able to confirm.

Aguilar Medrado stopped the traffic using an old armchair, a mattress, a bed frame, a washing machine, a sign containing his demands, a motorcycle and some containers that his family uses for stockpiling water in this, one of the municipalities worst affected by poor water supply in the whole city. “I want the government here. Because it’s got beyond a joke now and I’m not going to talk to anyone else”, he declared in a video released by CubaNet.

In the recording, Aguilar Medrano demands the presence of Alexis Acosta Silva, administrator for the Old Havana district, as well as the city’s governor Yanet Hernández Pérez. “The block is going to be closed off until the government comes here”, he insisted. The man referred to the lack of replies to his requests for solving his family’s problems on the part of the Institute for Housing, the Communist Party and other provincial and municipal bodies.

The protestor’s things had been removed from the street and stacked on the pavement in front of his house. / 14ymedio

The man also made mention of his mother, Estrella Medrano López. According to him, the woman obtained numerous medals and awards throughout her life: “And Estrella has a thousand medals, a thousand pieces of s**t, a thousand… Well, F**k all that” and he went on to say how abandoned the people feel who, in their younger days, actually helped to build the current political model of the country. “And for what party? For which government? Close them down. Because they don’t function. They don’t function”, he said. continue reading

After one o’clock in the afternoon, when we visited the scene, Aguilar had already been detained by officials and a police car remained parked outside his house. Some graffiti on the front of a neighbouring building almost on ruins assured us: “All we need is love”.

The deployment command post was located in the local Municipal Electoral Commission, right on the corner. / 14ymedio

The protestor’s things had been removed from the street and stacked on the pavement in front of his house. Although the man was no longer present, his neighbours remained watching the scene of the police operation which included patrol vehicles, uniformed and plain clothes officers who watched from the street corners. The deployment command post was located in the local Municipal Electoral Commission, right on the same corner.

The exterior of Aguilar Medrano’s home, probably built at the start of the last century, shows the poor state of construction in which he is living – after decades of neglect, lack of resources available to the inhabitants, and overcrowding owing to housing problems. In a photo posted to his Facebook page you can see that his building also makes use of an old makeshift wooden “barbecue” [a sleeping platform built inside the room] to maintain the vertical space. On the same block there are also signs of multiple building collapses.

Calle Aguiar isn’t just any old Havana street. From its beginnings at the Avenida de las Missiones it goes into the city via some fifteen blocks. In its early days it was home to the headquarters or branches of at least nine banks, such that it became one of the epicentres of the financial district of Cuba’s capital, the little Wall Street of the island. All of these businesses were nationalised after Fidel Castro came to power in January 1959.

The street was one of the epicentres of the financial district of Cuba’s capital, the little Wall Street of the island, before 1959. / 14ymedio

There were also numerous insurance companies in Calle Aguiar, as well as various commercial associations like the British Chamber of Commerce, the Association of Cuban Banks and the National Chamber of Business and Industry. In its buildings, up to 105 law firms, beauty salons, small tailors and sheet manufacturing industries were located. Its commercial and financial activity was so great that it earned the name “money street“.

The blocking off of streets, be it to protest the poor state of housing or to protest the lack of water supply, has become increasingly common in Cuba in recent years. In Havana it is common to see lines of women who block the traffic to demand either a solution to their housing problems or the provision of a water truck to alleviate the lack of mains supply.

Translated by Ricardo Recluso

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Ruins up for Auction: The Cuban State Offers the Private Sector the Opportunity to Revive Run-down Spaces

“Anyone who ventures into this space is going to have to spend a lot of money.”

The space located on *Aguacate* and O’Reilly streets in Old Havana seems light years away from being able to be converted into a business. / 14ymedio

14ymedio, Natalia López Moya/José Lassa, Havana, 5 June 2025 — Where a building once stood, now only an empty lot facing the sea remains. The land at the corner of Perseverancia and Malecón streets in Central Havana is part of the public bidding process open in the Cuban capital seeking a private entrepreneur to convert it into a cafe, a restaurant, a craft stand, or a vehicle repair shop.

The task of attracting the private sector is beyond complicated, given the current state of these plots and buildings, since most of them are empty and dilapidated. The plot on Perseverancia Street is simply a vacant lot, where, in the past, stood one of those many buildings on the Havana coastline that eventually collapsed after decades of salt damage and neglect. Later, a small park replaced the brick mass, and finally, the perimeter became a makeshift garbage dump and a place for graffiti.

The corner of Perseverancia and Malecón streets in Central Havana is part of the public bidding process open in the capital. / 14ymedio

The Heritage Management Company, part of the City Historian’s Office, included the esplanade among the six locations available for lease until June 30th. The list also includes a plot in the city’s historic center and a stand in the former Almacenes San José. The activities that can be carried out at these sites range from gastronomy and retail to recreation and cultural events.

But paper is one thing, reality is another. One of the other plots being sought by a private developer is at the corner of Malecón and Crespo Streets, where, unlike its neighbor on Perseverancia Street, hasn’t even had all the rubble removed from the building that collapsed years ago. When it fell down, a man was seriously injured and it left images that starkly portrayed Havana’s ruins.

Neighbors still remember the dust that arose when the walls of the building, now uninhabited and undergoing demolition, collapsed. After clearing away the largest pieces of the wreckage, the authorities placed a metal fence around it to prevent the property from becoming a landfill or public restroom. The area, which looks like it’s located in a city in the midst of war, is one of those now being put up for bid.

The scene is repeated, more or less unchanged, on the plots of land at the corner of Malecón and Escobar. / 14ymedio

“Any private individual who gets involved in this is going to have to spend a lot of money to clean up that land,” says a resident of the nearby Lealtad Street, which has seen both the splendor and the ruin of Havana’s shoreline. “The State can’t get this ready to set up a business, since it doesn’t have the money, but it doesn’t make much sense for an individual because of the high costs of remediating it,” he explains to 14ymedio.

Crespo’s lot is large because it extends to the neighboring San Lázaro Street, where the adjacent building also collapsed years ago. An area is one that continue reading

many countries would strongly bid for, given its oceanfront location, its good connections to other parts of the city, and its history. But in Havana these days, the land scares away pockets more than it attracts them.

Another of the plots sought by a private developer is at the corner of Malecón and Crespo. / 14ymedio

The scene is repeated, more or less unchanged, on the plots at the corner of Malecón and Escobar and also on the one located on Avenida del Litoral and Calle Genios. Spaces without any construction, empty squares, lots where families once leaned out on their balconies, children ran down the stairs, and the elderly enjoyed the sea breeze sitting on their doorsteps, but where, in a second, everything collapsed, giving way to yet another gaping hole in the smile of the Havana coast. A mouth that’s increasingly toothless.

Also competing in disrepair, the space located on Aguacate and O’Reilly Streets in Old Havana seems light years away from being able to accommodate a business. Two royal palm trees vigorously resist the land, which, despite the fence surrounding it, has become a dumping ground that passersby avoid and “the divers” dig through. “This could be “the land of plenty”, but you’d need a lot of money to improve it”, considers a resident of one of the buildings nearby.

Located in the heart of Havana’s tourist scene, a few years ago, When the winds of economic and democratic openness gave Cubans hope, “this would have had a lot of eyes on it”, the Havana native ventures. But now, it’s hard to believe anyone could be interested in it “getting stuck in a project like this, to make something out of nothing.” The recently announced tenders seem like an attempt to revive spaces in clear decline.

In the list of offers from the Historian’s Office, the one with the best conditions is the option to obtain a stand in Almacenes San José. / 14ymedio

The state-owned monopoly Cupet hasn’t been left behind either, and it has published an advertisement seeking to lease the auto repair shop located at the corner of Justicia and Municipio streets in Luyanó, Diez de Octubre, to a private party. Interested parties can apply until June 11 to “use the shop area, as well as its equipment.” But according to the shop’s employees, the entrepreneurs who have come to inspect the premises’ infrastructure have not been very satisfied. “The roof is a light covering, the equipment is very worn, and a lot of money would have to be invested to get this up and running,” one of the remaining state workers at the site, which currently barely provides any service, told this newspaper. “All the supplies needed to repair and do the bodywork on cars are expensive, many in foreign currency,” he explains. “An investor who wants to incur this headache will have to be very patient and have lots of bucks.”

Meanwhile, on the list of offers from the Historian’s Office, the one with the best conditions is the option to obtain a stand at the Antiguos Almacenes San José Cultural Center, near the Bay of Havana. The market, where artisans sell seed necklaces or paintings with the facade of the Bodeguita del Medio, has also suffered the migratory exodus and there are numerous empty spaces. With a roof, solid walls, and a yellow-painted facade, it is the crown jewel among so many ruins up for bid.

Translated by Norma Whiting

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In Flor De Itabo, Cuba, “There Is No Life,” Only Resignation for Its 800 Inhabitants

“Nothing comes to the bodega. We’re living off the small and medium-sized businesses, off the hotdogs that cost 450 pesos.”

Flor de Itabo is surrounded by old dairy farms. / 14ymedio

14ymedio, José Lassa, Havana, 13 June 2025 — “This place is completely bad. There’s no life. I don’t see any prospects.” With these three phrases, spoken with utter desolation, Pedro sums up the situation in Flor de Itabo, a remote batey in Madruga, in the province of Mayabeque, where he has lived for more than 12 years. Life there has always had its ups and downs, but he doesn’t dare put a name to the situation its residents have been experiencing in recent months.

The town, consisting of about twenty four-story buildings housing nearly 800 people, was founded in 1972. There’s also a bodega , a primary school, a daycare center with about 40 children, a doctor’s office, and a pharmacy. Flor de Itabo is surrounded by old dairy farms. Mayabeque is a cattle-raising province and has always relied on dairy and meat, Pedro recalls. Now, everything is “practically empty.”

With a recent investment, he explains, a few “imported cows” arrived on the farms. But this has not contributed to improving living conditions in the village.

The town consists of about twenty four-story buildings / 14ymedio

Food, Pedro cites as an example, is worse than ever. “Nothing comes to the bodega, we’re waiting for rice, and it doesn’t arrive. We’re living off micro, small and medium-sized businesses, off hot dogs that cost 450 pesos, off an expensive chicken…” Bread, he points out, is also “conspicuous by its absence.” “We don’t know the cause. It hasn’t arrived for days.” continue reading

The MSMEs — small and medium-sized businesses — are a world apart, the guajiro continues, clarifying that while it’s possible to get bread and some other foodstuffs there, the prices aren’t always affordable. “We’re getting by with their bread, at 350 pesos a bag, and we have to eat because otherwise we’ll die.”

Many other problems plague the residents of Flor de Itabo, who have been without running water for about three months because the turbine is broken. “They haven’t said anything, there’s no solution.” When a water truck arrives, many take advantage of the situation to load buckets and tanks that they later resell. “I live on the third floor and buy my little bit of water so I don’t starve to death,” he says. A large tankful, for example, costs 1,000 pesos; but the buckets cost less, he adds.

It’s been about three months since they’ve had running water because the turbine is broken. / 14ymedio

“There are poor people, and there are people who have the budget and give 1,000, but I give as much as I can, and that’s how we get by little by little. We can’t do anything else.” He does the same with coal. “When the power goes out, I have to go and buy a sack, which costs 1,000 pesos more. There’s no life,” he says, resigned.

Pedro has no hope that things in the village will improve anytime soon. “Who do we complain to? No one. Where? We have no choice but to go to those expensive MSMEs. Money doesn’t fall from the sky. Many are doing well because they have their own little business, but others can’t afford it. It’s never a level playing field,” he laments.

Few people in the town are willing to give their opinion when asked by this newspaper. “Telling the truth makes you unpopular. Then you keep quiet, because you could end up in jail. Things are incredibly bad here,” but, Pedro argues, over time they’ve grown accustomed to neglect. “Not me. I’m 65, it doesn’t matter if I die tomorrow, but there’s still a town.”

The village’s children are one of Pedro’s concerns, as he claims the school lacks teachers to teach the few children. Third and fourth grades, he points out, are taught together, as if they were in the same class. And the park, “cramped,” as he tediously describes it, is also useless for them to play in their free time. For recess, they only have a patch of reddish land, with improvised fields made of sticks, which serves as a soccer field.

For recreation, they only have a patch of reddish land, with improvised fields made of sticks, which serves as a soccer field. / 14ymedio

The blackouts are an issue Pedro prefers not to touch on. Although they continue to cause him headaches, they’re a reality that’s already settled into his routine. “We go up to 20 hours without power. I don’t fight it anymore; that topic doesn’t interest me anymore.”

Sitting under a palm tree, taking advantage of the cool shade, Pedro watches from a distance as several children jump enthusiastically on a trampoline. Below, the owner of that and other children’s games—dreary and rickety, awaiting a child’s attention—rests on a sack.

The calm is almost absolute, interrupted by the occasional laughter of the children, and it also spreads to the animals: a cow grazes impassively, and a dog rests beneath an old tractor. Little blooms in Flor de Itabo, and its residents, accustomed to daily problems, are no exception. Meanwhile, says Pedro, “we ’invent’ and continue to fight; we can’t do anything else.”

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‘Witchcraft is Forbidden’

In the Old Cemetery of Guanabacoa, grass invades the graves, which are looted by thieves.

Thefts and religious rituals have forced the cemetery authorities to put a warning on the wall / 14ymedio

14ymedio, José Lassa, Havana, May 31, 2025 — Among the rules governing the Old Cemetery of Guanabacoa in Havana, workers have been forced to immortalize one: “Witchcraft is forbidden.” Painted with black ink on a wall to try to scare away grave robbers, the poster unashamedly announces the main evil of the cemetery, stripped even of the copper rings that adorn the tombstones.

Construction began in 1814, and the cemetery was declared a National Heritage Site in 1997, but it “is abandoned because no one wants to work there for 2,400 pesos,” says Antonio, who was a gravedigger for eight years in the Old and New cemeteries of Guanabacoa, separated by the old road. “Conditions are pretty bad. It is full of weeds, and everyone knows that remains and copper rings have been taken away,” he says.

An open, rust-eaten fence welcomes the few visitors who dare to walk through the cemetery under the strong sun and high temperatures of May. Broken crosses lay on the ground, and the raised sidewalks and bushes growing at will cause doubt about the functionality of the cemetery, or whether there is anyone in charge of its care.

This same abandonment is what has attracted those who seek bones for rituals or metals to sell. / 14ymedio

That same abandonment is what has attracted unwanted visitors, and the apparent calm of the cemetery is often disturbed by those who seek bones to perform rituals or metals to sell. continue reading

When there is a theft, it is rarely reported,” continues Antonio. “Some family member must see that something is missing from the tomb. The last case that happened was when they caught someone who stole some tomb rings. They detained the person as he drove through a traffic light, took him to the police station, took his bag of rings and let him go.”

Rodrigo is 50 years old, of which 30 were dedicated to being a graveyard keeper. Years ago, a stone of which he never knew the origin or the intention left him unconscious and unfit for work. Now, with difficulties in speech as a result of the blow, he resides in the back of the same cemetery to which he dedicated his life, retired and with barely 1,500 pesos in his bank account. “There is no graveyard that still has the rings,” he says in reference to the essential accessories for lifting the heavy grave lids. “They’ve caught people stealing from them, but I don’t know if the police knows that they’re selling the copper. They picked up a guy about a month ago. He said that he had found them, and they released him,” he says with regret.

More than the graves, the vaults dilapidated by time and torn apart by theft look like heaps of rubble. The accumulated garbage, the weeds that grow in any corner, even on top of tops and walls, and the remnants of Yoruba offerings accompanied by bottles of rum complete a desolate landscape. “Here people pass by and throw garbage into the cemetery, and everything is full of witchcraft. Although that happens in all the cemeteries.”

In addition to the Old Cemetery, the quintessential example, Guanabacoa has six other cemeteries, making it the municipality with the most graveyards on the island. In its interior is the Chapel of Potosí, founded with the name Chapel of the Immaculate Conception of Mary and the Holy Christ of Potosí and considered the oldest architectural work of Guanabacoa, dating from the seventeenth century.

“This, statistically, is heritage, but look how it is. The wall and the church have been rebuilt, but the last time was five years ago. At any moment they will collapse again,” says Rodrigo. “There has been no quality restoration.”

The wall that marks the boundary of the cemetery and separates it from the houses is low and irregular / 14ymedio

The wall that marks the boundary of the cemetery and separates it from the houses is low and irregular. In several sections it is leaning, and the bars that should be on top have also been stolen. The recently repaired bell tower of the church shows obvious signs of poor work due to its rapid deterioration, in addition to the shoddy finish that doesn’t go with the rest of the work.

According to Antonio and Rodrigo, the responsibility lies with the Comunales of Guanabacoa, although they recognize that the incentives for workers also leave something to be desired: “They pay very little and give nothing. If you work at the Colon Cemetery [in Havana], they give you shoes, pants, everything. Not here.”

The accumulated garbage, weeds and remains of Yoruba offerings complete a desolate landscape / 14ymedio

Translated by Regina Anavy

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Despair in Cuba’s Gas Lines After Five Months Without Supply

In Guanabacoa, propane had not been sold for five months / 14ymedio

14ymedio, José Lassa and Mercedes García, Havana / Sancti Spíritus, 2 June 2025 — The arrival of liquefied gas (propane) in the Cuban capital has brought anything but tranquility. It had been three months since many customers could get it, but they were not even concerned: the sale was for those who had been unable to buy since December; that is, for five months.

“There are huge lines, people are almost beating each other up, it’s hell,” said a resident from Boyeros on Sunday. “I got February 14; who knows when it’s my turn, because they are now selling it for December. I have a neighbor who had to leave the line because she says it was infernal. A real fight must have happened.”

In Guanabacoa, the despair was total. The managers were trying to organize a line in front of a population that was desperate for the 199 tanks they had to sell, making it clear that most would leave empty-handed. There, at the point of sale of Fuente and Obispo, chaos was the word that defined the situation.

The organizers read the names of the people who could come and buy and tried to coordinate so that no one would sneak in. The day was marked by discomfort, arguments, screams and an overwhelming heat from which some protected themselves with umbrellas while others tried to shelter from the sun by gluing themselves to nearby buildings.

The Cuban Petroleum Union (Cupet) had announced the start of the sale of propane in the western provinces for this Saturday, through all channels on social networks and the official press. Cupet stated that the process would begin on May 31 and would be carried out daily in an organized manner, delivering a single cylinder per customer to those who couldn’t buy in February.

But organization has been impossible in Havana, although almost half the population (more than 280,000 households) receive gas service through pipelines. These customers are supplied by natural gas coming from the continue reading

plants in Puerto Escondido, Varadero and Boca de Jaruco, all part of Energas, a joint venture managed by Canada’s Sherritt International and Cuba’s state-owned Cupet.

It was unfortunate that on the very same day that the chaotic sale of propane began, the plant at Boca de Jaruco went out of service due to a breakdown in one of the Energas outlet lines, disrupting the flow of the other two. This affected generation and “increased the impact,” according to the Ministry of Energy and Mines in a message on social networks calling for calm and assuring that four turbines had already been recovered.

Protests over the disorganization have multiplied in all the municipalities of the capital. Those who paid 10 pesos on Ticket to secure a digital place in line complain that it isn’t applied. They demand that priority be given to those who have not bought since 2024, something that is not always true, or they claim that corruption among organizers is taking place.

“I call on the managers to organize lines at the points of sale and not leave it in the hands of corrupt coleros* [people paid by others to wait in line for them] and delegates. I hope the police and the army will support me,” shouted one customer.

The sale is limited, for the moment, to one tank of propane / 14ymedio

The situation contrasts with the tranquility in Sancti Spíritus, where calm reigns thanks to a good functioning of the Ticket application. “There have been no lines or fighting, because it is organized by Facebook and other networks,” says a resident of the capital city, where the sale also began on December 31 for the physically disabled, vulnerable and those who had not received it since December. On Sunday, it was reserved for those who paid 10 pesos for the virtual line. “Here everyone knows when it’s their turn. I should get it next week because I have number 33 on Ticket.”

Of the 150 days in the year that they had the propane, on 117 there was none on the island, according to the minister of Energy and Mines, Vicente de la O Levy, last Thursday on Miguel Díaz-Canel’s podcast “From the Presidency.” They both admitted that it happened when the ship carrying the liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) that is being sold now has arrived but had not been unloaded, because there was no money to pay for it. They stated that the conditions for doing so in advance and the banking problems arising from the US embargo also complicate the operation.

These same problems, they said, are being repeated with a second ship that was “hired and paid,” which makes it foreseeable that the gas shortage will be repeated, with repercussions for the population.

In addition, as Díaz-Canel and De la O Levy notes, the lack of LPG influences the electricity demand, which increases by 200 or 250 megawatts the daily power required. But this is not the only problem. Many people are likely to buy the gas ‘on the left’ (the informal market), either from outsiders or by underestimating the serious consequences that can occur; or they are forced to cook with fire, even having to sacrifice their furniture if they cannot afford the high price of coal.

Translated by Regina Anavy

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The Famous Paseo Galleries in Havana Are Closed, the First Step Towards a Probable Dollarization

The stores in the complex, located on the Malecón, sold in hard currency and were out of stock.

“People came from all over the country because we had everything,” recalls one employee

14ymedio, Havana, Natalia López Moya and José Lassa, 29 May 2025 — The sea is no excuse. This is well known to the residents of the Havana coast and also the customers who arrive these days at the Paseo Galleries, a few meters from the Malecón. Rust and neglect have taken over one of the most important shopping centers in the Cuban capital, a symbol of an economic upswing that fueled hopes at the beginning of this century. What’s left is a large empty store with littered floors full of rubbish.

Under this May’s sun, as hot as in August, a woman pushing a baby carriage advanced on Tuesday towards the doorway that was once full of taxi drivers, announcing trips to all the municipalities of Havana, and customers with their hands full of bags with newly purchased products. “They told me it was still open and that’s why I came,” grumbled the woman, who, instead of carrying a small child, used the carriage to carry some yuccas and a piece of pumpkin.

“This place is bare, they closed it down to fix it up and put it into hard currency,” ventures a passerby. / 14ymedio

“They closed it today because they’re fixing something with the electricity,” explained a resident in the vicinity who was passing in front of the pile of concrete and glass. “It’s empty; they also closed it for repairs and to turn it into a hard currency store,” ventured another passerby, who estimates that “before December” the new dollarized version of the store complex would be open. A few meters away, the “Magic World” sign on the old children’s store looked like it wouldn’t be able to last that long.

The closing also coincides with complaints on social networks about the poor state of the property and the shortage of goods on its premises. Images of empty refrigerators and dusty shelves raised a wave of indignation that seems to have contributed to the cancellation of service.

“It was one of the few places around here where you could still pay with MLC [freely convertible currency],” someone commented. That intangible currency, which barely a decade ago opened the doors of better-stocked markets, is now in full retreat on the island, although the authorities insist they will not eliminate it for the time being. The food market, with a butcher’s shop that alternated chorizos with pork loins, was often continue reading

frequented by the new rich who, finally, ended up packing their bags and emigrating.

Potholes forced customers heading to the market, located on the first floor, to walk carefully to avoid falls. / 14ymedio

With the same speed that the wealthiest buyers exchanged the corridors of the Galleries for the narrow airplane aisles, the building’s floor began to show gaps. The holes forced customers who went to the market, located on the first floor, to walk carefully to avoid falls. It also began to have a shortage of merchandise, and the boutiques were transformed into storehouses for ugly and smelly clothing.

But now, there is not even that. A young man emerged from his car and became another frustrated customer who came across a building that seems to have been abandoned and closed, waiting for dollarization to revive its spaces and refill its warehouses. “I came to buy some mosquito spray that they told me was here on the ground floor, but you can see that it’s not going to open today,” he said.

On the same ground floor, two decades ago, customers were delighted to see a well-stocked hardware store where the first single-handle faucets used by Cubans in their bathrooms were sold as a novelty. “People came from all over the country because we had everything,” recalls an employee who worked as a cashier in those years when the business center was synonymous with good taste and abundance. “We even had jacuzzis to sell,” she recalls.

The sliding doors, which previously only lowered when a hurricane was announced, are closed. / 14ymedio

Now, however, the sliding doors of the main entrance, which previously came down only when a hurricane was announced, are closed. The sea has left its signature on them, a rubric that is also seen on the reflective window panes that were once one of the architectural novelties of the property. Some are stained and others cracked, and the glass no longer reflects people and appliances, but only a deteriorated and empty environment.

“Home cleaning supplies,” can still be read on a part of the facade that once faced the Water and Soap chain, managed by the Italsav company throughout Cuba. The false ceiling that was partly collapsed, the completely empty shelves and not a soul inside the premises speak for themselves, even if no sign announces the closure of the business.

Contrast the fall into disgrace of this space with the central market that Berto Savina Tito, president of Italsav, has just opened; his relationship with Castroism has been known for decades. Last April, the firm opened Variedades Galiano Casalinda, in Central Havana, a showy store created by a joint venture with the Cuban state, offering “products for the home and the person” in dollars, with the Classic card or US bills.

Some stained and others cracked, the mirrored windows no longer reflect bodies or appliances, but rather the deteriorated and empty surroundings. / 14ymedio

Right in front of the hotel Cohiba, the Paseo Galleries have not yet had the luck to be able to collect hard currency, perhaps the cause of their current ruin. To go green, you need the greenbacks that have not arrived. That delay is bad news for guests of the hotel, directly across from the shopping complex, who used to cross the street to stock up at the food market or buy some sunscreen and flip-flops for the beach. Also to have fun in the evening at the Jazz Café.

But many of those travelers, who had planned to view the market from their hotel rooms, have now gone in the direction of the Dominican Republic or Cancun. And the new rich who went there now shop at Walmart or Home Depot, on the other side of the Florida Straits.

Translated by Regina Anavy

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‘Bread Will Get Here When the Flour Shows Up’

Next to this sign, state-owned stores display another: “We greet May 1st with efficiency and commitment.”

That old adage that reads “Save bread for May” becomes a riddle / 14ymedio

14ymedio, José Lassa, Havana, 18 April 2025 — In large letters, the bakery window proclaims: “Long live May 1st.” In small letters, another sign clarifies: “The bread will be delivered when the flour comes in.” That old saying, “Save bread for May,” becomes a riddle. Since the beginning of this week, Havana residents have been coming and going with their empty bags, while the helpless vendors tell stories about shipments and boats that should have arrived. Meanwhile, at the private market, bags of 6 and 8 bread rolls skyrocket up to 300 and 500 pesos.

“I don’t know what to do to feed my son anymore, especially during this vacation week,” comments Teresa, a 35-year-old mother. “I’ve been without gas for over a month, and when the power goes out at noon, I have nothing to cook with. Bread is an emergency food, a solution, and I don’t even have that anymore.”

Teresa makes a sacrifice. She buys a bag of 6 rolls for 370 pesos at the private cafeteria right next to the state-run bakery in her neighborhood, that way, she at least ensures her son’s breakfast. “I’ll figure out what to do for the rest of the day,” she tells herself thoughtfully. This Wednesday, the Municipal Administration Council of Plaza de la Revolución reported on its Facebook page that, over the past 48 hours, its bakeries had been experiencing problems producing basic bread due to a lack of flour.

Cubans already know that when there’s no bread, it’s because there’s no flour, or no oil, or because the ship hasn’t arrived / 14ymedio

“That news report is published every other week. Cubans already know that when there’s no bread, it’s because there’s no flour, or no oil, or because the ship hasn’t arrived, and so on, like with rice and everything else”, says Antonio, who adds that clarifications or justifications are unnecessary. “We all know about their ineptitude. They’re good for nothing.”

On the other hand, bread offered for sale in private businesses hasn’t been in short supply, but its price has increased considerably in recent weeks. In continue reading

Guanabacoa, it’s normal to hear a whistle or a child’s voice selling food on the streets at any time, from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m.

There’s no flour, but the sign speaks of “efficiency and commitment” / 14ymedio

“Until two weeks ago, I used to buy a bag of 9 or 10 rolls for 200 pesos,” says Leticia, a resident of the Habana Nueva neighborhood in the municipality of Guanabacoa. “There are three of us in my house, and each of us eats two, and sometimes even three rolls for a snack or breakfast, because they’re small, almost for a birthday, and don’t even think about saving them for two days from now, because they go bad quickly,” continues Leticia, who at least has the opportunity to spend that money every so often. “Well, those same bread rolls went up to 250 pesos last week, and this Monday they were at 300 pesos. The worst part is that now the flour is showing up, but these prices aren’t going back down.”

There have been several complaints on social media in recent days about the bread situation, suggesting that this is a national issue. In the capital, residents of La Lisa, Luyanó, Alamar, and Vedado have reported that neighborhood bakeries are out of flour, but individuals have all sorts of supplies. “It’s horrible to live like this,” says Yuly Saez in a Facebook post. “We’ve been without bread at the bakery for three days… no one is offering a solution or an adequate response, since our children’s main food source is bread. Now individuals are taking advantage and selling a bag of it for 500 pesos.

Meanwhile, no authority has provided an explanation for the product’s absence or the estimated time it will return to the bakeries. In September of last year, Anayra Cabrera Martínez, Director of Industrial Policy for the Ministry of Food Industry, reported that the weight of bread in the standard family basket would be reduced by 20 grams, from 80 to 60 grams, in order to avoid affecting production and ensure it reaches the entire population, due to the unavailability of flour in the country. She also explained that this was not a permanent change and that delays could occur due to the logistical effort required to transport the flour.

Months later, the bread situation does not appear to have an immediate solution.

Guanabacoa resident: “The worst part is that flour is now beginning to appear, but these prices won’t come down again.” / 14ymedio

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The Cuban Revolution Celebrates Its Agony This May 1st With a Lackluster Display

Tens of thousands of disaffected citizens were herded into a parade in front of Raúl Castro and President Díaz-Canel.

Decrepit, Raúl Castro and José Ramón Machado Ventura escort Miguel Díaz-Canel, wearing his tight-fitting national flag sweater. / Cubadebate

14ymedio, Juan Izquierdo/Juan Diego Rodríguez/José Lassa, Havana, 1 May 2025 — In a city drowned in garbage, like Havana, you can march on all sorts of things this May Day. Papers, shells, cans, and even Cuban flags scatter beneath your feet. They are the best symbol of a parade where apathy is as common as the slogans, and whose zero coordinate is the giant “abrasion” in Revolution Square.

On the platform, at the feet of JoséMartí, in a Masonic pose—as designed by Batista’s architects—the regime’s top brass also wave small flags. Decrepit, Raúl Castro and José Ramón Machado Ventura escort Miguel Díaz-Canel, in his overly-tight national flag sweater. Manuel Marrero in garish red, generals in a dry olive green, sweaty guayaberas: the colors of Castroism.

A crowd that the official press estimates at “almost a million” also passes by, poses for a photo, and continues walking under the Havana sun. The nearly 30 degrees of steamy heat that plagues the capital today hasn’t stopped a small group of elderly military personnel, displaying a sort of vest covered in medals, from enthusiastically waving their portraits of Fidel.

A “worker” parades alongside a solemn poster of Fidel, but his shorts feature rapper Tekashi 6ix9ine. / 14ymedio

If May Day is good for anything, it’s for creating picturesque symbolic convergences: a “worker” parades alongside a solemn poster of Fidel, but his shorts feature rapper Tekashi 6ix9ine—a great friend of the Revolution—making an obscene gesture. A clean-shaven man in running shoes rests next to a ragged beggar. Upside down and already forgotten next to the curb, a banner: “Together we create Cuba.”

14ymedio never misses the parade, but not to demand rights—the independent press doesn’t have them in a dictatorship—but to report in great detail on the carnival of reaffirmation of a regime that calls its workers together out of obligation, and that turns May Day into an event of pure pathos. continue reading

Early in the morning, Havana even resembles a city with electricity. “There was no blackout last night!” is repeated insistently by the crowd, like another slogan. The avenues leading to the “abrasion” were momentarily spared from the power outage so that drones from the Armed Forces, Cubadebate, and Granma could take photos of the umpteenth “historic occasion.”

Members of the police and the FAR [Army] spill onto the sidewalk, exhausted even before the march begins. / 14ymedio

The Cuban Television cameras—directed by the voiceover of Froilán Arencibia, the regime’s master of ceremonies—relentlessly focus on the section of the stands where the “friendly” diplomats are sheltering from the sun. Standing out among them are Hua Xin, the Chinese ambassador, and a large group of North Korean soldiers, for whom the atmosphere could not be more familiar.

On the street, the parade is seen in its true form: buses miraculously “appearing” to transport the participants, legs tired from a walk of several kilometers, half-asleep “proletarians” taking a nap on the curb, and garbage that is only a harbinger of the tons of waste that will remain in the streets after the event.

The trucks packed with “unionists” start rolling off, with a picture or banner plastered on their noses. The buses start rolling off with stickers designed and printed by the Communist Party’s Propaganda Department, which recently boasted on television that May Day was its time of plenty. The protocol cars, with tinted windows, start rolling off with the “high-class” leaders inside.

The trucks and buses carrying their “haul” heading to the parade. / 14ymedio

Since Wednesday, the Red Cross and other institutions have deployed medical tents and command posts. “We need to provide a lot of stretchers,” says a staff member. “With the number of people who will be arriving without breakfast, fainting spells will be common.”

This year is special, Cubadebate warns, because 25 years ago, an ailing Fidel Castro pronounced the “concept of Revolution,” an apostolic creed that officials repeat and canonically fail to fulfill: “change what must be changed” in the country of immobility; “full equality and freedom” with hundreds of political prisoners in the cells; “defend values” when those who express a dissenting opinion are imprisoned; “never lie” when corruption, violence, drug addiction, and despair are the order of the day.

Foreigners wait excitedly in the Plaza. They are the Revolution’s groupies, invited by the Institute of Friendship with the Peoples, headed by former spy Fernando González Llort. Americans, Latin Americans, Africans, Europeans… all shout slogans in support of a regime they don’t understand, yet support.

From early morning, after a night without a blackout, the main avenue was filled with thousands of people heading to the Plaza. / Cubadebate

Cubans are also marching—in large numbers, of course—but they know what awaits them when they return home: blackouts and hardships, which won’t be erased no matter how many signs and flags they wave, regardless of whether they’re Cuban, Palestinian, or from any “brother country.” Many wouldn’t know how to find Palestine or Vietnam on a map, but the order to support causes aligned with the regime has been given.<

There’s no shortage of Armed Forces cadets and Interior Ministry agents, cordoned off along the street in case any proletarian gets out of control and shouts the wrong slogan. They, too, are human and spill onto the sidewalk, exhausted even before the march begins. Others gamble, flirt with a female captain, or grab a cigarette from someone lucky enough to have a pack in their jacket.

When the event ends, another parade begins: that of the street sweepers. / 14ymedio

The march ends, and the soldiers look irritably at the contingent of foreigners. Even they don’t understand the outpouring. “Comrade,” a soldier says to a groupie leader, not sure if he understands, “thank you for your solidarity, but you need to leave.”

Now comes the next parade: that of the street sweepers, who throw their brooms at the holy cards of Díaz-Canel and Fidel that have been left on the ground. They gather the banners, gather the slogans, and mix them with the dust of the Plaza. They are little bundles of the Revolution that belong in the trash.

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“It Hurts My Soul to See the Seniors of the 13th of March Old Age Home Filthy and Hungry”

The cheapest elderly care plan comes to $176 a month, 14 times the average Cuban salary and more than 30 times the average pension of a retiree.

13th of March Old Age Home in Guanabacoa, Havana. / 14ymedio

14ymedio, José Lassa, Havana, 4 April 2025 — “I’m going to give it to Eleguá,” says an elderly woman standing at the fence of the 13th of March old age home in Guanabacoa, stretching her hand between the bars and grabbing the money a passerby hands her. The charity doesn’t go unnoticed, and soon another hand, black and calloused, reaches out demanding a bill to save them from eating the “morronga” (morning snack) served downtown. Bordered by the reddish fence that marks the boundary between public and state property, the place looks more like a beggar’s shack than an old age home.

“Every time I go to the old age home, they call me and ask me to buy them coffee, and a cup costs 20 pesos, but that’s not the point,” says Aleida, who lives two blocks from the old age home. “They’re all dirty, they stink. It pains me to see the elderly like this, because we’ll all reach that age,” she confesses.

At age 50, a widow with no children, the Havana resident dedicates part of her time to helping “the old folks.” “Many of those who are there are here because they sold their house so their children could leave the country, hoping their lives would improve. The least I can do is bring them a thermos of coffee and some bread sometimes. I’d even like to bathe them because they break my heart.”

The woman suspects that more or less all of the island’s state-run old age homes are in a similar condition, but a few days ago she read in the press that 25% of Cubans are over 60 years old. The number confirmed her suspicion: there are too many elderly people and no one to care for them, which has led to a surge in cases of neglect and vulnerability among the elderly.

“When my grandmother fell ill four years ago, I went to the Ministry of Labor to request a caregiver. They told me they didn’t have anyone because, even though the demand for staff was high, they couldn’t afford to pay them,” Yisel says. continue reading

As she explained to 14ymedio, her job meant she couldn’t dedicate herself to caring for her grandmother, and the fact that the elderly woman had family members made it even more difficult to hire a caregiver. “Obviously, elderly people who lived alone were more likely to receive someone. If the family member couldn’t care for the elderly person, they had to justify their situation very clearly. When they finally assigned someone, families typically paid them a little more because their salary was a pittance.”

Elderly people beg for money and food through the fence of the old age home. / 14ymedio

Yisel followed all the necessary procedures, but she couldn’t get a caregiver assigned to her grandmother. For a while, she managed the situation as best she could, but after a year, she had to admit her relative to a psychiatric hospital, where a companion was required.

Once again, it was impossible for her to stay, so she contacted some registered nurses who no longer worked for Public Health and who were caring for the elderly in hospitals. “They were really good. They did everything for her, and they had the knowledge. Back then, when the dollar was at 50 pesos, they earned 2,000 pesos a day. I don’t want to think about how much that business costs now, with the dollar at 355 pesos.”

TaTamanía, a small business founded in 2023 and dedicated to care work, gives an idea of how the business has changed—in terms of prices and organization. Elderly, sick, disabled. There’s no case that isn’t addressed by the “first private agency in Cuba dedicated to care.” The cost of these services, however, is what truly scares families.

“It pains me to see the elderly like this, because we’ll all reach that age,” laments a neighbor. / 14ymedio

Regardless of the plan chosen, the only payment method is to deposit dollars or euros into a foreign account. For people with mobility problems, the rate is $1.10 per hour; for people with reduced mobility, $1.35; and hospital care is charged at $1.50. The minimum required to request this service is 40 hours per week for one month. Calculating this, the cheapest plan comes to $176, about 62,480 pesos at the informal exchange rate, 14 times the average Cuban salary (4,468 pesos) and more than 30 times the average pension of a retiree (1,900 pesos).

The cheapest plan comes to $176, 14 times the average Cuban salary and more than 30 times the average pension of a retiree.

At these prices, it’s clear that TaTamanía’s services aren’t benefiting elderly people like those at the 13 de Marzo old age home, but rather people with relatives abroad who can afford their “highly qualified” caregivers.

The town’s seniors gather around parks and bodegas. / 14ymedio

The private service offers five places for families who cannot afford the service, which it considers its social responsibility. However, agencies of its kind are far from capable of solving the problem of elderly care. “I have a friend who tells me he has no choice but to leave his mother alone, because in order to pay what they ask for her care, he has to go out on payday and give the entire amount to the caregiver,” Yisel says.

Guanabacoa’s parks are the place where many of the municipality’s elderly congregate at one time of he day or another. Sitting in wheelchairs, taking the last puff of a cigarette or waiting for the bread to arrive at the ration store, they are the sad image of an aging country. Even so, the park, the streets, or the old age home itself are, for many, an alternative to the empty homes from which their children and grandchildren have emigrated.

For many, the park, the streets, or the old age home itself are the alternative to an empty home. / 14ymedio

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‘Let There Be Light!: And the Light… (Went Out)’

The Garden of Passions, a museum of odds and ends created by a Cuban barber turned diplomat and spy

Wise sayings, reflections, commentary, fragments, doubts: all written upon a sheet of tin. / 14ymedio

14ymedio, José Lassa/Juan Izquierdo, Havana, 29 March 2025 – “An interesting and different kind of museum, created from throwaway objects transformed into beautiful sculptures that transmit messages full of moral lessons”. EcuRed’s [’Cuba’s Wikipedia’] perhaps rather simple definition, is, in a way, less eloquent than the unofficial names for the place it describes: The Museum of Junk, or Garden of the Passions. Also, we have: The Scrap Metal Gallery, or Gallo’s [’Cockerel’s’] Henhouse, along with many other variations on the name for the place created by Héctor Pascual Gallo, in the Alamar neighbourhood of Havana.

What’s significant is that EcuRed doesn’t even tell its readers who Gallo was – they have deleted the page which described the man who informed Fidel Castro – or at least so the legend goes – where Cuban exiles were going to land during the Bay of Pigs invasion. Born in eastern Havana in 1924, he was a barber, a diplomat, a spy and an artist, and he died in 2020.

After a whole lifetime – or several lifetimes, as he used to say – Gallo turned up in Alamar and began, aged over 80, a career in culture. One enormous and somewhat ghostly portrait of him is hung above the terrace inside the Garden. Another, signed by the Belgian artist Denis Meyer in 2019, is similarly fantasmagorical. Both represent Gallo as a sort of god of the place. And, in effect, it is his moral lessons – his passions – which populate the place.

A portrait signed by Belgian artist Denis Meyer in 2019 decorates the entrance. / 14ymedio

“I love white coffee more than anything else. Anything? Yes!”, says one of his commandments. “It’s good to know how to, and to be able to feed yourself”; “With time, beauty fades, but charm is accentuated”; “Putting something off doesn’t resolve it”; “Doing silly things doesn’t make you silly, unless it’s for more than 24 times a second (I was free for a minute)”. Wisdom, reflections, commentary, fragments, doubts: all written on bits of tin or wood and accompanied by arrows to keep you reading.

The most important thing about the Garden, however, is that it has the power to silence. In the land of rubbish tips, Gallo is the great organiser of rubbish, to which he attributes meaning, and history. The history of Cuba, no less. A mountain of cash registers, destroyed by rust, is the best symbol of the economic sinking of the country. A kind of Nganga cauldron, complete with forks and shells, recalls the incurable hunger of the Cuban people. One sign reads: “A verb most often used: resolve it. An expression most often heard: it’s not easy”.

A mountain of cash registers, destroyed by rust, is the best symbol of the economic sinking of the country. / 14ymedio

Picturesque and with an overall rusty brown hue, the Garden bursts its way into the daily life of Alamar. It’s impossible not to see it or hold an opinion about Gallo and his legend. No one knows exactly what to call the place, says Gertrudis, who lives close to the building with the giant portrait of the artist.

“They used to call it the Park of Junk. Perhaps it was after Gallo died that they named it Garden of the Passions. People know this street as Junk Street and everyone knows where it is”, she explains.

Ricardo, another person who grew up amongst Gallo’s trash, confirmed Gertrudis’s geographic reference: “Yes, they’d say ’Junk Street’. It’s part of his garden, where he turned all of his rubbish into a kind of love. Rubbish into Art. His granddaughter was at school with me actually. This part here is the old stock. Then it gets more organised as more objects were found. He was a journalist as well. A supercool old guy”.

’Brut Art’ by Cubans such as Gallo is currently on exhibition in a museum in Lausanne, Switzerland. / 14ymedio

For Gertrudis, a teacher who has lived in Alamar for years but has never actually been inside the Garden, the installation is connected with the so-called ’brut’ or ’deviant’ art movement. In fact, a number of works by Cubans who identify themselves as practitioners of this movement (one which might be defined as art created by people who aren’t, strictly speaking, artists), among them various works by Gallo, are being shown in Lausanne, Switzerland, this month.

“I find this kind of art quite interesting”, says Gertrudis. “I don’t know to what extent the people who create it have any artistic training, but yeah, it seems a pretty genuine movement to me. The materials they use are almost always re-used or recycled”.

On the question of what the Garden actually represents, its neighbours sum it up in one expression: “Daily objects which hold in themselves a sense of art”. / 14ymedio

On the question of what the Garden actually represents, Gertrudis sums it up in one expression: “Daily objects which hold in themselves a sense of art”. “Gallo transformed a space which, in itself, is quite boring. Alamar as a place is rather monotonous at times, and the idea of breaking with this physicality, with this architecturally ordered space – where, above all, there aren’t even any parks or other outstanding places either – is a great proposition, and its courage is rooted precisely in this”.

“Let there be light!: And the light… (went out)”, wrote Gallo on a signboard from 1993. More than 30 years have passed and the work appears just as fresh now as it did in the Special Period. At that time, forgotten by the regime which he had served, and apparently under Castro’s radar, Gallo made a place of creation out of poverty itself.

The goal is: to survive in this life, and in the next. “The difference between Goya and Gallo is just spelling”, says one of his aphorisms. “One is immortal, and the other is unmortal”.

Forgotten by the regime which he had served, and apparently under Castro’s radar, Gallo made a place of creation out of poverty itself. / 14ymedio

Translated by Ricardo Recluso

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The Garbage Has Destroyed Guanabacoa’s Great Treasure, Its Waters and Springs

In the midst of disaster and plague, a graffiti: “I am Fidel. Thank you for the country you left us.”

The scene of the garbage is so depressing that Yuliet prefers to keep the window closed, day and night. / 14ymedio

14ymedio, José Lassa / Juan Izquierdo, Havana, 6 April 2025 — What appeared first? The “I am Fidel” sign on a battered wall in Guanabacoa or the garbage dump located next to it? The hand that painted the slogan, popularized by the regime after the leader’s death in 2016, perhaps didn’t suspect that a rubbish pile and Castro could converge on that corner of the Havana municipality. Blurry, another message completes the irony: “Thank you for the country you left us.”

Guanabacoa is full of such signs, next to a pile of garbage or a sewage ditch. In some scenes, the vultures—with their wings spread out in a cross, like a child’s game—are exploring the waste or pecking at cans in the stream.

“Please dispose of waste in the water,” reads another sign near the Santa Rita Baths, once one of Havana’s most popular spas. One wonders whether such an absurd request had actually been erased by the damp on the wall. Thirty-nine-year-old Yuliet’s window overlooks one of the tributaries that lead to the place. The stench, at any time of day, is unbearable.

Graffiti — “I Am Fidel” — and trash in Guanabacoa, Havana. / 14ymedio

It’s enough to glance over it to see how the vultures and rats scratch among the puddles. The panorama is so depressing that Yuliet prefers to keep the window closed, day and night. “I keep it closed not only because of the smell, which in the end we get used to, but because the mosquitos are coming out of the toilet.”

Water, once clean and abundant, characterized Guanabacoa since time immemorial. Both the native people who gave the settlement its name and the settlers who arrived later decided that its baths and streams were the area’s greatest treasure. Before the Revolution, 11 of Cuba’s 27 water continue reading

bottling plants were located in Guanabacoa.

With its main resource contaminated beyond words, what was once its strength is now its weakness. Every stream, every well, every creek is an existing or potential source of disease. Garbage is taking over the land from Loma de la Cruz to Baños de Santa Rita, from the fields to the very center of the city.

A glance is enough to see how the vultures and rats dig through the puddles. / 14ymedio

“I love you, Yanisleidy,” reads the umpteenth graffiti next to a garbage dump. Fidel isn’t immune to the stench, but neither are declarations of love. The dump doesn’t believe in ideologies or feelings, and moves along with the increasingly turbid current that surrounds the hamlets and hills.

“People here don’t just go out and throw out the trash,” laments Juan, who arrived in the Mambí neighborhood from Las Tunas a decade ago. “They throw bags or whatever out the window, and it accumulates there until a good rain falls and washes away all the garbage.”

It’s a macabre sport that, with each “throw,” costs the city what little sanitation it has left. In defense of the residents, Juan claims the nearest trash container is six blocks away. “I used to use it,” he corrects himself: “It’s not there anymore. One day the Municipal Police came and took it away.”

In the residents’ minds there are two option: burn the trash or throw it in the stream, with the second considered ‘more hygienic.’ A cloudburst is the city’s only remaining ‘cleaning agent.’ When the rains come, the vultures hide under the trees, the rats drown or find a crack, and the trash floats away.

Guanabacoa is full of signs like this — ‘Please don’t throw the trash in the water’ — next to a pile of garbage or a sewage ditch. / 14ymedio

Caridad knows better than anyone that the downpour can wash away debris, but it’s deadly for those with low-lying yards. Less than a meter above the river level, the back of her house becomes a pool of rot when the current overflows. “It’s impossible to explain everything to my husband and I had to take out the patio,” she says.

“Some doctors came here to the neighborhood once, tested a couple of families, and left. No one else has come to check on our hygiene,” she says. Throughout the city, the feeling of helplessness is similar, fueled by the problems of drinking water shortages affecting all of Cuba.

The stench, at any time, is unbearable. / 14ymedio

A zinc sheet acts as a dike against the river. It doesn’t stop the dirty water or the diseases it brings, but at least it prevents the stink bombs from crossing the line into Caridad’s house.

When the rain subsides, she and her husband pile up the waste that has washed up on the patio. Loose or in bags, like the “paper boat” the children also play with, they throw all the rotten stuff back into the river. It’s a vicious cycle and also, the woman admits, a kind of revenge against the trash. Now it’ll be someone else’s problem.

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‘Collapse,’ the Ubiquitous Sign in Guanabacoa, a Town of Movie Theaters, Patriots, and Santeros

The Carral cinema-theater is one of the buildings that illustrates the town’s decline.

Painted green and blue on a lime background, the Carral Theater in Guanabacoa has closed its doors. / 14ymedio

14ymedio, Juan Izquierdo / José Lassa, Havana, 30 March 2024 — Guanabacoa, the Havana town that gave the strongest battle to the English invaders in 1762, has not survived the neglect inflicted by the Revolution or the ravages of time. Home to Santería, famous for its history and its ancient nightlife, and the setting for vibrant, tropical novels, walking its streets today is despairing: the heat and poverty erode every wall.

The Carral cinema/theater is one of the buildings that illustrates the town’s decline. Its striking arches, somewhere between Baroque and Moorish, innocently mimic the grand buildings of the neighboring capital. Now, painted green and blue against a lime background, the building’s doors are closed.

The wide-open balconies on the second floor offer a certain sign of life. Like other buildings, the Carral is prime territory for another invasion, not of the English, but of what the prose of the state newspaper Granma calls “homeless” or “destitute.” Until very recently, however, films were shown inside.

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In front of the facade, Jenny recalls that it had been almost 15 years since she last entered El Carral. It was 2011, and Habanastation was premiering, a film that illustrated the differences between rich and poor Cuban children. The widespread poverty that has engulfed the country has quickly rendered the film outdated. “The theater was packed, and there were even people continue reading

sitting on the floor,” she recalls.

Carral and cinema are synonymous in her head. Jenny saw almost every Cuban film of the last 30 or 40 years there. Entre ciclones [Between Cyclones], Zafiros: locura azul [Zafiros: Blue Madness], El Benny, and Amor Vertical, she lists. And others she can’t even remember, plus clown shows, children’s matinees, and all kinds of screenings. “There were no DVDs back then,” she jokes.

There is a painful memory: the day in 1993 when the usher blocked her and a friend’s entrance. A huge line formed in front of the Carral Theater to see the movie. When it was finally their turn to enter, the man pointed to a sign: “Suitable for those over 16 only.” It was the premiere of Fresa y chocolate [Strawberry and Chocolate].

When it was finally their turn to enter, the man pointed to a sign: “Suitable for those over 16 only.” It was the premiere of Fresa y chocolate [Strawberry and Chocolate].

As a young woman in her twenties, Jenny says, she saw the Carral theater gradually lose its “capacity.” The projector, worn out by the years, began to fail. One day, the air conditioning also broke down. “They gave you a piece of cardboard at the entrance, and people would watch the movie, cooling off with the makeshift fan.”

El Carral is one of many buildings crushed by time. In similar conditions are the Casa de las Cadenas—a miniature of Havana’s mansions; the Fausto Theater, of which only the façade remains; and the Santo Domingo Convent, famous for an 18th-century anecdote: a drunken Englishman, during the invasion, tried to despoil the image of Saint Francis Xavier and steal a gold ring from his hand. He tried to climb onto the altar, but the saint stumbled and fell on the thief. The people of Guanabacoa celebrated his death as divine revenge for the desecration.

The only things that survive in the town are the government headquarters—the old Municipal Palace—the Casa Grande currency exchange store, and a new dollar store belonging to the Caribe chain. Gone are also the days when Guanabacoa was a sort of Vatican for Cuban santeros, like Palmira (Cienfuegos) or Cárdenas (Matanzas). The great Yoruba priests resided there, to whose authority all practitioners on the island submitted.

In 1958, when Fulgencio Batista called upon all human and divine powers to get rid of Fidel Castro, he called for a grand ceremony at the Guanabacoa stadium. His intention: for all the country’s santeros to unite in a common ritual. It was “a great egbó,” Guillermo Cabrera Infante, the best chronicler of this desperate ceremony, would later say. He was there accompanied by filmmaker Tomás Gutiérrez Alea.

“The three dictators that republican Cuba has endured were or are witches,” the novelist commented, referring to Gerardo Machado, Batista, and Castro. It has been the same, with frequent consultations with their “godfathers” in Guanabacoa, for countless Cuban leaders, including the current ones.

But neither the orishas, nor Saint Francis Xavier, nor the mythical Pepe Antonio—an authoritarian leader who resisted the British—have saved Guanabacoa. The most devastating aspect of the site is not the decline of its main buildings, but of the other, no less historic, buildings where the architecture of the 18th and 19th centuries is still visible to Cubans today.

Ruins of the House of Chains, in Guanabacoa, a miniature of Havana’s mansions. / 14ymedio

These mansions, whose walls are now completely gray, covered in mold, scraped by scavengers, covered in graffiti and vines, are the true tragedy of the town. A young José Martí slept in one of them when he worked—unpaid—for the lawyer Miguel Francisco Viondi, who had been mayor of the town in 1879. “Danger,” reads a whitewashed sign next to the doorway which the patriot, exiled shortly after, crossed many times.

Other signs, on dozens of walls, send a message to passersby that could serve the entire city: “Collapse. Do not stand here.”

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Havana Coloso Del Cerro, a Renovated Stadium Without Enthusiastic Fans

Following a renovation that was completed this month, private SMEs have opened where the previously unsupplied state cafeterias were located.

On Friday, during a game between Havana and Granma, the stands were almost empty / 14ymedio

14ymedio, José Lassa, Havana, March 23, 2025 — No roar was coming from the stands, the blackboard had no light, and barely one part of the Latin American stadium, in Havana, had an audience on Friday afternoon. However, the followers of the Industriales team enjoyed the 6-3 victory against Granma and briefly recalled the glory days of the Coloso del Cerro when the passion for baseball attracted crowds on the Island.

At the beginning of this month, maintenance and repair work was completed in the interior areas of the most important stadium in the Cuban capital. With the newly painted walls and the field in better shape, the house of the Leones resumed its programming and will host the III Elite League of baseball. On Saturday, Granma would take revenge and defeat the Blues after taking advantage of three home runs, closing the score 4 to 2.

“Gurriel should be ashamed!” roared a fan, haranguing the players who were somewhat lacking in spark / 14ymedio

But on Friday, that obstacle had not yet gotten in the way of the Havama team, especially impacted by the exodus of its players and the discouragement that has taken hold in the national sport. That afternoon they reigned over their concrete jungle, supported by a few followers who were more attracted by curiosity over the stadium repairs than by what was happening in the field.

That day, the opening pitchers were Andy Vargas for Industriales and César Gracía for the Granma team, two of the best pitchers in the Elite League. But the most mentioned player was not one of those on the field. The most heard name in conversations and debates was Yulieski Gourriel. The 40-year-old from Sancti Spíritus recently reached an agreement with the San Diego Padres to join their spring training camp.

“Gurriel should be ashamed!” roared a fan who harangued the players who were somewhat lacking in spark when it came to running the bases or trying to catch the ball. “You can’t ask them for more,” said a woman in defense of continue reading

the athletes, who receive a monthly salary of 8,500 pesos for participating in the tournament, less than 25 dollars at the current informal exchange rate.

Despite the soulless show, a local conga continued to play for much of the game, and the stands above home plate were full. The spectators with the most resources kept going in and out of their seats to look for something to eat or drink, incursions that ended, most of the time, with thousands of pesos spent. The regulars at the sports complex, however, poor people from the Cerro neighborhood that surrounds the colossus, were notable for their austerity. Dressed in worn clothing, they kept their eyes fixed on the field and consumed nothing during all nine innings.

The regulars at the sports complex, poor people from the Cerro neighborhood, were notable for their austerity / 14ymedio

Where the undersupplied state cafeterias once were, some premises managed by private MSMEs have opened. There are candy stores, which offer not only slices of cake, tortes and bow-shaped pastries but also whole cakes at 1,300 pesos that don’t fit well in the context of stands without spoons, plates or birthdays. For those who prefer something salty, the options are cheese pizzas at 300 pesos or ham pizzas for 360. To balance so many carbohydrates, you can always buy an imported soda for 250 or an energizing drink for 300 pesos.

The ban on the sale of alcohol is maintained, and inspections at the entrance seek to prevent the entrance of knives and the typical bottles of rum that people try to hide in the waist band of their pants. That close link between hits and beers, home runs and long sips of a cold Hatuey or a refreshing Polar are a thing of the past. The Cuban brewing industry, which invested in recreation and sports centers, financed stadiums and sponsored baseball players, was banished from the stadium decades ago.

There are sweet shops that offer small cakes, tortes, bow-shaped pastries and large cakes at 1,300 pesos / 14ymedio

Advertising also stands out for its absence. There are no posters with ads, nor banners recommending refreshments or the benefits of sports sneakers. The Cerro is a stadium where austerity has been imposed, which also affects the whole spectacle. “Revolutionary baseball” is like this: dull, without ads or distractions but also poor in resources and joy.

“It seems that they didn’t have enough paint,” summarized a follower of the Havana team while pointing to the nearby building, across the street, which for years has worn the intense blue color and the initials of the Industriales team. With the faded facade and the moldy eaves where weeds now grow, the building stands as a symbol of the current state of Cuban baseball. Inside, some apartments, empty due to the emigration of their owners, are looking for buyers to inhabit them, at bargain prices.

It’s also a metaphor for the absences, in the field and the baseball stands, of all those who have left

With the faded facade and the moldy eaves where weeds now grow, the building stands as a symbol of the current state of Cuban baseball / 14ymedio

Translated by Regina Anavy

After a Sleepless Night Due to a Blackout, Cubans Go Out To ‘Hunt’ for Scarce Food

Not even a police baton are able to prevent people from speaking loudly and badly against the government.

Tension is more abundant than oxygen among the food stalls, punished by the midday sun of Havana / 14ymedio

14ymedio, José Lassa, Havana, 15 March 2025 — The lack of enthusiasm of the three policemen who watched the Guanabacoa fair this Saturday, settled on their motorcycles, does not deceive anyone: they too have had a difficult night. For anyone’s nerves and body, an early morning of total blackout is devastating. Even so, you have to go out to look for food, and no matter how slim the pickings are, you have to take advantage of it.

The motorcycles come and go around the stalls, and the officers – two young men in blue and an older one in the army’s olive-green uniform – continue to watch over the transactions. But be careful. With a night like this Friday, not even a police baton is able to prevent many insults from being hurled loudly against the Government.

The blackout also has an amplifying effect on the general annoyance. If every weekend prices go up and pocketbooks lose power, after a night without sleep everyone wakes up in a bad mood. Customers are tense, and sellers are uncomfortable; those who listen are upset, but no one can think of what to do or what pill to resort to. continue reading

Two young policemen in blue and an older one in the olive-green uniform of the Army watch over the transactions / 14ymedio

A concern runs through the crowd: with the total blackout, the last reserves of liquefied gas in homes will have to be used. When what they have saved is used up, they will have to go back to using charcoal. The bread, increasingly compact and hard, is sold for 200 pesos in Guanabacoa, and only the rich – if that word makes any sense in Cuba – can afford to buy a bag from a street vendor.

The tension is more abundant than oxygen among the food stalls. The noonday sun is punishing; last night it was the mosquitoes and the blackout. One of the policemen wakes up and walks around the food fair. Fleeing from the sun as if he were a vampire, he soon returns to the comfort of his motorcycle.

Several kilometers away, in Luyanó, people also wake up hungry. The most desperate ride their bicycles up and down the street, hunting a seller. The bakery door is closed. Bad sign. A messenger explains that the bakeries in La Víbora – another Havana neighborhood – closed yesterday and they asked him to collect about 600 bags of bread.

“It was the only thing that could be done before the arrival of the blackout, and I have already sold everything,” he says, before continuing with his wheelbarrow on Arango Street.

The electronic equipment at the sugar mills had their own blackout.

Dodging the power cut and saving the equipment has become a macabre sport in Cuban homes, and there is not always luck. “You have to have everything disconnected when the current comes back on so that things don’t explode,” a housewife from Cienfuegos tells this newspaper. “In my house an air conditioner and a microwave oven have already bit the dust.”

When hunger presses, everyone looks for what they can, and no one has to remind the dumpster divers. About to dive into the trash, an old man pushes the bags away from the top to see if it’s worth exploring further. Like those lined up in Guanabacoa or pedaling under the Luyanó sun, his clothes are threadbare and his face full of wrinkles. They are emblematic of a country where the goal is to survive. Living will be for another day.

Translated by Regina Anavy

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The ‘MLC’ Is Not Dead in Cuba: New Stores Open in Freely Convertible Currency

La Tienda Panamericana Primera del Cerro in Havana has just been inaugurated under this sales approach

Some products for sale in the Panamericana Primera del Cerro store in Havana / 14ymedio

14ymedio, Natalia López Moya/José Lassa, Havana, 10 March 2025 — The marquee at the entrance is still broken on one side, and the steps in front of the door still show their cracks, but the interior has changed. The Panamericana Primera del Cerro Store in Havana has just been inaugurated under the practice of sales in freely convertible currency (MLC). Before opening to foreign exchange trade, the store, located on Santa Catalina Street at the corner of Vento, was not used after a long stage of deterioration offering scarce goods in national currency.

The place was not used after a long stage of deterioration offering scarce goods in national currency / 14ymedio

“It was a lion’s den every day,” recalls a woman who ran into a neighbor this Monday just before entering the market. Since last Thursday, the shelves no longer display the few products in Cuban pesos that were distributed by the so-called rationed “module.” Instead of the packages, semi-thawed, of chicken thighs, the tasteless El Cocinerito picadillo and the odd bag of detergent, now on the shelves you can see bottles of wine, different tomato sauces and seasonings of the American brand Goya.

Now on the shelves you can see bottles of wine, different tomato sauces and seasonings of the American brand Goya / 14ymedio

When in Primera del Cerro you paid with pesos, the surroundings of the store also looked very different. “There was always a line, and it was a rare day that a fight didn’t break out,” recalls another customer who found out from a friend that you can now buy there only by paying with foreign credit cards or with the Classic and MLC cards issued by Cuban banks. No type of cash is accepted, the clerks clearly clarified as soon as she inquired: no dollar bills and much less Cuban pesos.

No type of cash is accepted: no dollar bills, and much less Cuban pesos / 14ymedio

Unlike other markets that have recently begun to operate in dollars, on the corner of Santa Catalina only foreign currency “in plastic” is accepted, emphasizes a worker. Of course, once they’ve fulfilled this requirement, buyers can choose between several types of canned sardines or tuna from the Spanish brand HiperDino, ranging from $1.45 to $3.85 dollars a can, and Didi condensed milk at $7.50 per kilo or a small jar of Hellmann mayonnaise for $2.85. A large number of sauces from national industries fill a good part of the shelves.

A large number of sauces from national industries fill a good part of the shelves / 14ymedio

For customers with more resources, there are rice cookers, washing machines and even electric ovens. “It is for use when there is electricity,” ironized a young man who entered to explore the new image of what until recently was an empty place with employees without much to do. However, there is still a lot of that past. The floor is broken in several places, the paint is still peeling on the walls, and some of the ceiling lights do not even turn on.

The floor is broken in several places, the paint is still peeling on the walls, and some of the ceiling lights do not even turn on / 14ymedio

The dividing line between one store in MLC and another in cash dollars is also noticeable in those details. If Lincoln and Franklin rule in newly released or carefully repaired spaces, the convertible currency, which only exists in plastic and is quoted at 280 CUP to the dollar in the parallel market, must settle for buildings with broken stairs and demolished gardens.

For customers with more resources, there are rice cookers, washing machines and even electric ovens. / 14ymedio

Translated by Regina Anavy

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