English Translations of Cubans Writing From the Island
Iván García, 12 November 2015 — Liudmila and Sheila are prostitutes and they don’t know about business or cutting-edge technology. But a colleague sent them a text message telling them, “Come here, the yumas (foreigners) are wild.” They put on stunning high heels, tight clothing and perfume with an anesthetizing fragrance. Their plan was simple: to … Continue reading “The Havana Fair: Hookers, Heat and Beer / Ivan Garcia”
Ivan Garcia, 26 September 2015 — Let’s climb aboard a time machine. Into the future, of course. By now, Raul Castro has given up the throne. His son Alejandro has been tried for abuse of power, financial corruption and violations of human rights. Luis Alberto Rodriguez Lopez-Callejas, the Cuban Martin Borman, has fled with a … Continue reading “Cuba 2019 / Ivan Garcia”
Painting by Carlos Enríquez of the death of José Martí. Jeovany Jimenez Vega,20 May 2015 — In the laudable attempt to demystify José Martí, pens of the most dissimilar calibers have been employed, and all the efforts seem paltry given the transcendence of his legacy. But not all have headed in the right direction in … Continue reading “Minimal Vindication of Jose Marti / Jeovany Jimenez Vega”
14ymedio, Reinaldo Escobar, Havana, 3 February 2015 – Any day can be the eve of a celebration or a disaster, as much for those who hurried to exchange their convertible pesos (CUC) to Cuban pesos (CUP – also known as moneda nacional, or “national money”) as for those who are purchasing foreign currencies or who … Continue reading “Without Confidence in the Money / 14ymedio, Reinaldo Escobar”
Under a brightly colored umbrella, a representative of Gaviota, a tourism chain, the property of businessmen in the Cuban military, offers an inclusive leisure package for the summer. The bureau of reservations is nestled in an old parking lot of a strip mall in 5th Avenue and 42nd, Miramar, to the west of Havana. It … Continue reading “Cuba: Is Varadero for People of Another Social Class? / Ivan Garcia”
In Havana, the good medical specialists always have at hand two kinds of treatment for their patients. “If it is a person with family abroad or of high purchasing power, I propose that he go to the international pharmacy to buy the medications in foreign currency because they are of higher quality and more effective. … Continue reading “Cuba: The Tricks of the Embargo / Ivan Garcia”
Fidel Castro has been an effective gravedigger. He buried sugar crops and the agricultural abundance of old. Recently, Cuba had to import sugar from Brazil and the Dominican Republic to meet the consumption needs of international tourists. With this type of negative aura that has always surrounded Castro, it makes sense these days what baseball fans were saying after the dismal … Continue reading “Is Baseball Finished in Cuba? / Ivan Garcia”
By Jeovany Jimenez Vega On the very day that the government “freed” the sale of domestic automobiles for working people, imposing tariffs only a millionaire could afford, my son stood transfixed before a shop window displaying those little toy cars that our leaders sell in hard currency for the equivalent of an average person’s monthly … Continue reading “Fearing a Prosperous People / Jeovany Jimenez Vega”
Plaza de la Catedral, festooned for the Year End Grand Dinner and which some new Cuban rich must have attended. *See below for dinner menu. They are not as ostentatious as the new Russian rich who buy compulsively and empty the shelves of Marbella. Nor do their lifestyle and expenses have to do with a … Continue reading “The New Cuban Rich / Ivan Garcia”
Laura is a Cuban woman who has lived in Spain for more than twenty years. She speaks like a Spaniard. She looks like a Spaniard. Her husband, children and grandchildren are Spaniards. But in spite of the passage of time and the distance separating us, she still considers me her best friend. Or so she … Continue reading “Through Havana with Laura / Tania Diaz Castro”
My neighborhood, a quiet residential one before the process of “updating the model,” has undergone a remarkable commercial transformation. In fewer than four blocks, not counting cut-rate cafeterias, you can find: an Indian food restaurant, another with creole cuisine, another Chinese, and another with international cuisine; three billiard rooms, an English school, and three gyms … Continue reading “Much Adrenaline / Regina Coyula”
Photo: Luis Felipe Rojas This is the question many are asking after the events at the “Protestdrome,” where the Cuban musician Roberto Carcassés let loose with good things. The first thing that happens in these cases is a silence that is scary … the repressed and repressor (for different reasons). Although they haven’t taken physical … Continue reading “Where is Robertico? / Luis Felipe Rojas”
They have few reasons to envy of their capitalist counterparts. The differences between them are ones of rhetoric and philosophy. The anti-capitalist islanders having studied Marxist manuals and speak on behalf of the poor. But many are living at full throttle. At the workplace they wear sweltering uniforms designed by some sadistic tailor from the … Continue reading “Olive Green High Society / Ivan Garcia”
Although virtually unknown in Cuba, the Spanish actor Willy Toledo — to paraphrase one of his icons, Argentina’s Che Guevara — at least intends to put his money where his mouth is. In an interview with the pro-Chavez Venezuelan broadcaster Telesur, Toledo declared his intention to live full-time in Cuba. Guillermo Toledo Monsalve, his full name, was born in Madrid … Continue reading “Welcome to Havana, Willy Toledo / Ivan Garcia”
Without McDonald’s, Burger King or KFC, fast food par excellence in 21st century Cuba consists of fried food and croquettes made from unknown ingredients. Throughout Havana there are thousands of street vendors specializing in rustic cooking. They sell fried food and heavy croquettes. Some like Ignacio prepare the coating for their fried items with wheat … Continue reading “Cuban Fast Food / Ivan Garcia”
