English Translations of Cubans Writing From the Island
This type of system is arrogant, it believes that it has everything under control and that it can tame the human soul. This leads them to make mistakes and miscalculate certain steps. 14ymedio, Yoani Sánchez, Havana, 28 July 2024 — The official Cuban press woke up this Sunday too silent on the main issue that … Continue reading “Between Hope and Distrust, Cubans Are Closely Following the Elections in Venezuela”
Senior civil and military officials meet in Havana to prepare “the war of all the people” 14ymedio, Havana, 24 June 2024 — The threat of another rainy day looms over the Cuban capital this Monday. Only the Eastern side of the Island is breathing with some relief, since at 3 in the morning the Meteorological … Continue reading “While Cubans Suffer from Floods, Authorities Speak of ‘Revolutionary Surveillance’”
Despite the deterioration, something of its grandeur can still be appreciated. 14ymedio, Havana, 26 June 2024 — The historic House of Doña Luz Godínez de Diago, marked thus on the maps, a 19th-century building in Havana, no longer exists as such. This Wednesday the property, number 1360 Calzada del Cerro, suffered the collapse of part … Continue reading “An Aristocratic House on Havana’s Calzada del Cerro Collapses and Leaves the Neighborhood Without Light”
This Saturday night the floods began to recede but left behind a very worrying panorama of mud, dirt and material damage. 14ymedio, Natalia López Moya, Havana, June 23, 2024 — “I slept on the table because the bed got wet and I couldn’t put a sheet on the floor, it was all flooded,” this is … Continue reading “The People of Havana Hold Their Breath in the Face of a Forecast of More Rain for Sunday”
14ymedio, Manzanillo, 1 April 2024 — An esplanade full of garbage surrounds the Manzanillo railway station, where abandonment prevails, from the old terminal to the mechanical traffic lights. Trains that arrive in that station in Granma province often suffer accidents and derailments. The most recent of them – that of the Havana-Manzanillo train, which occurred … Continue reading “‘The Manzanillo Station Is Dangerous’: Damaged Tracks, Rotten Ties, Rusted Machinery”
14ymedio, Juan Diego Rodríguez, Havana, 8 January 2024 — Beyond Nuevo Vedado, past the Colón cemetery and the zoo, on the border between Playa and Plaza de la Revolución, passers-by can admire a landscape that does not exist in the center of the capital. Wide, tree-lined streets, huge, well-kept houses, well-dressed people, some of them … Continue reading “The Wealthy Districts of the Cuban Capital Enjoy VIP-Level Cleaning Services”
14ymedio, Juan Diego Rodríguez, Havana, September 8, 2023 — The phrase with which Cubans mock the partial restoration of Havana every time the visit of a foreign president is expected is accurate: “Put some makeup on the old woman,” that is, hide the potholes and paint the facades of certain “strategic” streets, while the rest … Continue reading “Deployment of Machinery to Pretty Up the Streets of the Cuban Capital for the G-77 Summit”
14ymedio, Zunilda Mata, Havana, 29 February 2020 — Over the weekend the inhabitants of the capital have learned about the existence of the “popular movement for a more beautiful, clean and healthy Havana.” The initiative, which goes into effect on March 1, has been presented as coming “from the community,” but it has emerged from … Continue reading “Havana Will Charge Fines of up to 3,000 Pesos for Littering in the Public Right-of-Way”
14ymedio, Havana, 11 March 2024 — Acute diarrheal diseases in Ciego de Ávila, Cuba, increased by 86% compared to March 2023, the official newspaper Invasor reported this Monday. Despite the excessive increase, which has translated into a worrying increase “in hospital care,” the epidemiological authorities of the region assure that the cases are within the estimates for this … Continue reading “Contaminated Water is the Main Cause of Diarrheal Diseases in Cuba”
14ymedio, Pedro Espinosa, Havana, February 12, 2024 — The combination restaurant, cafe and dessert shop that make up El Biky, located at 412 Infanta Street, is less and less shy about flaunting its privileges. One of the most striking examples is the garbage truck that was recently parked alongside it, on Concordia Street, right in … Continue reading “Exclusive Cuban Restaurant, Now an Expensive Fast-Food Joint, Flaunts Its Privileges”
14ymedio, Natalia López Moya, Havana, 14 December 2023 — A quick touch with the index finger and middle finger on the shoulder is the key to knowing that the building known as Fama y Aplausos (Fame and Applause), on the corner of Infanta and Manglar in Havana, is the home of important official spokespeople who handed … Continue reading “‘Fama y Aplausos’, the 20 Story Havana Building That Has Become a Hell”
14ymedio, Ignacio de la Paz, Baracoa, 2 March 2018 — The darkness envelops Baracoa as the bus arrives at the main station. Despite the power outage, a swarm of people approaches to offer the new arrivals rooms for rent and taxis. Before arriving at the terminal, the vehicle loaded with tourists must avoid the bumps of the … Continue reading “Baracoa Struggles to Survive Hurricane Matthew”
14ymedio, Havana, 13 September 2017 — Thousands of residents in Havana spent their fourth day without electricity or water supplies, on Wednesday, as a result of the damage left by Hurricane Irma. Brigades of electrical linemen are working to restore the energy supply, but the slow pace of the work, given its complexity in some stretches, … Continue reading “Havana, Black on Black”
14ymedio Marcelo Hernandez, Havana, 18 July 2017 — “Everything smells like rotten mango,” says Pascual Rojas, who lives on the outskirts of Manuel Tames, a Guantanamo municipality where part of the mango harvest has been lost, leaving a total of 2,600 metric tons of rotten fruit in recent weeks. “The rains of May and June … Continue reading “The Year Of The Lost Mangos”
We humans produce garbage and we ourselves make it our task to collect it. In many countries, garbage collection is an industrialized process. In Cuba, however, the Communal Services Company* places containers on street corners (not all of them), where citizens discard all types of residue–paper products, bottles, food leftovers, biodegradable material, plastics, textiles, cardboard, … Continue reading “Living in Filth / Rosa Maria Rodriguez”
