English Translations of Cubans Writing From the Island
14ymedio, Juan Diego Rodríguez, Havana, 7 October 2021– Long faces in line this Thursday at the entrance of the Plaza Carlos III shopping center to buy coffee. “Cuban coffee in American dollars,” one of the establishment’s customers, called Sorpresas, scoffed aloud. The line burst into laughter at this, but a resigned indignation was palpable. “It … Continue reading “Cuban Coffee in US Dollars”
14ymedio, Natalia López Moya, Havana, 25 August 2021 — Electric generators have become the latest object of desire for Cubans. Private businesses, tourist rental houses and domestic spaces increasingly need these devices in the midst of constant blackouts. “With the neighbors on the ground floor we bought a generator, small but that helps us, if … Continue reading “Fear of Blackouts Triggers Interest in Electric Generators in Cuba”
14ymedio, Juan Diego Rodriguez, Havana, 13 August 2021 — On Friday two competing events — the official celebration of what would have been Fidel Castro’s 95th birthday and a national strike called by the Cuban opposition — were overshadowed by something unexpected: the sudden return of scarce products to store shelves along with their usual … Continue reading “Ham and Tobacco Reappear in Havana Stores on Fidel Castro’s Birthday”
14ymedio, Luz Escobar, Havana, September 17, 2019 — The seven people involved in the buying and selling of 15,000 apples at the store La Puntilla, in Havana, who were denounced last year by a Party-liner blogger, received sentences of seven months to six years in prison for the crimes of bribery and stockpiling, according to … Continue reading “Several Years in Prison for Self-employed Cuban Who Bought 15,000 Apples”
14ymedio, Marcelo Hernández, Havana, October 2, 2018 — He arrived home hopeful, after five hours in a long line, with a box of frozen chicken thighs that he bought at the Plaza Carlos III center in Havana. When he opened it, the customer realized that it was missing at least six pieces and in their … Continue reading “Complaints About the Adulteration of Weight In Sales of Frozen Chicken”
14ymedio, Yosmany Mayeta Labrada, Havana, 31 October 2016 – For weeks, astonished and laughing faces have surrounded the display windows of a candy shop in the Plaza Carlos III shopping center in Havana. The excitement has come with the sale, for the first time at that center, of the Italian-made Ferrero Rocher chocolates. However, a … Continue reading “Chocolate Store or Museum? / 14ymedio, Yosmany Mayeta Labrada”
14ymedio, Zunilda Mata, Vinales, 23 August 2016 – The tables are ready, the glasses shine on the tablecloths and the bar displays a wide variety of beverages. Nevertheless, the restaurant is closed. Some months ago, the ample dining room of Casa Nenita, in Viñales, was full of tourists, but the construction of a pool resulted … Continue reading “Viñales Pool Owners Rebel Against the Bureaucracy / 14ymedio, Zunilda Mata”
14ymedio, Zunilda Mata, Havana, 4 July 2016 – Along with high temperatures, summer has begun in Cuba with cuts in electricity consumption in state facilities, a gasoline shortage in the capital’s gas stations, and a fear of the return of the Special Period. According to sources consulted by 14ymedio, authorities have informed Communist Party militants … Continue reading “Fear Grows of a Possible Return to the Special Period / 14ymedio, Zunilda Mata”
14ymedio, Havana, Regina Coyula, 8 September 2014 — Tiendas Panamericanas [Panamerican Stores], owned by the CIMEX corporation, has just launched a grand (for Cuban national standards) shopping center. Utilizing the building formerly occupied by the old towel factory, Telva, on the corner of 26th Avenue and Calzada del Cerro street, a side addition was built, … Continue reading “Pot With Missing Cord Doesn’t Come With a Guarantee / 14ymedio, Regina Coyula”
My troubles did not end with the molars. Thinking myself clever, a month ago I bought a combined ceiling fan and light fixture at the Plaza Carlos III shopping mall. From an initial price of 120.00 CUCs, it had been reduced to 35 because it was missing its shade. I did not think twice because … Continue reading “Prosperous and Sustainable (2) / Regina Coyula”
The old Carlos III market was transformed into a “mall.” At the beginning, Havanans found a wide selection of merchandise (in CUC — hard currency); today the showcases are empty. The shelves where the most common ingredients should be found often appear empty or offer only one product of its type without options of quality … Continue reading “Shelves of Misery / Victor Ariel Gonzalez”
LA HABANA, Cuba, November, www.cubanet.org – To us, the most interesting part of the National Television News is the weather report. “There is no use in watching the news,” says Julio, an octogenarian neighbor, “just to hear that the whole world is screwed up and in Cuba everything is going very well”. After a speech on … Continue reading “Are Private Small Business Owners the Scapegoats? / Gladys Linares”
14ymedio, Natalia López Moya, Havana, 7 March 2024 — Without much notice or publication of the schedule, long blackouts have returned to Havana. The Cuban capital, which for weeks had the privilege of electricity while the provinces sank into power outages of more than ten hours a day, has not managed to avoid the crisis … Continue reading “Blackouts Come to Havana While the Rest of Cuba Sinks Into Darkness”
14ymedio, Juan Diego Rodríguez, Havana, 9 February 2024 — Customers who have to shop in Plaza de Carlos III, in the only store in the shopping center that sells in Cuban pesos, are in luck. The monthly module or combo, which they provide through the ration book in state stores, restricted by bodegas (ration stores) … Continue reading “Massive Line for a Miserable ‘Combo’ Priced at 311 Cuban Pesos, Just Over 1 Dollar”
14ymedio, Natalia López Moya, Havana, 15 December 2023 – After the dearth of any official information or warnings prior to last weekend’s heavy rains, the Cuban authorities have been under pressure to put out warnings that this coming Saturday and Sunday there will be storms in the west of the country, and especially in Havana. … Continue reading “Flooded and Full of Rubbish, Havana Prepares Itself For More Storms this Weekend”
