Months ago, a licensed crafts and assorted products market was opened in the municipality of San Miguel del Padron, very close to the location of an informal market that used to be set up in the area, both known as La Cuevita.
Paulo Freire is one of most influential theorists of education of the 20th century. The gathering was an extension of the talk held at the Felix Varela stand in Havana’s La Cabaña fortress (the fair’s main venue), sponsored by the Brazilian embassy in Cuba.
“When the yanks get here, this and that…” a couple who are friends of mine were saying to me, ironically alluding to how life would change when more yumas (the generic word for foreigner on the island) began arriving in Cuba.
Luna Nueva (“New Moon”), an exhibition by visual artist Camilo Fis, opened at the Fayad Jamis Gallery in Alamar on the 17th of the month, almost coinciding with the lunar phase referred to in the title. (39 photos)
It was painful to see how they tore down what was once the Pedro Borras Astorga Pediatric Hospital, better known as the “children’s hospital” among residents of Havana, located on G and 27 Streets, an area where there are several other hospitals. (20 photos)
At a time when Alamar and Havana in general have been placed under a dengue and cholera alert, the Achatina fulica, popularly known as the giant African snail, is once again rearing its tentacles around the neighborhood.
I began wandering around the city asking for favors from friends, who put aside what they were doing to lend me a few hours of work before their computers. At first most said to me: “Of course, girl, come on over, you’ll solve your problems in no time, you’ll see.”
Though not invented in Cuba, plastic is one of those products that are indispensable in the lives of Cubans (as I imagine it is in many other poor countries around the world). Plastic has indeed become a handy tool here to overcome many shortages. Its use is highly varied.
A Cuban friend who lives abroad and came to the island on vacation, eager to go out and enjoy Havana’s night scene, made me discover new places (discos, clubs, bars and cabarets) where people – particularly the young – enjoy themselves.
A friend was telling me that more gay* parties being held in Havana today than before. Are people more tolerant now? Is there more money to be made organizing these parties? Or are people who attend these parties making more money and able to go more often?