Circles Robinson, Author at Havana Times

What’s the best currency to bring (Euro, USD, Russian roubles)?

Which currency is better to bring with us to Cuba (Euro, USD, Russian roubles)?

Cuban Method Teaches 5 Million to Read

Close to five million persons in 28 countries have learned to read and write with the Yo sí puedo (Yes I Can) Cuban method, Miguel Llivina, representative of the UNESCO Regional Office of Culture for Latin America and the Caribbean, affirmed and urged governments and international organizations to take more into account the island’s experience on this subject

Gov. Richardson Sees Improved Relations with Cuba

The governor of the U.S. state of New Mexico, Bill Richardson, expressed his confidence in the improvement of relations with Cuba in statements to the press in Washington. Richardson, who traveled to the island last August, pointed to the cooperation in the anti-drug struggle and the joint construction of rural hospitals in Haiti as a show of that advance in ties between the two neighboring nations.

Ten Prisoners Prefer to Stay in Cuba

At least 10 of the political prisoners out of the odd 20 still in prison refuse to accept traveling to Spain because they wish to remain in the island or want to go to the United States, Elizardo Sánchez, president of the opposition’s Cuban Commission of Human Rights and National Reconciliation, affirmed. That group forms part of the 52 dissidents included in the agreement between the Catholic Church, Madrid and the Cuban government.

Cuba’s Cardinal Calls for Accepting Changes

Cuban Cardinal Jaime Ortega called for “accepting the difficult aspects” that the ongoing changes in Cuba can bring with them, in a homily in the Havana church dedicated to Our Lady of Charity of El Cobre, considered by the Catholic Church as the island’s patron saint. The also archbishop of Havana reiterated his certainty that all the dissidents imprisoned in 2003 will be released, as the government promised.

Castro Questions Cuban Economic Model

In an interview with Atlantic Magazine former Cuban President Fidel Castro recognized that the State had assumed too big a role in the island’s economy.

Democracy Cuban Style

I remember a private party in which trova musician Pedro Luis Ferrer sang some of his more critical songs. One of the Cuban participants told him with delight: “That’s it; we should reconstruct the Cuba we had before that guy came to power.”

No Dialogue in Mapuche Conflict in Chile

The Chilean government is pushing through legal reforms in an attempt to bring to an end a nearly two month hunger strike by 34 Mapuche indigenous prisoners. But it is failing to address two critical aspects of the conflict: the lack of effective dialogue and a failure to recognize it as a political problem.

Our Lady of Charity Day Observed

When the tragedies hit home, when we go to the doctor but can’t find a cure, when a boy or girl begins to suffer strange attacks, when a parent loses a child —or a child a parent—, when a relative finds themselves in jail… in the midst of all such difficult situations, many of us Cubans call upon our Patron Saint for guidance, for the power to endure all pain and to even remedy our misfortunes.

Pieces of Mountains

The best experiences in my life I’ve had on the summits of mountains. However I’ve never been able to bear living permanently among them, without a glimmer of the sea, because this was something I became familiar with very early. There were no mysteries to discover. For me it was enough to experience the sea full of salt and blueness, its intrinsic freedom. (34 photos)