Dariela Aquique’s Diary

Be wrong, but not too wrong!

There have been innumerable stumbles, and these experiences noted. However, I believe that what has been done in the corresponding measures has lacked a real determination to transcend our mistakes. Conceit reigns, in place of discernment.

Witch Hunting Revisited in Cuba

An example of this is the unfortunate occurrence experienced by one of our most prominent figures in the visual arts: the painter, national arts award-winner and teacher Pedro Pablo Oliva.

Dangerous Friendships

“Listen, don’t come complaining afterwards. Just wait until you need a reference from me…,” shouted a woman to another in a threatening tone while they were in line to go into the ice cream parlor.

Living in a Different Culture

Recently I wrote something that dealt with the issue of leaving, but with a different focus. Now I want to discuss the situation of possessing enough courage to leave and to stay.

Gray with Black Stitches

Returning to a little popular slang (also known as “cubanisms”), when we say something is bad, we say “it’s black.” Similarly, to say that something is bad and going to get worse, we say “it’s gray with black stitches.”

Lights in the Street, Darkness at Home

It had been exactly 12 years since I last went inside that place. The memory of my mother’s last dying breathes had made it impossible for me to set foot in the Provincial Oncological Hospital since then.

Of Balladeers and Trova Musicians

For several years, with the development of tourism in the city, our musical patrimony has been heavily exploited. This has been done by professionals and amateurs, by corporations and centers created or designed for that aim or on their own initiative by people in search of hard currency.

March of the Masses

With their arms held high, waving flags, they loudly and clearly shouted phrases reaffirming that if the party or the revolution calls, the people will respond. This was how the International Workers Day March took place in “the second city” of the island.