Irina Pino’s Diary

It’s been very hard for me to write about my mother’s passing, just a few days ago.

A nostalgic view of Havana at night, covered in rain and lightning, a ride in a taxi and six love stories in“Habana Selfies” from Cuban director Arturo Santana.

In flashback, a question frequently asked me was: Are you going to give birth in Cuba? Then I was very young and didn’t think about that possibility.

My December 31st was crap. I didn’t leave the house. I sat and watched the end of a TV series.

Lena is a young woman from the US who is strongly attracted to a Cuban man.

I’ve been wanting to go to the Zoo on 26th Street for a while now, and I finally managed to make it. Nobody calls it the Zoological Park as it’s too long and sounds ostentatious.

Friendship is one of the most precious things a human has. It is spontaneous, an immediate attraction of ideas, common interests, spirituality, and points of view. You don’t always have to agree on everything, but there is a healthy discussion.

Walking down 5th Avenue in Havana with my earphones in, listening to music on my phone, wearing comfy clothes and a pair of tennis shoes, is all I need for an hour of therapy.

Set in Havana and a rural town, it tells us the story of a love triangle between a young guajira and two men from her childhood. One of them is the sugar mill manager’s son, and the other one is a poor boy. The story unfolds from 1950 until 1994, year of the Rafter Crisis and the mass exodus.