The spring, which had a late start this year, is hot as summer today. Heading home in the bus, I savor the cool gusts of air that issue from the AC. It is a dry, dense cold. Suddenly, a soothing stillness seems to take hold of my body and sighs take the place of thoughts. I would like to remain like this forever, I tell my reflection on the window pane.
Read MoreIn the Cuban provinces tourism is taking the place of sugar as the economic powerhouse, concentrating talent and competition in a few select tourist destinations. The future looks grim for rural socialist egalitarianism.
Read MoreMy friend Leslie was recently informed by ETECSA (Cuba’s State phone company) that he cannot open a new mobile phone account. He was told that you are entitled to only one line and that one has already been activated under his name.
Read MoreI believe gender-related violence is the main problem we face right now, and I have written about this issue on several occasions. The Cuban government must implement new measures so as to keep this problem at bay, or from reaching the levels caught sight of in other countries in the region, which report alarming rates.
Read MorePolitical extremes tend to curtail our better judgment and, on occasion, our sensibility as human beings. A few hours ago, I read an article by Mario Vargas Llosa, in which the award-winning writer issues a kind of praise-filled obituary for the recently-deceased Iron Lady, Margaret Thatcher.
Read MoreThe media have always dictated the fashions and had an influence on the tastes of young people. However, the question that arises for me at the moment is how much happiness can really be derived from consuming more and more materials that distort the dimensions of the real in order to be attractive. And when we return to the real world?
Read MoreI’m waiting for a friend on the steps of the Yara cinema. A man with a mustache and cigarette sits in front me and the game begins. The rules are basic: he will persistently try to make eye contact and I will employ all my talents to evade it. What’s a pretty girl like you doing on her own? is one of the pat lines.
Read MoreIn Miami, I am sharing an apartment with a man from Cuba and a woman from Nicaragua. While living with them, I’ve noticed how Cuban men and women here tend to impose their culture – mostly the way they speak and what they eat – on other Latin American immigrants.
Read MoreEvery day, demands become louder from Cuban students for less restrictions on the Internet. This will be one of the points raised at the next congress of the Federation of University Students (FEU). Cuban young people are demanding the right to good and broad connections to the net.
Read MoreGetting to know the reality of any country is very easy in these days of the Internet. One can’t keep anything a secret. Even national security issues of a country are increasingly difficult to hide. An outstanding example is the body of revelations by Wikileaks.
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