Opinion

A Cuban at the Miami Hilton

I arrived in Miami a few hours ago. Like almost all other passengers, I applauded when the plane landed. I went through the airport without any problems and got into a taxi headed for the Hilton Miami Downtown. This is my first trip abroad.

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On Stealing in Cuba

Recently, I saw an episode of a Spanish TV series in which one of the characters said to another: “We’re Spaniards, the impulse to steal has been inscribed on our DNI (National Identification Document), DNA and pH levels.” After having a good laugh, I stopped to think about the phrase and I began to wonder whether we also have the bad habit of taking what does not belong to us.

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Cuba as Seen from a ‘The Nation’ Tour

Last month a delegation organized by the prestigious left-leaning US magazine The Nation visited Cuba on an educational fact finding trip to get a first-hand look at the island at a time of economic reforms. We bring you a report from one of the participants.

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A Wedding and a Funeral in Cuba

Most weddings in Cuba used to be celebrated by throwing a big party at the house of one of the newly-weds, with enough food and drink to keep anyone from going home hungry, thirsty or critical of the spread. That’s what Maria and Oscar’s wedding was like…

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Cuba’s Customs and the Import Market

An old joke says that, had Jesus Christ been Cuban, he would never have been crucified because, if you’re lucky to get your hands on a hammer in Cuba, you’ll soon find out that nails are few and far between and wood is nowhere to be found.

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Confessions of a Cuban Plumber

Last Sunday, I washed some rotten lentils down the drain and ended up clogging the pipe. I had no choice but to look for a plumber and pay to have it fixed. I called a plumber who had fixed a number of other things around the house, with whom I’d never exchanged more than a few words of greeting and the inevitable “how much do I owe you?”

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Why Did Fidel Castro Recklessly Blame the Ukraine?

In a show of gross political indecency, Fidel Castro accused the government of the Ukraine of having downed a Malaysia Airlines plane – without the slightest shred of proof. In his juicy diatribe, dated July 17, the impetuous Comandante mixes the downing of the airliner with Israel’s invasion of the Gaza Strip and throws Barack Obama into the mix.

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Havana’s Siberia

They gave us the keys to our new apartment in Alamar. The year was 1987. Even though the property title was the same as that of the other apartment in that sprawling neighborhood, even though it was located in a five-story tenement (without elevator) like the other place, the area it was in was significantly different to Zone 6, where we had lived until that point.

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Fidel Castro Blames Ukraine and Israel

In a short commentary published today in the official Cuban media, entitled “Astonishing Provocation”, Fidel Castro insinuates that the fault that a Malaysia Airlines passenger plane crashed on Thursday lies with the government of the Ukraine, the position taken by Russian President Vladimir Putin. The former Cuban president also lashes out at Obama and Israel for the hundreds of deaths in Gaza.

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