Prologue.
I’ve never really been too good at keeping a journal. I’ve tried a couple times, and inevitably what happens is that I start out …
29 Jan
1: The First Week
1: The First Week
So I’ve now been in Cuba for just over a week, and the idea of summarizing everything I’ve done seems – unrealistic, to say the …
12 Feb
2: On Nations, and the Creative Use of Condoms.
2: On Nations, and the Creative Use of Condoms.
I’ve now been here in Cuba for three full weeks, and have settled into somewhat of a routine. This is both good and bad: …
21 Feb
3: Castro’s Resignation.
3: Castro’s Resignation.
As you probably know, two days ago Fidel Castro announced – via the above letter in the state newspaper, the Granma – that he would …
17 Mar
4: Cienfuegos, Trinidad, and Santa Clara.
4: Cienfuegos, Trinidad, and Santa Clara.
A couple of days after returning from Las Terrazas, my friend Sara asked if I wanted to go to Cienfuegos with her and a few …
17 Mar
5: The East.
5: The East.
The night before we left for Santiago, I met for the first time with Douglas Deas, the first (albeit distant) family member of mine I’d …
27 Dec
6: Choir Boys, Hotel Maids, and Race
6: Choir Boys, Hotel Maids, and Race
On the ninth of March, after four days in Santiago and six in Baracoa, the Tisch Study Abroad group boarded a small prop plane and …
27 Dec
7: The Special Period.
7: The Special Period.
If Cuba’s long-term problems stem from slavery, their short-term problems are a direct product of the Special Period. I’ve talked about the Special Period …
27 Dec
8: Viñales.
8: Viñales.
Anyway. We came back to the Hotel Riviera in mid-March and almost immediately fell into a deep malaise. There were a couple of reasons for …
27 Dec
9: Mosquito Island and Cienfuegos (Again).
9: Mosquito Island and Cienfuegos (Again).
In this story there are a number of obvious points at which the situation might have been avoided — or, at the very least, improved …
27 Dec
10: Lunch, and A Few Words On The Embargo.
10: Lunch, and A Few Words On The Embargo.
Before I went to Mosquito Island, I received a phone call from Irma Deas, Ilia’s sister, and she invited me to lunch at her house. …
27 Dec
11: Homecoming and Reckoning.
11: Homecoming and Reckoning.
The next day, on Sunday, April 20th, 2008 — exactly three months after we arrived on the island — we filed aboard a small, rickety …
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