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Ralph Quinonez

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23 images Created 24 Sep 2013

Cuba

My latest trip to Cuba was a quest of inquiry, I was curious of what Cubans felt about the opening of relations with the United States. Although the embargo is still formally in place, the Obama administration has eased financial and trade restrictions to the island. It will also be easier to travel to Cuba, and an embassy will be reopening in Havana. Overall, I perceived a sense of optimism, with most of the people I spoke with voicing approval of the change. “The change will be good,” one man told me, nodding his head in approval. “Well, Maybe things will change,” said another. “I would like things to change for all the people of Cuba, as we have been living in poverty,” he told me. As I walked the streets of Havana, I did take notice of an upsurge of paladares (family-run restaurants). “What’s happening now is the families are moving out of the paladares, so the entire house can be used as a restaurant,” my guide informed me. “Many restaurants are opening now, so many foreigners,” a Cuban photographer I met said. “The Cubans marry Italians for example, and they start a business,” she explained. Interestingly, the fastest growing businesses are urban gardens, where produce grown at home is able to be sold to both state and private restaurants of choice. Of course, I met a number of skeptics through my travels. “Nothing will change until the Castros are out,” one man told me. “People are worried Cuba will be less safe,” said another. My guide expressed concern of Cuban’s keeping their national identity. She did seem hopeful however, that the impending changes will ultimately be good for the country. “Cubans find a way,” she told me. “Cubans find a way.”
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  • Cuba -50-3.jpg
  • A man stands out on his balcony in Habana Vieja, Cuba.
    Cuba 2013-444.jpg
  • Habana Vieja, Cuba.
    Cuba2013-906.jpg
  • A barber at work in his Habana Vieja shop.
    Cuba2015-1320.jpg
  • A young girl peaks out from a small cafe in Habana Vieja, Cuba.
    Cuba2015-1304.jpg
  • With loud salsa music blaring from the radio, a couple dances in their small Centro Habana home.
    Cuba2015-51.jpg
  • A  vintage car speeds down Centro Habana's busy Neptuno Street.
    Cuba2015-1888.jpg
  • A fruit vendor and his dog. Habana Vieja, Cuba.
    Cuba2015-258.jpg
  • Students play Kick the Can on the rooftop playground of Rene Fraga Moreno Primary School  in Habana Vieja.
    Cuba2015-196.jpg
  • A vintage cab driver behind the wheel of his 1953 Mercury with it's original motor. "I am a trumpeteer," he said. "But I have a family and have to drive for a living."
    Cuba2015-1424.jpg
  • A woman with her son sells flowers from the small doorway of her Habana Vieja home.
    Cuba2015-1366.jpg
  • Men work to repair a vintage car. Unable to import spare parts, Cubans often pull parts from other vehicles and even create custom components of their own.
    Cuba2015-1825.jpg
  • Street dogs. Habana Vieja, Cuba.
    Cuba2015-1358.jpg
  • A young woman walks past a  colorful wall in Centro Habana, Cuba.
    Cuba2015-397.jpg
  • A bartender prepares Mojitos at the popular Habana restaurant La Bodeguita Del Medio.
    Cuba2015-1208.jpg
  • A tiny store in Habana Centro sells snacks and beverages from a streetside window. Stores like this are commonplace in Habana.
    Cuba2015-464.jpg
  • A dog relieves himself on a vendor's stand. Centro Habana, Cuba.
    Cuba2015-1916.jpg
  • A Pedicab travels through Centro Habana after a heavy rain.
    Cuba2015-65.jpg
  • A handroller is used to paint a vintage car. Habana Vieja, Cuba.
    Cuba2013-897.jpg
  • A vintage car speeds down the Malecon. Habana, Cuba.
    Cuba 2013-473.jpg
  • Hundreds of thousands of Cuban's parade through Havana's Revolution Square on May Day to celebrate International Worker's Day and in support of the revolution.
    Cuba 2013-297.jpg
  • Habana Vieja, Cuba.
    Cuba 2013-371.jpg
  • Sunset over Habana Vieja, Cuba.
    Cuba2015-1583.jpg