Naples Daily News managing editor Bill Blanton traveled to Cuba this past April. His observations were published in seven installments. A worker takes a break in a Cuban canefield. Dressed in a traditional garb and smoking a cigar, this woman poses with Havana tourists for a few dollars.
Horses are still a mode of transport for many in rural Cuba.
In Gardens of the Queen archipelago, Alfia Valentino plays with an oprey. It has long been the home of black Cubans who have maintained strong ties to their African heritage. Much of the art available for sale in the streets of Havana shows an African influence. I looked at dolls portraying the orishas, the spiritual beings at the center of the religion, made an offering at a shrine, purchased a cigar, had my fortune read. Nearby was the Catholic Church of Our Lady of Regla, which is said to contain the only depiction of a black Virgin in Cuba.