Boy Waiting For School-Havana, Cuba

[caption id="attachment_119" align="alignleft" width="640" caption="Boy awaiting school-Havana, Cuba"][/caption] On one of my trips to Havana, Cuba, I noticed a boy waiting in front of a building. Initially, I thought he was awaiting a bus, but quickly realized that there is no such thing as school buses in Havana. Being a large city everything is in close enough proximity to walk or bike. Since it was very early and I was shooting with Medium Format film I had to wait until he was very still to avoid blurring the image at such a slow shutter speed. As it turned out he was waiting directly in front of the school: an old converted residence. School uniforms are used in Cuba. All students, regardless of age or sex, wear school uniforms with the color denoting grade level. Children also wear scarfs as members of Cuban young pioneers organization (Pioneros). The red and white uniform he has on identifies him as a primary school student. Something that was always in the back of my mind every time I saw a child: It could have been me...

Blue Chevy in the Streets of Havana, Cuba

Blue Chevy in the Streets of Havana, Cuba

I decided that during this week of commemoration of the Bay of Pigs Invasion I would post an image from one of my trips to Cuba. This is an odd and surreal place where it seems that there is an endless dance to circumvent the system in order to survive. It almost seems as though everything is an illusion. Much like the car you see above. It looks like an old Chevy, and on the exterior it is. When it rumbles down the road though, you hear the unmistakable sound from under the hood of a Russian made diesel engine, along with the black smoke trailing from the exhaust.