Friday night, on the eve of Fidel Castro's ninetieth birthday celebration.
Having just endured the chaos of pre-birthday celebrations for Vietnam's Ho Chi Minh in Hanoi last May, I steeled myself for massive traffic jams, police barricades, and endless throngs of citizens in full-blown party mode.
But this is Cuba. Everything is different here. See for yourself.
The narrow streets and airy plazas of Old Havana were mostly empty and entirely peaceful. We found one old man set up with a laptop projecting a slideshow of Fidel's glory days against an impromptu screen. A small crowd had gathered around to watch, whether in silent adoration or stifled outrage, I'm not sure.
My friends and I, fueled by a pure chocolate snack session at a popular confectionery cafe, wandered here and there, trying to capture photos of the heat lightning and watching the quiet passers by.
Our only brush with excitement came at the very end of the evening when an enterprising Cuban man tried to market to me with an invitation to a local social club and an offer to show me where to buy cigars.
"Alright, goodnight," he politely conceded as I successfully brushed him off. "Please enjoy my beautiful culture."
I smiled in return. But as I continued on my way to the car, I found myself wondering which culture he meant - Fidel's original dream of a Marxist paradise, or the fledgling capitalist economy that is slowly developing in the vacuum of his apparent failure.
* * * * *
Check out more stories about my once-in-a-lifetime trip to Cuba and my wonderful friends who lived there:
I Will Bake You A Pie
Cuban Makan
Cuban Economics
El Malecon Cloudburst
A La Playa
Creepy Cuban Kudzu
Plaza De La Revolucion
Old Havana
Poolside in Havana
A Cuban Sunset Story
Sunset Chasers, Cuban Edition
The Puppy At The Castle
Old Havana On The Eve Of Fidel's Birthday
An ASEAN Celebration
Nayli's Bedroom
Varadero, Cuba
Winding Down
Dear Cuba
Aqil's Chicken
The Gentle Art Of Reframing
My Cuban Home
Tickled Pink
Full Circle
Chicken Drumsticks
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