Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations by Aaron Swartjes

Collective Patchwork, Patchwork of Collectivity // 22 June 2017 // Aaron Swartjes

BOOK OF

CONVERSATIONS

INTRODUCTION

Direct interaction with the inhabitants, vendors, passers-by and everyone else enabled me to discuss my topics of interest and to have a direct feedback. Often, new and surprising elements came out of these talks. Talking to people, made it possible for me to understand their needs, ambitions and aspirations for the future. I prepared some general topics and prototype questions to inquire about, but that was just a general setup to think about during the interviews. During the summer research of 2015 we noticed that people sometimes could respond untruthful or negative to the typical ‘police investigation interviews’. This is why I saw the interviews more as conversations. By talking, asking and – most importantly – listening, I feel like the total of all these conversations has given me a good perception of what Cuba is and who Cubans are. The research presented in this book fits in the Streetscape Territories framework, an international research project that deals with the way buildings and properties are related to streets and how their inhabitants can give meaning to them. Streetscape Territories deals with models of proximity within a street, neighborhood or region and starts from the assumption that urban space, from the domestic scale till the scale of the city, can be understood as a discontinuous collective space, containing different levels of collective use that are defined by multiple physical, cultural or territorial boundaries.

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

FRAMEWORK

During the summer of 2015, I had the pleasure to be part of a development cooperation research project. The project fits in the framework of Streetscape Territories and was supported by VLIR-UOS. Together with Iwo Borkowicz, Vytautas Lelys, Virginia Stammitti, Antonio Boeri, Wim Van Hees and Marija Armonaite, I investigated the city of Havana – and more specifically the neighborhood of El Cerro – to understand the complex and ever-changing country that Cuba is. Trough the approach of streetscapes, we established different research topics: streetscape scale (business & productivity, ownership & privatization, urban & social infrastructure), identity scale (technology & information, social networks & culture, identity & decubanization) and the scale of the system (import/export & black market, immigration & emigration, polarization). Collecting information through interviews was the best way to solve our questions.

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

The following text is a product made after an elaborate interview during that summer research of 2015, conducted by Wim Van Hees and myself. It is written in the format of something like a short story in order to show the approach at extracting useful information from talking to people. The basic ingredients for an interview are a series of questions that expect answers, but that may change easily into an interrogation. To get to the most truthful thoughts, generating a conversation is more useful. It is about creating a moment where a person can tell little stories about his or her life. By listening to what they explicitly and implicitly say, by reading between the lines, we can discover the real joys and concerns of one’s daily life. The conversation is often guided by the context in which it takes place.

After passing by the Belgian Embassy that was closed because of our national holiday, we went to the rocky beach around midday for a dive and to check out whether there is any decent life worth looking at in the sea. Although the sun is burning, a quiet and salty breeze keeps the ambient bearable. It could be a picture perfect spot if it were not for all the plastic boxes and empty rum bottles covering the coastline. We take a seat and while watching the vast amount of water disappearing into an endless horizon, I can not help feeling disappointed. Every piece of litter is a tiny thorn in the eye. Next to us is sitting a woman at the edge of the concrete pier. She doesn’t really want to go swimming, but is happy to occasionally throw some water over her body to cool down. When W.V. wants to enter the water, she stands up to let him pass. The concrete structure that used to be a staircase leading into the sea is slippery and the steps are hardly recognizable. W.V. disappears under the water and I share some small talk with the woman. Quite soon she mentions she’s from Cerro. This could turn out to be interesting for our research project.

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

She introduces herself, but I can not really grasp the name. Just like the majority of our Cuban contacts, she has a weird name and for the sake of the fluency of the interview I do not want to ask it three times. Later on we get her to write it down. Maybe it’s our lack of imagination or maybe it is the problematic handwriting of the Cuban citizens - I am not taking any sides here - but the second attempt at finding out what her parents decided to call her 51 years ago also fails. From this moment on, after carefully investigating the hieroglyphs, we decided to just call her Belldis. I brief her about our project in her neighborhood and tell her what we already found out. Although she almost spent her entire life in Cerro – she moved there at the age of three - she does not like it. At this moment her household only consists of herself and her son Enrique. Belldis shifts the topic pretty fast to the seventeen-year-old boy. His father lives in Baracoa with his new wife. In her voice I can already hear how she’s worrying about her only son. He is studying information technology and Belldis stresses the importance of a good education. It is his friends she is worried about. They are from bad neighborhoods, mainly El Canal. Enrique goes there all the time to play soccer or just to hang around. According to her, the youth of today drinks a lot and doesn not care about anything. The misuse of alcohol can take on extreme proportions and when knives or other weapons get involved, things turn real bad. (1) She bought him a cellphone, mainly to keep in touch with him and to call him home when it’s getting too late. According to her 9pm is about the time when things turn fishy over there. Belldis is a police officer, so we assume she has a pretty good look at the safety issues of Cerro. W.V comes out of the water and it is my turn to discover the secrets of the Cuban sea. The first things I notice at the bottom are tin cans instead of shells or sea urchins. I can not help the feeling of growing anger in my stomach at the sight of this lack of respect for the precious Cuban environment. I try to push it aside and after a few strokes I find what I was looking for. Floating away, I enjoy the marvelous sights. I

feel weightless and the only thing I hear is the sound of my breath escaping to the surface. It is in the absence of the noise that I realize again how extremely loud and stressful the city above is. (2) I am at a twenty meters distance from the coast at best, but I could not feel farther away from the world out of the water. While I take a seat on my towel and recover a bit, I hear W.V. is catching up with Belldis. We ask her about her opinion on the state of the beach, and Cuban nature in general. She agrees it is a sad story. She blames the education. In school kids supposedly learn about the value of Cuba’s beautiful fauna and flora and the importance of keeping it clean. In reality no one cares. Schools do not have qualitative education. Kids see their parents’ behavior and copy it. (3) We have seen numerous examples on other beaches. A perfect Cuban Sunday would consist of the whole family – do not even mind the age of the little children – buoying on the waves while passing a bottle of pure rum. When it is empty, they just toss it in the water. Problem solved. This does not apply of course to the whole population, but right now it is still the bigger part. Next topic on the table is family. She tells us about relatives in the USA and Canada. Somewhat reluctantly she goes on with the topic. It is not possible for her to visit them. Mainly because she lacks the necessary finances, but we sense there might be playing something else. An uncle who currently lives in Canada did visit them again about two times. The last time was about four years ago. We want to know whether she or her son maybe have some kind of dream of leaving Cuba and go north. After this question, we apparently came across as too suspicious. “Are you some kind of police officer?” (4) We explain her again about our intentions and show our student license to comfort her. Now and then we forget for a moment that people in Cuba grew up in a one sided and sometimes repressive political system. I talk a little about my life and family in Belgium to prove to her it is a conversation and not an interrogation. It seems to do the trick and we go on enjoying our afternoon talk. This was a major turning point, because from now on we feel strongly how she changed her attitude and became more personal and trusting towards us. Where answers to our questions at the beginning sometimes came across as the standard thing we have to say because we learned it that way, we arrived at a point where she goes more in depth and speaks from her heart.

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

The sun is radiating stronger than ever. Comparing to the rest of La Habana, the beach is fairly quiet with only one beverage stand playing music. Like us, Belldis comes here to run away from the everlasting noise of the city. It’s been around twenty days since I came to Cuba, but the car honking and the same playlists forever on repeat are already driving me crazy. I can imagine how some people must feel after a lifetime in this flow of endless noise. Belldis took two weeks off from work and spends every morning at the rocky beach. She spends an astonishing 45 minutes on the bus to come here. That is 1,5 hours of time spent on transport alone every day. Belldis claims she does not really need more parks or green spaces in Cerro, but

when we ask where she likes to go in her neighborhood for a walk, to read a book or just to relax, she does not have an answer. Eventually Belldis says she likes to stay at home. She tells us she has a lot of plants in her house, because they generate peace and quietness. (5) Belldis loves nature. Actually she is stating the obvious: the very dense area of Cerro is in need of qualitative decompression zones. Since the use of the portales on the Calzada del Cerro is a key asset in our research, we are interested in her opinion on the ongoing appropriation of this public space. Belldis neither looks surprised nor concerned on the subject. Inhabitants of a house behind a portal do not always like other people hanging around their front door. (6) They come and sit in front of someone’s house – often with alcoholic drinks, make a lot of noise and sometimes apparently even try to enter the private premises. Belldis says it is a logical decision to close of a part of the portal for some privacy, although she is very well aware these actions have consequences. She estimates a fine for illegally closing off your front porch around 1500 Cuban Pesos. On failing to pay in due time, the amount is doubled. And it goes on like that. But yet again, like in all our previous interviews, she is not entirely sure about the actual consequences. I am starting to wonder whether there’s even a single person, including government employees, in Cuba who really knows the exact procedure.

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

While we are on the topic of life in and around the house, we are curious about her relationship with neighbors. Apparently most of them are not nice. She gets along with people in the street here and there, but speaking about a community would be closer to a lie than an exaggeration. Aregular day in Belldis’ life after work would consist of her spending spare time in front of the TV at home. She mentions the church is a better example of communal sense. (7) She wants to come back on the subject of less noisy places and says the church is by far the best spot to go. The same people gather there often to pray, but mainly to look for a quiet place to escape the restless life outside. When we ask about the other popular religion, Santeria, we notice a slight disapproval in her voice. These people come together at home and wear necklaces made up of strange beads. On saying that she sounds a little negative, Belldis comments religion is just one aspect of life and Cubans can be friends, no matter what differences or preferences. I like her. She cares for everyone’s wellbeing. Everything must come to an end and so does our conversation with Belldis. It is wonderful how an afternoon trip to the beach can turn out into a pleasant meeting and also contribute to our research project. Taking the time to talk and listen resulted into a better understanding of the joys and concerns in the everyday life in Cerro of Belldis Idernaredz Diaz.

From the conversation we can extract some of the main problems of the neighborhood El Cerro (and Havana in general). Many talks we had with inhabitants about problems of the urban atmosphere in El Cerro can be summarized in these categories: 1. alcoholism & safety issues 2. noise 3. lack of education 4. sensitive topic of immigration & emigration 5. love for nature & absence of it in parts of the city 6. use of the portales 7. community & religion

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

COMPENDIUM OF CONVERSATIONS

After more than a year, in November 2016, I returned to Cuba. Armed with new energy and more questions than ever before, I was looking forward to see the Cubans again. Since it would be the second time on the island, I used the experience of my first visit and the knowledge from what I had been studying so far to make a list of all things I wanted to know. As the summer research of 2015 had proven, interviews should be conducted as a conversation and not an interrogation in order to have the best results. I kept this in mind and the result is presented in this Compendium of Conversations. The interviews are arranged chronologically according to this template: nr. // name // age // time // description of the person // profession/status // additional information // location // neighborhood

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

A map with the exact locations of each interview is available on page 34 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 35.

nr. 1 // daughter of the land lady (+- 45y) // fri 4 nov_morning // helps land lady in the household, she’s attending to my breakfast // casa particular: Calle Linea entre Calle 2 y Calle 4 // Vedado She’s preparing my breakfast and we start talking. She explains she’s the daughter of the lady. She has 1 sister who lives in Spain, but so far she’s been unable to visit her. When she applied to have a Visa to go to Spain, it was denied. She says Spain is one of the most difficult countries to go to as a Cuban. She has 3 kids. Her oldest son (21) has been practically living in this house (casa particular) since he was born. She lives with her other (younger) son (18) and daughter (15) in El Cerro. nr. 2 // Zoë, the land lady (65y) // fri 4 nov_morning // does the household, she’s attending to my breakfast // casa particular: Calle Linea entre Calle 2 y Calle 4 // Vedado We start talking about why I am in Cuba and she’s interested in the fact that I’m doing a master dissertation on Cuban architecture and Cerro. She is well aware of the typical housing-related issues Cuba is facing. She starts explaining, while pointing to the balcony, that a lot of people would appropriate that place to make extra living space. Apparently, since not that long, everyone needs to ask permission to an ‘arquitecto de la communidad’ when they want to make changes to their houses. Especially to the facades. She mentions that her neighbor is a quite well-know architect, who’s retired by now. She’ll try to set up a meeting with him for me. Also, one of her good friends is an architect and she’ll contact her as well. She owns this apartment and has been living here for more than 30 years. She inherited it. It was built by the children of José Marti! The son of Marti used to live in the house I can see from my room. It’s called the Casa Martiana. They didn’t have a lot of money, but the daughter managed to acquire more than enough by designing buildings, like the one I’m staying in. Even though she wasn’t an architect. She says the building is very strong and well-built. Only, today you sometimes hear the people on other floors at night, because no one uses carpet anymore. It used to be an acoustic isolator, but now that’s gone.

“Somehow, most people in Cuba assume they are qualified to build their own house. That is why there are so many accidents and collapses.”

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

Since a couple of years, architects and technical drawers have so much to do. Everyone who can afford it contacts them. Most people don’t have the money, so they just build materials and construct themselves. Often, they tear down an existing building and just make a new one. Somehow, most people in Cuba assume they are qualified to build their own house. That is why there are so many accidents and collapses. Apparently people can take loans from the state to acquire materials and pay back on the long term.

A lot of bars are opening now. After the ‘triumph of the revolution’ a lot of bars closed, but now it’s changing again. You also need official permission to open a bar. She mentions that foreigners try in different ways to work themselves into the Cuban market. Making pacts with Cubans they trust or who are long-time friends. nr. 3 // internet card salesman on street corner (+- 25y) // fri 4 nov_midday // looks (assertively) for people to sell internet to // esquina 17 y A // Vedado He sells internet cards for 1 hour, it costs 3 CUC. He tells me I connect just in front of this selling point, where all the people are sitting. Everyone is connected now; you just have to look for any hotel. In some houses they also have internet. The possibility for communication advanced a lot, it’s much better now. He also tries to sell me cigars. nr. 4 // woman who sells plants and flowers (+- 40y) // fri 4 nov_midday // sitting very relaxed, selling flowers // mercadito entre A y B // Vedado She works for the guy who owns all the stands in this market. He rents it from the state and pays a percentage to do so. The rest he can keep and use like he wants. Business is going well.

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

nr. 5 // Laura & Rachel (students) (+- 20y) // fri 4 nov_midday // we meet while eating lunch // La Esquinita de 8 // Vedado The girls are studying since September in Havana, not far from this cafeteria. They initiate the conversation by asking if I already had pizza here and if it’s decent food. They live in a student house, which is like an apartment. There are 4 students who live together on a floor. They each have their room and share a common room and kitchen. The university owns these kinds of buildings for student housing. Houses or other places are not converted into student housing, there’s just these buildings that are built solely for the purpose of student housing. They are both on facebook, Rachel connected for the last time this Saturday, Laura a month ago. Everyone can buy 1 hour internet tickets now for 2 CUC. They also use Youtube and a new app, more or less like Skype, to do video chats. On the internet, they can access any website they want. If you want, you can download stuff, but most people are still buying the ‘paquette’. They say things like internet take their time to get developed, it all goes slow in Cuba. Originally, they both come from the far suburbs/countryside of Havana. They go back every weekend, but like it far more in the big city. They could stay here to work, or go to another country. It doesn’t really matter to them. It’s not like they want to ‘get out’ of Cuba. nr. 6 // Carlos (+- 40y) // fri 4 nov_afternoon // construction worker for ‘Solde Oriente’ // construction a house with his co-workers (pouring concrete for the new second floor) // Calle Santa Catalina entre Lombillo y La Rosa // Cerro

“We always make a very strong foundation to the houses, because Cubans build today while thinking of tomorrow. They can not afford and do not need a whole house immediately, so they often construct one floor at a time.” He is working with about 9 other co-workers, while an equal amount of neighbors are watching. He tells me that they always make a very strong foundation to the houses, because Cubans build today while thinking of tomorrow. They can not afford and do not need a whole house immediately, so they often construct one floor at a time. He’s sure this second floor to this house is no problem, because the foundation is so steady. As a construction material they almost always use cement. They are not from Cerro, they work wherever and whenever you want. They are very busy, because everyone is building today. A couple of years back it was not really possible, so now everyone who has some money, is building like crazy. If you want to construct or adapt something on the inside, you can do it without permission. For every alteration or construction of the outside, you need to ask the ‘arquitecto del municipio’ for authorization. Especially on the Calzada del Cerro and/or when heritage is involved. If you violate the construction law, you can’t receive legal property rights. nr. 7 // Dario (+- 45y) // fri 4 nov_afternoon // eating a snack while sitting on the edge of a portal // lives on the other side of the street // esquina de Calzada del Cerro y Arzobispo // Cerro

Water has been pouring into their house every time it rains. He wants to fix it, but he doesn’t even have enough money to buy food. The neighbors are lucky, he says, because they have a family member who lives in Spain.

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

Dario doesn’t have money. He has a job, but he depends (financially) on his wife. She’s a nurse in a nearby hospital. He’s not very happy. He mentions that he doesn’t think love is something that lasts forever. After 15 years of marriage he doesn’t feel anything anymore. He’s scared that if things go wrong between him and his wife he’ll end up with literally nothing. While we’re talking, he sees his wife on the other side of the street and waves. She doesn’t wave back. Water has been pouring into their house every time it rains. He wants to fix it, but he doesn’t even have enough money to buy food. The neighbors are lucky, he says, because they have a family member who lives in Spain. They received euros and are building a new floor: a typical 4m by 4m cassette on top of their first floor. Somehow the municipality doesn’t want them to

build this extra floor and have fined them. They will not take the floor down, he says, but he doesn’t know what will happen now. They also have to construct the columns for the typical portal-style. The municipality doesn’t really care if it’s closed off underneath. The columns just have to be there and they have to be round. His neighbors on the other side also have little more money. They were able to construct a ‘barbacoa’: a platform that divides the high ground floor into two floors. He would also love to have that to have more living space, but first comes food, then comes the roof and after that he can start thinking about that barbacoa. He knows everyone is always talking about the fact that Cuba is changing, but he doesn’t see it. People in Cerro need jobs. He needs a job. He hopes that will change. He’s too honest to steal and too scared to go to prison, so that’s why he is where he is now. He would love to work more and wants to earn an honest salary. nr. 8 // McWilkinson (42 y) // fri 4 nov_night // works two government jobs // walking through the city center // we met around Parque Cristo // Habana Vieja

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

He starts talking to me in the streets. He was going for a walk, because the power in his neighborhood in Habana Centro went completely out again. It’s very dark everywhere in Havana Vieja. He says it’s been like that for some time now. The state doesn’t get much fuel anymore from Venezuela, so they have to save on power. There’s almost no street lighting anywhere. The only light comes from houses, restaurants and cafés. He talks a lot about different religions, astrology and conspiracy theories. He studied sports and works two jobs to get by. He is educated very well and I’m surprised how much he knows about Belgium. But he barely manages to live off the ‘ticket’: the monthly ration of food Cubans get. He thinks capitalism is the future, but he knows that in capitalism a few people get rich and a lot of people get poorer. He says American companies are waiting to conquer the Cuban market. He heard that one of these days the whole Malecon Boulevard is supposed to get wifi connection. No free wifi of course, but the typical ETECSA-connection.

He studied sports and works two jobs to get by. He is educated very well and I’m surprised how much he knows about Belgium. But he barely manages to live off the ‘libreta’: the monthly ration of food Cubans get. nr. 9 // Tomàs (82 y) // sat 5 nov_midday // retired since 20 years // sitting on a little chair in front of his house, smoking a cigar // Calle San Cristobal entre Colon y Prensa // Cerro He sells tobacco and coffee every morning in front of his house. He buys the coffee for 1 peso and sells it for 2 pesos. He buys it just around the corner in the store. When I

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

ask how he manages to sell it, if the same product is available only 50 meters further for half the price, he says he always buys the whole supply or otherwise manages to be the only one around these blocks to have it. He needs to do this, because he still has to earn some money, he gets 170 pesos a month for being retired. He loves sitting in front of his house, because it is so quiet. It’s only one block away from Calzada del Cerro, but it’s almost a different world. He lives with his wife, his child and grandchild. He mentions a lot of people in the street are redoing their houses. Constructing new ones or new floors. Since 3 months they have installed a pipeline of gas. Water has been available since 6 years. nr. 10 // Miguel (60y) y el otro (35y) // sat 5 nov_midday // playing chess on the sidewalk, in front of a little street that leads to apartments // Calle San Cristobal entre Prensa y Primelles // Cerro These men were so kind to invite me for a few games of chess and some rum. They are amazing. They play on this front porch every afternoon. Other people from the neighborhood come too. While they are playing a lot of people stop by to say hi, watch the game for a while and talk. Miguel lives in one of the apartments that are inside this block. There’s a little street inside the block that leads to all these apartments. There are 14 families living there. Everyone knows each other. nr. 11 // Pedro “El Chino” (52y) // 53055546, 58427675 // sat 5 nov_afternoon // he’s at home and calls on me when he sees me taking a picture of his music installation // construction worker and also sculptor, plastic artist & painter // Calle San Cristobal entre Prensa y Primelles (#253) // Cerro

His house exists of 1 living room/kitchen, connected to 1 bedroom with 1 big bed and 1 bunk bed, connected to a little bathroom with a toilet and a plastic tub. It can’t be more than 12 square meters. He lives here with is wife and 5 kids.

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

This energetic guy invited me into his house. It’s a very small cassette built on top of another house. He built everything himself. The stairs leading there are more like a ladder and I can get barely up. His house exists of 1 living room/kitchen, connected to 1 bedroom with 1 big bed and 1 bunk bed, connected to a little bathroom with a toilet and a plastic tub. It can’t be more than 12 square meters. He lives here with is wife and 5 kids. He shows me very proudly all his artworks (paintings and sculptures). He gets the supplies for his paintings from a family member in Miami. Whenever he needs paint or something else, he calls him and next time that guy visits Cuba, he

takes it with him. The wood he uses to carve his sculptures, he gets from ‘around town’. He makes art only on demand. Friends and acquaintances call him to request certain items. He says I can get anything for free, because we’re friends now. He doesn’t want money. He mentions that I shouldn’t trust other Cubans. He takes me to his godfather who lives nearby in another slum-like structure. We take a little passage next to a house and behind that there’s a little courtyard connected to a bunch of rooms and houses. I can’t really tell the difference anymore. There are so many people going around from one room to another. His godfather lives in one of these self-constructed rooms/houses. After we leave, he shows me a small company that cleans clothes from hotels. “Here in Cerro, we work for the rich people.” If there’s supposed to be any change in Cuba, he doesn’t see it. He feels left out. He’s working different jobs and can’t get by. nr. 12 // fruit and vegetable vendor (+- 20y) // sat 5 nov_afternoon // working in a little market // Calle Santo Tomas entre San Cristobal y Cepero // Cerro All the food they sell comes from a central market in Habana Centro. Everyone in Cerro buys his or her food there. The food there comes mostly from other Cuban provinces, not so much from Havana. There’s a little garden with fruit-carrying trees next to their market, but it’s not theirs. It’s only for the neighbors themselves. nr. 13 // Marta (60y) // sat 5 nov_afternoon // standing in front of her house // Calzada del Cerro entre Lombillo y Pinera // Cerro

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

Her house - somewhere nearby in Cerro - collapsed, so she is temporarily staying in this house. The government told her to stay here for 15 days. It’s been 4 years now and she never heard anything anymore. Her house - somewhere nearby in Cerro - collapsed, so she is temporarily staying in this house. The government told her to stay here for 15 days. It’s been 4 years now and she never heard anything anymore. She says the government ripped her off and they’re a bunch of liars. The house she lives in is more like one very big room. She lives in the first part behind a wall of cardboard boxes and a curtain. Behind a small wall there lives another family. There are two beds on the left side, in the right corner a kitchen and in the left corner something that’s supposed to be a bathroom. nr. 14 // Oswaldo (1000y) // sat 5 nov_afternoon // ‘guarding’ the entrance to a company // Calzada del Cerro entre Penon y Tulipan // Cerro (He has no teeth and I can’t make out most things he’s saying, even after asking multiple times) This is a business that caters to hotels. On the left side and right side are both

houses. They don’t belong to this piece of land. The grounds stretch out very deep into the block. But just not to the other end. nr. 15 (= nr. 2) // Zoë, lady of the house // sat 5 nov_afternoon // casa particular: Calle Linea entre Calle 2 y Calle 4 // Vedado

“A lot of Cubans don’t understand the value of free education and health care anymore. Food and other items are so expensive, often more expensive than for example a European country like Belgium.” We had an elaborate talk about the current situation of Cuba. She says a lot of ‘new rich people’ are building very ugly and random things. People should hire an architect to help them, because they don’t have any conception about the culture or heritage themselves. They are destroying the quality (in Vedado). She’s not referring to El Cerro, she understands that when people are desperately in need of new rooms or living spaces they construct or destroy without taking the culture and heritage into account. Although, she mentions everyone is able to get the help of the ‘arquitecto del municipio’ for only about 50 pesos cubanos (2CUC). These architects are paid by the government and do consults for very little money. They are not consulted very much, because most Cubans are still convinced they can do it all themselves. She says that often with the help of the architect, people can do better and more appropriate things for less money and with fewer materials. But people don’t understand that. She talks about education and health care, which are both completely free always and for everyone in Cuba. She says that a lot of Cubans don’t understand the value of that anymore. This is of course an amazing fact, but on the other hand there are things that are bad. Food and other items are so expensive, often more expensive than for example a European country like Belgium. Still, the regular Cuban with the low salary has to buy in those stores too. All the bars and cafeterias that are emerging are rather new. 5 to 10 years

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

“The generation of my grandchildren is starting to give up on studying. They don’t value education, because driving a taxi or working in a hotel earns so much more. My grandson is studying for doctor, but he knows he won’t earn a lot by being a doctor. He does it because he’s passionate and wants to help people, but he will take another job with it in the private sector most likely.”

ago they didn’t exist at all. Stores were limited. Her generation (born before the revolution) and the generation after her (her kids) all have a high level of education. The generation of her grandchildren on the other hand, is starting to give up on studying. They don’t value education, because driving a taxi or working in a hotel earns so much more. This is a great flaw in the Cuban system. It’s one of the reasons why many educated people left the country. Her grandson is studying for doctor, but he knows he won’t earn a lot by being a doctor. He does it because he’s passionate and wants to help people, but he will take another job with it in the private sector most likely. People in the private sector can earn a lot. She explained she had to pay a construction worker around 3000CUC to construct her bathroom, which took only two days. That was more than the cost of the materials and the architect together. Professions like construction workers and painters bring in a ton of money. Even though they’re often not even good at doing it. She says there are enough highly educated people, but a lack of qualified people in the primary sectors, especially in construction. There are no schools that teach these matters. nr. 16 // Jorgelina (79y) // sun 6 nov_midday // Direccion Provincial de Servicios Communales Ciudad de la Habana C.A.P. // keeping an eye on the institution // Calle Linea entre Calle 2 y Calle 4 // Vedado This house for community service is dedicated to the after-school education of the Cuban children. The kids come here on Saturdays and weekdays after class. In school everyone already gets a very clear education on historical matters, but still a lot of kids come here to attend classes and workshops about the glory of Cuba and the triumph of the revolution. They get extra information about Ché Guevara or Fidel Castro, perform plays in the courtyard and do other activities. The house used to be private, but after ‘the triumph of the revolution’ it became a public building. There are about 10 different classrooms, some administrative rooms, a big courtyard, a kitchen, a dining hall and some spare rooms. Each commune in every neighborhood of Havana has such an institution. Because education is important.

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

nr. 17 // Diosmira (+- 70y) // mon 7 nov_midday // Instituto y Biblioteca José Marti // keeping an eye on the institution // Calle 7 entre Calle 2 y Calle 4 // Vedado Diosmira was guarding the entrance to the institution and when she learned that I was an architecture student, she was happy to give me a personal guided tour of the house. The house belonged to the son of the important national hero José Marti. They maintain the house in a very good state and use it to educate the Cubans about the national history. A lot of people come here, not only Cubans, but also groups of students from Norway or the USA. The building is, of course, dedicated to Marti. They have a library that is devoted to gathering everything that is ever written about him. From Monday to Friday anyone is welcome to do research on him.

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

nr. 18 // woman (+- 35y) // mon 7 nov_afternoon // TRD Caribe - La iluminacion // shopkeeper in a ‘special’ store // Calzada del Cerro entre Tulipan y Penon // Cerro They sell all kind of things that are ‘a little broken’ here. Shops in the neighborhood send them things that are not perfectly fine and they sell it here for a little less money. There are not so many stores like this in Habana. nr. 19 // woman (+- 25y) // mon 7 nov_afternoon // cafetaria owner // Calzada del Cerro entre Tulipan y Arzobispo // Cerro This cafetaria has been here for a long time. Her mother lives in this house and they sell a couple of dishes through the window. It’s easy and earns decent money. nr. 20 // woman (+- 35y) // mon 7 nov_afternoon // guarapo vendor // Calzada del Cerro entre Dominguez y Pinera // Cerro The sugar cane they use for their guarapo comes from the province of Artemisa. You can’t grow sugar cane in Havana. Someone supplies all the guarapo selling points daily. A truck comes by and drops off a bunch of sugar cane sticks. They hire the ground floor and own the business privately. It’s not just people from the block who come for a guarapo, everyone from all over Havana hops by. nr. 21 // man (+- 65y) // mon 7 nov_afternoon // guard for printing company // Pinera entre Santa Catalina y Calzada del Cerro // Cerro The man is standing guard at the gate to the parking of a company. It’s a company that’s working on paper, printing supplies… those kinds of things. It’s been here for 13 years and about 15 people work here. Not necessarily from Cerro, they come from all over Havana. Cerro is typically in industrial neighborhood. You won’t find these companies in Habana Vieja or Habana Centro.

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

nr. 22 // woman (53 y) // mon 7 nov_afternoon // vendor of Santeria-related objects // Calzada del Cerro entre Dominguez y Pinera // Cerro

“Almost everyone is very accepting when it comes to religion. It is never any issue when it comes to friendships, marriages or any other bonding between people.” This lady has a little shop in a room together with a flower vendor and a printing shop. She explains some things about Santeria. It’s a religion that can be interpreted in different ways and God is involved somehow. But she remains quite vague. She stresses that the way you interpret religion doesn’t really matter. If her friend is Catholic, they still

can go together to church. Apparently people from different religions go to the same churches or other venues and they adapt the ceremonies from time to time. She says that almost everyone is very accepting when it comes to religion. It is never any issue when it comes to friendships, marriages or any other bonding between people. She gives me her address and says I should pass by some day and she’ll teach me spells and other wizardry. She’s laughing and saying she’s joking. (Or is she…?) nr. 23 // Yamila (+- 40y) // mon 7 nov_night // nurse in hospital Allende // waiting for the guagua // Calzada del Cerro entre Dominguez y Pinera // Cerro

“These damned guaguas never run on time! If I could change anything in Cerro, it would be to have better public transport. And also more jobs, a lot of people need jobs.” She’s complaining about the rain and guagua being late (again). These damned guaguas never run on time! And there are so few of them, there should be at least two times, or even better, three times more of them. We’re standing under the shelter that marks the bus stop, but the guaguas are not stopping in front of it. It’s incredible, she says, you never know where they’re going to stop. In this rain, it’s even worse that they’re not stopping in front of the bus shelter. She lives a little further in Cerro, but was born in Habana Centro. She came to live here in the house of her grandparents when they died. This is one of the only normal ways to move in Cuba: swapping or taking a house from family members. There are many people who work in the hospital Allende who come from further away, but they can’t move that easily to Cerro. Most of them also wouldn’t want that. If she could change anything in Cerro, it would be to have better public transport. And also more jobs, a lot of people need jobs. The buildings in front of the guagua stop have been empty for a long time. Although she thinks very recently some people started squatting the white one. nr. 24 // woman (+- 50y) // tue 8 nov_midday // shopkeeper in the baseball stadium of ‘Los Industriales’ // working in her shop // Estadio Latinoamerica // Cerro

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

This is the only shop in the whole stadium. They are not playing anymore, because ‘los Industriales’ lost. This is a popular team in Havana. There are a lot of other teams of other provinces and they’re better at the moment. This shop is property of the stadium and thus the state. Like always, people from all over Havana work in the stadium. Not particularly from Cerro. She was lucky that she was able to ‘arrange’ a house very close (two blocks) to the stadium. The huge parking lot next to the stadium is full when a game is played, but otherwise empty. Sometimes cars get repaired, but that doesn’t happen often. Behind the parking there’s a resting place for bus drivers. The omnibus terminal is further away. The busses don’t get fixed or anything. It’s exclusively a resting place.

nr. 25 // Eusebio Fernandez (76y) // tue 8 nov_midday // resident at Santovenia elderly home // walking on the entry road // Casa asilo de los hermanitas de los ancianos desamparados “Santovenia” // Cerro

“We are living in this beautiful building in the middle of all this green. We grow fruits and vegetables. We own sheep.” Eusebio lives in this elderly home with around 400 other inhabitants. They come from all over Havana. It’s very quiet in here. We are living in this beautiful building in the middle of all this green. We grow fruits and vegetables. We own sheep. This place is not only for sheep, we also use it very often for activities. nr. 26 // woman (+- 40y) // tue 8 nov_midday // works at Santovenia elderly home // attends the front desk // Casa asilo de los hermanitas de los ancianos desamparados “Santovenia” // Cerro All these green areas are property of the home. We grown and eat everything (we’re still eating jam of the mangos we harvested ages ago) and share it also with other elderly homes. We don’t give it to the people of Cerro. In this house are about 400 inhabitants and 150 employees. Employees work shifts of 8 hours, either morning or afternoon. There are a lot of doctors and specialists too to attend to the needs of the elderly. To get into the home, people need to pay and apply. You have to be clear in the head. If you already have dementia or something else, you have to go to another home. There are so many elderly people in Havana. New generations don’t have that many kids anymore, so we’re having a significant segment of elderly in our population. This institution is Catholic since it’s beginnings. There’s a church in the center of the home and we have a mass every morning at 8.15.

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

nr. 27 // man (+- 60y) // tue 8 nov_midday // works at Santovenia elderly home // passes by the front desk // Casa asilo de los hermanitas de los ancianos desamparados “Santovenia” // Cerro This elderly home is private, but inside of the state. We’re depending on the state’s health department for food, medicine etc. Nuns have owned this since 1886 and it was always an elderly home. The grounds of Santovenia are so big, because it was built during the expansion period when Cerro was founded. Casas Quintas were constructed along the Calzada del Cerro, and so there was still a lot of space to construct this home. Right now, of course, we’re completely surrounded on all sides by densely built blocks. nr. 28 // Eduardo (58), Rosa (21y) y Brian (baby) // tue 8 nov_afternoon // having a beer on the Calzada del Cerro // they’re coming to sit at my table // Corner Store at Calzada del Cerro y Pinera // Cerro

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

When I ask whether they like Cerro, they respond with a “pfff ” and “It’s where we’re born... We don’t have much, but what can we do?” They don’t believe in any change. They haven’t seen any change in Cerro at any point in their life They’re very nice, buy me beers and insist on paying it for me. Even though they’re not affluent. When I ask whether they like Cerro, they respond with a “pfff ” and “It’s where we’re born...” We have a nice talk and they’re talking about that you should live your life fast and good and enjoy it. “We don’t have much, but what can we do?” They’re enjoying their beer while sitting in the sun very much. They have a few family members in Barcelona. They left Cuba as soon as they saw the opportunity. They don’t believe in any change. They haven’t seen any change in Cerro at any point in their life. Communism is stupid. The state rips them off. nr. 29 // Mercedes Escobar Morale (68y) // wed 9 nov_afternoon // sells a few items in front of her pasillo // Pasillo en Calzada del Cerro #1556 entre Dominguez y Pinera // 78749436 // Cerro She used to work as a nurse, but that only got her around 200 pesos a month. It’s impossible to make a living out of it. So now she’s sitting here every day in front of the pasillo that leads to her house, selling whatever she has. Friends or acquaintances bring her goods, she buys it and resells it. Today she’s trying to sell enough to buy meat this evening.

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

nr. 30 // Raul Oviedo Herrera (+- 40y) // wed 9 nov_afternoon // comes up to me because he sees that I’m doing some kind of research/investigation // he’s a know socialite around these blocks // Calzada del Cerro entre Dominguez y Pinera // address: Calzada del Cerro #1462 entre Auditor y San Pablo // tel 78749639 y 053063862 // Cerro

“I would be an internet addict if it were accessible in a better way. There is so much out there and so much I want to share with the world.” Raul approaches me and says he needs an administrator for his website. He has been filming everyday Cerro for quite some time and he wants to create a website for it. Because of the complicated (expensive) internet situation he can’t really do it. He also has a lot of other ideas and projects he’s working on: Radiotalentos Cuba TV, revista virtual Cubana “Sonar no cuesta nada” and a reality show “Asi somos los Cubanos”. For “Sonar no cuesta nada” he goes to all kinds of people and ask them what their dreams are. He makes an example and goes to Merciel (nr. 28). She dreams of a world where

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

all Cubans have enough food and can live at ease. He works as a ‘cuentapropia’ salsa teacher. He has an idea to get foreigners to Cuba for a 150 euro all in formula including: transport, a place to stay, meals and salsa classes. He says he would be an internet addict if it were accessible in a better way. There is so much out there and so much he wants to share with the world. I run into him about 3 times again that afternoon. He’s making videos of me doing research. nr. 31 // woman (+- 60y) // wed 9 nov_afternoon // guards the Agricultura department // Calzada del Cerro entre Dominguez y Pinera // Cerro She’s being kind of weird and protective, since I’m asking about the government. But she tells me to come back tomorrow when the department is open and I can ask her colleagues about agriculture in Cerro. nr. 32 // couple (+- 65y) // wed 9 nov_afternoon // own a cafeteria // Calzada del Cerro entre Dominguez y Pinera: cafeteria next to the empty buildings // Cerro They mention these buildings used to be a factory. They’re empty now, they think. One is used as a parking space. (see also business questionnaire J) nr. 33 // woman (+- 25y) // wed 9 nov_night // employee at Melia Cohiba // Melia Cohiba // Vedado Yes, we’re still selling internet. It’s 10CUC for 1 hour. It’s going very slow today though. nr. 34 // two fishermen (+- 40 and 50y) // wed 9 nov_night // Malecon (near Melia Cohiba) // Vedado These men came by foot and were transporting something that looked like a mattress from far off. It was actually a DIY boat made off styrofoam. They come fishing at night, because it’s better. And also because there’s less chance off having trouble with the police, since it’s prohibited to fish here. nr. 35 // woman (+- 40y) // thu 10 nov_afternoon // park in front of hospital Allende // on her way home // Cerro

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

She lives in Cerro and likes it, because it’s quiet. We meet in the ‘park’ in front of hospital Allende, but she doesn’t really think it’s a park. It’s more like an extended entrance to the hospital. Many people work in this hospital and students come here for their practical courses. If she could change one thing in Cerro, it would be that people had more possibilities to construct. It’s a very dense area, but still it’s difficult because of all the regulations to accomplish something. And a lot of people need houses. So they start constructing barbacoas and other solutions.

nr. 36 // Adam Brahim Djaga (24y) // thu 10 nov_afternoon // park in front of hospital Allende // medicine student (from Chad) // on his way to class // adamdjaga92@gmail. com // +5358199419 and (+530)76499389 // Cerro Adam is one the 400 students from Africa who are studying medicine in Cuba. In total there are more than 3000 students. He will graduate at the end of this year and go back to Chad. He lives in a university campus behind the hospital Allende. They have a couple of school buildings at the edge of the hospital campus and do their practical courses in the hospital. They start with practical courses in first year. He says the education level here is very good and that especially the early practice is worth it. As a foreigner you can apply for two plans to enter medical school: one, for people without economic means, for free and the other, for more affluent people, for around 27.000 dollar a year. You can apply online. He hasn’t left Cuba the past 5 years, because it costs too much. The university provides internet for its students, so he can connect a lot easier than regular Cubans in the street. He likes living in Cuba and Cerro a lot. It’s a nice neighborhood that feels like a community. nr. 37 // woman (+- 60y) // thu 10 nov_afternoon // guarding school building under renovation // Calle Dominguez // Cerro This secondary school building is currently being renovated. At the end of this block there’s a primary school and next to it is the temporary location for this secondary school. When work’s finished, they’ll move back in here. In Cuba, the school system works like this: one year of pre-escolar, 6 years of elementary school, 3 years of secondary school, then depending on which career you choose 4 or 5 years of pre-uni (pre-university) school and finally university. In pre-uni you already have to choose what career you would like to go. Of course, the government owns the whole school system and they pay for everything.

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

nr. 38 // Hilda Cardenas (+-55y) // fri 11 nov_midday // urbanist at the municipality of Cerro // urquhartfelix@gmail.com and pacolo@enet.cu (husband) // 052007730, 76427412 // Calle Santo Tomas entre Penon y Cepero // Cerro I had a very long conversation with this woman about all kinds of regulations in Cerro and she helped me to more detailed plans of the blocks I’m interested in. She talked about the different possibilities of building/house ownership. Firstly, all the people who are cuentapropistas (private business owners) never actually own any actual space. They rent space from the state. It’s impossible to own a place for a business, unless you also live in the house and open a cafeteria at your window for example. In Cerro, about 80% of the people own their house. It’s only the house and not really the ground they own. For example, if you would dig into the ground at your house and find an oil reservoir, it is legal property of the state. Besides from owning a house, there’s also the usufructo. When different families all have parts of a casa quinta they are not owners, but usufructuarios. This means more or less that they can temporarily use the space,

but it’s not legally theirs. There are procedures where they can become legal owners. There are viviendas that are owned by companies where rooms/apartments/houses are given (temporarily?) to people who can’t afford anything. This is the way the communist state should work and offer every Cuban a house in a vivienda, but since there’s a shortage of housing they can’t. This is why there are also illegal settlements. Hilda will provide me later with the documents of the legal framework in Cuba and Cerro, also regarding the laws of construction. nr. 39 // men in the museum (+-55, 70 & 75y) // fri 11 nov_afternoon // present in the office of the museum while it is under renovation // Calle Penon entre Calzada del Cerro y Zaragoza // Cerro According to the men in the museum I should work on the Calzada del Cerro as a whole for my master thesis. It’s the whole together that counts as heritage. When I say I’m from Belgium, they mention that in the colonial period Cuba imported a huge amount of tulips from Belgium, even more than from the Netherlands. The tulip was an important symbol in Cerro in the colonial time. Beautiful gardens were constructed for tulips and the main industry at that time in Cerro was perfume. Today there’s almost nothing left of that period, only the name of one street: Calle Tulipan. nr. 40 // guard (+-65y) // fri 11 nov_afternoon // guarding the terrain of a transport company // Calle Santa Catalina entre San Pedro y Pinera // Cerro This is a transport company of Citroën. They own this piece of land and you can’t cross to the Calzada del Cerro from inside of the block here. It’s mostly an open parking space. nr. 41 // man and woman (+-50y) // fri 11 nov_afternoon // standing in front of a company // Calle San Pablo entre Santa Catalina y Falgueras // Cerro The building in ruins that I’m looking at is the former Embassy of the USA. Afterwards it became a workshop dedicated to making tables for a while, but it has been empty and deserted for quite some time now. In the building the man was ‘guarding’ they make all the meriendas for the schools in Cerro. The children get food in school. They deliver it from here to all the schools.

Hilda invited me again to her office, so she could hand over all kinds of files and pictures about Cerro. She talked about the press too. Everything is in the hands of the government. In Cuba, the Granma is the official newspaper. El Trabajadores and El Juventud Rebelde are very popular in the country too. In Havana, Tribunal Habana is

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

nr. 42 (=nr. 38) // Hilda Cardenas (+-55y) // sat 12 nov_midday // urbanist at the municipality of Cerro // urquhartfelix@gmail.com and pacolo@enet.cu (husband) // 052007730, 76427412 // Calle Santo Tomas entre Penon y Cepero // Cerro

the most popular newspaper, after Granma. La Bohemia is a general magazine. Mujeres and Muchacha are the popular magazines for women and girls. Juventud Tecnica is a technical magazine about innovation, mostly for young people in industrial studies and careers. Finally, to conclude the most popular printed press, Palante is a satirical magazine featuring caricatures. nr. 43 // man at my site (+-70y) // sat 12 nov_afternoon // standing inside the abandoned lot, behind the empty factory in front of the guagua stop // Calzada del Cerro entre Dominguez y Pinera // Cerro This place used to be an almacen and the building closer to the Calzada was a taller (workshop). But now they’re both empty. They don’t belong to the same owner. This place is used more or less as a parking place and a car repair spot. nr. 44 // husband of Mercedes (80y) // sat 12 nov_afternoon // sitting in front of a taller // Calzada del Cerro entre Dominguez y Pinera // Cerro The husband of Mercedes recognizes me, because Mercedes told him about me. I was looking at the place behind him, because it’s the first time this space is opened in the week that I’ve spent in Cerro. It’s located between the guarapo stand and the pasillo. This place used to be a restaurant in the capitalist period, before the triumph of the revolution. Now it’s a taller where they fix motorbikes etc. nr. 45 (=nr. 29) // Mercedes Escobar Morale (68y) // sat 12 nov_afternoon // invites me into her house // Pasillo en Calzada del Cerro #1556 entre Dominguez y Pinera // 78749436 // Cerro Mercedes’ husband went to get her after we finished talking. She wanted to show me her house and how she lived. It’s down the pasillo where she’s always sitting to sell her items. Passing through the pasillo I see there are quite some houses in the block. It’s hard to estimate from the street how the interior of the block functions. Her house is small, but nicer than I expected. She owns a big television with an audio installation. There’s a small living room, a kitchen and a bedroom + bathroom. She shows me a shoebox full of medication boxes. She has to take them all. After our talk they ask me to take a family portrait of them, but Mercedes insists on wearing sunglasses. One of her diseases has caused her eye problems and she doesn’t want it to show in the picture.

She saw me taking pictures and starts to talk about the Calzada del Cerro. When I tell her I’m and architecture student and I’m doing research she says: “you should have come 30 years ago when I moved here. Cerro was beautiful. But now? What a shame. It’s awful.”

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

nr. 46 // woman in street (+-65y) // sat 12 nov_afternoon // waiting for the guagua in front of the TRD Caribe store // Calzada del Cerro entre Dominguez y Pinera // Cerro

MAP OF CONVERSATIONS

These maps show the exact locations where the interviews were conducted. You can track the spots where I encountered each individual, or you can find the interviews that were conducted in the same neighborhood or block.

Havana

34. 33.

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

17. 16. 1. 2.

8. 3. 4.

El Cerro: Calzada del Cerro @ La Covadonga / Hospital Salvador Allende

37. 40. 20.22. 44. 29. 30. 32.

43. 21.

31. 46.

36. 35.

23.

28.

13.

El Cerro

24.

41.

27.26. 25.

18. 39. 9.

10. 11.

19. 12.

38.

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

7. 14.

CONCLUSION

To make the concluding summary of this compendium of conversations, I will categorize the most common topics of conversations in the five categories I used as a framework to conduct my research: Decomposition of the Cuban Heritage, The Future of Housing, Socio-economic Development, Accessibility and Collective Space. The following texts are purely based on the outcomes of the interviews in this Book of Conversations. DECOMPOSITION OF THE CUBAN HERITAGE It is very common for people in Cerro â&#x20AC;&#x201C; or anywhere in Cuba â&#x20AC;&#x201C; to partition the old houses into smaller housing units. This may happen in many different ways: from constructing brick walls to creating cardboard partitions or sometimes just a curtain. People know it is not safe, but they have no choice. Adapting the heritage speeds up the process of degeneration and random additions often destroy the former character and value of a building. Some residents are aware of existing laws of protection and some are not. This does not hold anyone back though, because a place to live is more important than heritage. The current state of the heritage in El Cerro is bad. The few people who actually have money to build are constructing strange and ugly new things (according to other Cubans) that are not in line with the heritage. Old buildings dating back to the pre-revolutionary era are still empty, abandoned and crumbling down. Warehouses and some other state-owned buildings that are not in use are also left unused.

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

The big contradiction in Havana, and especially a neighborhood like Cerro, is that even though there is a huge housing shortage and a densely built environment, many spaces are abandoned or unused. THE FUTURE OF HOUSING The housing deficit in Havana is problematic. Everyone knows it. Large families are living in tiny houses. Anyone who manages to get his hands on some money and materials is creating new spaces. Everyone is building houses these days, but much of those constructions are bad. Most Cubans are convinced that they are good at everything they do themselves, including construction works, but without any expertise it is needless to say that this does not end well for all. Besides from lacking quality, most additions and constructions are not legal. Informal housing and appropriation of public space are constantly happening. Almost everyone knows they cannot legally do this, but then again, to Cubans a house is more important than some law. When Cubans are building a new house, they often only build one floor with a strong foundation in order to continue building when more money comes in. Cubans build today while thinking of tomorrow.

SOCIO-ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT Many Cubans have a relative living abroad, but are often unable to visit them. I talked to people who have requested the state more than a dozen times to leave the country to visit without any success. It is more common for emigrated Cubans to revisit their relatives on Cuba. They bring money, materials or anything foreign and useful to support their Cuban family and friends. People who do not have close connections outside the island sometimes envy people who have. Many educated Cubans left the country and are still doing this, because being educated does not pay off. Some inhabitants are dreaming of leaving the island, while others do not want anything to do with foreigners, especially from the USA. Opinions on the immigration/emigration topic are extremely divided. The recent introduction to Internet makes people discover all types of social networks like facebook or skype that are changing communication and the perception of distance. Many people are excited and eagerly tell me rumors about new wifi spots or other stories they heard from a friend of a friend. Not everyone sticks to the social media, many Cubans feel like they are able to make contact with the world now. However, Internet is still expensive and not everyone has access. It is introducing a new form of exclusion in society. ETECSA-ticket sales are a big business and like in almost every sector in Cuba, the black market is very present in the Internet business. Since the introduction of the new laws, small businesses are emerging and they are going well. Inhabitants are excited to start something of their own. These businesses, like cafeterias, are often a better way to earn money than in a regular state-job. This new development is changing and adding an entire new layer in the streetscape of Cuban neighborhoods. People who do not have the possibility to start something of their own often complained that there are not enough jobs. Other people complained that they were working two different jobs and still not get by. The emergence of new private businesses is one answer to the job issues.

Even though Cubans are not always living in the best circumstances, almost every citizen has a lot of pride. They are proud of their house and the Cuban heritage. When a Cuban is in favor of the Revolution, their pride knows no limits in their admiration of the national heroes like Fidel Castro, Che Guevara and José Martí.

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

El Cerro is not a tourist destination and thus cannot rely as much as Habana Vieja or Vedado on the money foreigners bring to the island. Since the state is focusing most of its financial efforts to the touristy areas, people in Cerro feel excluded and left out. When I asked what people in Cerro thought of the current dynamics and changes they answered more than once “What change? I do not see any change.”

Because of limited finances and resources, Cubans have become quite creative. Inhabitants talked about their DIY-creations and ways to omit the political system and laws. Reuse and repairing has become an important aspect of Cuban society. Education in Cuba is free from tuition for everyone at all times and thus Cubans are often highly educated. However, the current generation does not see the value of education anymore because driving a taxi earns so much more than being a doctor. They drop out of school to start working in the tourist sector. People of older generations have mentioned that the younger people do not understand the value of free education and free health care anymore. They do not understand that in most other countries they would not have any access to those. Cuba even offers free education to foreigners, especially African countries. Although many people are highly educated, there is a lack of professionals in the primary and construction sector. Cubans do not have enough access to food: it is very expensive and often unavailable. Supermarkets are rarely filled more than halfway and every week there are some different types of vegetables or fruits that are nowhere to find. For example: one day you will see tomatoes in every market and finding an eggplant will be close to impossible and then out of nowhere a week later there will be hardly any tomato and eggplants everywhere. The prices for food are too high and a Cuban with a state job can hardly survive. They have a monthly ration provided by the state, but that is impossible to live off. Many people I talked to literally eat only rice and some vegetables every day.

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

ACCESSIBILITY Cubans rely almost completely on public transport: the guaguas are impossible to live without. Cubans take them everywhere. Even though there are many, they are still overfull. Many people complain because they are very unreliable. There is no fixed schedule or map. People â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;just knowâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; where they come and go. Almendrones are the second-most used transport system. People on the Calzada del Cerro often complained about the noise and the bad state of public infrastructure. COLLECTIVE SPACE The previous categories all have implications on the collective space. The new dynamics are reconfiguring the streetscape. Inhabitants are appropriate collective space for housing extensions, emerging businesses change the meaning of the adjacent collective spaces, the overall declining quality of the buildings and infrastructure has an impact on the experience of collective space. In an extremely dense and mineral neighborhood like El Cerro, Cubans are missing decompression zones, green space and privacy.

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

... MORE PEOPLE FROM EL CERRO

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

FIGURE LIST

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

All images by Aaron Swartjes

Aaron Swartjes - Book of Conversations

NOTES

BOOK OF CONVERSATIONS for the Master Dissertation Project: Collective Patchwork, Patchwork of Collectivity by

Aaron Swartjes

promotor Kris Scheerlinck - Streetscape Territories Research Project International Master of Science in Architecture: Urban Projects, Urban Cultures Program 2016 - 2017 KU Leuven, Faculty of Architecture, Campus Sint-Lucas Brussels contact: swartjes_aaron@hotmail.com