Collective Patchwork, Patchwork of Collectivity // 22 June 2017 // Aaron Swartjes
BOOK OF
RHYTHM
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INTRODUCTION
The Book of Rhythm looks at Cuba and the neighborhood of El Cerro through the lens of movement. It is an investigation of how the streetscape works in the sense of actions, repetitions, stillness and other situations. I looked at all the elements in the streetscape that move, both in relation to one another and in relation to the built environment. Secondly, I analyzed the flow of businesses, because this emerging private network is responsible for a new dynamic in Cuba. I wanted to know where people come from and go to, how goods are transported and which cyclical processes take place. 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 Rhythm
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RHYTHM IN THE STREET
The Calzada del Cerro is the spine of the neighborhood El Cerro. Different conseyos populares (smaller burroughs) are divided alongside this central axis and important buildings are preferably located on or close to this Calzada. It is obvious that when it comes to mobility and traffic, the Calzada del Cerro is the hotspot. When the Calzada was constructed, together with the houses and portales, Cerro used to be an affluent neighborhood. A tramway ran along the Calzada in two directions. On both sides of the tram, there was a road, then came a sidewalk, the corridors (portales) and eventually the housing. After Cerro lost a lot of its wealthy inhabitants, the tramway disappeared too and the Calzada became completely asphalted. In order to understand the rhythm and flow on the Calzada del Cerro, I conducted a traffic count. I observed different locations several times and counted exactly how many people and vehicles passed. This was one way to understand the volume of traffic and how different actors make use of the streetscape. I compared the busy Calzada del Cerro to two adjacent roads. Besides from counting the traffic, I always described the mood and pace of that particular moment.
Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
By going around and about every day in Cerro, walking constantly on the Calzada del Cerro and with the traffic count as empirical data, I made some conclusions about mobility and transport in the neighborhood. I will go deeper into the rhythm of pedestrians and the guagua.
collage of the Calzada del Cerro
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former tramway on the Calzada del Cerro Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
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Monday 6 November 2016 (18:15 – 18:30) Calzada del Cerro entre Dominguez y Pinera sitting at the bus stop of hospital Allende 202
pedestrians
12 bikes 33 motorbikes 48 cars 17 mini vans 8 trucks 41 almendrones 7 taxis 4 guaguas (20, 20, A83, A83) 9 busses (other than guagua) 1 ambulance
Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
mood: fast paced, many people waiting for the guagua at different places, every time a guagua passes there is a little chaos, people running for the guagua
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Wednesday 9 November 2016 (15:00 – 15:15) Calzada del Cerro entre Dominguez y Pinera sitting in the park in front of the pharmacy 231
pedestrians
4 bikes 31 motorbikes 49 cars 14 mini vans 7 trucks 76 almendrones 15 taxis 7 guaguas (P14, A83, P14, 20, P14, P14, 20) 7 busses (other than guagua) 1 excavator 1 motorized truck-like tricycle
Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
mood: fast paced, traffic always in turns guided by traffic lights, a lot of people, big (5+) groups of school/university students, it feels more quiet than around midday
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Wednesday 9 November 2016 (16:30 – 16:45) Calle Pinera, on the corner next to Calzada del Cerro sitting at the edge of a portal 82
pedestrians
2 bikes 2 motorbikes 7 3 1
cars mini vans trucks (sugar cane transport)
2 almendrones 1 taxis 0 guaguas 2 busses (other than guagua): big tour bus & school bus
Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
mood: quiet, a lot of people walking in groups (mostly families), most people are coming in from the Calzada del Cerro, a lot of moms returning with little children in school uniforms, many people are greeting each other and stop to have (brief) contact
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Wednesday 9 November 2016 (17:20 – 17:35) Calle Dominguez, on the corner next to Calzada del Cerro sitting at the edge of a portal 80
pedestrians
5 bikes 2 motorbikes 4 cars 2 mini vans 0 trucks 1 almendrones 0 taxis 0 guaguas 0 busses (other than guagua)
Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
mood: quiet street, most people are walking slowly, people further down the street are sitting on their doorstep and having conversations with passers-by, people are walking from doorstep to doorstep, a lot of children, some people pass by several times in different directions
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TRANSPORT
Many different means of transport can be located on this street, with a decent amount of vehicles with a public function. The guagua is a cheap bus that is overflowing at all times. There are regular taxi’s, but more common are the almendrones, typical Cuban cheap taxi’s. They are the beautiful old cars everyone always talks about when they think of Cuba. Just like everywhere else in La Habana, they drive around in Cerro. They don’t operate like regular taxi’s, they have a fixed route where they drive along and pick up anyone who calls them. If you call them, if they have space left and they are going in your direction, they will take you with them. Just like on the famous Malecon avenue in Habana Vieja, the almendrones in Cerro drive around back and forth on the Calzada del Cerro. Different from regular taxi’s is the fact that when there is room, the almendron will always stop to take in more people. That is a logic conclusion, regarding the Cuban mindset of common use. The bicitaxi is a slow service transport that is mainly found outside of the Calzada del Cerro and closer to the city center. It can easily operate in the smaller streets but it’s rather dangerous to go around on the main streets. But because of the fact that the Calzada del Cerro stretches all the way through the center of Cerro, we encounter it on various occasions. Apart from traffic mainly oriented to public use, we encounter the regular actors in the streetscape like cars, motorbikes, bicycles and mainly pedestrians. Since there are industries located in and around Cerro, a fair amount of transport trucks and pickups drive around.
ISSUES
The use of (collective) space depends heavily on the variety and availability of transport. As stated before, the Calzada del Cerro is the most important street in Cerro and thus manifests itself as the main provider of access or restriction to space.
Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
During the investigation in the neighborhood, some negative influences on the mobility became clear: chaos undefined territory absence of (visual) boundaries lack of maintenance conflicts unequal division of quality These are the cause of a lot of conflicts and problems between interactions in the streetscape.
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guagua
taxi
almendron
bicitaxi
transport trucks, pick up’s...
personal cars
motorbikes
bikes
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Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
pedestrians
GUAGUA
One guagua stop is not the other. On the Calzada del Cerro we find everything from waiting areas with decent seating and a roof above to just plain sidewalk without any sign of bus activity. This unequal division makes the guagua network difficult to read and creates chaos.
Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
Inhabitants around bus stops want to keep the waiting people away from their front door and so they are more likely to claim the public space of the portal by fencing it off. When there’s nothing but a sidewalk between a bus stop and a portal, a huge pressure is exerted on that portal. These undefined bus stops often act as a roadblock and negatively influence the (pedestrian) fluency of the Calzada. Conflicts of space appear.
snapchots of the typical choas of entering an overfull guagua
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toilet
park seating sw
street public
sw
portal
house private
Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
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Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
building private
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portal
sidewalk
street public
sw
house private
house private
portal
sw
street public
sw portal house private
Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
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typical sidewalk conflict: too narrow for multiple people to pass
Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
typical sidewalk conflict: non-existant sidewalk
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PEDESTRIANS
Walking on the Calzada del Cerro is not a trip to the park. Here you can find out what it means to be the weakest link in traffic. The small size and bad state of the sidewalks, the total absence of pedestrian crossings and the careless attitude of any motorized vehicle are the biggest dangers for pedestrians. The lack of maintenance results in an unpleasant place to walk, but above all in a dangerous stroll where every step can be the one where you break a leg. Some people get away with just stumbling, but especially elderly people can suffer bad injuries from falling on the sidewalks and roads. Places where the sidewalk is too small generate conflicts. Between a person who is forced to go on the road and the soaring traffic around him. Or between different people who have to decide quickly who will get off the sidewalk to let the other one pass.
Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
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Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
45 seconds of pedestrian movement on the Calzada del Cerro: a wall and weeds obstructing the passage make people walk on the street
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Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
45 seconds of pedestrian movement on the Calzada del Cerro: the sidewalk is too narrow for multiple pedestrians, who have to dodge one another by walking on the street where cars just carelessly raced by
CONCLUSION
Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
“The urban techo-structure is the life-support of cities, as made amply evident when infrastructure lacks or fails. Not ignoring the urban technological unconscious is a matter of working with the life supporting role of the urban infrastructure, which, when it works well, works day and night to prevent urban collapse and chaos” (Amin, 2006). The urban infrastructure on the Calzada del Cerro sadly is not working well enough. Especially the narrow and broken sidewalks are an impediment on a healthy rhythm. “The movement of humans and non-humans in public spaces is not random but guided by habit, purposeful orientation, and the instructions of objects and signs. The repetition of these rhythms results in the conversion of public space into a patterned ground that proves essential for actors to make sense of the space, their place within it, and their way through it. Such patterning is the way in which a public space is domesticated” (Amin, 2006). The domestication of the Calzada del Cerro is strongly guided by the impact of traffic. Being a road of transport and rapid movement, this property is pushed upon adjacent territories. The sidewalk, the portales, the open spaces, the businesses all suffer from the chaos of the Calzada. The emerging businesses need clients and the Calzada del Cerro is a busy location and thus a perfect spot to attract clientele. However, the unpleasant environment of the main street does not make it an enjoyable location. The spatial reaction of appropriating the space under the corridors is an attempt to increase the distance to the Calzada. It is a permanent act of spatial domestication, executed by small business owners to extend their commerce and residents to extend their private atmosphere. The former continuous colonnade thus became a space that is no longer completely permeable. The pedestrian on the Calzada is pushed away from both the street and the more intimate built atmosphere. The resulting space left to pedestrian movement sometimes equals close to nothing, so territorial overlapping of the flow of different actors in the streetscape result in chaos and problems. Jane Jacobs has written extensively about the importance of sidewalks in the city and the absence of quality of sidewalks is a main issue on the Calzada del Cerro. “The key here is that sidewalks are important not because they provide an environmentally sound alternative to freeways (though that is also the case) nor because walking is better exercise than driving (though that too is the case) nor because there’s something quaintly old-fashioned about pedestrian-centered towns (that is more a matter of fashion than empirical evidence). In fact, there’s nothing about the physical existence of sidewalks that matters to Jacobs. What matters is that they are the primary conduit for the flow of information between city residents. Neighbors learn from each other because they pass each other – and each other’s stores and dwellings – on the sidewalk. Sidewalks allow relatively high-bandwidth communication between total strangers, and they mix large numbers of individuals in random configurations. Without the sidewalks, cities would be like ants without a sense of smell, or a colony with too few worker ants. Sidewalks provide both the right kind and the right number of local in-
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teractions. They are the gap junctions of city life� (Johnson, 2012). This flow of information is what is at stake in the Calzada del Cerro. The chaos is counterproductive for the emerging businesses and the collective quality of citylife in Cerro. A reconfiguration of the streetscape of the Calzada del Cerro would be a solution to ameliorate the respective division of suggested urban space to each actor. The wide road can be narrowed down and the boundary between transport and pedestrian movement should be made clearer. By extending the sidewalk, new opportunities for different types of domestication of the collective space can arise. Emerging businesses and private house owners no longer would have to seal off the collective space adjacent to their property if sufficient space is provided to allow the different rhythms and flows to happen between the level of the street and the private dwelling. The rhythm of every other street is very different from the Calzada del Cerro. They have a much more intimate character and are not influenced by the permanent traffic chaos of the Calzada. The more intimate atmosphere invites a more domestic use of the streetscape: there is room for meeting, lingering, talking, playing and staying. However, the infrastructure is worse. Sidewalks and roads are full of gaps, cracks and dirt.
Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
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RHYTHM AND FLOW OF EMERGING BUSINESSES
Since the introduction of the “Lineamientos’ in 2011, Cubans are allowed to open a private business. A list of professions is available – and still growing – that shows which business types are allowed. This is creating a new and interesting dynamic in the streetscape. People are opening up small businesses everywhere: from their living room, in a rented space or just in front of an alley. The Calzada del Cerro is the hotspot for these emerging businesses. “Emergence properly understood is largely unpredictable in timing, shape and duration. Public spaces marked by the unfettered circulation of bodies constitute such a field of emergence, constantly producing new rhythms from the many relational possibilities” (Amin, 2006). “You don’t need regulations and city planners deliberately creating these structures. All you need are thousands of individuals and a few simple rules of interaction. The bright shop windows attract more bright shop windows. There’s no need for a Baron Haussmann in this world, just a few repeating patterns of movement, amplified into larger shapes that last for lifetimes: clusters, slums, neighborhoods” (Johnson, 2012). The “Lineamientos” are the spark Cubans have been waiting for. With their energy and motivation, more and more inhabitants are taking the chance to open up a private business. I wanted to understand how all these businesses worked, how they operated, where the founders come from, where clients come from and where they get goods. I wanted to understand the flow behind the emerging private economy that is changing the streetscape of the neighborhood. By interviewing someone in every business on a part of the Calzada del Cerro I was able to get a clear picture of how the new dynamics in this streetscape are working.
Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
Following here is a list of all the interviewed business owners. Their location can be traced back to the corresponding letter on the map and after the list of interviews there is a graphic summary of the flows of these businesses (red dots represent the flow of goods, black dots represent the flow of people) and a conclusion.
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businesses before 2011: 5 state-owned (yellow) & 2 private (green)
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Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
businesses today: 6 state-owned (yellow) & 14 private (green)
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B
M E
F
D A
N
J
K P
Q
G H
T
S
I O
Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
where A business type bakery private/state-owned? state age 3 years how many employees? 13 living here too? no who comes? people from Cerro, but also from further away (because of the hospital and bus stop) where do you buy products? delivered from a central place (almacen, one block away) delivered? frequency? monthly plan made by the state, each Friday products are delivered opening hours/days 7:00 – 19:00 every day going well? yes opinion about area? / willing to cooperate? yes, they show me the production process inside products are all made inside behind the store additional info…
B where ice cream and sweets business type private/state-owned? private 4 years age 2 how many employees? no living here too? people from all over the city who comes? sugar and other basic products in shops close by in where do you buy products? Cerro, more specific products in Habana Centro they go buy everything themselves when they need it delivered? frequency? 10:00 – 18:00 Monday to Friday opening hours/days yes, this month a little less, but generally ok going well? it’s ok, but sometimes I wish it would be more like opinion about area? Vedado, more park-like and quiet yes willing to cooperate? ice cream is made on spot in a kitchen behind the additional info… counter
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where C business type cookies and crackers private/state-owned? private age just opened how many employees? 1 living here too? no who comes? mostly people from the neighborhood where do you buy products? “secret”, the owner and two of his friends react strange to the question delivered? frequency? ? opening hours/days 8:00 – 20:00 every day +going well? opinion about area? doesn’t like it, but he had the opportunity to open a business here, so that’s why willing to cooperate? +most products are made here, he doesn’t live in Ceradditional info… ro, he comes to his shop every day on the guagua
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Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
D where small comedor business type private/state-owned? private 5 years age 2 (husband and wife) how many employees? yes living here too? a lot of people who come from the hospital, but there who comes? are also a few clients who come daily for their cup of coffee they buy refrescos further down the Calzada del where do you buy products? Cerro, other basic products also in the area, cheese and barra de mani she orders from a contact in the countryside of Havana when it’s needed delivered? frequency? 7:30 – 17:00 Monday to Friday & 7:30 – 12:30 Saturopening hours/days day yes going well? it’s ok, they have lived here for quite some time, but opinion about area? sometimes she would prefer beach areas or Vedado, Cerro is very industrial and loud yes willing to cooperate? / additional info…
Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
where E business type market (fruits & vegetables) private/state-owned? private (together with butcher, see M) age 2 months how many employees? 3 (2 sisters and a cousin) living here too? no, but close by in this neighborhood who comes? not sure where do you buy products? mercado central in Habana Centro, like almost al markets; there are some who buy it directly from contacts in the countryside, but that’s rather rare delivered? frequency? they go an get it themselves 7:30 – 18:30 every day opening hours/days going well? yes opinion about area? they don’t like it, because it’s loud and a lot of traffic, but it’s a good location for business willing to cooperate? yes, although reluctant at first / additional info…
F where print/copy/cellphone/paquete/... shop business type private/state-owned? private 2 years age 3 (owner and two other guys who come in each other how many employees? day) no living here too? 70% of the clients are students, but also other people who comes? from all over the city friends and clients bring products from wherevwhere do you buy products? er they get it (often other countries), he buys and resells them; paper for printing and scanning is very expensive, so a lot of clients bring their own paper, otherwise he has to buy it from librerias irregular delivered? frequency? 9:00 – 18:00 Monday to Saturday opening hours/days +going well? Calzada del Cerro brings a lot of people to my place opinion about area? yes willing to cooperate? / additional info…
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where G business type pharmacy private/state-owned? state age as long as I can remember how many employees? 5 per shift, so a lot in total living here too? no, employees come from all over Havana who comes? people from the hospital who come for medication, because this pharmacy belongs to the hospital where do you buy products? all pharmacies (state-owned) get a delivery from the central depot in 20 de Mayo-neighborhood delivered? frequency? weekly open 24/7 opening hours/days going well? yes opinion about area? likes it willing to cooperate? yes / additional info…
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Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
H where lady who sells whatever she gets in front of her business type pasillo private/state-owned? private quite some time age 1 how many employees? yes living here too? everyone who passes, people from everywhere who comes? anyone (friend or acquaintance) brings her things, where do you buy products? and she resells it irregular delivered? frequency? whenever she finds the time opening hours/days not really, she gets what she gets going well? she’s lived here for many years… opinion about area? yes willing to cooperate? she used to earn 200 pesos a month as a nurse, but additional info… that was impossible to live off, so she started doing this; today she would like to eat meat for supper, it’ll depend on how much she’ll sell (see also interview nr. 29 & 45)
Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
where I business type cigars & refresco corner store private/state-owned? state (part of the hospital) age very old, for sure 40 years or more how many employees? 2 (morning shift & afternoon shift) living here too? no, she lives in Centro Habana who comes? all kinds of people, a lot from the hospital, but also typical daily clients from the block where do you buy products? it’s delivered from a central almacen delivered? frequency? delivered monthly opening hours/days 6:00 – 19:00 daily going well? yes opinion about area? likes it, it’s a lively area willing to cooperate? yes / additional info…
J where cafeteria (refresco, coffee & some snacks) business type private/state-owned? private 5 years age 1 (husband owns the official license, wife helps out how many employees? sometimes) yes living here too? it varies who comes? in the stores close by, refrescos from the bigger shop, where do you buy products? sugar from the other big shop, like all the cafeterias bought when needed delivered? frequency? more or less 7:30 – 19:30, but they live here, so they opening hours/days can chose how they operate +going well? they’ve lived here for a long time… opinion about area? yes, a little reluctant at first, but then they become willing to cooperate? quite vocal about the system and express their feelings see interview nr. 31 additional info…
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where K business type cafeteria/comedor private/state-owned? private age 12 years how many employees? 7 (4 downstairs serving + 3 upstairs in the kitchen) living here too? the owner lives here, the rest quite close who comes? a lot of people from the hospital, but also others where do you buy products? the owner goes and buys supplies in any market that has what he needs, always in Habana Centro delivered? frequency? owner goes out almost daily to buy supplies opening hours/days 8:00 – 22:30 daily yes, they sell a lot in the Calzada del Cerro, because it going well? is so lively opinion about area? they like it, because the area is busy willing to cooperate? +- they’re not really getting the point / additional info…
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Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
L where Ditu Pollo business type private/state-owned? state (department of tourism) 16 years age 10 how many employees? no living here too? mostly people from the neighborhood, it’s like a local who comes? meeting place products are divided from a central depot in Vedado where do you buy products? 2 or 3 times per week there’s a delivery delivered? frequency? 8:00 – 24:00 daily opening hours/days yes going well? likes it a lot; he’s been working here for 3 years now opinion about area? and before he worked in Habana Vieja; people there were not nice and often drunk (evening); in Cerro people are nice, it feels like a community yes willing to cooperate? Ditu Pollo is a chain ran by the department of tour additional info… ism of the Cuban government; there are 26 shops in Habana and more than 100 in the Eastern part of Cuba
where M business type butcher private/state-owned? private (together with the market, see E) age 2 months how many employees? 2 (the guy has one part time helper) living here too? no, but close by (same family as E) who comes? people from everywhere where do you buy products? from a contact in the countryside delivered? frequency? daily delivery by the contact opening hours/days 7:00 – when he’s sold out, open daily going well? yes opinion about area? good area willing to cooperate? yes / additional info…
Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
N where TRD Caribe (perfumes/market/non-food items/…) business type private/state-owned? state old, at least 15 years age 6 how many employees? no living here too? people from everywhere, often hospital who comes? delivered from a central warehouse where do you buy products? weekly delivery by truck delivered? frequency? 9:00 – 18:00 Monday to Saturday & 9:00 – 13:00 opening hours/days Sunday yes, otherwise we would have been closed by now… going well? and it’s owned by the state likes it, it’s lively, nicer than the area where she’s from opinion about area? yes willing to cooperate? / additional info…
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where O business type films/music/phone recharge cards private/state-owned? private age 6 years how many employees? 2 living here too? no, they live in Habana Centro who comes? people from everywhere, there are quite some clients who come by often where do you buy products? they get data from friends and acquaintances delivered? frequency? whenever someone has something to offer, they call them and they go get/copy it opening hours/days between 8:00 and 9:00 Monday to Saturday & be tween 8:00 and 9:00 Sunday going well? yes, it’s a central place opinion about area? +- she likes Habana Centro better willing to cooperate? yes / additional info…
P where chicharon street seller business type private/state-owned? private 1 year age ? how many employees? yes, in the pasillo behind him living here too? people who pass by who comes? ? … ‘close by’ where do you buy products? ? delivered? frequency? ? (probably often) opening hours/days ? going well? ? opinion about area? no, he chases me away willing to cooperate? / additional info…
Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
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Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
where Q business type Mercado Industrial private/state-owned? state age 10 years how many employees? ? living here too? no who comes? mostly people from the neighborhood, some others where do you buy products? from central almanecenes, different warehouses for different types of products delivered? frequency? depends on the goods, it can be daily/weekly/monthly 8:30 – 18:00 Monday to Saturday & 8:30 – 12:30 opening hours/days Sunday yes going well? opinion about area? willing to cooperate? yes these Mercados are everywhere in Havana and proadditional info… vide cheap basic necessities for Cubans, like soap or toothpaste
R where Butcher and Egg seller business type private/state-owned? private ? age ? how many employees? probably not (no visible passage) living here too? ? who comes? ? where do you buy products? ? delivered? frequency? currently almost never opening hours/days probably not going well? ? opinion about area? ? willing to cooperate? during the week I spent, I have only seen activity in additional info… the shop on the first day when I did not start this questionnaire yet; since then it had never opened again
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where S business type Guarapo stand private/state-owned? private age 5 years how many employees? 4 living here too? no who comes? everyone who passes here where do you buy products? directly from a sugar cane farm delivered? frequency? every morning there is a delivery of fresh sugar canes opening hours/days every day between 8:00 and 17:00 going well? yes opinion about area? it’s good for doing business willing to cooperate? yes they have a machine in the back through which they additional info… constantly push sugar canes to extract the juice; in the evening a truck comes to pick up the waste
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Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
T where Flower shop, Santería objects shop and print shop business type private/state-owned? private a couple of years, maybe 4 age 1 girl who sells flowers, 1 woman for the Santería how many employees? objects and two guys who run the printing service yes, the girl and her family live here living here too? mostly people from the neighborhood, a lot of stuwho comes? dents for the printing services, mostly friends and acquaintances for the woman who sells Santería objects the flower girl has contacts in the countryside, the where do you buy products? Santería objects woman gets it ‘here and there’ and the printer guys do not really have so much supplies really depends on the goods and how business goes delivered? frequency? 9:00 – 18:00 Monday to Saturday opening hours/days yes going well? it’s quite nice, all of them are from around here opinion about area? yes willing to cooperate? see interview nr. 22 additional info…
people from the block
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•
nearby shops
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almacén (next block)
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B
M
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unspecified almacén
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everywhere in Havana
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• almacén Vedado
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friends & acquaintances
(foreign) contacts
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•
almacén 20 de Mayo
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Q
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T
S
• corner store
• random
bypassers
I O
• hospital
• mercado central Habana Centro
• El Cerro
• countryside contacts
CONCLUSION
The most apparent differences between businesses can be explained by whether they are state-owned or privately owned. Most state owned businesses have been part of this streetscape for quite some time, whereas private businesses have been emerging since 2011. Every private business in the street is thus maximum 6 years old. This emergent process is still going strong, because some private businesses were started only months ago. It is an attractive opportunity for Cubans to open up a private business. Small private businesses are often family businesses: brothers and sisters, cousins or matrimony are keen on starting something together. This is quite logical when they open a business from their house of course. Especially cafeterias are a popular business to start with from your own front door or living room. The Calzada del Cerro is the best place to start with any business, because this is where everyone passes. There are businesses in the inner streets of course, but when given the opportunity, people prefer to open something on the Calzada. People who have a small business on the Calzada but don’t live there, cite this as the main reason to open a business and rent a space on the Calzada del Cerro.
Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
Moving to another house in Cuba is complicated. The easiest thing to do is switch houses with a family member who lives elsewhere. You can be relocated when your house is in bad quality or when it collapses. That often means moving to the outskirts of the city. However, most Cubans keep living their whole life in the same house. This is why people working in state-owned businesses come from anywhere in Havana. When someone has the opportunity to work in a state-owned business it is nice when they live close to it, but they will take the job anyway even if they live further away. The majority of these workers rely on the guagua to commute to their job. All state-owned businesses get their products delivered from almacenes (central warehouses). Some of them are located in El Cerro (like the almacĂŠn for flour and other baking ingredients), and others in neighborhoods across Havana. Delivery frequency depends on the type of business and ranges from daily and weekly to monthly. Private businesses acquire their products in multiple ways. Food-related businesses like cafeterias and comedores buy most of their products close by. A (state-owned) corner store on the next block sells basic products like sugar and eggs and other ingredients are available not too far elsewhere in El Cerro. Some owners have contacts in the countryside where they buy products directly from the producer. A small part of business owner is secretive about where their products come from. Since almost every product on Cuba is scarce (for common Cubans), it is fair to assume that at least a part of the businesses acquires goods on the black market. Private businesses related to technology, music, films and such rely almost completely on friends, acquaintances and (foreign) contacts to deliver material that they can buy and then resell.
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In general, people who come to businesses are almost always either from close by in the neighborhood or coming from/going to the hospital. Stores like the pharmacy (logically) rely almost completely on the hospital and a business like the print shop caters for at least seventy percent to students. People from the neighborhood go to different bakeries and supply stores, but most inhabitants have one favorite cafeteria. They go there every day to drink their coffee and have a talk with the owner or fellow coffee-drinkers. Leaning against a column or standing under the portal, they watch other people pass by on the Calzada. The Ditu Pollo business (selling drinks and snacks) is the most popular local meeting place. They have a large shaded are with some tables and chairs. Most owners have never seen a tourist or a visibly wealthy Cuban in their business. They rely on only on the locals. Most businesses are open every day. The state-owned businesses have enough employees to make schedules to provide enough staff each day and also during the weekends. Cubans who started a private business often can’t afford to have a closing day, even during the weekends. The smaller the business, the more vital it is for their daily life. Especially Cubans who don’t have a shop and sell things on the street often work during the day to get food on the table that night. If there is a day they don’t sell or don’t work, they have no money to buy food at night. Cubans with a private business that is going well can afford to close their shop one or even two days in the weekend. Since many private businesses are started in their own house, a lot of Cubans choose to remain open during the weekend too.
Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
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FIGURE LIST
p. 5 photograph delivered by CUJAE
Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
all other photographs, maps, drawings and images by Aaron Swartjes
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
AMIN, A. (2006): “Collective culture and urban public landscape” HENKEN, T. (2015): “Entrepreneurial Cuba: The Changing Policy Landscape”, fact sheet diagram. JOHNSON, S. (2002): “Emergence: The Connected Lives of Ants, Brains, Cities and Software”, p. 38, 41, 91-92, 94, ISBN 9780684868769. FEINBERG, R. (2013): “Aterrizaje Suave en Cuba? El Surgimiento de los Empresarios y de las Clases medias” LEFEBVRE, H. (2004): “Rhythmanalysis: Space, Time and Everyday Life”, Continuum, ISBN 0826569930.
Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
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Aaron Swartjes - Book of Rhythm
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NOTES
BOOK OF RHYTHM 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
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