LOCALadk Magazine

37 Summer 2016 LOCALadk Magazine LOCALadk ican relations and even engage in a friendly, although most likely serious, debate about socialism capitalism. "It's very complicated, Cuba as a nation is not willing to give up its independence," he said. "But we hope more sanctions will be relaxed, and it will result in more trade and invest- ments with the United States." The following day, we traveled to Old Havana, often called the historic heart of the city with its mix of captivating Span- ish Baroque architecture, neoclassical monuments, colorful homes, museums and large open plazas. There were many open-air markets within several plazas, and we stumbled upon one in historic Armas Square that was filled with mer- chants selling books, posters, old coins, stamps and post- cards. It was the books that really caught our attention. Nearly all of them were government propaganda, supporting the for- mer leaders of the Cuban Revolution and the current leaders in power, as well as the Communist government in general. We also discovered a poster of the famous American author, the late Ernest Hemingway, shaking hands with Fidel Castro. Hemingway had owned a home in Old Havana for many years, where he wrote some of his best-selling novels. The photo- graph taken of the two men shaking hands has been one of the best-selling items in the market for many years, accord- ing to the vendor. Our last stop in Old Havana was to enjoy some authentic Cu- ban food and a glass of Cristal, a national beer of Cuba. We learned that this family-owned restaurant, La Moneda Cuba- na, has started making preparations for the potential influx of visitors from the United States. "We don't have much experience with American tourists, but we've heard they like to spend money on a good meal," said the manager, Jose. "We have limited space here, so we can't expand at this location. But the owner may think about open- ing another place." "We understand that many Americans have special dietary needs, so we will need to expand our menu" and offer dishes that are dairy-free and/or gluten-free, Jose added. Although many of the specialty dishes at the restaurant were traditional Cuban beef, chicken, or seafood meals, the staff recently added a vegetarian dish. Since the early 1980s, there has been a large effort by the Cuban government to renovate and preserve Havana's historical and of- ten colorful structures. An estimated 85% of Cubans own their homes, and can apply for government subsidies to renovate part of their home into a business, such as restaurant or hotel. La Moneda Cubana has worked with the Cuban government to es- tablish a training program for unemployed young people who wish to work in the restaurant business. Hopefully, they will be able to accept more people into that program with the increase in Ameri- can tourism, he added. Education has been a top priority of the Cuban government, and the country provides free education for all its citizens through col- lege. Students wear school uniforms with a specific color to rep- resent their grade, and when they complete their basic secondary education, they can attend a university or a technical school. The 47 universities in Cuba are public institutions. The oldest, the Uni- versity of Havana, was founded in 1728. As we walked toward our hotel on the last night of our trip, a crowd of spectators gathered for a free outdoor concert by the Amer- ican electronic music group Major Lazer. The concert had been approved and sponsored by the Cuban government prior to the legendary appearance of the Rolling Stones, which also received the same support through the Cuban Institute of Music. It appeared that both economic and cultural changes were already underway in Cuba. But we were reminded by one Cuban observ- er that their country has no plans to become Americanized. "Our country may be changing, but the Cuban people will not change," said the woman, leaning against the historic Malecon seawall. "We will always be Cuban first."

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