Connergo

LATEST ARTICLES ( 79 )

• COVID-19 & Cuba

  Some of you have noticed that I’ve taken a long hiatus from here. The reasons are tragic and painful and pre-date this pandemic de mierda. For those readers... Read more

  Posted on 01 April 2020 SOCIETY, TRAVEL

• The Not-So-Slow Leak

  Almost 18 years living here and to some things I cannot adapt. The Farmer Hanky. Public zit popping. The heat. Other things I’ve been forced into accepting and... Read more

  Posted on 13 October 2019 SOCIETY, TRAVEL

• Travel to Cuba, Trump Style

  I’ve got some shit to get off my chest so best buckle up. Pour a stiff one, bust out the vape or tuck in with a nice, hot chai – whatever helps you chill and... Read more

  Posted on 25 June 2019 SOCIETY, TRAVEL

• Twisters & Twinks: Mobile Data Mobilizes Cuba

  

  Confession time. I’m something of a Luddite. If you know me, you know I was one of the last to relinquish my flip phone. I still rely on a pocket digital... Read more

  Posted on 09 June 2019 SOCIETY, TRAVEL

• Periodo Especial: The Sequel?!

  I don’t know how the Special Period felt coming on, but I do know how it manifested once in full swing. Transport was so scarce and overcrowded, passengers... Read more

  Posted on 15 March 2019 SOCIETY, TRAVEL

• Jail, Cafe Closure & Strawberries?!

  Usual excuses aside (overworked; procrastination; writer’s block), the transition from 2018 to 2019 was, as we say here, ‘de pinga’ – and not in a good way. Read more

  Posted on 21 February 2019 SOCIETY, TRAVEL

• Cuba Libro – In Peril?

  I’ve always had an inkling, but now I know up close and personally why people shun and malign journalists. This new knowledge is particularly ironic given the... Read more

  Posted on 26 November 2018 SOCIETY, TRAVEL

• Inside a Cuban Prison: Part IV

  It’s dark, a bit damp, the birds aren’t awake or even singing, let alone my neighbors. I rush to make coffee and walk Toby before the horizon lightens over... Read more

  Posted on 05 November 2018 SOCIETY, TRAVEL

• Hogs & Dogs: Extreme Camping in Cuba

  

  Our summer vacation plans were simple and cheap: strap the camping gear onto the 1946 Harley-Davidson and plunge deep into the mountains of Pinar del Río,... Read more

  Posted on 25 August 2018 SOCIETY, TRAVEL

• Inside a Cuban Orphanage

  If you know me, you know I get terribly bored (and sometimes in trouble) if I’m not learning anything new. If you know my writing, you know that one of the... Read more

  Posted on 31 July 2018 SOCIETY, TRAVEL

• Inside a Cuban Prison: Part III

  I was sitting in my usual corner in the cafe when he walked in. It took me a second to recognize him out of context and with a good 25 extra pounds on his... Read more

  Posted on 05 June 2018 SOCIETY, TRAVEL

• Patrulla 122: Protecting, Serving, Discriminating?!

  

  I’m just back from another visit with my friend Miguel, who has been in Havana’s biggest prison for almost a year now. I started writing the update (many reader... Read more

  Posted on 16 May 2018 SOCIETY, TRAVEL

• Who the Hell Am I? A Confession

  A Californian passing through Cuba Libro recently asked me if I felt more American or Cuban after 16 years in residence. The question, though common, sort of... Read more

  Posted on 18 April 2018 SOCIETY, TRAVEL

• My Havana Valentine

  We had a squabble getting ready for Alicia’s party. It was one of those lover tiffs which squalls out of nowhere…but somewhere. Read more

  Posted on 14 February 2018 SOCIETY, TRAVEL

• Inside a Cuban Prison: The Sequel

  Miguel has a court date. Finally. Regular readers of Here is Havana are likely haunted still by my friend’s unfortunate tale of incarceration in Havana’s... Read more

  Posted on 23 January 2018 SOCIETY, TRAVEL

• Havana Declaration: He’s an Assassin

  

  I thought I’d already written all I had to say about New Year’s Eve in Cuba. Likewise, I figured a couple posts about Donald Trump – the Cuban reaction to his... Read more

  Posted on 05 January 2018 SOCIETY, TRAVEL

• Humans of Havana

  “I’m doing absolutely nothing. I don’t plan on even leaving the house. I want to hang out with you guys, eat as much as I possibly can, sleep and luxuriate in... Read more

  Posted on 21 December 2017 SOCIETY, TRAVEL

• Me Too: Gender Violence in Havana

  I’ve been physically assaulted twice. Both times I was walking home alone at night. And both times I was compromising my safety. In the first instance, circa... Read more

  Posted on 02 November 2017 SOCIETY, TRAVEL

• Cuba Travel from US – Legal and with RESPECT

  For the past two days, I’ve been participating in the US-Cuba congress RESPECT (Responsible Ethical Cuba Travel) in Havana. This is the largest US-based... Read more

  Posted on 01 October 2017 SOCIETY, TRAVEL

• A Quick Note on Irma

  Havana September 14, 2017 Time for thanks giving. Among the many (well documented) reasons Cuba does hurricane preparation and post-recovery/survival so well... Read more

  Posted on 15 September 2017 SOCIETY, TRAVEL