Overseas program(s):
Cuba Spring 2015
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Double Doubles - I turned twenty-two years old on May 22nd. Even in Cuba they call that a golden birthday. To celebrate the momentous event, our group decided to attend a U.S. Interests Section cocktail party at the Chief of Mission’s home in la Habana. To clarify, the United States does not have an embassy in Cuba. The […]
KCHO - KCHO (Alexis Leiva Machado) is a contemporary Cuban artist whose work has been exhibited across the globe including in the United States (most notably in the MoMa). In the Havana neighborhood of Playa KCHO has constructed a huge studio where he invites other Cuban artists to collaborate with him in his workshop, exhibits Cuban works […]
Pasitos - Lawrence and I went for a hike today. We found a bizarre building on the jetty that claimed to be a “Business Center” and decided to investigate. We walked in past the official desk and leather couches in the lobby to find a stairwell off to the right with a sleeping guard at its base. […]Hemos visto una lluvia comó esta antes - Stormy weather. The power goes out as the streets begin to fill and then flow like mountain rivers through this concrete jungle. Sparks sputter from chandeliers and appliances as the grid surges. Blades of lightening streak down towards Soviet-era architecture slicing the grey sky into pieces. Explosive thunder erupts over the roof like good friends’ […]
GUAU! - This week the Lewis & Clark Alternative Spring Break (ASB) group arrived in Havana. They were here for ten days, and in that limited time they got to grapple with numerous Cuban realities and were able to see this space as the intellectual playground that it is. It was simultaneously bizarre and refreshing to have […]
El Paradero - Every day that we travel to and from class at the ISA we take either the “guagua” (public bus) or a “botero” (classic american cars that currently serve as shared taxis). Regardless of which you choose, the destination is always the “Playa Paradero.” This is essentially a four block open-air transportation stop lined by closely-packed […]
Pensamientos Flojos - Stream of consciousness, bare with me. We’re roughly half way through our time here on the island and still exploring new spaces and groups. What an outstanding opportunity we have here to take in this space as it currently stands before whatever comes next. April fools day took its toll on our group. Sarah thought […]
Spring break 2k15 - When Reiko and Zulema landed in Havana, they realized that their luggage hadn’t made the trip with them. While it must have been a shame not to have any clothing, toiletries or other personal belongings, the true loss was the non-Cuban food they were carrying with them. Between the embargo and economic crisis in Cuba, […]
Un Viaje a Viñales - On the first weekend in March our group took a four hour bus to a small tourist town in the Pinar del Rio province called Viñales. After the previous night’s breakdance battles and cave spelunking our group woke up Sunday morning for crepes, coffee and piña slices before rallying the troops for a slow stumble […]
Ruinas y Piscinas - This Thursday team Yuma took our strongest game to the Instituto Superior de Arte (el ISA). The ISA is magnificent. It stands as the Juilliard of Cuba – the most elite expressive arts school in the country. It was commissioned on Havana’s largest golf course directly after the 1958 revolution, and legend has it that […]