2. Then—a mural on a wall depicts the history of Cuba from Columbus to slavery to capitalism to Revolution.

3. After buying a lottery ticket, a boy tries to convince his mother to get another one.

4. Children having gym in the village square. The current literacy rate in Cuba is 97% --recently fourth highest in the world according to a UN survey. Most recent report from the US (in 2013) was 86%.

5. Education is valued and all children are tested at age five. Those who show musical aptitude are enrolled in target music schools. One Cuban man bragged about the sport he majored in in high school, chess.

6. Meat sales: These kiosks have mostly pork, unrefrigerated. A Cuban was quoted as saying, "I can't remember what beef tastes like."

7. This singer is a trained pediatrician. Her monthly salary of $200 did not enable her to support her family. She makes more as a performer. Some doctors practice their profession and drive cabs as well.

8. A young man sells cleaning supplies and equipment. The government in Cuba is allowing more entrepreneurial efforts.

9. Dancers entertain tourists in restaurants, on the streets. Music is a huge part of the culture and streets are named after famous musicians. The Buena Vista Social Club now has outposts in several places in Cuba and both locals and tourists fill hundreds of seats to hear and see the venerable old singers who are still alive as well as the musicians. Tourism is a big help to the economy and people literally come from all over the world to the comfortable hotels, resorts and bed-and-breakfasts.

10. A laborer works at renovating an old building in Havana. His average monthly salary may be 500 pesos, equivalent to $21. Powdered milk may cost as much as half of his monthly salary.

11 . Musicians play near Ernest Hemingway’s oceanfront home, now open to tourists. Poverty among the aging is serious—in the city and in the countryside. Pensions may be as low as $8/month. Here a musician in a wheelchair continues to work.

12. Working as a model, a young girl is photographed in the latest local fashion. Clothing is expensive and the fashion industry is in its infancy.

13. Farm to table? Not really. 87% of the tractors and farming equipment is more than 30 years old, much of it from Russia. Only 1% is less than five years old. Despite fertile land, agricultural reform has never been accomplished; 80% of food is imported, such as rice from Vietnam.

14. This list shows what is available in a government-run staples store. Rations guaranteed by the government include rice, sugar, cooking oil, five eggs a month and a packet of coffee. “The rations are enough for rice and sugar, but for other products, they only last five or six days so you have to buy extra.” (The Guardian, 2015) If you can afford it.

17. Even though crime is very low in Cuba, bars cover most windows and doors of apartments, even on the second and third floor. This apartment faces a small square.

20. This one-room apartment faces a busy Havana street. The resident cheerfully invited two tourists inside to see her digs. Typical of many old, decrepit buildings, it looks as if it has not been painted or improved since the revolution in 1959--or maybe even before. She had many objects associated with Santería.

21. In contrast to the Central Havana hovel shown in a previous photo, entrepreneurism and restoration are apparent in Trinidad City. The government is encouraging the rehab of beautiful old public buildings. This writer had the adventure of getting separated from her group at 11pm one night in Trinidad City after a lengthy Paladar restaurant meal and entertainment. I wandered around the cobblestoned streets, and my biggest fear was not of crime, but falling and breaking my camera. Eventually, I accidentally found my tourbus, which had moved twice. My friends had feared the worst, but I had my biggest scare when the street lights went out as I was wandering and hoping to find a plaza and a cab. Luckily my cellphone had a flashlight. It wasn't good for anything else in Cuba.

18. A cheerful smile beckoned the tourist. This woman had just returned home from stomach surgery and willingly showed her sutures. Health care is a top benefit of the revolution. Students come from many other countries to study medicine.

x19. A street level room in Havana shelters its inhabitants. They live opposite a privately run restaurant, called a Paladar. Meals, geared to tourists and wealthy Cubans, yes—there are some—can cost as much as a meal in a good restaurant in the US.

15. A religious ceremony ends at the Havana Cathedral. The Catholic population is estimated at 60%, but only about 1% attend Mass; 18% of Cubans claim to be agnostic and 5% atheists. Most of Havana's Jewish population left right after the Revolution, but there are still very small Jewish communities around the country. Mainly tourists fill Havana's largest synagogue during religious services. A huge pharmacy serving the needy operated out of the synagogue--filled with medications donated by tourists--medications and over-the-counter remedies not otherwise available.

16. Santería, a syncretic religion, is comprised of elements of the Yoruba West African religion of the slaves brought to Cuba and Catholicism. Fortune tellers cater to local believers as well as tourists. Black turbaned dolls are a big tourist souvenir item.

22. A central boulevard in Havana looked like this a week before President Obama’s visit. A Cuban guide predicted that a big hurricane could soak the old buildings on the waterfront to the point where they would implode from the moisture.

27. Outside a government office, guards and citizens mingle.

23. Typical of many buildings where improvements are initiated, put off, ceased, then revived over time. Many people live in the apartments abandoned by those who left in 1959--and often depending upon money sent from the US, especially "Little Cuba" in Miami.

24. Typical scene--Laundry on the second floor, a kiosk on the first and a Cuban driver trying to fix his “cab.” The people have become adept at fixing anything that breaks down.

25. Two more forms of transportation: the classic cars kept in pristine condition and a horse and buggy in the background. Classic cars are a magnet for tourists who pay handsomely to ride in them. Many would not be in service if their owners hadn't fashioned replacement parts.

26. Waiting. Bus is the primary mode of transportation for Cubans—in the city and in the countryside.

28. Dominos help pass the time for retired people. Current statistics show a high poverty rate among Cubans, especially the elderly. After their monthly rations are used up and their pension spent, some survive on a bread-like flour and water meal, claiming positively that the flour has nutrients.

29. Julia lives on a street facing the Malecón, a seawall running about 5 miles along the coast in Havana. She explains she has lived in the same building for 60 of her 85 years. Her two daughters are dead, but she remains to tell of the past.