Havana – Anne Verhoijsen

Havana City One Minutes presentation

Almost two weeks there was the presentation of the one minutes movies in Lasa. (laboratorio artistico de sanaugustin). All the movie makers and their friends were present and even a lot of inhabitants from san Augustin. I was very surprised by the reactions. Of course I had my fixed moments were I had to laugh or smile . But this did not happen during the viewing almost every body was looking silently. There were almost no reactions. After the last video…loud applause. The movie had a lot of very intimated moments. They were touched by their own lives and also from their neighbour. It was by moments a look in their own kitchen as we say in Dutch. The première of the movie will take place during the Dutch Cultural week in Havana from 13 till 18 October.

Almost

Almost all the one minutes are in my laptop now. It is great material and I decided on the viewing on saturday to show all the work. At home in my studio I will make the final selection.

Still some images from Havana City

Sunday 2 August

I decided to leave my holiday place Soroa one day earlier. Friday I arrived and to morrow waking up with the sound of Cubans on holiday I decided that it was enough to be out of my work and I did everything the travel Gide has speak about. I visited the orchid garden; I did my mountain climbing to the highest peak in the surrounding about 400 metres, I went to the swimming pool and the most important I stood under the waterfall. And by this all I ran into two people who I shared this all with. Anita she is Holland and Stefan from Surinam. And what happens by speaking my mother’s language after so many days my personal waterfall break trough. And that was refreshing for me.

I had a small conversation with the receptionist about the hotel because I wonder how their policy was with Cuban people in the hotel. She told that just two months they had a new rule that Cuban’s were allowed to come in the swimming pool for the day time for 7 CUC and with a lunch and drink for 10 CUC. Staying at the hotel for one night it was 20 CUC. So she was very happy and with a big smile she told me:” Imagine five years that to day Cuban people could stay in the hotel it is unbelievable. Changing’s she said are coming very slowly but they come. I think it is great Soroa hotel full of Cuban people with tourist from aboard who likes the Cuban way of partying. This all is born out of the economic crises because the hotel had a lack on tourist so the y made this surveying strategy. I think it is a very positive side effect of this “crises”.

Havana people

Tuesday 28 of July

We are now in the proces of editting and we are quiet on schedule. I have the feeling that this city will be special represented through the people her self. So yesterday I asked Eshter Suarey Llanes to make another one minuut about the structure of the city. Eshter is a young promising architekt.

She gratuated last summer and her project proposal is going to be made on real squale. Her inspiration is ISA. I wrote and put pictures already from this places in the beginning of my stay here. I think it is great that ISA is represented in city portrait of Havana. Below you see us working.

The day of the flags

Finally it was so far. On the morning of the 25 I was present long before the starting time of the ceremonial changing of the flags at the Tribuna Antimperialista. Today the black flags with the white stars will be changed with the National flag for the celebration of the 50 years of anniversary of the Republic Cuba. I like the national flag it is blue and white strips with a red point and a white star in it.

The last years I have got some practice in filming difficult objects. One of the things that I have learned is to be very in time and also to act as if it is very normal that I am there with my camera. I hope in this way they get used to me and more likely that I almost belong to them. I know it sounds quiet crazy but that energy helps to get along in difficult situations. When I arrived, there was hardly anybody only the always-present soldiers in front of the American embassy. When I see that, my thoughts go to a friend from Iran. He told me that the former American minster Cheny had his office in Tehran. Where he did his business. Just in another office they declare the war to each other… But any way after 10 minutes they of course found out that there was a strange element between them. They asked me friendly to leave the situation I was showing them my permit and asked them why. I knew finally I would have to leave but as long as I could argue my camera was recoding. After that the boss spoke to me with a very soft voice that I was on a national monument and that was not a spot for me to be and he asked friendly to stay before the green line. I went and did my job on the side line.

It was an impressive happening. They’re where a lot of young boys coming in and each got the responsibility for three flags. They helped each other and as I see it not one tip of the flag touched the ground. “The flag is our country”, one of the boys explained me. The black flags where handled with a little less care but still respectful Al those flags changing and so many helpers, the energy changed from this black to this colourer flags it was something. Every body seemed appy when it was done. So I was curious if there was any thing on the news in the evening. Nothing only that Raul would speak the next day at seven in the morning in Holguin. It is far from Habana in another province. In Cuba everything is very quick far. Petrol, cars and taxi’s are expensive and buses hot and mostly over crowded. Yesterday I liked to share a cake in a special 26 of July box with Oscar and his family. They are living about 15 minutes from central park in old Havana. I invited his mother in law to come to the screening of our City project Havana in Lasa. It looks quiet impossible, there is no money for a taxi. His mother in law is a strong woman from 68 years old but to go in shared taxi and buses is too much for her and time consuming. Oscar and his wife have a motor so they are more flexible. In the morning Oscar and his wife are going together on his motor to their job. First he brings his wife to the university where she teach philosophy and ethics and then he goes to the museum of belle arts where he works on the department of Flemish /Dutch arts. In the evening he picks her up again. In this way they safe a lot of money because of heir own transport. Yesterday I spent 35 CUC on taxi’s that is more then the month income from the most people here. Too much also for me but that is what happened if you want to visited places which are a little far out of the centre and you don’t want to spend hours in the sun to wait for yet another taxi which is perhaps cheaper. By accident I run yesterday in to a girl which is educated teaching English. But she is baby sitting that earns more money. The revolution from her grandparents is not her revolution she said!

The pictures are also stills out taking from the video

Friday 24 of July

Yesterday I called Oscar for asking him what about the filming of his mother and his mother in law doing tai chi. For I think it could be a good subject for the one-minute filming. As I understood him well they where all ready prepared. Monday morning at 8.30 they will be present. At his question “can I do something for you” my answer was “yes if you can find out at what time the flag is changing tomorrow I would never forget you”. He said after some thinking oke I will try and we decided to make a tour on his motor to morrow at the same time he really wants to tell me why the colour of these flags are black. To day he was just in time at my house and after he looked to my one minute we decided to go for a ride. It is very nice to be on a motor in this city and with this hot also you can see things from a different perspective then out of a car.

Sitting on the luxury terrace of Hotel National, Oscar explained me that the black flags are a tribute to the proximal 3000 people killed through the USA terroristic actions in Cuba. The news banners on The American Embassy that I already spoke about had a lot of news that Cuba was a terrorist and suppressed country. So as a statement and a hiding of the news banner they put this flags. And then he told me that this flags would be changed to morrow at 8.30. So I am very happy that I know this now. We will be on our post at 8.00 o’clock.

I will never forget you Oscar.

The pictures I took this morning at 7.30 on my way to the embassy. And the last one is of course Oscar

Thursday 23-07

Last night Petronila thought it was time to photograph and film the veranda. All the flowers where she is really proud of. And that is not for nothing. It is beautiful and it is also my view out of my room that I hire here in Vendato. It is a green aria of Havana. Every morning she puts two beautiful yellow, green coloured small birds on the veranda and in her opinion they will take care for the mosquito’s.” Unfortunately they disappear after sunset to the kitchen because she is so afraid of people breaking in into the house. So sometimes in the middle of the night there is just a whole battalion of mosquito’s trying to attack me.

This house is ruled by Petronila (72) and Rosabel (49). Mother and daughter Madre y Hija. Petronila lives here. It is her house and when she dies it will go to the sun of Rosabel. Rosabel comes her for the daily activities and the financing. As now there is a lot of work. A man is painting and I think it could have something to do with the fact that I paid yesterday my rent in advance. My Spanish is very bad although she has told me already a lot about her live. It all started that i looked to a picture on the wall. It shows Fidel Castro with two men. One of them she said is the father of Rosabel. El padre the Rosa. After that she has been married and her husband died 5 years ago. Out of this marriage were born three children. Two girls who are living in America and one boy who unfortunately died on the age of thirteen years in a car accident. A moment of intense sorrow changes here faces although very quickly there is the smile again who always accompanied here. Last night she also showed me some pictures during her work on a Tabacco hachienda. The pictures were taken in 1967. The revolution was then on his full strength. The husband of Rosa is coming and going. He works in the military service and has 24 hours duty. At this moment Rosa offers me a fresh mango shake. Lovely.

The TV in the house is always on and everybody who enters immediately go’s to the bedroom of Petronila where the TV is and looks. I have the impression that it does not matter so much what is going on. It moves. I don’t know why they are not using the living room just because I am here now sitting and working or just because this knowing that there is something moving on a screen just temped every body.

The coming next tree days are in the light of the celebration of the anniversary of the 50 years of revolution. The starting point is 25 of July with the really important day on 26. After the first day I knew the story of the changing flags from black one into red one before the American embassy. Only once a year just for this day! I wanted to capture it. So Geraldine and me will be ready from early in the morning on the 25 to watch it and catch it. And finally I can show them my permit that allows me to shoot in the public space. So I wonder what I can tell you next Tuesday!

Monday 20 of July

It is hot and today I started to surrender to this climate. Not longer working and planning like in Amsterdam. This morning on the Dutch embassy working on my email and blog I saw for the first time the two people who are using the room after me. They are from the Cuban opposition and get in this way the opportunity to be in contact with organizations like Ammesty International. Thinking about that before I assumed it would be two young people but no. Looking to their age I know they are already for a long time living here in Cuba and perhaps even know the system already before the revolution.

Yesterday we did some recordings in Coppelia. This is the place to get a very nice cheap ice cream. Coppelia was founded before the revolution. Now the flavours of ice cream are minimized before it was 24. It is designed as a spider with severla layers. There are four entrances and is open from 10 o’clock in the morning till 11 at night. Several times I passed now and there are always long lines with people waiting to get their ice cream. Especially in day time. For me as an outsider not using to this climate almost unbelievable to stand for more than half an hour in the sun waiting for an ice cream. But I think it is also the ritual of going to that place . Yaime who I was working with that day told me that the director told her: That he wants to chance the place, as it was mend to be, people who serves you friendly a good quality of ice.

You have different money systems here. I change my Euros’ in CUC and people here get paid in Peso’s. One CUC is about 25 Peso’s. The average income is here 25 CUC a month. There are shops you can only pay in Peso’s and shops you can only pay in CUC. Every month people get a kind of booklet with a few pages what gives right to the basic needs like bread, coffee, toothpaste, rice and beans. This helps you through the half of the month.

When I am in the street with my friends it often happens that suddenly they run for the public phone. What is going on, well one minute calling with your mobile cost 40 CUC cents. The solution you just let it rings once and the receiver looks for a phone cell and calls you back. And that is very cheap. When I go home with a private taxi it cost me about 4 CUC when I go with a shard taxi 10 pesos. So the CUC world is a different one from the local. It looks like a lot of things that connects you in one way or the other with the world outside Cuba cost much money. To leave the country for a vacation or something cost 100 CUC. To marry somebody outside Cuba cost 600 CUC. When you need internet connection for your work in your home and you prove it. It cost you 30 CUC for 30 hours a month. And 30 hours is not much also because the connection, (your telephone line) is very slow! When you need more you go immediately much higher something like 150 CUC. And then the cars! You have 11 different kinds of number plates. It shows the status of the driver. They told me the police know then how to react! It is very expensive to import a new car. It needs a lot of effort and documents. And that cost money. One litter of petrol cost 1,20 CUC. So car driving is almost only for the happy few. The drivers of the cars are lucky here they have a lot of space. Yesterday when I had my coffee with Geraldine she told me that it was never in the newspapers and also not on the radio or TV if there has happened a crime. The government explanation: it will just give insecurity to the people. But she says it is strange because it also has to happen here in Cuba. Every house here is covert with iron frames. The owner of a shop looks sometimes as a prisoner giving things to the out side world. But the Cubans hardly complain only about the Caluroso (warmth). That is in a way easy because you never can change that.

Saturday 19 of July

Last night a meeting was organized in LASA. The artist Candelerio and the curator Aurelie Sampeur have founded two years ago this communal Art project. The project was also part of the Havana Biennale last may. As an artist, working there you always are involved with the community in one way or the other. LASA is based in San Agustin really on the border of Havana. For my feeling it was the last step in starting up the filming for the Havana city portrait. On the top of all Geraldine succeeded yesterday finally to get my working permit. She really did a great job and spent yesterday two hours at the bank just to pay for two stamps…But anyway now I am free to film in the street and also the Cuban artist who are working with me are also protected in one way or the other. I hope now I can make without problems a beautiful one minute of the flags before the American embassy! On the meeting last night there was also Oscar Antun the curator of the dutch/flemisch art in the Museo National Belle Artes in Havana and also his wife who teaches philosophy on the university of Havana. And of course my colloquies’ and friends here: Gerladine Orta, Daniel Massip, Adrian Hartill, Yaima Bacallao. It was a very exciting evening, one thing to meet all these creative people and also that they meet each other. There were a lot of reactions on the city portraits of Cairo and Bagdad. One was very particular. It was from a cameraman who had covered all the wars Cuba had been in till the last one in Angola. He really found it very difficult and un true that there was even not one pistol appearing in this movie! For him it was not Bagdad it was not true. The only thing I would I wanted to comment was that Sattar Alsaadi who is responsible for the camera work just wanted to show us a different image from Bagdad then that we daily see on TV. Bagdad is a city where people dance and make music, go to school and work, to the market, fall in love go to bed and sleep. And he really succeeded in that. Never the less if you look well still you see the war. More in the second layer of the movie! Any way this all made the people of San Agustin so enthusiastic that they really like to participated in the movie about their home town Havana. So as everything worked out well we have a final presentation on 8-08-09 same place.

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