The Pearl of the Antilles: A Photo Collection

A reminder of Cuba’s ongoing revolutionary struggle.

“Defending socialism” is the purported goal of Cuba’s controversial Comités de Defensa de la Revolución (CDR).

The University of Havana, one of the oldest universities in the Americas.

Beautiful but dilapidated balconies overlook bustling Habana Vieja.

Many of Havana's previously opulent residences have fallen into disrepair, but peeling exteriors often belie comfortable interiors.

Recent reforms have spurred sweeping changes in Havana's nascent real estate market.

Networks of neighborhood organopónicos make up Cuba’s celebrated system of sustainable urban agricultural.

Outdoor concerts are one component of Cuba’s rich musical tradition. 

Iconic maquinas shuttle passengers to and fro. 

Aging "Yank-Tanks" are held together by a combination of Cuban ingenuity and Soviet parts. 

Street scenes illustrate Havana's housing challenges. 

The blockade makes recycling a necessity rather than a luxury. 

Hip-hop and other urban art forms provide a crucial pressure valve for Cuba's emergent civil society.

Soccer is a distant second to baseball, the nation's most beloved sport.

Men hoist a water tank using an improvised pulley system, illustrating Havana’s ailing water infrastructure and the power of Cuban resolver. 

Habana Vieja, the epicenter of Cuba's burgeoning tourist industry.

A Russian tractor—a relic from Cuba's bygone era of mechanized agricultural.

The bucolic Piñar del Río province, home of Cuba's finest tobacco.

Traditional bohíos dot the countryside.

Tobacco is cured using time-honored methods.

Puros play a significant role in the Cuban economy and in society at large.

Animal traction reduces dependency on scarce fossil fuels. 

Agrarian life is still the norm throughout much of the island.