Havana Dance Story

I imagine the year to be 1957, where Havana was the world’s 4th-most-expensive city at the time. According to International Labour Organization, the average industrial salary in Cuba became the world’s eighth-highest in 1958, and the average agricultural wage was higher than in developed nations such as Denmark, West Germany, Belgium, and France. Cuba also had Latin America’s highest per capita consumption rates of meat, vegetables, cereals, automobiles, telephones and radios during this period. Many vintage buildings remain in Havana today, in exactly the conditions as they were in the 1950s… and many of my friends still play and live in such buildings. Today, as the Castro era wanes, Cuba’s youth have their doubts, dreams and their stories…. 1957 is a collection of portraits and stories of my friends in Havana…The title of this one is Havana Dance Story...

Robin Yong,   Australia, Canberra