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Caricaturist ‘Aristide’ survives in Little Havana
I stood across the street from the Cuba Ocho Gallery on Calle Ocho and 15th street, smoking a smooth Cuban Churchill cigar (made in Nicaragua) when I noted picturesque caricatures that adorn the...
View ArticleAn unexpected find on Calle Ocho
Several weeks ago a couple of friends dragged me to the most satisfying dining experience one can have in Miami. The restaurant is in Little Havana and no, the menus aren't in Spanish and the food...
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Smart phones: brief and impersonal
There is no question that we have never been more dependent on our cell phones. I recently left my phone at a restaurant and the moment I realized I had left it behind — which was no more than a few...
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Engaging Cuba without the passion
As the Cuban revolution recently observed its 54th anniversary there is unfortunately quite a mound of failed policies, hollow rhetoric and ineffective strategies to take note of and hopefully learn...
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George Sanchez Calderon’s work: art, memories, Americana
Art Basel set up shop in Wynwood and provided Miamians a glimpse into the art world. But before “socially relevant” art was a prerequisite in an artist’s portfolio and before Cuban-American identity...
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Miami’s cigar allure
One of the distinct factors that distinguish Miami from other cities is its peculiar scents. Growing up, cigar smoke seemed to surround me.
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Herb Levin: the Jewish godfather of Miami’s Cuban radio
Cuban radio has always been a political and cultural beacon within Miami’s exile community. Many of my childhood memories are tinged with the passionate sounds of my grandparents’ radio.
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Savoring every minute, starting with a real lunch
One of the most ironic axioms during the span of my life has been the notion that you don’t really value time until you’re running out of it.
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Reared on rock ’n’ roll at Hollywood Sportatorium
Rock and roll music has shaped American identity for over half a century. The music and its derivative culture have influenced, motivated and riled up multiple generations of jean-clad, puka-shell...
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Hispanicize ignites Latino success nationwide
This week Miami Beach was swept up in Hispanicize, an intense, five-day Latino pow wow where ideas are explored, concepts analyzed and there’s been enough Latino synchronicity to electrify a continent.
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Miami Heat broadcaster José Pañeda’s warm style
It’s generally not my style to slide into a place right before it shuts down but given the limitations of the 24-hour day and my 28-hour lifestyle, I had no choice and hurried into a Miami supermarket...
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Mariela Castro, Cuba and human rights
In the wake of several Cuban dissidents’ enlightening visits to the United States — among them Yoani Sánchez, Rosa María Payá and Berta Soler — came last weekend’s arrival of Raúl Castro’s daughter,...
View ArticleMiami’s yummy pizza memories
Every neighborhood has a favorite pizza joint. They are usually homey, “mom and pop” places like the one your dad took you to after a ball game or the one your family would visit on a Sunday eve to...
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Joe Cardona: Miami’s dwindling middle class
Amid the glitz and glam that is symbolic of Miami’s image (recently perpetuated by the televised shots of the millionaires’ row that usually occupies the Miami Heat’s lower bowl seats during...
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San Carlos Institute keeps hope alive for Cuban exiles
As a student at Florida International University in the late 1980’s, in search of my identity, I attended a seminar that examined important Cuban historical sites in the state of Florida. That...
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Local politics needs more genuine diversity
Recently, I’ve been thinking about the constraints of our political choices. The sameness of our political incumbents and their challengers’ socio-economic composition is alarming. Many times the...
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Comedian Alvarez Guedes’ made us laugh in exile’s painful terrain
I was at my favorite perch in Little Havana, smoking a cigar, when word came of Guillermo Alvarez Guedes’ death and the mood dampened. An all-too-familiar queasy feeling came over me — one that is not...
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Critical Mass cycling in Miami a mix of protest, party
A few weeks ago I witnessed Miami’s version of Critical Mass — a cycling event where a couple thousand bike riders appropriate city streets on the last Friday evening of every month, for what one Mass...
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‘Latino Americans’ a memorable PBS series
After decades of mostly being perceived as kitschy entertainers or quirky neighbors with obsessive customs and traits, American society has come to grips with the realization that Latino culture has...
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Prep sports: Keeping it clean
High school sports are an institution in South Florida, providing an overwhelmingly positive imprint on the thousands of us who played.
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