As soon as Pedro’s niece arrived, the tour officially started, and we were explained in detail each of the aspects of the gigantic piece, “El Gran Apagón” or “The Great Blackout”. Known as Cuba’s “La Guernica”, “El Gran Apagón” depicts a surrealist view of the distrust and fear associated with 1990’s Cuba after the fall of the Soviet Bloc in 1989. As the country plunged into darkness, it lost resources and power, as well as information and connections to the world outside of the island. During this time, Fidel Castro ordered for large bomb shelters to be built underground, in the event of the feared raid from the United States that was largely thought to be imminent. Not only was this a blackout in the literal sense, but also in the figurative sense, in that intellect and information were largely in a blackout in this time as well.
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One of the highlights of this visit was the personal feel to what could have been a cold and impersonal tour. From being invited in to Pedro’s home, being regaled by stories of boyhood during the revolution from Pedro’s brother, or the warm welcome we received from Pedro’s niece, we left Pedro Pablo Oliva’s house with a warm feeling of inclusion into a movement much bigger than ourselves.
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