A Portrait From Trinidad _ Pat Corlin Photography

One of my favorite things I love about Cuba is how engaging the people are. In the neighborhoods of Havana and Trinidad our #TGLCuba team would walk the streets for hours, photographing and conversing. Even when I struck out on with my gear on my own, I personally, never felt unsafe of uncomfortable. Cuba actually has a very low crime rate and there were always people standing in doorways and windows, chatting across the street to friends and neighbors. Most everyone would smile, nod and often wish me a good day as I passed. Many would open a conversation with me or vice versa. The most common question I was asked was where I was from. Now, after more than 50 years of the US embargoes And you might think that the Cuban people could be angry or closed to talking to me because I was from the United States. On the contrary! Every single individual I spoke with was genuinely pleasant and happy to shake my hand. They would often begin telling me about their family and friends who live in the US or what city they would like to visit there. My favorite was when two of us would begin a conversation and we would quickly discover that we could barely speak a word of the other’s language. We would try a little charades and inevitably both of us would burst into laughter realizing we weren’t getting very far. When this happened there was always handholding and even a hug or two as we parted. And almost everyone was open to being photographed when asked. Occasionally, but not often, some would ask us for something in return for being photographed. And in all honesty almost everyone we photographed could actually use what ever we had to share, be it a few coins, or even a pen or a pencil! However, very few were disgruntled if we had nothing to share and most would give us permission to photograph anyway, shake our hands and send us on our way with a smile. Because of that openness and generosity, I have been gifted with many beautiful portraits of the #PeopleOfCuba in my camera. I am so pleased to begin sharing them and introducing you to some of the great people that I met in both of these compelling towns.
Read less