(l-r) Princes William and Harry

As part of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee celebration, members of the Royal Family will be traveling to “every Realm as well as undertaking visits to Commonwealth countries, Crown Dependencies and British Overseas Territories.” Prince Harry has been assigned to Belize, Jamaica, and The Bahamas.

While the final itinerary has not been established, I’ve been given a sneak peek of some activities being planned for the Prince and I’m pretty excited. Though I’ve never been a Royals watcher, I’m honored to have been asked to accompany the Prince during his visit.

Not surprisingly, the Prince’s visit will also be documented unofficially via locals’ photos and gossipy tidbits, sent out via twitter, Facebook, and other social media platforms. The Prince’s visit even has a hash tag: #HarryinBelize.

I’ll be writing about the Prince here, as well as for other print and online outlets. I’m also accepting assignments, so if you’re an editor or publisher with a particular interest in the global galavanting of the Royal Family, please email me directly: writingjulie[at]gmail[dot]com.

We couldn’t have timed the launch of our “San Juan Insider” travel app better if we had tried: the Puerto Rico Tourism Company launched a new marketing campaign on November 30 and temperatures in the Northeast started to dip at the same time, prompting thoughts about winter escapes to warmer places.

“San Juan Insider” is a travel guide to Puerto Rico’s capital city, and it can be downloaded from the iTunes store for use on iPhones, iPads, or iPod Touches. The cost is just $1.99 and all future updates are free.

“San Juan Insider” is comprised of 99 entries representing what we consider to be the best restaurants, hotels, and experiences in San Juan… and our reasons why. Each entry features a photo gallery, ranging from 2-10 photos, intended to give the user a preview of what to expect when they visit in person. Each entry is also accompanied by a Google map, website, phone number, price, and service information (such as hours of operation).

Please spread the word!

“Levitar” by Tomas Sanchez

“I guarantee the artist is Cuban,” I say aloud, but to no one in particular, as I look at a painting at the PINTA Latin American Art Fair, which is taking place in New York City this weekend before it packs up and heads to London for an engagement next year.

A woman studying the same painting looks at me and asks, “How do you know?” Five minutes later, as I’m expounding upon the common themes of modern and contemporary Cuban art, she’s probably sorry she asked the question. When I notice she’s looking for a way to escape gracefully, I give her an out. “Enjoy the fair.”

*
I don’t know about Cuban art because I’ve studied it formally. I know it because I’ve seen so much of it. After a while, all of its distinctive characteristics become immediately evident, even to the auto-didactic eye. In paintings, there will be palm trees. Water. Boats, generally of a shoddy variety like the one Francisco took to the United States. Whimsical, fairy-tale like characters, often unmoored from land, floating away. There will be color–lots of it. On the most concrete, obvious level, there will be the depiction of the island itself.

“Maleconada” by Jorge Perugorria

Cuban photography is even easier to pin down. Crumbling architecture. Ironic contrasts that underscore Cuba’s political and economic situations, a not so subtle commentary, even when artists insist, as they inevitably do, that their work “isn’t political.” Again, the ocean.

In all genres: images of or references to Che and Fidel. The use of currency. Windows with a view of water pushing out to the horizon.

A work by by Yoan Capote at the Jack Shainman Gallery

Art, of course, reflects life. But the life depicted in Cuban art is so puzzling in its partiality. Regardless of one’s views of the Revolution, people still love. They still work. They still eat, go to school, get sick. They have birthday parties. But rarely are these aspects of life visible in Cuban art work.
**
To the art lover who is new to Cuban art, these images and symbols and subjects I’ve mentioned will all likely seem novel, as they should. The crowd at the recent Yoan Capote exhibit at the Jack Shainman Gallery in Chelsea seemed charmed by the artist’s work.

A work by by Yoan Capote at the Jack Shainman Gallery

Though I was impressed by his range of genres and his technical skill in executing each–sculpture, photography, installation, drawing, painting, and multimedia– I was underwhelmed by the preoccupations explored in the work, as well as their conceptual execution. When asked to elaborate on one of his pieces, Capote, giving a talk to visitors, said, “I don’t like to talk too much about my work. I feel it’s a bit like undressing a woman.”

**
Longing, loss, freedom and the lack of it, deterioration, the tension of living in a seemingly perpetual ambiguity… these are all, inarguably, part of “the Cuban experience.” As such, they will inevitably be explored by artists in their work. At the same time, I’m keen to see Cuban artists exploring these emotions in new ways.

Cuban art has become stagnant.

That’s what I thought as I looked at the Cuban pieces on display at PINTA.

I was desperate to see something different.
**
But if Cuban art has become stagnant, viewers and collectors bear at least part of the blame. Gallerists, curators, and collectors have commodified Cuba through its art, drawing the boundaries of what is saleable and, therefore, what is “valuable,” what is showable, and indeed, what Cuban art “is.” The Cuba and la cubanidad in Cuban art reflects, at least in part, the life that we imagine Cubans live: a life romanticized by the narrative of ingenuity and resolve amidst poverty, of yearned for and frustrated escape, of predictable, recognizable symbols.

The message to Cuban artists, then, is that to be of interest and to sell abroad, their work must incorporate these elements and reinforce the narratives that people who don’t actually live their reality–their realities–have written for them. How to revive the creativity and range of thematic exploration in Cuban art, then, depends at least as much upon the viewer as the artist.

When and how the conditions will change that shape the viewer’s concept of Cuban art may be even more interesting and explosive than any shift on the part of Cuban artists.

The difference between Belize and the US was immediately palpable as I deplaned in Miami, a layover on my way home to New York.

In Belize, people greet one another. I made a mental note: Of every Belizean I passed while walking through four cities, only one person failed to say “Hello,” and he gets off the hook– I don’t think he saw me.

There’s no ulterior motive. “Good afternoon” means “I acknowledge you. You exist. We’re human. Hi.”

It was easy, very easy, to adjust to always being acknowledged. It felt good. I tapped into a natural high I haven’t felt in a long, long time.

So stepping back onto US soil was a major bummer. As people shuffled from one terminal to another, dragging bags behind them onto the AirTrain, they kept their heads down. Even when they made requests of another person–to order a latte at the Coffee Beanery or a beer at the sports bar–they didn’t preface the request with a “Hi” or a “How’s it going?” and they rarely made eye contact. If they did, it wasn’t sustained.

Immediately, I felt depressed and annoyed. Why couldn’t Americans be more open?

And then I thought: “Why can’t I?”

Belize gave me a lot to think about (which you can read about in a few pieces I’ve published so far–links at the end of this post), but perhaps its most meaningful lesson for me was the reminder that it’s easy to acknowledge other people. It feels good, and there’s no need to wait for someone else to initiate.

Try it.

To see the full gallery of photos from Belize, click here.
**
Articles I’ve published on Belize so far:

20 Reasons to Travel to Belize NOW

Making Chocolate in Belize

Organizational Profile: Angel Says: Read

How to Stuff a Garifuna Drum in Your Osprey Pack

**If you’re traveling to Belize and have a bit of extra room in your luggage to carry a few small school supplies, please check out this wish list from the Gulisi Garifuna School in Dangriga, Belize.

A sidewalk shrine set up in front of a Haitian restaurant in Flatbush, Brooklyn. Photo: Francisco Collazo

[Editor's Note: Due to scheduled maintenance of the MatadorNetwork, we were unable to publish this update last night.]

Many readers have written to say how frustrated they are that they can’t be on the ground in Haiti, that it’s painful for them to sit at home, watching the rescue effort on TV, and “doing nothing.”

But as independent journalist Ned Sublette wrote today in his daily email digest, Nedslist, “Watching disaster porn on TV is my definition of powerless.”

There’s something all of us can do, and there’s no need to feel powerless. Here are a few options, all of which are being spearheaded by Matador members or readers who responded to our initial call for volunteers. Read on… you’ll likely feel more clear about your own role in the recovery effort, and you’ll definitely be inspired.

1. Donation sites in New York City are being verified.

I spent today verifying the donation sites that are on the list provided by the Haitian Consulate. Only one of four sites visited is actively accepting donations, and that is Roland Realty, which is located at 907 Nostrand Avenue in Brooklyn. You can drop off donations of non-perishable food, clothing, and small household items at Roland.

Matador will be coordinating a sorting and packing day with American Airlines, The Society for the Advancement of People, and Roland Realty next week. More details to follow in future updates.

2. Matador contributor Gabriela Garcia announces opportunities to help in Miami. Other opportunities are announced in central Florida.

For anyone in the Miami area: We are taking donations of medical supplies, food, and blankets (clothing and building materials will be accepted later on as the warehouses are overwhelmed and the most items are going out first). The first shipment leaves Monday aboard the USS Comfort.

The drop off location is 7230 NW Miami Court in Little Haiti. Donations are being accepted on Sunday from 9am-3pm and Monday from 1pm-5pm.

Andrea Brown of central Florida reached out to Matador as a coordinator for local donation efforts in the Orlando area. Please follow her on Twitter (@aharbrown) for updates in that region.

3. Matador is sharing the information of medically qualified volunteers with Partners in Health.

Partners in Health has been working in Haiti for more than 20 years. We have been in touch with PiH since Wednesday and have agreed to share our list of volunteers with medical credentials with PiH.

More than 180 people who responded to Matador’s initial volunteer request, in addition to 70 Haitian American doctors who contacted Matador, will have their information made available to PiH. If you are among these people, please DO NOT contact PiH directly, as they are overwhelmed with calls. If they need your assistance, they will follow up with you directly.

Other volunteers without medical experience will remain on our volunteer list for a future trip to Haiti to assist in recovery efforts.

4. A Matador volunteer arrived in Port-au-Prince and reports he was able to get supplies to Bresma orphanage.

Vladimir Tilus was one of the first readers to respond to Matador’s call for volunteers. A former serviceman with experience serving in Port-au-Prince, Vladimir was determined to return to the city to assist in rescue efforts.

He reported that he arrived in Port-au-Prince last night. This afternoon, we asked Vladimir if he could try to deliver water and food to the children of the Bresma orphanage, as they had run out of water completely and food was running low. At 10:37 EST tonight, Vladimir wrote to say that he had reached the orphanage and was able to deliver both water and food. Though the kids are not out of danger yet, these critical supplies will help them hang on a bit longer.

We will continue to keep you posted with updates as new information is available.

Thank you for your continued support.