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Our Woman in Havana The sound of a live salsa band floated up through the window of the air-conditioned, open plan Office of the City Historian where Juliet Barclay-Machado sat, emailing the designs for the annual Conference of Caribbean Museums to New York. It seemed fitting that the organisation responsible for the restoration of Old Havana, should be here, in a beautifully restored 18th century building in the heart of old Havana, where for three centuries Spanish galleons unloaded the treasures of the Indies. Juliet first came here on holiday, in 1985, whilst working as a tapestry designer and weaver in London. 'It was the most fantastic place I had ever seen,' she tells me. 'Explosively interesting and the architecture was so exciting that I hunted for a book to learn more about it.' She couldn't find one in English, so set about learning Spanish in order to research and write one herself. The tome, Havana: Portrait of a City tracing Havana's development from the early sixteenth century to its heyday in the late nineteenth century, was the result. Originally published by Cassell, Macmillan Caribbean hope to republish it shortly. Havana grew from a straggle of huts into the most brilliant metropolis in the Caribbean, unique in the vibrancy of its culture and the rich splendour of its architectureŠ says the cover. In the course of its history, the city was coveted by Spain's European rivals, looted by pirates, occupied by British troops and renowned as a centre of the slave trade. It became a treasure house for the Spanish empire, as the wealth of the Indies was unloaded onto the city's wharves. By the nineteenth century Havana had truly come of age. It was elegant, vivid and sophisticated and visitors flocked there in their thousands. In 1982, Havana was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Its palaces, churches and great houses are now being restored and the most extravagantly beautiful city in the Caribbean is once again taking its rightful place as one of the world's great attractions. Caribbean dreams A third culture kid, Juliet spent much of her childhood in Barbados, where her father was Director of the Eastern Caribbean for Barclays Bank. Her mother worked at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital there. 'The years living there made such an impression, I never got over it,' says Juliet. 'I fell in love with Caribbean culture and history.' A believer in the maxim, 'When in Rome do as the Romans do', living there also taught her the necessity for flexibility when living in other cultures. Falling in with the Office of the City Historian during the course of the research for her book, she heard Eusebio Leal Spengler's ambitious plans for restoration, and knew she had found her life's work. But jobs working for the Cuban government were difficult to come by. So, for 12 years Juliet lived a double life, volunteering there whilst working variously in London as a freelance graphic design manager and as assistant to the Director of The Arts Fund. 'When I turned 40, I finally secured a full time job as Head of Design and Marketing for the directorate of Cultural Patrimony of the Office of the City Historian,' says Juliet. 'I thought to myself, 'my heart is in Havana', and came to live here.' A material and spiritual renaissance The restoration of Havana was funded by the government until the collapse of the Soviet Bloc in the 1990s when funds had to be channelled into providing food for the Habaneros. However thanks to new government legislation, the Office of the City Historian was able to set up a trading arm with which to raise funds for the continuing renaissance of the old city. Now all the profits made in Old Havana are ploughed back into restoration. In the late 18th and 19th centuries, the aristocracy moved away from the old town and built their mansions in the greener outskirts of the city. Those left in the centre were mostly poor families living in appalling conditions which have worsened over time. Housing is a high priority for the Office of the City Historian. A special feature of the project, Juliet believes, is that people are encouraged to live here after the restoration of their homes. This prevents the city becoming a lifeless museum piece, like Venice for instance where people come to wind up the tourist machine and then go home. 'This is not just a material Renaissance, but a revival of the spirit of the old city,' she explains. There is an effort to involve people in the restoration of their own homes and people are generally enthusiastic. 'We may counsel them to move out before the building falls on their heads, as that is a real danger,' says Juliet, 'But no one is forced to have their home restored.' There is a chance that after restoration, not all may be able to return, as often there have been too many people for the property to sustain. In this case, efforts are made to house them in the same neighbourhood. An increasing number of boutique hotels are being restored as part of project and staying in one of these is a way to contribute. Authentic thirties bars such as El Floridita, made famous by Hemingway, are a revelation and restaurants, such as La Guarida, in a peeling colonial mansion, are stunning enough to be used as film sets. Living without luxury It's not easy for a foreigner to work in a Cuban organisation, and you need to be persistent, flexible and prepared to live without luxuries if you do so. 'We sometimes don't have paper to print on!' laughs Juliet. 'It is hard to maintain the momentum of design work in the face of dispiriting lack of materials and funds. But making something out of nothing adds an element to the creative challenge.' The material standard of living in Cuba may be lower than in the UK, but Juliet believes the spiritual standard to be much higher. 'People are much nicer to each other here than they are in the UK,' she says. 'Much more polite and considerate. People in Britain complain all the time,' she adds, 'Here, there is far more reason to moan, but people respond to their difficulties with humour and ingenuity.' Her work environment is busy and pressurised, but colleagues are enthusiastic as everyone feels they're doing something important for their own and future generations. 'If I wasn't passionate about the mission of the Office of the City Historian, I would find it a lot harder here,' admits Juliet. 'This mission, together with the beauty of Havana and the quality and talent of the people with whom I'm privileged to work, carry me through the occasional difficulties.' Bureaucracy is much less of a problem in Cuba than it used to be and business opportunities have multiplied since the end of the Soviet era. But foreign business is conducted quietly, due to American pressure on companies dealing with Cuba. 'Cuba is an idiosyncratic, eccentric island,' says Juliet. 'You can't understand it until you live here and even when you do, you still don't. People are very witty, and anarchic. The atmosphere is not one of fear as many people imagine.' Being a pioneer, pushing back barriers, is however, a sustained effort and Juliet finds she needs to go to England once a year to expand her ideas and get renergised. 'I miss the English seasons and porridge in the winter,' she says. 'And sometimes I just long for a bit of first worldery a bit of luxury, I suppose! But, living in Cuba gives a wonderful perspective on just how unnecessary many of these things are. I love living in this incredible, beautiful city and contributing to its restoration. That outweighs any disadvantages.' Following her brief marriage to a Cuban, at the age of 43, she is currently in England for the delivery of her first baby. 'Many women in Cuba are single mothers,' she says, 'By choice or circumstance. It is a very child friendly society.' Her antenatal care there was everything she could have wished for, she explains, but Cuba doesn't recognise dual nationality. Juliet is hoping to find the time to put together her next book about the social and architectural history of the cities around the Gulf of Mexico that supported the Spanish silver fleets. But for the moment, she has her hands satisfyingly full!
Fact file: Juliet Barclay-Machado The Islas e Ideas Anglo-Cuban festival takes place from October to December 2002 to celebrate 240 years of British presence in Havana. Visit www.britishcouncil.org/cuba/english/arts/islasideas.htm> or contact the British Embassy press office in Havana (Tel. 00 537 241 771/2) for details. For details of restored hotels see www.sancristobaltravel.com Macmillan Caribbean www.macmillan.com
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