A SENIOR CASUAL ROMANCE IN CUBA

Author: Alfonso Galvis

March 2011

It was January 2011, when Alberto, a translator from Canada was in Cuba on vacation. He learned that the hotel Tropicoco, which is 25 kilometers east of Havana, has a Caribbean sea-side discotheque, known for its live music and the girls who frequented it. Neither undecided nor lazy, Alberto set his mind on the idea of going to this hot spot and headed there the next day.

The same night of his arrival, he went to the discotheque. The night sky was clear, with a soothing breeze and only twenty-five degrees. It was the ideal atmosphere to dance in an open ambiance to the salsa, meringue and his preferred rhythm, the bolero.

Alberto, a Latino, was in the golden years of his life but he was also young spirited. He was a good amateur ballroom dancer who

took dancing seriously.

Upon entering the club, knowing intuitively what to do, because

he had already traveled to Cuba four times in ten years. Alberto

sat by himself at a table, by the dance floor, in a strategic position, where he could see the parade of females arriving.