While in Cuba, I traveled under the "Support for the Cuban People" license, staying in small privately owned Posadas and dining in family-run Paladars. As part of the American embargo against Cuba, I could not support government-run businesses (including most restaurants and hotels) and could not be there for tourism. So, no mojitos on the white sand beaches.

One way of supporting the people was by hiring models to pose for us. The two lovely ballerinas featured are members of the Cuban National Ballet. Our first location was La Guarida, an authentic Paladar with excellent food on the top floor of an apartment building. Before the 1990s all Cuban restaurants were government-owned. With the fall of the USSR, an economic crisis swept across Cuba. The government allowed small eateries, limited to twelve guests, to be operated out of people's homes to provide families with a small income.

Every morning at La Guarida freshly washed tablecloths and napkins are found drying in the wind on clotheslines creating an airy, calm, and homey atmosphere. This was the perfect backdrop for our ballerinas.

Before the Cuban Revolution, the Cuban Ballet Company thrived artistically but struggled financially. When Fidel Castro took control of Cuba in 1959, he committed to leveling the social structure and making the arts available to everyone. Today the Cuban National Ballet School searches all over the country to find children with aptitude whom they might teach. Prospective students should have musicality, good body proportions, and the ability to follow simple steps. During their eight-year residential training period, all students receive support from the government, and everything is free.

The ballerinas went with us to a locked-in-time mansion, Casa Olguita, built during the colonial era in the neighborhood of Vedado. In 1959 after Fidel's small army overthrew the military dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista, hundreds of thousands of Cubans from diverse social positions fled the country due to political repression and disillusionment with life in Cuba. They abandoned their homes, businesses, and possessions. Olguita's father was an officer in Castro's army and was rewarded with this elegant home.

We also visited the dance company, Raices Profundas, which translates to "Deep Roots." Just like their name entails they go deep into the soul of Afro-Cuban dance, culture, and folklore. Their energy was simply over the top during our private performance. The dancers are selected only if they have dance in their hearts and souls and it shows. Many of the dancers just walked in off the street. They perform worldwide and are widely regarded as one of the most authentic performing ensembles in the Yoruba traditions.