A private business owner setting up her restaurant in Havana. In recent years, the Cuban government has legalized more types of independent businesses.

A private business owner setting up her restaurant in Havana. In recent years, the Cuban government has legalized more types of independent businesses. May 2014.

An inspector checking the energy meters in a multifamily housing building in Havana. January 2011.

A high school physical education class in Old Havana. January 2013.

A musician plays on the street in front of a mural depicting colonial life in Havana. May 2012.

A baseball game at Estadio Latinoamericano in Havana, December 2012. The poster on the wall of the park reads, “LIBERTAD PARA LOS 5 HEROES” (Freedom for the five heroes). The Cinco Heroes (or “Cuban Five” as they are known in the United States) are a group of five Cuban spies who infiltrated Cuban exile groups in Miami in the 1990s. The Cuban Five allegedly discovered those groups’ plans to commit terrorist attacks against Cuba. After having been imprisoned in the United States for many years, the last of the Cuban Five returned to Cuba in December 2014, as part of the agreement between the United States and Cuba to normalize relations.

A libreta (ration book) is issued by the Cuban government and specifies how much of each good (including food and some other supplies) each person can buy at a subsidized price each month. This sign specifies that each person can buy one pound of chicken at the subsidized, or lower, price that month. Havana, January 2011.

A beauty salon in Havana, January 2011. In May of that year, Raúl Castro’s government announced that some state-owned businesses such as beauty salons and barbershops would become private.

A Cuban artist in her apartment in Havana. Her son sends her porcelain figurines from Canada. January 2011.

The Cuban wrestling team at an international match held in Havana, January 2011. Wrestling has become increasingly popular in Cuba, especially since Cuban wrestler Mijaín López has won two Olympic gold medals and five world championships.

Boys playing soccer in the street in Old Havana. December 2012.

The dome of El Capitolio, the National Capitol Building in Havana, December 2012. This photo was taken from the balcony of one of the many homes in Havana that offers accommodation to tourists. Its residents have turned their home into a private inn.

Students at La Escuela Nacional de Arte (The National Art School), the high school in Havana that the most talented music students from Cuba’s national network of regional conservatories attend. These students are on a path to become professional, government-sponsored musicians. January 2014.

A meat market in Havana where people are trying to get the antenna on a television to work. January 2011.

A paladar, a small privately-owned restaurant, in Havana. When the Cuban government legalized paladares in the 1990s, the restaurant owners had to abide by many restrictions—including how many people they could serve, who could be an employee, and the type of food they could offer. But more recently, Raúl Castro’s government has reduced the number of restrictions on paladares. January 2011.

A food shop in Havana. Even long after the Special Period ended, many buildings in Cuba remain in disrepair. May 2014.

People taking part in a Santería ceremony in Havana. Santería is a system of religious beliefs rooted in the traditions of the Yoruba people of West Africa and highly influenced by Roman Catholicism. It developed when West Africans were brought to Cuba as slaves and forced to convert to Catholicism. Today Santería is practiced throughout the Caribbean and elsewhere in the Americas. January 2011.

A shoe repair shop on the street in Havana. January 2011.

Students at the University of Havana. December 2007.

Young people in the city of Camagüey using public phones, December 2008. In March of that year, the Cuban government announced that it would allow ordinary Cubans to have cell phones. But the phones remain too expensive for many Cubans.

Cuban nurses running routine tests on a patient during the Pan American Health Organization’s Wellness Week in the city of Camajuaní in Villa Clara Province. Cuba is internationally known for its doctors and health care system. September 2013.

People waiting in a line outside a branch of the Banco Popular de Ahorro (People’s Savings Bank) in the city of Cienfuegos. The bank is run by the Cuban government. November 2012.

The city of Cienfuegos was founded in 1819 and was a major trading center for sugar, tobacco, and coffee. It has become internationally known for its Spanish colonial architecture and city planning. September 2006.

Boats in the Bay of Gibara in Holguín Province. September 2006.

A shop in the town of Remedios, Villa Clara Province. Since 1994, Cuba has had two currencies: Cuban Pesos (CUP) and Cuban Convertible Pesos (CUC). While most goods are priced in CUC (which are worth over twenty times more than CUP), most Cubans are paid in CUP. In 2013, the Cuban government announced that it would begin trying to unify the country’s two currencies. April 2011.

A pharmacy in the town of Remedios, Villa Clara Province. While Cuba is known for its health care system, pharmacies face many supply shortages, and Cubans often cannot afford the medications. January 2013.

Boys playing chess on the street in the city of Santiago de Cuba. January 2003.

A view of Santiago de Cuba. The city is on a bay connected to the Caribbean Sea and is an important sea port. September 2007.

Musicians playing on the street in the city of Santiago de Cuba. Many of Cuba’s most famous musicians are from Santiago de Cuba. September 2007.

A street in the city of Santiago de Cuba. Numerous bicitaxis (rickshaws) are visible in the distance. Bicitaxis became more common in Cuba during the Special Period when fuel was so expensive that many people could not afford to drive. September 2007.

People relaxing on a bench in the city of Santiago de Cuba. Despite the U.S. trade embargo on Cuba, many Cubans have relatives abroad who send them money, clothes, and other goods from the United States. September 2006.

A house in Viñales, a small agricultural town in Pinar del Río Province where coffee, tobacco, and many fruits and vegetables are grown. September 2006.

The Viñales Valley in Pinar del Río Province. Indigenous people lived in the caves in this valley for centuries before the Spanish arrived in Cuba. Later, enslaved Africans who tried to escape from the Spanish also hid in these caves. November 2012.

The Manaca Iznaga sugar plantation near the town of Trinidad, Sancti Spíritus Province. This tower was once where the Spanish would watch over enslaved Africans working in the sugar cane fields. December 2012.

A water truck in the town of Trinidad, Sancti Spíritus Province. May 2014.

Students in the Plaza de la Vigía in the city of Matanzas. October 2014.

People on the street in the city of Cárdenas, Matanzas Province. A sign for ETECSA, a government-owned phone and internet company in Cuba, is visible on the right. September 2006.

Workers taking a rest in the city of Matanzas. October 2014.