https://yanapaskova.com/ 2026-03-16 weekly 1.0 https://yanapaskova.com/about-me 2026-03-16 monthly 0.8 https://storage.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/DSCF9160.jpg https://storage.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Boiko.jpg https://yanapaskova.com/contact 2026-03-16 monthly 0.8 https://storage.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/newspapers_mug.jpg https://yanapaskova.com/copyright 2026-03-16 monthly 0.8 https://yanapaskova.com/helping-women 2026-03-16 monthly 0.8 https://yanapaskova.com/where-women-rule 2026-03-16 monthly 0.8 https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Varanasi_Vid_2.jpg Where Women Rule: Widows of Varanasi | Yana Paskova View Where Women Rule: Widows of Varanasi by Yana Paskova. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Women_003.jpg Nanki Mata, a widow who estimates she is 75 years old, poses for a portrait in the Durga Kund Help Line ashram in Varanasi, India on January 08, 2019. Nanki says she has spent two years in this ashram, after her husband was thrown in prison for getting in a fight, and passed away from injuries to his body. Her daughter got married, so no one looked after her - then the daughter died as well. She has two other children, but didn't want to go her son's or her other daughter's in-laws because she says that's not how tradition works here. She is left with no contact with her relatives, nor was she aware that she had legal rights on her property, so whatever little her husband had, was taken away by his brothers. "My husband is not here, how would I fight?" she says. Nanki Mata, a widow who estimates she is 75 years old, poses for a portrait in the Durga Kund Help Line ashram in Varanasi, India on January 08, 2019. Nanki says she has spent two years in this ashram, after her husband was thrown in prison for getting in a fight, and passed away from injuries to his body. Her daughter got married, so no one looked after her - then the daughter died as well. She has two other children, but didn't want to go her son's or her other daughter's in-laws because she says that's not how tradition works here. She is left with no contact with her relatives, nor was she aware that she had legal rights on her property, so whatever little her husband had, was taken away by his brothers. "My husband is not here, how would I fight?" she says. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Women_009.jpg Hindu decor at Pashupatinath Ashram in Varanasi, India on January 06, 2019. Hindu decor at Pashupatinath Ashram in Varanasi, India on January 06, 2019. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Women_014.jpg (L-R) Widows Shakuntala Devi, who estimates she is 70 years old, and Jamuna Mata, who estimates she is 90 years old, interact at Birla ashram in Varanasi, India on January 05, 2019. (L-R) Widows Shakuntala Devi, who estimates she is 70 years old, and Jamuna Mata, who estimates she is 90 years old, interact at Birla ashram in Varanasi, India on January 05, 2019. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Women_013.jpg (L-R) Widows Shakuntala Devi, who estimates she is 70 years old, and Durga Devi, who estimates she is 60 years old, pose for a portrait at Birla ashram in Varanasi, India on January 05, 2019. Durga, originally from Rajasthan, is a god-sister and cousin with Shakuntala. Durga says of her friendship with Shakuntala: "On one side is the river Ganga, and on the other, Baba Vishwanath (Lord Shiva.) We are right in between - there isn't a better place." Durga says she did not want to live with her son following her husband's death, as she wanted to be closer to the holy river Ganges and Lord Shiva. She often visits her son, who insists that she stay at home and looks after her well. But she says she prefers the ashram. (L-R) Widows Shakuntala Devi, who estimates she is 70 years old, and Durga Devi, who estimates she is 60 years old, pose for a portrait at Birla ashram in Varanasi, India on January 05, 2019. Durga, originally from Rajasthan, is a god-sister and cousin with Shakuntala. Durga says of her friendship with Shakuntala: "On one side is the river Ganga, and on the other, Baba Vishwanath (Lord Shiva.) We are right in between - there isn't a better place." Durga says she did not want to live with her son following her husband's death, as she wanted to be closer to the holy river Ganges and Lord Shiva. She often visits her son, who insists that she stay at home and looks after her well. But she says she prefers the ashram. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Women_004.jpg Meena Devi, 78, a widow, falls deep in thought at Rak Kuti ashram in Varanasi, India on January 07, 2019. Meena is originally from Nepal, and has lived in the ashram for the past 25 years. Before that, she lived in the same building as Sita Devi, 52, and her mother-in-law, Goma Devi, 96, who now also occupy this ashram. Meena is a child widow. "Maybe I was cursed and I would have been forbidden to attend any functions because my husband died at a young age," she says. So with the help of relatives she moved here to live among other widows. She didn't want to marry again after her husband's death. Meena Devi, 78, a widow, falls deep in thought at Rak Kuti ashram in Varanasi, India on January 07, 2019. Meena is originally from Nepal, and has lived in the ashram for the past 25 years. Before that, she lived in the same building as Sita Devi, 52, and her mother-in-law, Goma Devi, 96, who now also occupy this ashram. Meena is a child widow. "Maybe I was cursed and I would have been forbidden to attend any functions because my husband died at a young age," she says. So with the help of relatives she moved here to live among other widows. She didn't want to marry again after her husband's death. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Women_015.jpg Meena Devi, 78, a widow, begins to pray at Rak Kuti ashram in Varanasi, India on January 07, 2019. Meena is originally from Nepal, and has lived in the ashram for the past 25 years. Before that, she lived in the same building as Sita Devi, 52, and her mother-in-law, Goma Devi, 96, who now also occupy this ashram. Meena is a child widow. "Maybe I was cursed and I would have been forbidden to attend any functions because my husband died at a young age," she says. So with the help of relatives she moved here to live among other widows. She didn't want to marry again after her husband's death. Meena Devi, 78, a widow, begins to pray at Rak Kuti ashram in Varanasi, India on January 07, 2019. Meena is originally from Nepal, and has lived in the ashram for the past 25 years. Before that, she lived in the same building as Sita Devi, 52, and her mother-in-law, Goma Devi, 96, who now also occupy this ashram. Meena is a child widow. "Maybe I was cursed and I would have been forbidden to attend any functions because my husband died at a young age," she says. So with the help of relatives she moved here to live among other widows. She didn't want to marry again after her husband's death. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Women_002.jpg A man walks by Ratan Devi Mata, 82 years old, as she moves through the streets of Varanasi, India in a bent position on January 05, 2019. Ratan is originally from Nepal. After her husband left her for another woman a day following their wedding, she tried to live with her in-laws, but daily fighting motivated her to join Birla ashram instead. Ratan believes she will attain Moksha (release from the cycle of rebirth) if she dies here. She receives a monthly pension of 2,000 rupees from Sulabh International. A man walks by Ratan Devi Mata, 82 years old, as she moves through the streets of Varanasi, India in a bent position on January 05, 2019. Ratan is originally from Nepal. After her husband left her for another woman a day following their wedding, she tried to live with her in-laws, but daily fighting motivated her to join Birla ashram instead. Ratan believes she will attain Moksha (release from the cycle of rebirth) if she dies here. She receives a monthly pension of 2,000 rupees from Sulabh International. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Varanasi_Vid_12.jpg Where Women Rule: Widows of Varanasi | Yana Paskova View Where Women Rule: Widows of Varanasi by Yana Paskova. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Women_006.jpg Shakuntala Devi, who estimates her age to be 70 years old, at Birla ashram in Varanasi, India on January 05, 2019. She wears color despite the expectation of widows to don only white. Shakuntala is originally from Varanasi, married in Agra and returned in 2005, some time after her husband passed away and her daughter got married (who still visits her.) She had a photo of her husband but got rid of it as she didn't want to hold on to any memories - she says she believes that what's left behind should be left behind. On widows' garb, she says it should be their choice to wear whatever color they want, not just the traditional white, meant to symbolize death and asexuality. She uses the 2,000 rupee a month pension that she receives from Sulabh International for her expenses. "The winter has been cold this year and I used 900 rupees to buy a blanket. Sometimes when I am left with no money, I take help from my daughter, even though she doesn't have any money as her husband doesn't have a regular job. The good thing is that I don't have to do any work now as my body doesn't allow me to work anymore." Shakuntala Devi, who estimates her age to be 70 years old, at Birla ashram in Varanasi, India on January 05, 2019. She wears color despite the expectation of widows to don only white. Shakuntala is originally from Varanasi, married in Agra and returned in 2005, some time after her husband passed away and her daughter got married (who still visits her.) She had a photo of her husband but got rid of it as she didn't want to hold on to any memories - she says she believes that what's left behind should be left behind. On widows' garb, she says it should be their choice to wear whatever color they want, not just the traditional white, meant to symbolize death and asexuality. She uses the 2,000 rupee a month pension that she receives from Sulabh International for her expenses. "The winter has been cold this year and I used 900 rupees to buy a blanket. Sometimes when I am left with no money, I take help from my daughter, even though she doesn't have any money as her husband doesn't have a regular job. The good thing is that I don't have to do any work now as my body doesn't allow me to work anymore." https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Women_010.jpg Usha Mishra, a widow who is unsure of her age, at Birla ashram in Varanasi, India on January 05, 2019. Usha's in-laws passed away a few years before her husband, who died of a heart attack, and all her other relatives were too far away and with family. She didn't have anyone to pay for her expenses, so she felt she had no other option but to come to the ashram, as Sulabh International provides 2,000 rupees as a monthly pension. Usha Mishra, a widow who is unsure of her age, at Birla ashram in Varanasi, India on January 05, 2019. Usha's in-laws passed away a few years before her husband, who died of a heart attack, and all her other relatives were too far away and with family. She didn't have anyone to pay for her expenses, so she felt she had no other option but to come to the ashram, as Sulabh International provides 2,000 rupees as a monthly pension. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Varanasi_Vid_3.jpg Where Women Rule: Widows of Varanasi | Yana Paskova View Where Women Rule: Widows of Varanasi by Yana Paskova. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Women_005.jpg A widow exits her room at Pashupatinath Ashram in Varanasi, India on January 06, 2019. A widow exits her room at Pashupatinath Ashram in Varanasi, India on January 06, 2019. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Women_016.jpg Munni Devi, who estimates she is 90 years old, sitting behind the mosquito net of her bed becomes emotional while talking about her life, at Durga Kund Help Line ashram in Varanasi, India on January 08, 2019. Munni says she doesn't remember the age of her husband - he was a few older than her. A mother of two, one of her sons was kidnapped at the age of 12 and the other son died in an accident. "I worked so hard to educate him hoping that one day he will become an engineer and take care of me. But God had other plans. I have no one, I can't cry to anyone," she says, adding that she was left out on the streets following her husband's death, as her landlord sold her rented home. "Now I have been here for some time, thinking about why God did this to me and passing my time." Munni Devi, who estimates she is 90 years old, sitting behind the mosquito net of her bed becomes emotional while talking about her life, at Durga Kund Help Line ashram in Varanasi, India on January 08, 2019. Munni says she doesn't remember the age of her husband - he was a few older than her. A mother of two, one of her sons was kidnapped at the age of 12 and the other son died in an accident. "I worked so hard to educate him hoping that one day he will become an engineer and take care of me. But God had other plans. I have no one, I can't cry to anyone," she says, adding that she was left out on the streets following her husband's death, as her landlord sold her rented home. "Now I have been here for some time, thinking about why God did this to me and passing my time." https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Varanasi_Vid_7.jpg Where Women Rule: Widows of Varanasi | Yana Paskova View Where Women Rule: Widows of Varanasi by Yana Paskova. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Women_007.jpg Munni Devi, who estimates she is 90 years old, sitting behind the mosquito net of her bed becomes emotional while talking about her life, at Durga Kund Help Line ashram in Varanasi, India on January 08, 2019. Munni says she doesn't remember the age of her husband - he was a few older than her. A mother of two, one of her sons was kidnapped at the age of 12 and the other son died in an accident. "I worked so hard to educate him hoping that one day he will become an engineer and take care of me. But God had other plans. I have no one, I can't cry to anyone," she says, adding that she was left out on the streets following her husband's death, as her landlord sold her rented home. "Now I have been here for some time, thinking about why God did this to me and passing my time." Munni Devi, who estimates she is 90 years old, sitting behind the mosquito net of her bed becomes emotional while talking about her life, at Durga Kund Help Line ashram in Varanasi, India on January 08, 2019. Munni says she doesn't remember the age of her husband - he was a few older than her. A mother of two, one of her sons was kidnapped at the age of 12 and the other son died in an accident. "I worked so hard to educate him hoping that one day he will become an engineer and take care of me. But God had other plans. I have no one, I can't cry to anyone," she says, adding that she was left out on the streets following her husband's death, as her landlord sold her rented home. "Now I have been here for some time, thinking about why God did this to me and passing my time." https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Women_008.jpg Ratan Devi Mata, 82 years old, talks about her husband at Birla ashram in Varanasi, India on January 05, 2019. Ratan is originally from Nepal. After her husband left her for another woman a day following their wedding, she tried to live with her in-laws, but daily fighting motivated her to join the ashram instead. Ratan believes she will attain Moksha (release from the cycle of rebirth) if she dies here. She receives a monthly pension of 2,000 rupees from Sulabh International. Ratan Devi Mata, 82 years old, talks about her husband at Birla ashram in Varanasi, India on January 05, 2019. Ratan is originally from Nepal. After her husband left her for another woman a day following their wedding, she tried to live with her in-laws, but daily fighting motivated her to join the ashram instead. Ratan believes she will attain Moksha (release from the cycle of rebirth) if she dies here. She receives a monthly pension of 2,000 rupees from Sulabh International. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Women_011.jpg Shanti Devi, a 72-year-old widow, sings and prays in the Durga Kund Help Line ashram in Varanasi, India on January 08, 2019. Shanti Devi, a 72-year-old widow, sings and prays in the Durga Kund Help Line ashram in Varanasi, India on January 08, 2019. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Varanasi_Vid_8.jpg Where Women Rule: Widows of Varanasi | Yana Paskova View Where Women Rule: Widows of Varanasi by Yana Paskova. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Varanasi_Vid_11.jpg Where Women Rule: Widows of Varanasi | Yana Paskova View Where Women Rule: Widows of Varanasi by Yana Paskova. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Women_012.jpg (L-R) Widows Meena Devi, 78, Sita Devi, 52, and Savitri Devi, who estimates she is 80 years old, sing and and pray at Rak Kuti ashram in Varanasi, India on January 07, 2019. Sita's mother-in-law, Goma Devi, who estimates she is 90 years old, also lives in the ashram. (L-R) Widows Meena Devi, 78, Sita Devi, 52, and Savitri Devi, who estimates she is 80 years old, sing and and pray at Rak Kuti ashram in Varanasi, India on January 07, 2019. Sita's mother-in-law, Goma Devi, who estimates she is 90 years old, also lives in the ashram. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Women_017.jpg Ratan Devi Mata, 82 years old, enters Birla ashram in Varanasi, India on January 05, 2019. Ratan is originally from Nepal. After her husband left her for another woman a day following their wedding, she tried to live with her in-laws, but daily fighting motivated her to join the ashram instead. Ratan believes she will attain Moksha (release from the cycle of rebirth) if she dies here. She receives a monthly pension of 2,000 rupees from Sulabh International. Ratan Devi Mata, 82 years old, enters Birla ashram in Varanasi, India on January 05, 2019. Ratan is originally from Nepal. After her husband left her for another woman a day following their wedding, she tried to live with her in-laws, but daily fighting motivated her to join the ashram instead. Ratan believes she will attain Moksha (release from the cycle of rebirth) if she dies here. She receives a monthly pension of 2,000 rupees from Sulabh International. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Varanasi_Vid_6.jpg Where Women Rule: Widows of Varanasi | Yana Paskova View Where Women Rule: Widows of Varanasi by Yana Paskova. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Women_018.jpg A widow looks out onto passersby and street traffic from the courtyard of the Durga Kund Help Line ashram in Varanasi, India on January 08, 2019. A widow looks out onto passersby and street traffic from the courtyard of the Durga Kund Help Line ashram in Varanasi, India on January 08, 2019. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Women_019.jpg Sonakshi Devi, a widow, lies on the roof of the Durga Kund Help Line ashram in Varanasi, India on January 08, 2019. Sonakshi Devi, a widow, lies on the roof of the Durga Kund Help Line ashram in Varanasi, India on January 08, 2019. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Varanasi_Vid_9.jpg Where Women Rule: Widows of Varanasi | Yana Paskova View Where Women Rule: Widows of Varanasi by Yana Paskova. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Women_020.jpg Meena Devi, 78, a widow, pets a cow outside of Rak Kuti ashram in Varanasi, India on January 07, 2019. Meena is originally from Nepal, and has lived in the ashram for the past 25 years. Before that, she lived in the same building as Sita Devi, 52, and her mother-in-law, Goma Devi, 96, who now also occupy this ashram. Meena is a child widow. "Maybe I was cursed and I would have been forbidden to attend any functions because my husband died at a young age," she says. So with the help of relatives she moved here to live among other widows. She didn't want to marry again after her husband's death. Meena Devi, 78, a widow, pets a cow outside of Rak Kuti ashram in Varanasi, India on January 07, 2019. Meena is originally from Nepal, and has lived in the ashram for the past 25 years. Before that, she lived in the same building as Sita Devi, 52, and her mother-in-law, Goma Devi, 96, who now also occupy this ashram. Meena is a child widow. "Maybe I was cursed and I would have been forbidden to attend any functions because my husband died at a young age," she says. So with the help of relatives she moved here to live among other widows. She didn't want to marry again after her husband's death. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Varanasi_Vid_1.jpg Where Women Rule: Widows of Varanasi | Yana Paskova View Where Women Rule: Widows of Varanasi by Yana Paskova. https://yanapaskova.com/power-of-poo 2026-03-16 monthly 0.8 https://yanapaskova.com/25-years-after 2026-03-16 monthly 0.8 https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/25_Years_After_Democracy_Paskova_001.jpg A donkey-drawn carriage traverses Ovcha Kupel, a row of ubiquitous, poorly-maintained apartment complexes in Bulgaria's capital Sofia, on October 3rd, 2014. "Ovcha Kupel" translates to "Sheep's Baptismal Vessel," from the legend that an 1858 earthquake in the region cracked open the earth to healing mineral water, curing farmers' sick sheep grazing on nearby pastures. A donkey-drawn carriage traverses Ovcha Kupel, a row of ubiquitous, poorly-maintained apartment complexes in Bulgaria's capital Sofia, on October 3rd, 2014. "Ovcha Kupel" translates to "Sheep's Baptismal Vessel," from the legend that an 1858 earthquake in the region cracked open the earth to healing mineral water, curing farmers' sick sheep grazing on nearby pastures. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/25_Years_After_Democracy_Paskova_002.jpg A woman walks by graffiti of the fist that came to symbolize civic protests against political corruption in 2013, seen in Bulgaria's capital Sofia, on October 4th, 2014. The fist has been crossed off by a second layer of graffiti, with an adjacent sign that reads, "Communism, but not a Colony," in likely reference to what some political parties decry as Westernization of interests in the country. Bulgaria is still one of the poorest, most corrupt nations in the European Union, its post-1989 hopes wilted by political corruption, high crime rates and skyrocketing inflation. The ennui etches a permanent path across the average passerby's face, against a backdrop of rotting architecture, joblessness, and a vast population decline. A woman walks by graffiti of the fist that came to symbolize civic protests against political corruption in 2013, seen in Bulgaria's capital Sofia, on October 4th, 2014. The fist has been crossed off by a second layer of graffiti, with an adjacent sign that reads, "Communism, but not a Colony," in likely reference to what some political parties decry as Westernization of interests in the country. Bulgaria is still one of the poorest, most corrupt nations in the European Union, its post-1989 hopes wilted by political corruption, high crime rates and skyrocketing inflation. The ennui etches a permanent path across the average passerby's face, against a backdrop of rotting architecture, joblessness, and a vast population decline. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/25_Years_After_Democracy_Paskova_003.jpg Kristiyan Stamatov serves drinks at SSSR, a USSR nostalgia restaurant and bar in Bulgaria's capital Sofia, in front of a portrait of Soviet communist leader Joseph Stalin, on October 4th, 2014. Stamatov is wearing a red tie, symbolic of what was once called a "pionerche" (pioneer,) or a Bulgarian student expected to serve the country and Communist party. Kristiyan Stamatov serves drinks at SSSR, a USSR nostalgia restaurant and bar in Bulgaria's capital Sofia, in front of a portrait of Soviet communist leader Joseph Stalin, on October 4th, 2014. Stamatov is wearing a red tie, symbolic of what was once called a "pionerche" (pioneer,) or a Bulgarian student expected to serve the country and Communist party. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/25_Years_After_Democracy_Paskova_004.jpg Communist nostalgia is still very much alive in Bulgaria. Tato, a bar in Sofia (currently closed due to the death of its owner,) is decorated with portraits of Bulgarian Communist dictator Todor Zhivkov (upper center,) in Bulgaria's capital Sofia, on November 6th, 2014. His nickname and bar's namesake "Tato" is a play on the word "dad" in Bulgarian. Zhivkov was the head of state of the People's Republic of Bulgaria from March 4, 1954 until the day after the fall of the Berlin Wall, November 10, 1989, when he resigned under political pressure over the country's worsening economy and public unrest. Communist nostalgia is still very much alive in Bulgaria. Tato, a bar in Sofia (currently closed due to the death of its owner,) is decorated with portraits of Bulgarian Communist dictator Todor Zhivkov (upper center,) in Bulgaria's capital Sofia, on November 6th, 2014. His nickname and bar's namesake "Tato" is a play on the word "dad" in Bulgarian. Zhivkov was the head of state of the People's Republic of Bulgaria from March 4, 1954 until the day after the fall of the Berlin Wall, November 10, 1989, when he resigned under political pressure over the country's worsening economy and public unrest. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/25_Years_After_Democracy_Paskova_005.jpg Protesters against bank KTB (Corporate Commercial Bank) gather in front of the Bulgarian National Assembly in Bulgaria's capital Sofia, on November 6th, 2014. KTB closed in June, its customers no longer able to access their money, as the majority owner Tsvetan Vasilev was indicted for corporate embezzlement in absentia and placed on Interpol's and Schengen's most wanted lists. Bulgaria's central bank subsequently discovered a 4.22 billon leva ($2.71 billion USD) hole in KTB's accounts, which is much higher than Bulgaria's debt ceiling. This is the nation's worst banking crisis in two decades. Protesters against bank KTB (Corporate Commercial Bank) gather in front of the Bulgarian National Assembly in Bulgaria's capital Sofia, on November 6th, 2014. KTB closed in June, its customers no longer able to access their money, as the majority owner Tsvetan Vasilev was indicted for corporate embezzlement in absentia and placed on Interpol's and Schengen's most wanted lists. Bulgaria's central bank subsequently discovered a 4.22 billon leva ($2.71 billion USD) hole in KTB's accounts, which is much higher than Bulgaria's debt ceiling. This is the nation's worst banking crisis in two decades. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/25_Years_After_Democracy_Paskova_006.jpg Protesters against bank KTB (Corporate Commercial Bank) gather around Grozdan Karadjov (partially seen on far left,) a politician from the center-right political coalition Reformatorski Blok (Reformist Bloc,) in front of the Bulgarian National Assembly in Bulgaria's capital Sofia, on November 6th, 2014. KTB closed in June, its customers no longer able to access their money, as the majority owner Tsvetan Vasilev was indicted for corporate embezzlement in absentia and placed on Interpol's and Schengen's most wanted lists. Bulgaria's central bank subsequently discovered a 4.22 billon leva ($2.71 billion USD) hole in KTB's accounts, which is much higher than Bulgaria's debt ceiling. This is the nation's worst banking crisis in two decades. Protesters against bank KTB (Corporate Commercial Bank) gather around Grozdan Karadjov (partially seen on far left,) a politician from the center-right political coalition Reformatorski Blok (Reformist Bloc,) in front of the Bulgarian National Assembly in Bulgaria's capital Sofia, on November 6th, 2014. KTB closed in June, its customers no longer able to access their money, as the majority owner Tsvetan Vasilev was indicted for corporate embezzlement in absentia and placed on Interpol's and Schengen's most wanted lists. Bulgaria's central bank subsequently discovered a 4.22 billon leva ($2.71 billion USD) hole in KTB's accounts, which is much higher than Bulgaria's debt ceiling. This is the nation's worst banking crisis in two decades. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/25_Years_After_Democracy_Paskova_007.jpg Today, October 5th, 2014, is Midterm Elections day in the States - its multi-party ticket an unimaginable reality in autocratic Bulgaria pre-1989. (R-L) Simona Kostova, from Bulgaria's voting commission, watches as a woman prepares to place her vote in the ballot box during Parliamentary elections in the nation's capital, Sofia. Despite a month-long vacillation on the make-up of their political coalitions and their new prime minister - and that only 49% of the population turned up to vote today - party leaders narrowly avoided reelections, with former prime minister and leader of center-right party GERB Boyko Borisov reinstated at the post. Today, October 5th, 2014, is Midterm Elections day in the States - its multi-party ticket an unimaginable reality in autocratic Bulgaria pre-1989. (R-L) Simona Kostova, from Bulgaria's voting commission, watches as a woman prepares to place her vote in the ballot box during Parliamentary elections in the nation's capital, Sofia. Despite a month-long vacillation on the make-up of their political coalitions and their new prime minister - and that only 49% of the population turned up to vote today - party leaders narrowly avoided reelections, with former prime minister and leader of center-right party GERB Boyko Borisov reinstated at the post. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/25_Years_After_Democracy_Paskova_008.jpg Art during the Communist years was highly sanitized - and artists who chose not to show a utopian view of the country, censored and punished. The post-1989 years of Bulgarian art history renewed creativity of expression in its community - a gift especially to those who sought to express a variety of political ideas, or a non-idealized view of their society. A painting that used to decorate a school during the Communist era now hangs in the hallway of The Factory for Urban Art, seen in Bulgaria's capital Sofia, on November 7th, 2014. The factory is a former wholesale warehouse where artists now rent studios and create, for much lower rates than in the rest of the city. The art collective Destructive Creation - the same which recently spray-painted Sofia's Monument to the Soviet Army in Western superhero outfits - initiated the idea for the factory. Art during the Communist years was highly sanitized - and artists who chose not to show a utopian view of the country, censored and punished. The post-1989 years of Bulgarian art history renewed creativity of expression in its community - a gift especially to those who sought to express a variety of political ideas, or a non-idealized view of their society. A painting that used to decorate a school during the Communist era now hangs in the hallway of The Factory for Urban Art, seen in Bulgaria's capital Sofia, on November 7th, 2014. The factory is a former wholesale warehouse where artists now rent studios and create, for much lower rates than in the rest of the city. The art collective Destructive Creation - the same which recently spray-painted Sofia's Monument to the Soviet Army in Western superhero outfits - initiated the idea for the factory. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/25_Years_After_Democracy_Paskova_009.jpg The path to democracy is, at times, lonely. Bozhidar Tomalevski, chairman of the political party Drugata Bulgaria (The Other Bulgaria, which represents Bulgarian emigrants,) waits for protesters against bank KTB (Corporate Commercial Bank,) before a planned picketing event in Bulgaria's capital Sofia on November 8th, 2014. Despite widespread outrage over the bank's closing, only a handful of people arrived; the protest was canceled. "Democracy is a habit. And many here consider it a singular person's effort, not a collective one," said Tomalevski of this protest's scant attendance. KTB closed in June, its customers no longer able to access their money, as the majority owner Tsvetan Vasilev was indicted for corporate embezzlement in absentia and placed on Interpol's and Schengen's most wanted lists. Bulgaria's central bank subsequently discovered a 4.22 billon leva ($2.71 billion USD) hole in KTB's accounts, which is much higher than Bulgaria's debt ceiling. This is the nation's worst banking crisis in two decades. The path to democracy is, at times, lonely. Bozhidar Tomalevski, chairman of the political party Drugata Bulgaria (The Other Bulgaria, which represents Bulgarian emigrants,) waits for protesters against bank KTB (Corporate Commercial Bank,) before a planned picketing event in Bulgaria's capital Sofia on November 8th, 2014. Despite widespread outrage over the bank's closing, only a handful of people arrived; the protest was canceled. "Democracy is a habit. And many here consider it a singular person's effort, not a collective one," said Tomalevski of this protest's scant attendance. KTB closed in June, its customers no longer able to access their money, as the majority owner Tsvetan Vasilev was indicted for corporate embezzlement in absentia and placed on Interpol's and Schengen's most wanted lists. Bulgaria's central bank subsequently discovered a 4.22 billon leva ($2.71 billion USD) hole in KTB's accounts, which is much higher than Bulgaria's debt ceiling. This is the nation's worst banking crisis in two decades. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/25_Years_After_Democracy_Paskova_010.jpg A man sells broomsticks from the roof of his car, near an outdoor market in Vidin, Bulgaria on October 18th, 2014. Many Bulgarians sell personal belongings, fruit and vegetables grown at home, or resell goods as a supplement to their primary earnings. A man sells broomsticks from the roof of his car, near an outdoor market in Vidin, Bulgaria on October 18th, 2014. Many Bulgarians sell personal belongings, fruit and vegetables grown at home, or resell goods as a supplement to their primary earnings. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/25_Years_After_Democracy_Paskova_011.jpg A woman sells geese from the trunk of her car, at an outdoor market in Vidin, Bulgaria on October 18th, 2014. Many Bulgarians sell personal belongings, fruit and vegetables grown at home, or resell goods as a supplement to their primary earnings. A woman sells geese from the trunk of her car, at an outdoor market in Vidin, Bulgaria on October 18th, 2014. Many Bulgarians sell personal belongings, fruit and vegetables grown at home, or resell goods as a supplement to their primary earnings. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/25_Years_After_Democracy_Paskova_012.jpg (L-R) Katya Petrova, 34, embraces her two-year-old daughter Ivana Nikolova, 2, next to her friend Minka Petrova, in Vidin, Bulgaria, on October 30th, 2014. Katya decided to open a bar with help from mom, after being refused employment following the birth of her child. To supplement her family's income, Katya's mother has worked in Italy as a hospice worker for the past 14 years. (L-R) Katya Petrova, 34, embraces her two-year-old daughter Ivana Nikolova, 2, next to her friend Minka Petrova, in Vidin, Bulgaria, on October 30th, 2014. Katya decided to open a bar with help from mom, after being refused employment following the birth of her child. To supplement her family's income, Katya's mother has worked in Italy as a hospice worker for the past 14 years. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/25_Years_After_Democracy_Paskova_013.jpg Hair dresser Pavlinka Paskova, 59, cuts the hair of Stanko Petrov Vulchev, 80, in Vidin, Bulgaria, on October 30th, 2014. Paskova says she has very few customers in this town of waning population: "There's little hope of prosperity for the young here - they've all emigrated." Bulgaria has the most extreme population decline in the world — much due to post-1989 emigration, high death rates and low birth rates. There are so few people of child-bearing age in the nation that population statistics project a 30-percent decrease by 2060, from 7.2 million to just over 5 million. In other words, Bulgaria’s population declines by 164 people a day, or 60,000 people a year — 60 percent of them aged over 65. Hair dresser Pavlinka Paskova, 59, cuts the hair of Stanko Petrov Vulchev, 80, in Vidin, Bulgaria, on October 30th, 2014. Paskova says she has very few customers in this town of waning population: "There's little hope of prosperity for the young here - they've all emigrated." Bulgaria has the most extreme population decline in the world — much due to post-1989 emigration, high death rates and low birth rates. There are so few people of child-bearing age in the nation that population statistics project a 30-percent decrease by 2060, from 7.2 million to just over 5 million. In other words, Bulgaria’s population declines by 164 people a day, or 60,000 people a year — 60 percent of them aged over 65. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/25_Years_After_Democracy_Paskova_014.jpg Veselka Vasileva gazes off into space as the TV drones on at a grocery store in Sinagovtsi, a village of rapidly declining population in Bulgaria, on October 22nd, 2014. Bulgaria has the most extreme population decline in the world — much of it due to post-1989 emigration, high death rates and low birth rates. There are so few people of child-bearing age in the nation that population statistics project a 30-percent decrease by 2060, from 7.2 million to just over 5 million. In other words, Bulgaria’s population declines by 164 people a day, or 60,000 people a year — 60 percent of them aged over 65. Veselka Vasileva gazes off into space as the TV drones on at a grocery store in Sinagovtsi, a village of rapidly declining population in Bulgaria, on October 22nd, 2014. Bulgaria has the most extreme population decline in the world — much of it due to post-1989 emigration, high death rates and low birth rates. There are so few people of child-bearing age in the nation that population statistics project a 30-percent decrease by 2060, from 7.2 million to just over 5 million. In other words, Bulgaria’s population declines by 164 people a day, or 60,000 people a year — 60 percent of them aged over 65. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/25_Years_After_Democracy_Paskova_016.jpg A man stands on a rooftop below a handmade electrical grid hanging over a Roma village, as people turn up to vote in October's Parliamentary elections in the nation's capital, Sofia. Today, October 5th, 2014, is also Midterm Elections day in the States - its multi-party ticket an unimaginable reality in autocratic Bulgaria pre-1989. Despite a month-long vacillation on the make-up of their political coalitions and their new prime minister - and that only 49% of the population turned up to vote today - party leaders narrowly avoided reelections, with former prime minister and leader of center-right party GERB Boyko Borisov reinstated at the post. A man stands on a rooftop below a handmade electrical grid hanging over a Roma village, as people turn up to vote in October's Parliamentary elections in the nation's capital, Sofia. Today, October 5th, 2014, is also Midterm Elections day in the States - its multi-party ticket an unimaginable reality in autocratic Bulgaria pre-1989. Despite a month-long vacillation on the make-up of their political coalitions and their new prime minister - and that only 49% of the population turned up to vote today - party leaders narrowly avoided reelections, with former prime minister and leader of center-right party GERB Boyko Borisov reinstated at the post. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/25_Years_After_Democracy_Paskova_017.jpg A man imprisoned for vehicular manslaughter in Belene pauses while in the prison chapel, on November 10th, 2014. Many women and men (like my grandfather) who didn't belong to the Communist party in the 1950s languished in the gulag-like forced labor camp, an island on the Danube river. Belene still houses prisoners, some for petty theft, some for larger crimes. The section of the island that was once dedicated to imprisoning political dissidents, now in crumbles, is a haunting reminder of the dangers posed by totalitarianism in Eastern Europe. A man imprisoned for vehicular manslaughter in Belene pauses while in the prison chapel, on November 10th, 2014. Many women and men (like my grandfather) who didn't belong to the Communist party in the 1950s languished in the gulag-like forced labor camp, an island on the Danube river. Belene still houses prisoners, some for petty theft, some for larger crimes. The section of the island that was once dedicated to imprisoning political dissidents, now in crumbles, is a haunting reminder of the dangers posed by totalitarianism in Eastern Europe. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/25_Years_After_Democracy_Paskova_018.jpg Boys rest under a poster for Bulgaria's Socialist party on a rusty bus stop on October 17th, 2014, in Rabrovo - the only village with a hospital near Kanitz, a nearly abandoned village of 6. Bulgaria has the most extreme population decline in the world — much due to post-1989 emigration, high death rates and low birth rates. There are so few people of child-bearing age in the nation that population statistics project a 30-percent decrease by 2060, from 7.2 million to just over 5 million. In other words, Bulgaria’s population declines by 164 people a day, or 60,000 people a year — 60 percent of them aged over 65. Boys rest under a poster for Bulgaria's Socialist party on a rusty bus stop on October 17th, 2014, in Rabrovo - the only village with a hospital near Kanitz, a nearly abandoned village of 6. Bulgaria has the most extreme population decline in the world — much due to post-1989 emigration, high death rates and low birth rates. There are so few people of child-bearing age in the nation that population statistics project a 30-percent decrease by 2060, from 7.2 million to just over 5 million. In other words, Bulgaria’s population declines by 164 people a day, or 60,000 people a year — 60 percent of them aged over 65. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/25_Years_After_Democracy_Paskova_019.jpg A woman walks by an abandoned building clad in street scenes of Bulgaria's capital, Sofia, on October 5th, 2014. The European Union intermittently cuts off financial aid to the country when faced with mounting evidence of misappropriated funds, meant for construction and renovation. A recent finding by Study for Democracy, a Sofia-based think tank, labeled the country’s level of corruption at its highest in 15 years, across civil and political sectors alike. A woman walks by an abandoned building clad in street scenes of Bulgaria's capital, Sofia, on October 5th, 2014. The European Union intermittently cuts off financial aid to the country when faced with mounting evidence of misappropriated funds, meant for construction and renovation. A recent finding by Study for Democracy, a Sofia-based think tank, labeled the country’s level of corruption at its highest in 15 years, across civil and political sectors alike. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/25_Years_After_Democracy_Paskova_020.jpg A goat looks out of a window of a crumbling building in Belene on November 10th, 2014. Many women and men (like my grandfather) who didn't belong to the Communist party in the 1950s languished in the gulag-like forced labor camp, an island on the Danube river. Belene still houses prisoners, some for petty theft, some for larger crimes. The section of the island that was once dedicated to imprisoning political dissidents, now in crumbles, is a haunting reminder of the dangers once posed by an independent mind in Eastern Europe. A goat looks out of a window of a crumbling building in Belene on November 10th, 2014. Many women and men (like my grandfather) who didn't belong to the Communist party in the 1950s languished in the gulag-like forced labor camp, an island on the Danube river. Belene still houses prisoners, some for petty theft, some for larger crimes. The section of the island that was once dedicated to imprisoning political dissidents, now in crumbles, is a haunting reminder of the dangers once posed by an independent mind in Eastern Europe. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/25_Years_After_Democracy_Paskova_021.jpg A look through the window of an abandoned school toward Dunavtsi, a town of waning population in Bulgaria, on October 27th, 2014. Bulgaria has the most extreme population decline in the world — much of it due to post-1989 emigration, high death rates and low birth rates. There are so few people of child-bearing age in the nation that population statistics project a 30-percent decrease by 2060, from 7.2 million to just over 5 million. In other words, Bulgaria’s population declines by 164 people a day, or 60,000 people a year — 60 percent of them aged over 65. A look through the window of an abandoned school toward Dunavtsi, a town of waning population in Bulgaria, on October 27th, 2014. Bulgaria has the most extreme population decline in the world — much of it due to post-1989 emigration, high death rates and low birth rates. There are so few people of child-bearing age in the nation that population statistics project a 30-percent decrease by 2060, from 7.2 million to just over 5 million. In other words, Bulgaria’s population declines by 164 people a day, or 60,000 people a year — 60 percent of them aged over 65. https://yanapaskova.com/communism-relived 2026-03-16 monthly 0.8 https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_001.jpg A sign reading "26th of July - Victory of Ideas", is seen in the port city of Mariel, Cuba, a town whose tranquil appearance belies its important place in both the history and future of Cuban-American interaction. It is where Russians unloaded nuclear warheads in the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, and the gateway through which 125,000 Miami-bound emigres fled during the Mariel Boatlift of 1980. The town is now the site of construction of a deepwater container port and a free-trade zone, a critical ingredient for which will be the future of the U.S. embargo against Cuba, in place for more than 50 years but now under speculation of being lifted. A sign reading "26th of July - Victory of Ideas", is seen in the port city of Mariel, Cuba, a town whose tranquil appearance belies its important place in both the history and future of Cuban-American interaction. It is where Russians unloaded nuclear warheads in the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, and the gateway through which 125,000 Miami-bound emigres fled during the Mariel Boatlift of 1980. The town is now the site of construction of a deepwater container port and a free-trade zone, a critical ingredient for which will be the future of the U.S. embargo against Cuba, in place for more than 50 years but now under speculation of being lifted. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_002.jpg Jose Alonzo, sporting a USA tattoo, waters the plants in front of his house in the port city of Mariel, Cuba, a town whose tranquil appearance belies its important place in both the history and future of Cuban-American interaction. It is where Russians unloaded nuclear warheads in the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, and the gateway through which 125,000 Miami-bound emigres fled during the Mariel Boatlift of 1980. The town is now the site of construction of a deepwater container port and a free-trade zone, a critical ingredient for which will be the future of the U.S. embargo against Cuba, in place for more than 50 years but now under speculation of being lifted. Jose Alonzo, sporting a USA tattoo, waters the plants in front of his house in the port city of Mariel, Cuba, a town whose tranquil appearance belies its important place in both the history and future of Cuban-American interaction. It is where Russians unloaded nuclear warheads in the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, and the gateway through which 125,000 Miami-bound emigres fled during the Mariel Boatlift of 1980. The town is now the site of construction of a deepwater container port and a free-trade zone, a critical ingredient for which will be the future of the U.S. embargo against Cuba, in place for more than 50 years but now under speculation of being lifted. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_003.jpg Women drink fresh fruit juice from a snack shop in the center of the port city of Mariel, Cuba, a town whose tranquil appearance belies its important place in both the history and future of Cuban-American interaction. It is where Russians unloaded nuclear warheads in the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, and the gateway through which 125,000 Miami-bound emigres fled during the Mariel Boatlift of 1980. The town is now the site of construction of a deepwater container port and a free-trade zone, a critical ingredient for which will be the future of the U.S. embargo against Cuba, in place for more than 50 years but now under speculation of being lifted. Women drink fresh fruit juice from a snack shop in the center of the port city of Mariel, Cuba, a town whose tranquil appearance belies its important place in both the history and future of Cuban-American interaction. It is where Russians unloaded nuclear warheads in the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, and the gateway through which 125,000 Miami-bound emigres fled during the Mariel Boatlift of 1980. The town is now the site of construction of a deepwater container port and a free-trade zone, a critical ingredient for which will be the future of the U.S. embargo against Cuba, in place for more than 50 years but now under speculation of being lifted. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_004.jpg A girl takes orders in a late-night pizza joint, playing mostly American music from the 1980s and 1990s, in the port city of Mariel, Cuba, a town whose tranquil appearance belies its important place in both the history and future of Cuban-American interaction. It is where Russians unloaded nuclear warheads in the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, and the gateway through which 125,000 Miami-bound emigres fled during the Mariel Boatlift of 1980. The town is now the site of construction of a deepwater container port and a free-trade zone, a critical ingredient for which will be the future of the U.S. embargo against Cuba, in place for more than 50 years but now under speculation of being lifted. A girl takes orders in a late-night pizza joint, playing mostly American music from the 1980s and 1990s, in the port city of Mariel, Cuba, a town whose tranquil appearance belies its important place in both the history and future of Cuban-American interaction. It is where Russians unloaded nuclear warheads in the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, and the gateway through which 125,000 Miami-bound emigres fled during the Mariel Boatlift of 1980. The town is now the site of construction of a deepwater container port and a free-trade zone, a critical ingredient for which will be the future of the U.S. embargo against Cuba, in place for more than 50 years but now under speculation of being lifted. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_005.jpg Yasiel Valdivia waits for a bus with his brother, Michael Denis Fonteto (not seen,) in the port city of Mariel, on the way to visit their mother and grandmother a nearby village. Yasiel and Michael's uncle was amongst those who fled toward Florida in the Mariel Boatlift exodus of 1980. The brothers say he has not since regained permission to return, separating him from his sister (their mother) and his 93-year-old mother, for 35 years. Mariel is a town whose tranquil appearance belies its important place in both the history and future of Cuban-American interaction. It is where Russians unloaded nuclear warheads in the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, and the gateway through which 125,000 Miami-bound emigres fled during the Mariel Boatlift of 1980. The town is now the site of construction of a deepwater container port and a free-trade zone, a critical ingredient for which will be the future of the U.S. embargo against Cuba, in place for more than 50 years but now under speculation of being lifted. Yasiel Valdivia waits for a bus with his brother, Michael Denis Fonteto (not seen,) in the port city of Mariel, on the way to visit their mother and grandmother a nearby village. Yasiel and Michael's uncle was amongst those who fled toward Florida in the Mariel Boatlift exodus of 1980. The brothers say he has not since regained permission to return, separating him from his sister (their mother) and his 93-year-old mother, for 35 years. Mariel is a town whose tranquil appearance belies its important place in both the history and future of Cuban-American interaction. It is where Russians unloaded nuclear warheads in the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, and the gateway through which 125,000 Miami-bound emigres fled during the Mariel Boatlift of 1980. The town is now the site of construction of a deepwater container port and a free-trade zone, a critical ingredient for which will be the future of the U.S. embargo against Cuba, in place for more than 50 years but now under speculation of being lifted. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_006.jpg (L-R) Michael Denis Fonteto, his mother, Raizel Fonte Muñoz, grandmother Aida Muñoz, and brother, Yasiel Valdivia, spend time together in a village close to the port city of Mariel, Cuba. Yasiel and Michael's uncle was amongst those who fled toward Florida in the Mariel Boatlift exodus of 1980. The brothers say he has not since regained permission to return, separating him from his sister (their mother) and his 93-year-old mother, for 35 years. Mariel is a town whose tranquil appearance belies its important place in both the history and future of Cuban-American interaction. It is where Russians unloaded nuclear warheads in the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, and the gateway through which 125,000 Miami-bound emigres fled during the Mariel Boatlift of 1980. The town is now the site of construction of a deepwater container port and a free-trade zone, a critical ingredient for which will be the future of the U.S. embargo against Cuba, in place for more than 50 years but now under speculation of being lifted. (L-R) Michael Denis Fonteto, his mother, Raizel Fonte Muñoz, grandmother Aida Muñoz, and brother, Yasiel Valdivia, spend time together in a village close to the port city of Mariel, Cuba. Yasiel and Michael's uncle was amongst those who fled toward Florida in the Mariel Boatlift exodus of 1980. The brothers say he has not since regained permission to return, separating him from his sister (their mother) and his 93-year-old mother, for 35 years. Mariel is a town whose tranquil appearance belies its important place in both the history and future of Cuban-American interaction. It is where Russians unloaded nuclear warheads in the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, and the gateway through which 125,000 Miami-bound emigres fled during the Mariel Boatlift of 1980. The town is now the site of construction of a deepwater container port and a free-trade zone, a critical ingredient for which will be the future of the U.S. embargo against Cuba, in place for more than 50 years but now under speculation of being lifted. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_007.jpg Traffic moves through the center of the port city of Mariel, Cuba, a town whose tranquil appearance belies its important place in both the history and future of Cuban-American interaction. It is where Russians unloaded nuclear warheads in the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, and the gateway through which 125,000 Miami-bound emigres fled during the Mariel Boatlift of 1980. The town is now the site of construction of a deepwater container port and a free-trade zone, a critical ingredient for which will be the future of the U.S. embargo against Cuba, in place for more than 50 years but now under speculation of being lifted. Traffic moves through the center of the port city of Mariel, Cuba, a town whose tranquil appearance belies its important place in both the history and future of Cuban-American interaction. It is where Russians unloaded nuclear warheads in the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, and the gateway through which 125,000 Miami-bound emigres fled during the Mariel Boatlift of 1980. The town is now the site of construction of a deepwater container port and a free-trade zone, a critical ingredient for which will be the future of the U.S. embargo against Cuba, in place for more than 50 years but now under speculation of being lifted. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_008.jpg An everyday scene in the city park of the port city of Mariel, Cuba, a town whose tranquil appearance belies its important place in both the history and future of Cuban-American interaction. It is where Russians unloaded nuclear warheads in the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, and the gateway through which 125,000 Miami-bound emigres fled during the Mariel Boatlift of 1980. The town is now the site of construction of a deepwater container port and a free-trade zone, a critical ingredient for which will be the future of the U.S. embargo against Cuba, in place for more than 50 years but now under speculation of being lifted. An everyday scene in the city park of the port city of Mariel, Cuba, a town whose tranquil appearance belies its important place in both the history and future of Cuban-American interaction. It is where Russians unloaded nuclear warheads in the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, and the gateway through which 125,000 Miami-bound emigres fled during the Mariel Boatlift of 1980. The town is now the site of construction of a deepwater container port and a free-trade zone, a critical ingredient for which will be the future of the U.S. embargo against Cuba, in place for more than 50 years but now under speculation of being lifted. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_009.jpg (L-R) Melani Conpagine, 13, holds her brother Mauro Peña, 1, next to the wife of a relative, Nancy Mena, 48, as she gives her father, Juaneto Mena, 82, a shave in the port city of Mariel, Cuba, a town whose tranquil appearance belies its important place in both the history and future of Cuban-American interaction. It is where Russians unloaded nuclear warheads in the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, and the gateway through which 125,000 Miami-bound emigres fled during the Mariel Boatlift of 1980. The town is now the site of construction of a deepwater container port and a free-trade zone, a critical ingredient for which will be the future of the U.S. embargo against Cuba, in place for more than 50 years but now under speculation of being lifted. (L-R) Melani Conpagine, 13, holds her brother Mauro Peña, 1, next to the wife of a relative, Nancy Mena, 48, as she gives her father, Juaneto Mena, 82, a shave in the port city of Mariel, Cuba, a town whose tranquil appearance belies its important place in both the history and future of Cuban-American interaction. It is where Russians unloaded nuclear warheads in the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, and the gateway through which 125,000 Miami-bound emigres fled during the Mariel Boatlift of 1980. The town is now the site of construction of a deepwater container port and a free-trade zone, a critical ingredient for which will be the future of the U.S. embargo against Cuba, in place for more than 50 years but now under speculation of being lifted. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_010.jpg A bakery features a portrait of current president of Cuba Raúl Castro in the port city of Mariel, Cuba, a town whose tranquil appearance belies its important place in both the history and future of Cuban-American interaction. It is where Russians unloaded nuclear warheads in the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, and the gateway through which 125,000 Miami-bound emigres fled during the Mariel Boatlift of 1980. The town is now the site of construction of a deepwater container port and a free-trade zone, a critical ingredient for which will be the future of the U.S. embargo against Cuba, in place for more than 50 years but now under speculation of being lifted. A bakery features a portrait of current president of Cuba Raúl Castro in the port city of Mariel, Cuba, a town whose tranquil appearance belies its important place in both the history and future of Cuban-American interaction. It is where Russians unloaded nuclear warheads in the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, and the gateway through which 125,000 Miami-bound emigres fled during the Mariel Boatlift of 1980. The town is now the site of construction of a deepwater container port and a free-trade zone, a critical ingredient for which will be the future of the U.S. embargo against Cuba, in place for more than 50 years but now under speculation of being lifted. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_011.jpg A pro-government poster and a newspaper biography of former Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez, with whom Cuba shares a trade relationship and a distaste for American capitalism the port city of Mariel, Cuba, a town whose tranquil appearance belies its important place in both the history and future of Cuban-American interaction. It is where Russians unloaded nuclear warheads in the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, and the gateway through which 125,000 Miami-bound emigres fled during the Mariel Boatlift of 1980. The town is now the site of construction of a deepwater container port and a free-trade zone, a critical ingredient for which will be the future of the U.S. embargo against Cuba, in place for more than 50 years but now under speculation of being lifted. A pro-government poster and a newspaper biography of former Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez, with whom Cuba shares a trade relationship and a distaste for American capitalism the port city of Mariel, Cuba, a town whose tranquil appearance belies its important place in both the history and future of Cuban-American interaction. It is where Russians unloaded nuclear warheads in the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, and the gateway through which 125,000 Miami-bound emigres fled during the Mariel Boatlift of 1980. The town is now the site of construction of a deepwater container port and a free-trade zone, a critical ingredient for which will be the future of the U.S. embargo against Cuba, in place for more than 50 years but now under speculation of being lifted. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_012.jpg Women practice Chen-style t'ai chi ch'uan under a fresco of Cuban revolutionary philosopher and political theorist José Martí and communist revolutionary leader Che Guevara in Mariel, Cuba. Images of government idols - a famously ubiquitous sight across Cuba - fill the space that an absence of advertising leaves in printed media, billboards, and edifices. Women practice Chen-style t'ai chi ch'uan under a fresco of Cuban revolutionary philosopher and political theorist José Martí and communist revolutionary leader Che Guevara in Mariel, Cuba. Images of government idols - a famously ubiquitous sight across Cuba - fill the space that an absence of advertising leaves in printed media, billboards, and edifices. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_013.jpg (L-R) Yandi Corrioso Samoraz, 22, and Raymel Medina, 16, go for an evening dip in the water, with construction of the new port visible in the background, in Mariel, Cuba. Raymel says he'd like to learn more about the world, but extremely limited internet access in his city, and in the country in general, makes this a challenge. (Internet access is either difficult to find, or prohibitively expensive.) Mariel's tranquil appearance belies its important place in both the history and future of Cuban-American interaction. It is where Russians unloaded nuclear warheads in the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, and the gateway through which 125,000 Miami-bound emigres fled during the Mariel Boatlift of 1980. The town is now the site of construction of a deepwater container port and a free-trade zone, a critical ingredient for which will be the future of the U.S. embargo against Cuba, in place for more than 50 years but now under speculation of being lifted. (L-R) Yandi Corrioso Samoraz, 22, and Raymel Medina, 16, go for an evening dip in the water, with construction of the new port visible in the background, in Mariel, Cuba. Raymel says he'd like to learn more about the world, but extremely limited internet access in his city, and in the country in general, makes this a challenge. (Internet access is either difficult to find, or prohibitively expensive.) Mariel's tranquil appearance belies its important place in both the history and future of Cuban-American interaction. It is where Russians unloaded nuclear warheads in the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, and the gateway through which 125,000 Miami-bound emigres fled during the Mariel Boatlift of 1980. The town is now the site of construction of a deepwater container port and a free-trade zone, a critical ingredient for which will be the future of the U.S. embargo against Cuba, in place for more than 50 years but now under speculation of being lifted. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_014.jpg Raymel Medina, 16, (center,) relaxes with friends after an evening dip in the water in the port city of Mariel, Cuba. He says he'd like to learn more about the world, but extremely limited internet access in his city, and in the country in general, makes this a challenge. Internet in Cuba is either difficult to find, or prohibitively expensive. Travel outside of the island is also forbidden to most, except to those whose jobs allows it, or have a government connection. Raymel Medina, 16, (center,) relaxes with friends after an evening dip in the water in the port city of Mariel, Cuba. He says he'd like to learn more about the world, but extremely limited internet access in his city, and in the country in general, makes this a challenge. Internet in Cuba is either difficult to find, or prohibitively expensive. Travel outside of the island is also forbidden to most, except to those whose jobs allows it, or have a government connection. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_015.jpg A bus transports its passengers to Mariel, a port city whose tranquil appearance belies its important place in both the history and future of Cuban-American interaction. Here is where the Russian navy unloaded its nuclear warheads in the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, as well as the site of the famous Mariel Boatlift of 1980, when 125,000 Miami-bound emigres fled the island during a 6-month lift on travel restrictions to the U.S. Now, Mariel's largest development project in history - a deepwater container port and a free-trade zone - aims to attract foreign investment, especially that of the U.S. A critical ingredient for its success will be the status of the U.S. embargo against Cuba, in place for more than 50 years, but now under speculation of being lifted. A bus transports its passengers to Mariel, a port city whose tranquil appearance belies its important place in both the history and future of Cuban-American interaction. Here is where the Russian navy unloaded its nuclear warheads in the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, as well as the site of the famous Mariel Boatlift of 1980, when 125,000 Miami-bound emigres fled the island during a 6-month lift on travel restrictions to the U.S. Now, Mariel's largest development project in history - a deepwater container port and a free-trade zone - aims to attract foreign investment, especially that of the U.S. A critical ingredient for its success will be the status of the U.S. embargo against Cuba, in place for more than 50 years, but now under speculation of being lifted. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_016.jpg Apartment blocks with a crumbling infrastructure are seen in the provinces on the way to the port city of Mariel, Cuba, on April 19, 2015. Statistics label 7 out of every 10 Cuban houses in need of major repairs, with the province surrounding the capital requiring approximately 300,000 more inhabitable properties. Mariel's tranquil appearance belies its important place in both the history and future of Cuban-American interaction. It is where Russians unloaded nuclear warheads in the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, and the gateway through which 125,000 Miami-bound emigres fled during the Mariel Boatlift of 1980. The town is now the site of construction of a deepwater container port and a free-trade zone, a critical ingredient for which will be the future of the U.S. embargo against Cuba, in place for more than 50 years but now under speculation of being lifted. Apartment blocks with a crumbling infrastructure are seen in the provinces on the way to the port city of Mariel, Cuba, on April 19, 2015. Statistics label 7 out of every 10 Cuban houses in need of major repairs, with the province surrounding the capital requiring approximately 300,000 more inhabitable properties. Mariel's tranquil appearance belies its important place in both the history and future of Cuban-American interaction. It is where Russians unloaded nuclear warheads in the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, and the gateway through which 125,000 Miami-bound emigres fled during the Mariel Boatlift of 1980. The town is now the site of construction of a deepwater container port and a free-trade zone, a critical ingredient for which will be the future of the U.S. embargo against Cuba, in place for more than 50 years but now under speculation of being lifted. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_017.jpg A woman waits her turn at a bodega in Havana, Cuba, near a photo of former Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez, with whom Cuba used to share a trade relationship and a distaste for American capitalism. Bodegas provide food rations - basics like rice, flour, sugar and beans, that exclude green veggies, most meat, spices or dairy (which is restricted to all but children and pregnant women) - to each Cuban citizen via the Libreta de Abastecimiento (supplies booklet,) which establishes the kind, amount and frequency of food allotted per person. The rations, which supply approximately 1/3 of Cubans' food requirements, have been kept at stable, subsidized prices since the program's inception in 1962 - as food can otherwise be forbiddingly expensive, and even at bodegas, hard to come by. This is due to a combination of inefficient farming policies, the U.S. embargo (in place since the 60s,) and the collapse of the Soviet Union in the 90s (which until then had filled the U.S.-Cuba trade vacuum with subsidies.) Food shortages, while common today, were especially sharp then, both in Bulgaria and Cuba, as the two countries tried to adjust to a non-Soviet-sponsored economy. A woman waits her turn at a bodega in Havana, Cuba, near a photo of former Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez, with whom Cuba used to share a trade relationship and a distaste for American capitalism. Bodegas provide food rations - basics like rice, flour, sugar and beans, that exclude green veggies, most meat, spices or dairy (which is restricted to all but children and pregnant women) - to each Cuban citizen via the Libreta de Abastecimiento (supplies booklet,) which establishes the kind, amount and frequency of food allotted per person. The rations, which supply approximately 1/3 of Cubans' food requirements, have been kept at stable, subsidized prices since the program's inception in 1962 - as food can otherwise be forbiddingly expensive, and even at bodegas, hard to come by. This is due to a combination of inefficient farming policies, the U.S. embargo (in place since the 60s,) and the collapse of the Soviet Union in the 90s (which until then had filled the U.S.-Cuba trade vacuum with subsidies.) Food shortages, while common today, were especially sharp then, both in Bulgaria and Cuba, as the two countries tried to adjust to a non-Soviet-sponsored economy. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_018.jpg Looking into a private barber shop in the Havana Vieja neighborhood of Havana, Cuba. Since privatization was first allowed within Cuba's state-owned socialist system in the mid-70s, the requirements for those allowed to be cuentapropistas (small business entrepreneurs - whose practice wasn't allowed in Bulgaria and most of Eastern Europe until the collapse of communism) have fluctuated from restrictive to less so - the latter in the Raúl Castro era of 2008 and beyond. But a clear disincentive to private business expansion remains: if payroll surpasses 5 employees or a $2,000 yearly profit, taxes increase disproportionately (from 15% to 50% in case of the latter.) Looking into a private barber shop in the Havana Vieja neighborhood of Havana, Cuba. Since privatization was first allowed within Cuba's state-owned socialist system in the mid-70s, the requirements for those allowed to be cuentapropistas (small business entrepreneurs - whose practice wasn't allowed in Bulgaria and most of Eastern Europe until the collapse of communism) have fluctuated from restrictive to less so - the latter in the Raúl Castro era of 2008 and beyond. But a clear disincentive to private business expansion remains: if payroll surpasses 5 employees or a $2,000 yearly profit, taxes increase disproportionately (from 15% to 50% in case of the latter.) https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_019.jpg A list of available products hangs outside of a bodega (convenience store) in Havana, Cuba. Bodegas provide food rations - basics like rice, flour, sugar and beans, that exclude green veggies, most meat, spices or dairy (which is restricted to all but children and pregnant women) - to each Cuban citizen via the Libreta de Abastecimiento (supplies booklet,) which establishes the kind, amount and frequency of food allotted per person. The rations, which supply approximately 1/3 of Cubans' food requirements, have been kept at stable, subsidized prices since the program's inception in 1962 - as food can otherwise be forbiddingly expensive, and even at bodegas, hard to come by. This is due to a combination of inefficient farming policies, the U.S. embargo (in place since the 60s,) and the collapse of the Soviet Union in the 90s (which until then had filled the U.S.-Cuba trade vacuum with subsidies.) Food shortages, while common today, were especially sharp then, both in Bulgaria and Cuba, as the two countries tried to adjust to a non-Soviet-sponsored economy. A list of available products hangs outside of a bodega (convenience store) in Havana, Cuba. Bodegas provide food rations - basics like rice, flour, sugar and beans, that exclude green veggies, most meat, spices or dairy (which is restricted to all but children and pregnant women) - to each Cuban citizen via the Libreta de Abastecimiento (supplies booklet,) which establishes the kind, amount and frequency of food allotted per person. The rations, which supply approximately 1/3 of Cubans' food requirements, have been kept at stable, subsidized prices since the program's inception in 1962 - as food can otherwise be forbiddingly expensive, and even at bodegas, hard to come by. This is due to a combination of inefficient farming policies, the U.S. embargo (in place since the 60s,) and the collapse of the Soviet Union in the 90s (which until then had filled the U.S.-Cuba trade vacuum with subsidies.) Food shortages, while common today, were especially sharp then, both in Bulgaria and Cuba, as the two countries tried to adjust to a non-Soviet-sponsored economy. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_020.jpg Maydelin Pérez Pérez, 38, sells empanadas with her three-year-old daughter, Lorena Sofia Reyez, in the Havana Vieja neighborhood of Havana, Cuba. Pérez is divorced, cannot afford daycare for her four children, and says her ex-husband contributes the equivalent to $1 of child support monthly. She earned less at her government job as a secretary than she does now, as one of Cuba's cuentapropistas (small business entrepreneurs, whose practice wasn't allowed in Bulgaria and most of Eastern Europe until the collapse of communism.) Since privatization was first allowed within Cuba's state-owned socialist system in the mid-70s, the requirements for those allowed to be cuentapropistas have fluctuated from restrictive to less so - the latter in the Raúl Castro era of 2008 and beyond. But a clear disincentive to private business expansion remains, however: if payroll surpasses 5 employees or a $2,000 yearly profit, taxes increase disproportionately (from 15% to 50% in case of the latter.) Maydelin Pérez Pérez, 38, sells empanadas with her three-year-old daughter, Lorena Sofia Reyez, in the Havana Vieja neighborhood of Havana, Cuba. Pérez is divorced, cannot afford daycare for her four children, and says her ex-husband contributes the equivalent to $1 of child support monthly. She earned less at her government job as a secretary than she does now, as one of Cuba's cuentapropistas (small business entrepreneurs, whose practice wasn't allowed in Bulgaria and most of Eastern Europe until the collapse of communism.) Since privatization was first allowed within Cuba's state-owned socialist system in the mid-70s, the requirements for those allowed to be cuentapropistas have fluctuated from restrictive to less so - the latter in the Raúl Castro era of 2008 and beyond. But a clear disincentive to private business expansion remains, however: if payroll surpasses 5 employees or a $2,000 yearly profit, taxes increase disproportionately (from 15% to 50% in case of the latter.) https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_021.jpg (L-R) Yosuan Gonzalez, 15, Lazaro Gutierrez, 16, Lorenzo Velasquez, 13, Noel Sandoval, 19, and a friend who preferred to remain unnamed (right, in blue,) chat with Emily Chanti, 4, and Yeseña Kagemusa, 6, on April 17, 2015 in Havana, Cuba. (L-R) Yosuan Gonzalez, 15, Lazaro Gutierrez, 16, Lorenzo Velasquez, 13, Noel Sandoval, 19, and a friend who preferred to remain unnamed (right, in blue,) chat with Emily Chanti, 4, and Yeseña Kagemusa, 6, on April 17, 2015 in Havana, Cuba. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_022b.jpg A little girl plays hide and seek with a friend in front of apartment blocks with a crumbling infrastructure in the Vedado neighborhood of Havana, Cuba, on April 16, 2015. Statistics label 7 out of every 10 Cuban houses in need of major repairs, with the province surrounding the capital requiring approximately 300,000 more inhabitable properties. A little girl plays hide and seek with a friend in front of apartment blocks with a crumbling infrastructure in the Vedado neighborhood of Havana, Cuba, on April 16, 2015. Statistics label 7 out of every 10 Cuban houses in need of major repairs, with the province surrounding the capital requiring approximately 300,000 more inhabitable properties. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_022.jpg (L-R) Daniel Alemán, 20, a model, and his girlfriend, Kaisa Garcia, 21, a dancer, enjoy each other's company before a Buena Fe concert at Mella theater in Havana, Cuba, on April 16, 2015. Their moments of privacy are rare; like many people their age, they will likely continue to live with their parents for many years before being able to afford living in a place of their own. Garcia wants to remain a dancer but does not think she can, on what she anticipates to be extremely low pay. "If you can forget about the economy, the safety here is nice," she says. "I just try to create a bubble in my mind away from anything that doesn't work in the country, and I am happy." (L-R) Daniel Alemán, 20, a model, and his girlfriend, Kaisa Garcia, 21, a dancer, enjoy each other's company before a Buena Fe concert at Mella theater in Havana, Cuba, on April 16, 2015. Their moments of privacy are rare; like many people their age, they will likely continue to live with their parents for many years before being able to afford living in a place of their own. Garcia wants to remain a dancer but does not think she can, on what she anticipates to be extremely low pay. "If you can forget about the economy, the safety here is nice," she says. "I just try to create a bubble in my mind away from anything that doesn't work in the country, and I am happy." https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_023.jpg A chicken is groomed, and its nails sharpened and augmented with a long, sharp nail made of a turtle shell, before a cock-fighting event at a sports arena on April 18, 2015 in Managua, Cuba. Cock-fighting in Cuba is in the gray area of legal - state-run events such as this (non-private) functions are permitted, but not monetary betting. This is in part due to lingering bitterness over the control U.S. mafia used to exercise over casinos and prostitution in pre-revolutionary Cuba, the income from which allowed crime lords a certain level of interference in the country's political matters. A chicken is groomed, and its nails sharpened and augmented with a long, sharp nail made of a turtle shell, before a cock-fighting event at a sports arena on April 18, 2015 in Managua, Cuba. Cock-fighting in Cuba is in the gray area of legal - state-run events such as this (non-private) functions are permitted, but not monetary betting. This is in part due to lingering bitterness over the control U.S. mafia used to exercise over casinos and prostitution in pre-revolutionary Cuba, the income from which allowed crime lords a certain level of interference in the country's political matters. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_024.jpg A man prepares whole grilled chicken for sale transported in the trunk of his Moskvitch, an automobile made by Russia from 1946 to 2002, before a cock-fighting event at a sports arena on April 18, 2015 in Managua, Cuba. Cock-fighting in Cuba is in the gray area of legal - state-run events such as this (non-private) functions are permitted, but not monetary betting. This is in part due to lingering bitterness over the control U.S. mafia used to exercise over casinos and prostitution in pre-revolutionary Cuba, the income from which allowed crime lords a certain level of interference in the country's political matters. A man prepares whole grilled chicken for sale transported in the trunk of his Moskvitch, an automobile made by Russia from 1946 to 2002, before a cock-fighting event at a sports arena on April 18, 2015 in Managua, Cuba. Cock-fighting in Cuba is in the gray area of legal - state-run events such as this (non-private) functions are permitted, but not monetary betting. This is in part due to lingering bitterness over the control U.S. mafia used to exercise over casinos and prostitution in pre-revolutionary Cuba, the income from which allowed crime lords a certain level of interference in the country's political matters. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_025.jpg A chicken's beak is tied shut to prevent premature pecking before a cock-fighting event at a sports arena on April 18, 2015 in Managua, Cuba. Cock-fighting in Cuba is in the gray area of legal - state-run events such as this (non-private) functions are permitted, but not monetary betting. This is in part due to lingering bitterness over the control U.S. mafia used to exercise over casinos and prostitution in pre-revolutionary Cuba, the income from which allowed crime lords a certain level of interference in the country's political matters. A chicken's beak is tied shut to prevent premature pecking before a cock-fighting event at a sports arena on April 18, 2015 in Managua, Cuba. Cock-fighting in Cuba is in the gray area of legal - state-run events such as this (non-private) functions are permitted, but not monetary betting. This is in part due to lingering bitterness over the control U.S. mafia used to exercise over casinos and prostitution in pre-revolutionary Cuba, the income from which allowed crime lords a certain level of interference in the country's political matters. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_026.jpg A participant in a march organized by the wives and female relatives of imprisoned political dissidents rests by a tree in Havana, Cuba. The opposition group, Damas de Blanco (Ladies in White,) attends Mass at Santa Rita church each Sunday, then marches around it clad in white, as a symbol of peace. Most complain of regular beatings and detainment - with one of the largest reported (75 of the group's members) in 2011 and 2012. In Catholic countries, Saint Rita is known as the patroness of impossible causes, or heartbroken women. A participant in a march organized by the wives and female relatives of imprisoned political dissidents rests by a tree in Havana, Cuba. The opposition group, Damas de Blanco (Ladies in White,) attends Mass at Santa Rita church each Sunday, then marches around it clad in white, as a symbol of peace. Most complain of regular beatings and detainment - with one of the largest reported (75 of the group's members) in 2011 and 2012. In Catholic countries, Saint Rita is known as the patroness of impossible causes, or heartbroken women. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_029b.jpg Retiree Lucilla Sulueta Cuesta, 66, gets her nails done by Liu Sanchez, 24, (not seen,) who works as a manicurist cuentaproprista (private business entrepreneur, whose practice wasn't allowed in Bulgaria and most of Eastern Europe until the collapse of communism,) in the Havana Vieja neighborhood of Havana, Cuba. Since privatization was first allowed within Cuba's state-owned socialist system in the mid-70s, the requirements for those allowed to be cuentapropistas have fluctuated from restrictive to less so - the latter in the Raúl Castro era of 2008 and beyond. But a clear disincentive to private business expansion remains: if payroll surpasses 5 employees or a $2,000 yearly profit, taxes increase disproportionately (from 15% to 50% in case of the latter.) Retiree Lucilla Sulueta Cuesta, 66, gets her nails done by Liu Sanchez, 24, (not seen,) who works as a manicurist cuentaproprista (private business entrepreneur, whose practice wasn't allowed in Bulgaria and most of Eastern Europe until the collapse of communism,) in the Havana Vieja neighborhood of Havana, Cuba. Since privatization was first allowed within Cuba's state-owned socialist system in the mid-70s, the requirements for those allowed to be cuentapropistas have fluctuated from restrictive to less so - the latter in the Raúl Castro era of 2008 and beyond. But a clear disincentive to private business expansion remains: if payroll surpasses 5 employees or a $2,000 yearly profit, taxes increase disproportionately (from 15% to 50% in case of the latter.) https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_028.jpg A room full of dancers mingle to the sounds of DJ Mike Polarni following a concert at Fabrica de Arte, in the Vedado neighborhood of Havana, Cuba. Fabrica de Arte, which opened in 2014 with the backing of the Ministry of Culture, is an industrial factory turned performance space where established and unknown musicians, painters, photographers, and playwrights alike show their work. A room full of dancers mingle to the sounds of DJ Mike Polarni following a concert at Fabrica de Arte, in the Vedado neighborhood of Havana, Cuba. Fabrica de Arte, which opened in 2014 with the backing of the Ministry of Culture, is an industrial factory turned performance space where established and unknown musicians, painters, photographers, and playwrights alike show their work. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_029.jpg A young student wearing the uniform of communist youth rests in front of an office for the CDR (Comité de Defensa de la Revolución, or Committee for the Defense of the Revolution,) which is a network of neighborhood watch organizations reporting on any "counter-revolutionary" or anti-communist activity, in Havana, Cuba. My grandfather spent 5 years of his youth in a labor camp for political dissidents after one such neighborhood watch organization noted his lack of participation in the communist party - thus labeling him a person of conflict with the government of Bulgaria. Elementary schoolchildren wear pañoletas, or scarves as part of the uniform of the José Martí Pioneer Organization for children operated by the communist party - that is quite similar to a communist youth organization in which I had to partake as a young Bulgarian student - blue or red in color depending on their age, and switch to yellow and white uniforms in adolescence. A young student wearing the uniform of communist youth rests in front of an office for the CDR (Comité de Defensa de la Revolución, or Committee for the Defense of the Revolution,) which is a network of neighborhood watch organizations reporting on any "counter-revolutionary" or anti-communist activity, in Havana, Cuba. My grandfather spent 5 years of his youth in a labor camp for political dissidents after one such neighborhood watch organization noted his lack of participation in the communist party - thus labeling him a person of conflict with the government of Bulgaria. Elementary schoolchildren wear pañoletas, or scarves as part of the uniform of the José Martí Pioneer Organization for children operated by the communist party - that is quite similar to a communist youth organization in which I had to partake as a young Bulgarian student - blue or red in color depending on their age, and switch to yellow and white uniforms in adolescence. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_031.jpg Children wearing the uniform of communist youth are directed to salute "Votó!" ("S/he voted!") as a woman places her ballot in Cuba's Elecciones Parciales (Partial Elections) to elect delegates to the Municipal Assemblies of People’s Power, the country's unicameral parliament, on April 19, 2015 in Havana, Cuba. The delegates function as district representatives for a 2.5 year term. Little Pioneers - members of the José Martí Pioneer Organization for children operated by the communist party - are often sent by polling station presidents to people's homes as a means to motivate citizens to the polls. (Voting is not mandatory, but frowned upon if not exercised.) Kids usually enter the organization in elementary school, wearing blue or red scarves - or pañoletas - to indicate the student's level, and continue until adolescence, switching to yellow and white uniforms in high school. Children wearing the uniform of communist youth are directed to salute "Votó!" ("S/he voted!") as a woman places her ballot in Cuba's Elecciones Parciales (Partial Elections) to elect delegates to the Municipal Assemblies of People’s Power, the country's unicameral parliament, on April 19, 2015 in Havana, Cuba. The delegates function as district representatives for a 2.5 year term. Little Pioneers - members of the José Martí Pioneer Organization for children operated by the communist party - are often sent by polling station presidents to people's homes as a means to motivate citizens to the polls. (Voting is not mandatory, but frowned upon if not exercised.) Kids usually enter the organization in elementary school, wearing blue or red scarves - or pañoletas - to indicate the student's level, and continue until adolescence, switching to yellow and white uniforms in high school. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_032.jpg A student clad in the uniform of communist youth practices a salute given to voters as they place their ballots in Cuba's Elecciones Parciales (Partial Elections) to elect delegates from the country's single party to its unicameral parliament, this April in Havana, Cuba. Members of the José Martí Pioneer Organization for children operated by the communist party - that is quite similar to a communist youth organization in which I had to partake as a young Bulgarian student - are often sent to people's homes as a means to motivate citizens to vote. Voting is not mandatory, but heavily frowned upon if not exercised. Elementary schoolchildren wear pañoletas, or scarves as part of the organization's uniform - blue or red in color depending on their age, and switch to yellow and white uniforms in adolescence. A student clad in the uniform of communist youth practices a salute given to voters as they place their ballots in Cuba's Elecciones Parciales (Partial Elections) to elect delegates from the country's single party to its unicameral parliament, this April in Havana, Cuba. Members of the José Martí Pioneer Organization for children operated by the communist party - that is quite similar to a communist youth organization in which I had to partake as a young Bulgarian student - are often sent to people's homes as a means to motivate citizens to vote. Voting is not mandatory, but heavily frowned upon if not exercised. Elementary schoolchildren wear pañoletas, or scarves as part of the organization's uniform - blue or red in color depending on their age, and switch to yellow and white uniforms in adolescence. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_033.jpg A portrait of José Martí - Cuban poet, journalist, revolutionary philosopher, and political theorist - hangs at a polling station as voters place their ballots in Cuba's Elecciones Parciales (Partial Elections) to elect delegates to the Municipal Assemblies of People’s Power, the country's unicameral parliament, on April 19, 2015 in Havana, Cuba. The delegates function as district representatives for a 2.5 year term, communicating complaints and new guidelines between the electorate the Assembly. Voting is not mandatory, but frowned upon if not exercised. A portrait of José Martí - Cuban poet, journalist, revolutionary philosopher, and political theorist - hangs at a polling station as voters place their ballots in Cuba's Elecciones Parciales (Partial Elections) to elect delegates to the Municipal Assemblies of People’s Power, the country's unicameral parliament, on April 19, 2015 in Havana, Cuba. The delegates function as district representatives for a 2.5 year term, communicating complaints and new guidelines between the electorate the Assembly. Voting is not mandatory, but frowned upon if not exercised. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_034.jpg Art during the Communist years in Eastern Europe was highly sanitized - and artists who chose not to show a utopian view of the country, censored and punished. Artists in state-run Cuba as well have felt pressure to sanitize political issues and any difficulties the Cuban people may face, or omit them altogether. While the more open era of Raúl Castro has made it easier to toe the line in these areas of self-expression, artists who cross it altogether risk losing the support of government-controlled galleries that display their works. Here, Artist Arístides Hernández discusses his painting, which depicts possible bidirectional paranoia resulting from the future melding of Cuban and American culture - the former represented by the Lilliputians, and the latter, by Gulliver, both from the novel Gulliver's Travels - in his artist studio in Havana, Cuba. Art during the Communist years in Eastern Europe was highly sanitized - and artists who chose not to show a utopian view of the country, censored and punished. Artists in state-run Cuba as well have felt pressure to sanitize political issues and any difficulties the Cuban people may face, or omit them altogether. While the more open era of Raúl Castro has made it easier to toe the line in these areas of self-expression, artists who cross it altogether risk losing the support of government-controlled galleries that display their works. Here, Artist Arístides Hernández discusses his painting, which depicts possible bidirectional paranoia resulting from the future melding of Cuban and American culture - the former represented by the Lilliputians, and the latter, by Gulliver, both from the novel Gulliver's Travels - in his artist studio in Havana, Cuba. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_035.jpg (L-R) Artists Angel León, 24, and Victor Manuel Ojeda, 24, work on nuancing a painting done by painter Eduardo Abela, 52, in Havana, Cuba, that satirically references the cult of action heroes by replacing religious figures with Western cartoon characters in copies of theological paintings. Art during the Communist years in Eastern Europe was highly sanitized - and artists who chose not to show a utopian view of the country, censored and punished. Artists in state-run Cuba as well have felt pressure to sanitize political issues and any difficulties the Cuban people may face, or omit them altogether. While the more open era of Raúl Castro has made it easier to toe the line in these areas of self-expression, artists who cross it altogether risk losing the support of government-controlled galleries that display their works. (L-R) Artists Angel León, 24, and Victor Manuel Ojeda, 24, work on nuancing a painting done by painter Eduardo Abela, 52, in Havana, Cuba, that satirically references the cult of action heroes by replacing religious figures with Western cartoon characters in copies of theological paintings. Art during the Communist years in Eastern Europe was highly sanitized - and artists who chose not to show a utopian view of the country, censored and punished. Artists in state-run Cuba as well have felt pressure to sanitize political issues and any difficulties the Cuban people may face, or omit them altogether. While the more open era of Raúl Castro has made it easier to toe the line in these areas of self-expression, artists who cross it altogether risk losing the support of government-controlled galleries that display their works. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_036.jpg Tourists walk by graffiti of the American cartoon character Wile E. Coyote and his speech bubble "Nuestro Futuro (Our Future,)" running by a cactus shaped to read "One Up King Size," in the Havana Vieja neighborhood of Havana, Cuba. It is said to reflect the fear that a further thawing of U.S.-Cuban relations will permanently alter the cultural and economic make-up of the island. In the cartoons, Coyote repeatedly and unsuccessfully attempts to catch a fast-running ground bird, The Road Runner, his plans for capture always backfiring in injury. Tourists walk by graffiti of the American cartoon character Wile E. Coyote and his speech bubble "Nuestro Futuro (Our Future,)" running by a cactus shaped to read "One Up King Size," in the Havana Vieja neighborhood of Havana, Cuba. It is said to reflect the fear that a further thawing of U.S.-Cuban relations will permanently alter the cultural and economic make-up of the island. In the cartoons, Coyote repeatedly and unsuccessfully attempts to catch a fast-running ground bird, The Road Runner, his plans for capture always backfiring in injury. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_038.jpg I grew up in a world almost completely clean of advertisement. It was unnecessary in pre-1989 Bulgaria: private enterprise was forbidden, eliminating retailer and manufacturer competition on production of a very limited supply of goods, that few people could afford anyway. Although entrepreneurship exists both legally and illegally on the vast government-owned landscape of Cuba, payroll taxes that increase disproportionately with the rise of annual profit discourage its expansion. Propaganda fills the space that consumerism leaves on this Havana street (a famously ubiquitous sight across the nation.) A sign for the Young Communist League (Unión de Jóvenes Comunistas,) reading "Everything for the Revolution," stretches across a billboard next to the organization's motto "Estudio, Trabajo, Fusil" ("Study, Work, Rifle,") and the likes of Cuban revolutionaries Julio Antonio Mella, Che Guevara and Camilo Cienfuegos. While the organization's membership is voluntary (and selective - based on a clean record of pro-government views,) it is highly encouraged for social and professional success. I grew up in a world almost completely clean of advertisement. It was unnecessary in pre-1989 Bulgaria: private enterprise was forbidden, eliminating retailer and manufacturer competition on production of a very limited supply of goods, that few people could afford anyway. Although entrepreneurship exists both legally and illegally on the vast government-owned landscape of Cuba, payroll taxes that increase disproportionately with the rise of annual profit discourage its expansion. Propaganda fills the space that consumerism leaves on this Havana street (a famously ubiquitous sight across the nation.) A sign for the Young Communist League (Unión de Jóvenes Comunistas,) reading "Everything for the Revolution," stretches across a billboard next to the organization's motto "Estudio, Trabajo, Fusil" ("Study, Work, Rifle,") and the likes of Cuban revolutionaries Julio Antonio Mella, Che Guevara and Camilo Cienfuegos. While the organization's membership is voluntary (and selective - based on a clean record of pro-government views,) it is highly encouraged for social and professional success. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_039.jpg People wait for a bus to arrive near a sign for the upcoming 1st of May Labor Day March in Havana, Cuba. In Cuba, the day known as Día del Trabajo is a call for people to show support to their socialist government and the Cuban Revolution. Guests worldwide are known to join. While attendance is not mandatory, absence from the march is usually noted and discouraged. I recall the communist years Labor Day marches of Bulgaria quite well: much like in the Cuba of today, groups of people huddled with their co-workers in the early a.m hours, attendance to be accounted for by their boss - or face social, and often professional, retribution. People wait for a bus to arrive near a sign for the upcoming 1st of May Labor Day March in Havana, Cuba. In Cuba, the day known as Día del Trabajo is a call for people to show support to their socialist government and the Cuban Revolution. Guests worldwide are known to join. While attendance is not mandatory, absence from the march is usually noted and discouraged. I recall the communist years Labor Day marches of Bulgaria quite well: much like in the Cuba of today, groups of people huddled with their co-workers in the early a.m hours, attendance to be accounted for by their boss - or face social, and often professional, retribution. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_040.jpg Turkish participants march during the 1st of May Labor Day March in Havana, Cuba, on May 01, 2015. In Cuba, the day known as Día del Trabajo is a call for people to march in the streets in show of support to their local socialist government and the Cuban Revolution. Guests from many countries and social organizations worldwide are known to join the march. Participants have noted that while attendance is not mandatory, absence from the march is usually noticed and discouraged. Turkish participants march during the 1st of May Labor Day March in Havana, Cuba, on May 01, 2015. In Cuba, the day known as Día del Trabajo is a call for people to march in the streets in show of support to their local socialist government and the Cuban Revolution. Guests from many countries and social organizations worldwide are known to join the march. Participants have noted that while attendance is not mandatory, absence from the march is usually noticed and discouraged. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_041b.jpg A man marching during during the 1st of May Labor Day March in Havana, Cuba, holds onto the Cuban flag on May 01, 2015. In Cuba, the day known as Día del Trabajo is a call for people to march in the streets in show of support to their local socialist government and the Cuban Revolution. Guests from many countries and social organizations worldwide are known to join the march. Participants have noted that while attendance is not mandatory, absence from the march is usually noticed and discouraged. A man marching during during the 1st of May Labor Day March in Havana, Cuba, holds onto the Cuban flag on May 01, 2015. In Cuba, the day known as Día del Trabajo is a call for people to march in the streets in show of support to their local socialist government and the Cuban Revolution. Guests from many countries and social organizations worldwide are known to join the march. Participants have noted that while attendance is not mandatory, absence from the march is usually noticed and discouraged. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_041.jpg (L-R) Participants in the 1st of May Labor Day parade march in Havana, Cuba, hold signs of German Communist revolutionary Friedrich Engels, Russian Communist leader Vladimir Lenin and German Communist revolutionary Karl Marx. In Cuba, the day known as Día del Trabajo is a call for people to show support to their socialist government and the Cuban Revolution. Guests worldwide are known to join. While attendance is not mandatory, absence from the march is usually noted and discouraged. I recall the communist years Labor Day marches of Bulgaria quite well: much like in the Cuba of today, groups of people huddled with their co-workers in the early a.m hours, attendance to be accounted for by their boss - or face social, and often professional, retribution. (L-R) Participants in the 1st of May Labor Day parade march in Havana, Cuba, hold signs of German Communist revolutionary Friedrich Engels, Russian Communist leader Vladimir Lenin and German Communist revolutionary Karl Marx. In Cuba, the day known as Día del Trabajo is a call for people to show support to their socialist government and the Cuban Revolution. Guests worldwide are known to join. While attendance is not mandatory, absence from the march is usually noted and discouraged. I recall the communist years Labor Day marches of Bulgaria quite well: much like in the Cuba of today, groups of people huddled with their co-workers in the early a.m hours, attendance to be accounted for by their boss - or face social, and often professional, retribution. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Cuba_Paskova_042.jpg People march by a sign saying, "The embargo: the longest genocide in history," during the 1st of May Labor Day March - a call for people to march in support of their local socialist government and the Cuban Revolution - in Havana, Cuba, on May 01, 2015. The commercial, financial and economic embargo enforced by the United States against Cuba went into effect in 1960, nearly two years after the deposition of the Fulgencio Batista dictatorship by the Cuban Revolution, and just after Cuba nationalized American-owned Cuban properties without remuneration to the States. The embargo at first did not apply to food and medicine, but was quickly broadened to nearly all U.S. exports. Proponents of the embargo cite repeated human rights violations in the country and the appropriated property as reasons to uphold it. Critics define the embargo as too harsh; the UN General Assembly has passed a resolution each year since 1992 criticizing its ongoing impact, citing it to be in violation of the Charter of the UN and international law. In December of 2014, U.S. President Barack Obama signaled an openness in thawing of U.S.-Cuban relations, which started with diplomatic talks and transitioned to the removal of Cuba from the U.S. list of state sponsors of terrorism in May of this year. People march by a sign saying, "The embargo: the longest genocide in history," during the 1st of May Labor Day March - a call for people to march in support of their local socialist government and the Cuban Revolution - in Havana, Cuba, on May 01, 2015. The commercial, financial and economic embargo enforced by the United States against Cuba went into effect in 1960, nearly two years after the deposition of the Fulgencio Batista dictatorship by the Cuban Revolution, and just after Cuba nationalized American-owned Cuban properties without remuneration to the States. The embargo at first did not apply to food and medicine, but was quickly broadened to nearly all U.S. exports. Proponents of the embargo cite repeated human rights violations in the country and the appropriated property as reasons to uphold it. Critics define the embargo as too harsh; the UN General Assembly has passed a resolution each year since 1992 criticizing its ongoing impact, citing it to be in violation of the Charter of the UN and international law. In December of 2014, U.S. President Barack Obama signaled an openness in thawing of U.S.-Cuban relations, which started with diplomatic talks and transitioned to the removal of Cuba from the U.S. list of state sponsors of terrorism in May of this year. https://yanapaskova.com/cuba-bulgaria-layers 2026-03-16 monthly 0.8 https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Paskova_Yana_001.jpg This is my father's Army uniform (complete with a five-pointed star — the symbol of Communist rule,) worn during a mandatory two-year service in the Bulgarian military in the 1970s. It is superimposed with Cuban children wearing the uniform of Communist youth as they salute "Votó!" ("S/he voted!") to citizens casting ballots for delegates to the country's unicameral parliament. Voting is not a mandatory activity in Cuba, but frowned upon if not exercised. Fraying family pictures from pre-1989 Bulgaria inspired this portion of a long-term project on Democracy + Communism. The parallels between them and photos I'd taken in present-day Cuba surface best when juxtaposed — one image layered on top of the other. And so, I attempt to bridge one country’s past to another country’s present — to show that political ideals, its profiteers and its victims, can remain unchanged by time or geography. This is my father's Army uniform (complete with a five-pointed star — the symbol of Communist rule,) worn during a mandatory two-year service in the Bulgarian military in the 1970s. It is superimposed with Cuban children wearing the uniform of Communist youth as they salute "Votó!" ("S/he voted!") to citizens casting ballots for delegates to the country's unicameral parliament. Voting is not a mandatory activity in Cuba, but frowned upon if not exercised. Fraying family pictures from pre-1989 Bulgaria inspired this portion of a long-term project on Democracy + Communism. The parallels between them and photos I'd taken in present-day Cuba surface best when juxtaposed — one image layered on top of the other. And so, I attempt to bridge one country’s past to another country’s present — to show that political ideals, its profiteers and its victims, can remain unchanged by time or geography. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Paskova_Yana_002.jpg Second from left is a young me of the 1980s, wearing the Communist youth uniform mandatory for all school activities, and a young Cuban student wearing the same in front of an office for the CDR (Committee for the Defense of the Revolution.) The CDR is a network of neighborhood watch organizations peppered across Cuba, that report on any activity they deem counter-revolutionary or a threat to Communist rule. My grandfather spent 5 years of his youth in a Communist labor camp after one such organization noted his lack of participation in the party. Elementary schoolchildren in many Communist countries wear scarves as part of the uniform of the children’s Communist youth: blue or red, depending on their age. Fraying family pictures from pre-1989 Bulgaria inspired this portion of a long-term project on Democracy + Communism. The parallels between them and photos I'd taken in present-day Cuba surface best when juxtaposed — one image layered on top of the other. And so, I attempt to bridge one country’s past to another country’s present — to show that political ideals, its profiteers and its victims, can remain unchanged by time or geography. Second from left is a young me of the 1980s, wearing the Communist youth uniform mandatory for all school activities, and a young Cuban student wearing the same in front of an office for the CDR (Committee for the Defense of the Revolution.) The CDR is a network of neighborhood watch organizations peppered across Cuba, that report on any activity they deem counter-revolutionary or a threat to Communist rule. My grandfather spent 5 years of his youth in a Communist labor camp after one such organization noted his lack of participation in the party. Elementary schoolchildren in many Communist countries wear scarves as part of the uniform of the children’s Communist youth: blue or red, depending on their age. Fraying family pictures from pre-1989 Bulgaria inspired this portion of a long-term project on Democracy + Communism. The parallels between them and photos I'd taken in present-day Cuba surface best when juxtaposed — one image layered on top of the other. And so, I attempt to bridge one country’s past to another country’s present — to show that political ideals, its profiteers and its victims, can remain unchanged by time or geography. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Paskova_Yana_003.jpg A sketch of a woman’s face decorates the view from my parents' college apartment in Sofia, Bulgaria, toward ubiquitous and poorly maintained Soviet-style blocks, on a street that was then named The Red Rose — this, overlapped with similar Soviet-influenced architecture from the Vedado neighborhood of Havana, Cuba. Statistics label 7 out of every 10 Cuban houses in need of major repairs, with the province surrounding the capital requiring approximately 300,000 more inhabitable properties. Infrastructural decay increased especially after the collapse of Communism and the end of Soviet subsidies to both nations. Fraying family pictures from pre-1989 Bulgaria inspired this portion of a long-term project on Democracy + Communism. The parallels between them and photos I'd taken in present-day Cuba surface best when juxtaposed — one image layered on top of the other. And so, I attempt to bridge one country’s past to another country’s present — to show that political ideals, its profiteers and its victims, can remain unchanged by time or geography. A sketch of a woman’s face decorates the view from my parents' college apartment in Sofia, Bulgaria, toward ubiquitous and poorly maintained Soviet-style blocks, on a street that was then named The Red Rose — this, overlapped with similar Soviet-influenced architecture from the Vedado neighborhood of Havana, Cuba. Statistics label 7 out of every 10 Cuban houses in need of major repairs, with the province surrounding the capital requiring approximately 300,000 more inhabitable properties. Infrastructural decay increased especially after the collapse of Communism and the end of Soviet subsidies to both nations. Fraying family pictures from pre-1989 Bulgaria inspired this portion of a long-term project on Democracy + Communism. The parallels between them and photos I'd taken in present-day Cuba surface best when juxtaposed — one image layered on top of the other. And so, I attempt to bridge one country’s past to another country’s present — to show that political ideals, its profiteers and its victims, can remain unchanged by time or geography. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Paskova_Yana_004.jpg My grandfather (center,) seen walking with Romanian and Bulgarian colleagues in Bulgaria in the 1970s as part of a mandatory work function. The banner in the background reads “Glory to the USSR.” And in Cuba, participants in the First of May Labor Day parade hold posters of Russian Communist leader Vladimir Lenin and German Communist revolutionary Karl Marx. This day, simply labeled Día del Trabajo (Labor Day,) is a call for people of all nations to show support for socialist reform — and in Cuba, for the Cuban Revolution. But in Cuba, as in pre-1989 Bulgaria, while attendance is not mandatory, absences from these marches are frequently noted, discouraged, and often followed with punitive measures (social and professional.) Fraying family pictures from pre-1989 Bulgaria inspired this portion of a long-term project on Democracy + Communism. The parallels between them and photos I'd taken in present-day Cuba surface best when juxtaposed — one image layered on top of the other. And so, I attempt to bridge one country’s past to another country’s present — to show that political ideals, its profiteers and its victims, can remain unchanged by time or geography. My grandfather (center,) seen walking with Romanian and Bulgarian colleagues in Bulgaria in the 1970s as part of a mandatory work function. The banner in the background reads “Glory to the USSR.” And in Cuba, participants in the First of May Labor Day parade hold posters of Russian Communist leader Vladimir Lenin and German Communist revolutionary Karl Marx. This day, simply labeled Día del Trabajo (Labor Day,) is a call for people of all nations to show support for socialist reform — and in Cuba, for the Cuban Revolution. But in Cuba, as in pre-1989 Bulgaria, while attendance is not mandatory, absences from these marches are frequently noted, discouraged, and often followed with punitive measures (social and professional.) Fraying family pictures from pre-1989 Bulgaria inspired this portion of a long-term project on Democracy + Communism. The parallels between them and photos I'd taken in present-day Cuba surface best when juxtaposed — one image layered on top of the other. And so, I attempt to bridge one country’s past to another country’s present — to show that political ideals, its profiteers and its victims, can remain unchanged by time or geography. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Paskova_Yana_005.jpg Propaganda fills the space that lack of advertising leaves on this Havana street: a sign for the Young Communist League, reading "Everything for the Revolution" stretches across a billboard next to the organization's motto "Estudio, Trabajo, Fusil" ("Study, Work, Rifle") and the likes of Cuban revolutionaries Julio Antonio Mella, Che Guevara and Camilo Cienfuegos. While membership to the organization is described as voluntary — and selective, based on a clean record of pro-government only views — belonging to it is highly encouraged for any social and professional success. In the corner is a photo of my father reading a government-controlled newspaper titled “National Youth,” which, like all newspapers in pre-1989 Bulgaria, selectively reported news skewed in tone by Communist propagandist measures. Fraying family pictures from pre-1989 Bulgaria inspired this portion of a long-term project on Democracy + Communism. The parallels between them and photos I'd taken in present-day Cuba surface best when juxtaposed — one image layered on top of the other. And so, I attempt to bridge one country’s past to another country’s present — to show that political ideals, its profiteers and its victims, can remain unchanged by time or geography. Propaganda fills the space that lack of advertising leaves on this Havana street: a sign for the Young Communist League, reading "Everything for the Revolution" stretches across a billboard next to the organization's motto "Estudio, Trabajo, Fusil" ("Study, Work, Rifle") and the likes of Cuban revolutionaries Julio Antonio Mella, Che Guevara and Camilo Cienfuegos. While membership to the organization is described as voluntary — and selective, based on a clean record of pro-government only views — belonging to it is highly encouraged for any social and professional success. In the corner is a photo of my father reading a government-controlled newspaper titled “National Youth,” which, like all newspapers in pre-1989 Bulgaria, selectively reported news skewed in tone by Communist propagandist measures. Fraying family pictures from pre-1989 Bulgaria inspired this portion of a long-term project on Democracy + Communism. The parallels between them and photos I'd taken in present-day Cuba surface best when juxtaposed — one image layered on top of the other. And so, I attempt to bridge one country’s past to another country’s present — to show that political ideals, its profiteers and its victims, can remain unchanged by time or geography. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Paskova_Yana_006.jpg A bakery features a portrait of Cuba president Raúl Castro in the port city of Mariel, Cuba -- and a married couple poses for a picture under a portrait of former Bulgarian Communist dictator Todor Zhivkov. Zhivkov was the Totalitarian head of state of the People's Republic of Bulgaria from March 4, 1954 until the day after the fall of the Berlin Wall, November 10, 1989, when he resigned under political pressure over the country's worsening economy, human rights repression, and public unrest. Fraying family pictures from pre-1989 Bulgaria inspired this portion of a long-term project on Democracy + Communism. The parallels between them and photos I'd taken in present-day Cuba surface best when juxtaposed — one image layered on top of the other. And so, I attempt to bridge one country’s past to another country’s present — to show that political ideals, its profiteers and its victims, can remain unchanged by time or geography. A bakery features a portrait of Cuba president Raúl Castro in the port city of Mariel, Cuba -- and a married couple poses for a picture under a portrait of former Bulgarian Communist dictator Todor Zhivkov. Zhivkov was the Totalitarian head of state of the People's Republic of Bulgaria from March 4, 1954 until the day after the fall of the Berlin Wall, November 10, 1989, when he resigned under political pressure over the country's worsening economy, human rights repression, and public unrest. Fraying family pictures from pre-1989 Bulgaria inspired this portion of a long-term project on Democracy + Communism. The parallels between them and photos I'd taken in present-day Cuba surface best when juxtaposed — one image layered on top of the other. And so, I attempt to bridge one country’s past to another country’s present — to show that political ideals, its profiteers and its victims, can remain unchanged by time or geography. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Paskova_Yana_007.jpg My grandmother (center) and grandfather (second from right) walk alongside coworkers during the annual Labor Day march in Bulgaria in the 1970s. In the color photo, a man marching during during the 1st of May Labor Day March in Havana, Cuba, holds onto a makeshift Chilean flag. This day, simply labeled Día del Trabajo (Labor Day,) is a call for people of all nations to show support for socialist reform — and in Cuba, for the Cuban Revolution. But in Cuba, as in pre-1989 Bulgaria, while attendance is not mandatory, absences from these marches are frequently noted, discouraged, and often followed with punitive measures (social and professional.) Fraying family pictures from pre-1989 Bulgaria inspired this portion of a long-term project on Democracy + Communism. The parallels between them and photos I'd taken in present-day Cuba surface best when juxtaposed — one image layered on top of the other. And so, I attempt to bridge one country’s past to another country’s present — to show that political ideals, its profiteers and its victims, can remain unchanged by time or geography. My grandmother (center) and grandfather (second from right) walk alongside coworkers during the annual Labor Day march in Bulgaria in the 1970s. In the color photo, a man marching during during the 1st of May Labor Day March in Havana, Cuba, holds onto a makeshift Chilean flag. This day, simply labeled Día del Trabajo (Labor Day,) is a call for people of all nations to show support for socialist reform — and in Cuba, for the Cuban Revolution. But in Cuba, as in pre-1989 Bulgaria, while attendance is not mandatory, absences from these marches are frequently noted, discouraged, and often followed with punitive measures (social and professional.) Fraying family pictures from pre-1989 Bulgaria inspired this portion of a long-term project on Democracy + Communism. The parallels between them and photos I'd taken in present-day Cuba surface best when juxtaposed — one image layered on top of the other. And so, I attempt to bridge one country’s past to another country’s present — to show that political ideals, its profiteers and its victims, can remain unchanged by time or geography. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Paskova_Yana_008.jpg Because my grandfather refused to join a political party he'd seen seize villagers' property to repay them with imprisonment, violent threats, and beatings in the name of dementing the Communist ideal, he spent 5 tortured years of his youth locked within the brutality of Bulgaria’s Stalinist forced labor camps of the 1950s. Like many lucky survivors, he relished his post-1989 freedom to speak out against oppression, and in support of building a Democratic government as part of the Bulgarian Agrarian National Union party -- after the fall of the Berlin Wall brought on the dissolution of Communism in the Soviet Bloc. In the Cuban half of this image, a tired participant in a march organized by the wives, friends, and relatives of imprisoned political dissidents rests by a tree in front of Santa Rita Church in Havana, Cuba. The political prisoner rights group, Damas de Blanco -- translated to Ladies in White -- endures regular beatings and detainment by both undercover and uniformed Cuban police of the Communist state. Many of their loved ones still languish, imprisoned -- and yet, they march. In Catholic countries, Saint Rita is known as the patroness of impossible causes, or of heartbroken women. Fraying family pictures from pre-1989 Bulgaria inspired this portion of a long-term project on Democracy + Communism. The parallels between them and photos I'd taken in present-day Cuba surface best when juxtaposed — one image layered on top of the other. And so, I attempt to bridge one country’s past to another country’s present — to show that political ideals, its profiteers and its victims, can remain unchanged by time or geography. Because my grandfather refused to join a political party he'd seen seize villagers' property to repay them with imprisonment, violent threats, and beatings in the name of dementing the Communist ideal, he spent 5 tortured years of his youth locked within the brutality of Bulgaria’s Stalinist forced labor camps of the 1950s. Like many lucky survivors, he relished his post-1989 freedom to speak out against oppression, and in support of building a Democratic government as part of the Bulgarian Agrarian National Union party -- after the fall of the Berlin Wall brought on the dissolution of Communism in the Soviet Bloc. In the Cuban half of this image, a tired participant in a march organized by the wives, friends, and relatives of imprisoned political dissidents rests by a tree in front of Santa Rita Church in Havana, Cuba. The political prisoner rights group, Damas de Blanco -- translated to Ladies in White -- endures regular beatings and detainment by both undercover and uniformed Cuban police of the Communist state. Many of their loved ones still languish, imprisoned -- and yet, they march. In Catholic countries, Saint Rita is known as the patroness of impossible causes, or of heartbroken women. Fraying family pictures from pre-1989 Bulgaria inspired this portion of a long-term project on Democracy + Communism. The parallels between them and photos I'd taken in present-day Cuba surface best when juxtaposed — one image layered on top of the other. And so, I attempt to bridge one country’s past to another country’s present — to show that political ideals, its profiteers and its victims, can remain unchanged by time or geography. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Paskova_Yana_009.jpg Bulgarians' longing to see lands beyond their closed borders festered in a social and economic vacuum during the Communist years. In the corner are a few American dollars on a desk at my parents' college apartment, on a street then bearing the name The Red Rose (a symbol of both the Communist revolution, and Bulgaria’s most famed export.) A Sofia store called Korekom that offered a rare glimpse of Western goods — cosmetics, technology, toys, candy, alcohol, cigarettes and magazines otherwise absent from Bulgaria's isolated market — motivated a strong black market demand for the U.S. dollar. Possession of it without government permission, however, left one open to government investigation, a marked dossier that sharply diminished employment opportunities, and worse, imprisonment in a forced labor camp. The foreground shows a girl in Mariel, Cuba, taking orders in a late-night pizza joint recalling American nostalgia, playing mostly U.S. music from the 1980s and 1990s. Fraying family pictures from pre-1989 Bulgaria inspired this portion of a long-term project on Democracy + Communism. The parallels between them and photos I'd taken in present-day Cuba surface best when juxtaposed — one image layered on top of the other. And so, I attempt to bridge one country’s past to another country’s present — to show that political ideals, its profiteers and its victims, can remain unchanged by time or geography. Bulgarians' longing to see lands beyond their closed borders festered in a social and economic vacuum during the Communist years. In the corner are a few American dollars on a desk at my parents' college apartment, on a street then bearing the name The Red Rose (a symbol of both the Communist revolution, and Bulgaria’s most famed export.) A Sofia store called Korekom that offered a rare glimpse of Western goods — cosmetics, technology, toys, candy, alcohol, cigarettes and magazines otherwise absent from Bulgaria's isolated market — motivated a strong black market demand for the U.S. dollar. Possession of it without government permission, however, left one open to government investigation, a marked dossier that sharply diminished employment opportunities, and worse, imprisonment in a forced labor camp. The foreground shows a girl in Mariel, Cuba, taking orders in a late-night pizza joint recalling American nostalgia, playing mostly U.S. music from the 1980s and 1990s. Fraying family pictures from pre-1989 Bulgaria inspired this portion of a long-term project on Democracy + Communism. The parallels between them and photos I'd taken in present-day Cuba surface best when juxtaposed — one image layered on top of the other. And so, I attempt to bridge one country’s past to another country’s present — to show that political ideals, its profiteers and its victims, can remain unchanged by time or geography. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Paskova_Yana_010.jpg My father, grandfather and grandmother pose for a picture taken while traveling on one of very few government-approved vacations during the isolation of the Communist years in Bulgaria. And Raymel Medina, 16, (center,) relaxes with friends after an evening dip in the water in the port city of Mariel, Cuba. He says he'd like to learn more about the world, but internet of limited and/or prohibitively expensive access makes this a challenge. Travel outside of the island is also forbidden to most, except to those with government connections, or whose jobs allow it. I remember being young and just as curious about the world beyond the vacuum of Bulgaria's tight borders during the Communist years. Fraying family pictures from pre-1989 Bulgaria inspired this portion of a long-term project on Democracy + Communism. The parallels between them and photos I'd taken in present-day Cuba surface best when juxtaposed — one image layered on top of the other. And so, I attempt to bridge one country’s past to another country’s present — to show that political ideals, its profiteers and its victims, can remain unchanged by time or geography. My father, grandfather and grandmother pose for a picture taken while traveling on one of very few government-approved vacations during the isolation of the Communist years in Bulgaria. And Raymel Medina, 16, (center,) relaxes with friends after an evening dip in the water in the port city of Mariel, Cuba. He says he'd like to learn more about the world, but internet of limited and/or prohibitively expensive access makes this a challenge. Travel outside of the island is also forbidden to most, except to those with government connections, or whose jobs allow it. I remember being young and just as curious about the world beyond the vacuum of Bulgaria's tight borders during the Communist years. Fraying family pictures from pre-1989 Bulgaria inspired this portion of a long-term project on Democracy + Communism. The parallels between them and photos I'd taken in present-day Cuba surface best when juxtaposed — one image layered on top of the other. And so, I attempt to bridge one country’s past to another country’s present — to show that political ideals, its profiteers and its victims, can remain unchanged by time or geography. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Paskova_Yana_011.jpg This is the Cuban family (sister, nephews, and 93-year-old mother) of a man who fled from Cuba to Florida during the Mariel Boatlift of 1980. The four have been separated from their uncle, son and brother for 35 years. It is blended with a faraway view of the Brandenburg Gate, as close as you could get from East Berlin before the fall of the Berlin Wall — photographed during one of few vacations my grandparents and father were allowed to take in the Communist years. International travel was limited to pre-approved countries within the Eastern Bloc, while Western nations were only accessible via coveted government approval. The merging of these images speaks to both the need for and trauma of immigration. Fraying family pictures from pre-1989 Bulgaria inspired this portion of a long-term project on Democracy + Communism. The parallels between them and photos I'd taken in present-day Cuba surface best when juxtaposed — one image layered on top of the other. And so, I attempt to bridge one country’s past to another country’s present — to show that political ideals, its profiteers and its victims, can remain unchanged by time or geography. This is the Cuban family (sister, nephews, and 93-year-old mother) of a man who fled from Cuba to Florida during the Mariel Boatlift of 1980. The four have been separated from their uncle, son and brother for 35 years. It is blended with a faraway view of the Brandenburg Gate, as close as you could get from East Berlin before the fall of the Berlin Wall — photographed during one of few vacations my grandparents and father were allowed to take in the Communist years. International travel was limited to pre-approved countries within the Eastern Bloc, while Western nations were only accessible via coveted government approval. The merging of these images speaks to both the need for and trauma of immigration. Fraying family pictures from pre-1989 Bulgaria inspired this portion of a long-term project on Democracy + Communism. The parallels between them and photos I'd taken in present-day Cuba surface best when juxtaposed — one image layered on top of the other. And so, I attempt to bridge one country’s past to another country’s present — to show that political ideals, its profiteers and its victims, can remain unchanged by time or geography. https://yanapaskova.com/image-editing-story-concepts 2026-03-16 monthly 0.8 https://yanapaskova.com/liquid-rose-gold 2026-03-16 monthly 0.8 https://yanapaskova.com/everywhere 2026-03-16 monthly 0.8 https://yanapaskova.com/on-red-soil 2026-03-16 monthly 0.8 https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/KUSHTI_01.jpg An Indian man who practices traditional Kushti wrestling takes a break by the entrance of the wrestling yard on Monday, June 01, 2009 in New Delhi, India. An Indian man who practices traditional Kushti wrestling takes a break by the entrance of the wrestling yard on Monday, June 01, 2009 in New Delhi, India. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/KUSHTI_02.jpg Indian men who practice traditional Kushti wrestling prepare the soil for the sport on Monday, June 01, 2009 in New Delhi, India. Indian men who practice traditional Kushti wrestling prepare the soil for the sport on Monday, June 01, 2009 in New Delhi, India. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/KUSHTI_03.jpg Rohit Chiller, an Indian man who practices traditional Kushti wrestling, rubs dirt all over himself before starting practice on Monday, June 01, 2009 in New Delhi, India. Rohit Chiller, an Indian man who practices traditional Kushti wrestling, rubs dirt all over himself before starting practice on Monday, June 01, 2009 in New Delhi, India. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/KUSHTI_04.jpg Indian men work out before practicing traditional Kushti wrestling while another prepares the soil for the sport on Monday, June 01, 2009 in New Delhi, India. Indian men work out before practicing traditional Kushti wrestling while another prepares the soil for the sport on Monday, June 01, 2009 in New Delhi, India. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/KUSHTI_05.jpg Indian men who practice traditional Kushti wrestling prepare the soil for the sport on Monday, June 01, 2009 in New Delhi, India. Indian men who practice traditional Kushti wrestling prepare the soil for the sport on Monday, June 01, 2009 in New Delhi, India. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/KUSHTI_06.jpg Indian men practice traditional Kushti wrestling on Monday, June 01, 2009 in New Delhi, India. Indian men practice traditional Kushti wrestling on Monday, June 01, 2009 in New Delhi, India. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/KUSHTI_08.jpg Indian men who practice traditional Kushti wrestling climb rope on Monday, June 01, 2009 in New Delhi, India. Indian men who practice traditional Kushti wrestling climb rope on Monday, June 01, 2009 in New Delhi, India. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/KUSHTI_11.jpg Indian men who practice traditional Kushti wrestling take a break on Monday, June 01, 2009 in New Delhi, India. Indian men who practice traditional Kushti wrestling take a break on Monday, June 01, 2009 in New Delhi, India. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/KUSHTI_12.jpg Indian men who practice traditional Kushti wrestling lift weights on Monday, June 01, 2009 in New Delhi, India. Indian men who practice traditional Kushti wrestling lift weights on Monday, June 01, 2009 in New Delhi, India. https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/KUSHTI_13.jpg Rohit Chiller, an Indian man who practices traditional Kushti wrestling, showers after rubbing dirt all over himself during practice on Monday, June 01, 2009 in New Delhi, India. Rohit Chiller, an Indian man who practices traditional Kushti wrestling, showers after rubbing dirt all over himself during practice on Monday, June 01, 2009 in New Delhi, India. https://yanapaskova.com/before-times 2026-03-16 monthly 0.8 https://yanapaskova.com/after-times 2026-03-16 monthly 0.8 https://yanapaskova.com/city-monochrome 2026-03-16 monthly 0.8 https://yanapaskova.com/fashion 2026-03-16 monthly 0.8 https://yanapaskova.com/arts 2026-03-16 monthly 0.8 https://yanapaskova.com/pres-campaigns 2026-03-16 monthly 0.8 https://yanapaskova.com/trump-gawkers 2026-03-16 monthly 0.8 https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Trump_Gawkers_001.jpg Trump Tower, the current residence of Republican President elect Donald Trump, is reflected in the eyes of a man gazing up at it in New York, NY on December 31, 2016. - “Trump Gawkers" is a visceral look at what draws people to Trump Tower, the current residence of U.S. President elect Donald Trump. Hoards of people undertake the trek, bearing security and weather roadblocks, to stare, gawk, absorb, record. The magnetism to the tower (and by extension, to the man inside it,) manifests in the sheer numbers of daily visitors, as well as in the fascination etched across their faces. Upon first look, the time so many spend there seems like sport and amusement, but underneath upturned eyes and selfie smiles prevails an undercurrent of anxiety - and not just for those who didn't want Trump in the Oval Office. Some of the electorate that voted against Hillary is now unsure for which version of Trump they voted. People's upward gazes, no matter their political views, seek answers: How could this happen? Or now that it has, what will it mean? Trump Tower, the current residence of Republican President elect Donald Trump, is reflected in the eyes of a man gazing up at it in New York, NY on December 31, 2016. - “Trump Gawkers" is a visceral look at what draws people to Trump Tower, the current residence of U.S. President elect Donald Trump. Hoards of people undertake the trek, bearing security and weather roadblocks, to stare, gawk, absorb, record. The magnetism to the tower (and by extension, to the man inside it,) manifests in the sheer numbers of daily visitors, as well as in the fascination etched across their faces. Upon first look, the time so many spend there seems like sport and amusement, but underneath upturned eyes and selfie smiles prevails an undercurrent of anxiety - and not just for those who didn't want Trump in the Oval Office. Some of the electorate that voted against Hillary is now unsure for which version of Trump they voted. People's upward gazes, no matter their political views, seek answers: How could this happen? Or now that it has, what will it mean? https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Trump_Gawkers_002.jpg A man stares up at Trump Tower, the current residence of Republican President elect Donald Trump, in Manhattan, NY on November 28, 2016. - “Trump Gawkers" is a visceral look at what draws people to Trump Tower, the current residence of U.S. President elect Donald Trump. Hoards of people undertake the trek, bearing security and weather roadblocks, to stare, gawk, absorb, record. The magnetism to the tower (and by extension, to the man inside it,) manifests in the sheer numbers of daily visitors, as well as in the fascination etched across their faces. Upon first look, the time so many spend there seems like sport and amusement, but underneath upturned eyes and selfie smiles prevails an undercurrent of anxiety - and not just for those who didn't want Trump in the Oval Office. Some of the electorate that voted against Hillary is now unsure for which version of Trump they voted. People's upward gazes, no matter their political views, seek answers: How could this happen? Or now that it has, what will it mean? A man stares up at Trump Tower, the current residence of Republican President elect Donald Trump, in Manhattan, NY on November 28, 2016. - “Trump Gawkers" is a visceral look at what draws people to Trump Tower, the current residence of U.S. President elect Donald Trump. Hoards of people undertake the trek, bearing security and weather roadblocks, to stare, gawk, absorb, record. The magnetism to the tower (and by extension, to the man inside it,) manifests in the sheer numbers of daily visitors, as well as in the fascination etched across their faces. Upon first look, the time so many spend there seems like sport and amusement, but underneath upturned eyes and selfie smiles prevails an undercurrent of anxiety - and not just for those who didn't want Trump in the Oval Office. Some of the electorate that voted against Hillary is now unsure for which version of Trump they voted. People's upward gazes, no matter their political views, seek answers: How could this happen? Or now that it has, what will it mean? https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Trump_Gawkers_003.jpg Passersby walk through a throng of people photographing Trump Tower, the current residence of Republican President elect Donald Trump, in Manhattan, NY on November 22, 2016. - “Trump Gawkers" is a visceral look at what draws people to Trump Tower, the current residence of U.S. President elect Donald Trump. Hoards of people undertake the trek, bearing security and weather roadblocks, to stare, gawk, absorb, record. The magnetism to the tower (and by extension, to the man inside it,) manifests in the sheer numbers of daily visitors, as well as in the fascination etched across their faces. Upon first look, the time so many spend there seems like sport and amusement, but underneath upturned eyes and selfie smiles prevails an undercurrent of anxiety - and not just for those who didn't want Trump in the Oval Office. Some of the electorate that voted against Hillary is now unsure for which version of Trump they voted. People's upward gazes, no matter their political views, seek answers: How could this happen? Or now that it has, what will it mean? Passersby walk through a throng of people photographing Trump Tower, the current residence of Republican President elect Donald Trump, in Manhattan, NY on November 22, 2016. - “Trump Gawkers" is a visceral look at what draws people to Trump Tower, the current residence of U.S. President elect Donald Trump. Hoards of people undertake the trek, bearing security and weather roadblocks, to stare, gawk, absorb, record. The magnetism to the tower (and by extension, to the man inside it,) manifests in the sheer numbers of daily visitors, as well as in the fascination etched across their faces. Upon first look, the time so many spend there seems like sport and amusement, but underneath upturned eyes and selfie smiles prevails an undercurrent of anxiety - and not just for those who didn't want Trump in the Oval Office. Some of the electorate that voted against Hillary is now unsure for which version of Trump they voted. People's upward gazes, no matter their political views, seek answers: How could this happen? Or now that it has, what will it mean? https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Trump_Gawkers_006.jpg A woman photographs Trump Tower, the current residence of Republican President elect Donald Trump, in New York, NY on December 09, 2016. - “Trump Gawkers" is a visceral look at what draws people to Trump Tower, the current residence of U.S. President elect Donald Trump. Hoards of people undertake the trek, bearing security and weather roadblocks, to stare, gawk, absorb, record. The magnetism to the tower (and by extension, to the man inside it,) manifests in the sheer numbers of daily visitors, as well as in the fascination etched across their faces. Upon first look, the time so many spend there seems like sport and amusement, but underneath upturned eyes and selfie smiles prevails an undercurrent of anxiety - and not just for those who didn't want Trump in the Oval Office. Some of the electorate that voted against Hillary is now unsure for which version of Trump they voted. People's upward gazes, no matter their political views, seek answers: How could this happen? Or now that it has, what will it mean? A woman photographs Trump Tower, the current residence of Republican President elect Donald Trump, in New York, NY on December 09, 2016. - “Trump Gawkers" is a visceral look at what draws people to Trump Tower, the current residence of U.S. President elect Donald Trump. Hoards of people undertake the trek, bearing security and weather roadblocks, to stare, gawk, absorb, record. The magnetism to the tower (and by extension, to the man inside it,) manifests in the sheer numbers of daily visitors, as well as in the fascination etched across their faces. Upon first look, the time so many spend there seems like sport and amusement, but underneath upturned eyes and selfie smiles prevails an undercurrent of anxiety - and not just for those who didn't want Trump in the Oval Office. Some of the electorate that voted against Hillary is now unsure for which version of Trump they voted. People's upward gazes, no matter their political views, seek answers: How could this happen? Or now that it has, what will it mean? https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Trump_Gawkers_042.jpg Debra Tomarin takes selfie in front of Trump Tower, the current residence of Republican President elect Donald Trump, in New York, NY on December 08, 2016. Tomarin is a real estate agent and retired psychotherapist - and lives in Palm Beach, FL, down the street from Trump's Florida residence, Mar-a-Lago. On people protesting Trump's nomination of Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt as the head of the Environmental Protection Agency - a man who has sued the EPA more than a dozen times to block air, water and climate protections - outside of Trump Tower, she said: "Protesting is irrelevant and wrong, and won't make a difference. He won't even see it, and people don't stop to pay attention. We have to move on. It's too late to sell anti-Donald Trump buttons. They should be asked to leave. Sure, they have a right to be out here, but what about his right to live in a home without someone standing in front of it with a sign?" On climate change, she said, "I believe climate change is real. I am not concerned about this because of his choices of cabinet people and because his children understand climate change is real. But maybe he hasn't been paying attention so far, being so busy with his business, and now he has to." On Pruitt as the choice to lead the EPA, she said: "Pruitt as the head of the EPA is an interesting appointee. I think that's making a statement that he'll turn this guy around. This guy, Pruitt, is aware of climate change despite being against it. Trump did this because he's gotta please the people. Trump has a strategy - he takes the underdog and turns him around because he likes a challenge. Sometimes people do the opposite of what they want to do, because they like a challenge. There's a method to his madness. You don't want a guy you can just push over, and he wants a challenge in this guy. This is his strategy - who's going to pay attention to a guy who is simply for battling climate change as opposed to a guy who's against it, yet actually ends up battling it? Now that's a wake-up call." - "Trump Gawkers" is a visceral look at what draws people to Trump Tower, through in-depth interviews and still photos - a project I started the day after the election. At first, I simply followed where my assignments sent me, but then found myself returning to the place on my own, unable to look away - and I wasn’t alone. Hoards of people undertake the trek, bearing security and weather roadblocks, to stare, gawk, absorb, record. The magnetism to Trump Tower (and by extension, to the man in the tower,) manifests in the sheer numbers of daily visitors, as well as in the fascination etched across their faces. Upon first look, the time so many spend there seems like sport and amusement, but underneath upturned eyes and selfie smiles prevails an undercurrent of anxiety - and not just for those who didn't want Trump in the Oval Office. Some of the electorate that voted against Hillary is now unsure for which version of Trump they voted. People's upward gazes, no matter their political views, seek answers: How could this happen? Or now that it has, what will it mean? Debra Tomarin takes selfie in front of Trump Tower, the current residence of Republican President elect Donald Trump, in New York, NY on December 08, 2016. Tomarin is a real estate agent and retired psychotherapist - and lives in Palm Beach, FL, down the street from Trump's Florida residence, Mar-a-Lago. On people protesting Trump's nomination of Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt as the head of the Environmental Protection Agency - a man who has sued the EPA more than a dozen times to block air, water and climate protections - outside of Trump Tower, she said: "Protesting is irrelevant and wrong, and won't make a difference. He won't even see it, and people don't stop to pay attention. We have to move on. It's too late to sell anti-Donald Trump buttons. They should be asked to leave. Sure, they have a right to be out here, but what about his right to live in a home without someone standing in front of it with a sign?" On climate change, she said, "I believe climate change is real. I am not concerned about this because of his choices of cabinet people and because his children understand climate change is real. But maybe he hasn't been paying attention so far, being so busy with his business, and now he has to." On Pruitt as the choice to lead the EPA, she said: "Pruitt as the head of the EPA is an interesting appointee. I think that's making a statement that he'll turn this guy around. This guy, Pruitt, is aware of climate change despite being against it. Trump did this because he's gotta please the people. Trump has a strategy - he takes the underdog and turns him around because he likes a challenge. Sometimes people do the opposite of what they want to do, because they like a challenge. There's a method to his madness. You don't want a guy you can just push over, and he wants a challenge in this guy. This is his strategy - who's going to pay attention to a guy who is simply for battling climate change as opposed to a guy who's against it, yet actually ends up battling it? Now that's a wake-up call." - "Trump Gawkers" is a visceral look at what draws people to Trump Tower, through in-depth interviews and still photos - a project I started the day after the election. At first, I simply followed where my assignments sent me, but then found myself returning to the place on my own, unable to look away - and I wasn’t alone. Hoards of people undertake the trek, bearing security and weather roadblocks, to stare, gawk, absorb, record. The magnetism to Trump Tower (and by extension, to the man in the tower,) manifests in the sheer numbers of daily visitors, as well as in the fascination etched across their faces. Upon first look, the time so many spend there seems like sport and amusement, but underneath upturned eyes and selfie smiles prevails an undercurrent of anxiety - and not just for those who didn't want Trump in the Oval Office. Some of the electorate that voted against Hillary is now unsure for which version of Trump they voted. People's upward gazes, no matter their political views, seek answers: How could this happen? Or now that it has, what will it mean? https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Trump_Gawkers_008A.jpg A woman points to Trump Tower, the current residence of Republican President elect Donald Trump, in New York, NY on December 14, 2016. - "Trump Gawkers" is a visceral look at what draws people to Trump Tower, through in-depth interviews and still photos - a project I started the day after the election. At first, I simply followed where my assignments sent me, but then found myself returning to the place on my own, unable to look away - and I wasn’t alone. Hoards of people undertake the trek, bearing security and weather roadblocks, to stare, gawk, absorb, record. The magnetism to Trump Tower (and by extension, to the man in the tower,) manifests in the sheer numbers of daily visitors, as well as in the fascination etched across their faces. Upon first look, the time so many spend there seems like sport and amusement, but underneath upturned eyes and selfie smiles prevails an undercurrent of anxiety - and not just for those who didn't want Trump in the Oval Office. Some of the electorate that voted against Hillary is now unsure for which version of Trump they voted. People's upward gazes, no matter their political views, seek answers: How could this happen? Or now that it has, what will it mean? A woman points to Trump Tower, the current residence of Republican President elect Donald Trump, in New York, NY on December 14, 2016. - "Trump Gawkers" is a visceral look at what draws people to Trump Tower, through in-depth interviews and still photos - a project I started the day after the election. At first, I simply followed where my assignments sent me, but then found myself returning to the place on my own, unable to look away - and I wasn’t alone. Hoards of people undertake the trek, bearing security and weather roadblocks, to stare, gawk, absorb, record. The magnetism to Trump Tower (and by extension, to the man in the tower,) manifests in the sheer numbers of daily visitors, as well as in the fascination etched across their faces. Upon first look, the time so many spend there seems like sport and amusement, but underneath upturned eyes and selfie smiles prevails an undercurrent of anxiety - and not just for those who didn't want Trump in the Oval Office. Some of the electorate that voted against Hillary is now unsure for which version of Trump they voted. People's upward gazes, no matter their political views, seek answers: How could this happen? Or now that it has, what will it mean? https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Trump_Gawkers_005.jpg A woman pauses to gaze at Trump Tower, the current residence of Republican President elect Donald Trump, in New York, NY on December 11, 2016. - “Trump Gawkers" is a visceral look at what draws people to Trump Tower, the current residence of U.S. President elect Donald Trump. Hoards of people undertake the trek, bearing security and weather roadblocks, to stare, gawk, absorb, record. The magnetism to the tower (and by extension, to the man inside it,) manifests in the sheer numbers of daily visitors, as well as in the fascination etched across their faces. Upon first look, the time so many spend there seems like sport and amusement, but underneath upturned eyes and selfie smiles prevails an undercurrent of anxiety - and not just for those who didn't want Trump in the Oval Office. Some of the electorate that voted against Hillary is now unsure for which version of Trump they voted. People's upward gazes, no matter their political views, seek answers: How could this happen? Or now that it has, what will it mean? A woman pauses to gaze at Trump Tower, the current residence of Republican President elect Donald Trump, in New York, NY on December 11, 2016. - “Trump Gawkers" is a visceral look at what draws people to Trump Tower, the current residence of U.S. President elect Donald Trump. Hoards of people undertake the trek, bearing security and weather roadblocks, to stare, gawk, absorb, record. The magnetism to the tower (and by extension, to the man inside it,) manifests in the sheer numbers of daily visitors, as well as in the fascination etched across their faces. Upon first look, the time so many spend there seems like sport and amusement, but underneath upturned eyes and selfie smiles prevails an undercurrent of anxiety - and not just for those who didn't want Trump in the Oval Office. Some of the electorate that voted against Hillary is now unsure for which version of Trump they voted. People's upward gazes, no matter their political views, seek answers: How could this happen? Or now that it has, what will it mean? https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/NYers_019B.jpg TRUMPTOWER (L-R) Hillary Ewing and her aunt, Sally Weiner, join thousands of people in front of Trump Tower in Manhattan, NY, on August 14, 2017, protesting this weekend's violent white nationalist rallies in Charlottesville, Virginia. - “Trump Gawkers" is a visceral look at what draws people to Trump Tower, the current residence of U.S. President elect Donald Trump. Hoards of people undertake the trek, bearing security and weather roadblocks, to stare, gawk, absorb, record. The magnetism to the tower (and by extension, to the man inside it,) manifests in the sheer numbers of daily visitors, as well as in the fascination etched across their faces. Upon first look, the time so many spend there seems like sport and amusement, but underneath upturned eyes and selfie smiles prevails an undercurrent of anxiety - and not just for those who didn't want Trump in the Oval Office. Some of the electorate that voted against Hillary is now unsure for which version of Trump they voted. People's upward gazes, no matter their political views, seek answers: How could this happen? Or now that it has, what will it mean? https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Trump_Gawkers_013.jpg (L-R) Fr. Ambroise Pellaumail, Fr. Louis De Blignieres, and Fr. Reginald Rivoire, from Fraternite Saint Vincent Ferrier in France, walk by Trump Tower, the current residence of Republican President elect Donald Trump, in Manhattan, NY on November 18, 2016. - "Trump Gawkers" is a visceral look at what draws people to Trump Tower, through in-depth interviews and still photos - a project I started the day after the election. At first, I simply followed where my assignments sent me, but then found myself returning to the place on my own, unable to look away - and I wasn’t alone. Hoards of people undertake the trek, bearing security and weather roadblocks, to stare, gawk, absorb, record. The magnetism to Trump Tower (and by extension, to the man in the tower,) manifests in the sheer numbers of daily visitors, as well as in the fascination etched across their faces. Upon first look, the time so many spend there seems like sport and amusement, but underneath upturned eyes and selfie smiles prevails an undercurrent of anxiety - and not just for those who didn't want Trump in the Oval Office. Some of the electorate that voted against Hillary is now unsure for which version of Trump they voted. People's upward gazes, no matter their political views, seek answers: How could this happen? Or now that it has, what will it mean? (L-R) Fr. Ambroise Pellaumail, Fr. Louis De Blignieres, and Fr. Reginald Rivoire, from Fraternite Saint Vincent Ferrier in France, walk by Trump Tower, the current residence of Republican President elect Donald Trump, in Manhattan, NY on November 18, 2016. - "Trump Gawkers" is a visceral look at what draws people to Trump Tower, through in-depth interviews and still photos - a project I started the day after the election. At first, I simply followed where my assignments sent me, but then found myself returning to the place on my own, unable to look away - and I wasn’t alone. Hoards of people undertake the trek, bearing security and weather roadblocks, to stare, gawk, absorb, record. The magnetism to Trump Tower (and by extension, to the man in the tower,) manifests in the sheer numbers of daily visitors, as well as in the fascination etched across their faces. Upon first look, the time so many spend there seems like sport and amusement, but underneath upturned eyes and selfie smiles prevails an undercurrent of anxiety - and not just for those who didn't want Trump in the Oval Office. Some of the electorate that voted against Hillary is now unsure for which version of Trump they voted. People's upward gazes, no matter their political views, seek answers: How could this happen? Or now that it has, what will it mean? https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Trump_Gawkers_015.jpg A passerby photographs Trump Tower, the current residence of Republican President elect Donald Trump, from a cab in New York, NY on November 25, 2016. - "Trump Gawkers" is a visceral look at what draws people to Trump Tower, through in-depth interviews and still photos - a project I started the day after the election. At first, I simply followed where my assignments sent me, but then found myself returning to the place on my own, unable to look away - and I wasn’t alone. Hoards of people undertake the trek, bearing security and weather roadblocks, to stare, gawk, absorb, record. The magnetism to Trump Tower (and by extension, to the man in the tower,) manifests in the sheer numbers of daily visitors, as well as in the fascination etched across their faces. Upon first look, the time so many spend there seems like sport and amusement, but underneath upturned eyes and selfie smiles prevails an undercurrent of anxiety - and not just for those who didn't want Trump in the Oval Office. Some of the electorate that voted against Hillary is now unsure for which version of Trump they voted. People's upward gazes, no matter their political views, seek answers: How could this happen? Or now that it has, what will it mean? A passerby photographs Trump Tower, the current residence of Republican President elect Donald Trump, from a cab in New York, NY on November 25, 2016. - "Trump Gawkers" is a visceral look at what draws people to Trump Tower, through in-depth interviews and still photos - a project I started the day after the election. At first, I simply followed where my assignments sent me, but then found myself returning to the place on my own, unable to look away - and I wasn’t alone. Hoards of people undertake the trek, bearing security and weather roadblocks, to stare, gawk, absorb, record. The magnetism to Trump Tower (and by extension, to the man in the tower,) manifests in the sheer numbers of daily visitors, as well as in the fascination etched across their faces. Upon first look, the time so many spend there seems like sport and amusement, but underneath upturned eyes and selfie smiles prevails an undercurrent of anxiety - and not just for those who didn't want Trump in the Oval Office. Some of the electorate that voted against Hillary is now unsure for which version of Trump they voted. People's upward gazes, no matter their political views, seek answers: How could this happen? Or now that it has, what will it mean? https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Trump_Gawkers_056.jpg A protester looks up at Trump Tower, the current residence of Republican President elect Donald Trump, in Manhattan, NY on November 09, 2016. - "Trump Gawkers" is a visceral look at what draws people to Trump Tower, through in-depth interviews and still photos - a project I started the day after the election. At first, I simply followed where my assignments sent me, but then found myself returning to the place on my own, unable to look away - and I wasn’t alone. Hoards of people undertake the trek, bearing security and weather roadblocks, to stare, gawk, absorb, record. The magnetism to Trump Tower (and by extension, to the man in the tower,) manifests in the sheer numbers of daily visitors, as well as in the fascination etched across their faces. Upon first look, the time so many spend there seems like sport and amusement, but underneath upturned eyes and selfie smiles prevails an undercurrent of anxiety - and not just for those who didn't want Trump in the Oval Office. Some of the electorate that voted against Hillary is now unsure for which version of Trump they voted. People's upward gazes, no matter their political views, seek answers: How could this happen? Or now that it has, what will it mean? A protester looks up at Trump Tower, the current residence of Republican President elect Donald Trump, in Manhattan, NY on November 09, 2016. - "Trump Gawkers" is a visceral look at what draws people to Trump Tower, through in-depth interviews and still photos - a project I started the day after the election. At first, I simply followed where my assignments sent me, but then found myself returning to the place on my own, unable to look away - and I wasn’t alone. Hoards of people undertake the trek, bearing security and weather roadblocks, to stare, gawk, absorb, record. The magnetism to Trump Tower (and by extension, to the man in the tower,) manifests in the sheer numbers of daily visitors, as well as in the fascination etched across their faces. Upon first look, the time so many spend there seems like sport and amusement, but underneath upturned eyes and selfie smiles prevails an undercurrent of anxiety - and not just for those who didn't want Trump in the Oval Office. Some of the electorate that voted against Hillary is now unsure for which version of Trump they voted. People's upward gazes, no matter their political views, seek answers: How could this happen? Or now that it has, what will it mean? https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Trump_Gawkers_043.jpg Passersby walk to Trump Tower, the current residence of Republican President elect Donald Trump, in New York, NY on December 28, 2016. - "Trump Gawkers" is a visceral look at what draws people to Trump Tower, through in-depth interviews and still photos - a project I started the day after the election. At first, I simply followed where my assignments sent me, but then found myself returning to the place on my own, unable to look away - and I wasn’t alone. Hoards of people undertake the trek, bearing security and weather roadblocks, to stare, gawk, absorb, record. The magnetism to Trump Tower (and by extension, to the man in the tower,) manifests in the sheer numbers of daily visitors, as well as in the fascination etched across their faces. Upon first look, the time so many spend there seems like sport and amusement, but underneath upturned eyes and selfie smiles prevails an undercurrent of anxiety - and not just for those who didn't want Trump in the Oval Office. Some of the electorate that voted against Hillary is now unsure for which version of Trump they voted. People's upward gazes, no matter their political views, seek answers: How could this happen? Or now that it has, what will it mean? Passersby walk to Trump Tower, the current residence of Republican President elect Donald Trump, in New York, NY on December 28, 2016. - "Trump Gawkers" is a visceral look at what draws people to Trump Tower, through in-depth interviews and still photos - a project I started the day after the election. At first, I simply followed where my assignments sent me, but then found myself returning to the place on my own, unable to look away - and I wasn’t alone. Hoards of people undertake the trek, bearing security and weather roadblocks, to stare, gawk, absorb, record. The magnetism to Trump Tower (and by extension, to the man in the tower,) manifests in the sheer numbers of daily visitors, as well as in the fascination etched across their faces. Upon first look, the time so many spend there seems like sport and amusement, but underneath upturned eyes and selfie smiles prevails an undercurrent of anxiety - and not just for those who didn't want Trump in the Oval Office. Some of the electorate that voted against Hillary is now unsure for which version of Trump they voted. People's upward gazes, no matter their political views, seek answers: How could this happen? Or now that it has, what will it mean? https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Trump_Gawkers_028.jpg David Skellington, doorman of Trump Tower of eight years, the current residence of Republican President elect Donald Trump, looks out onto passersby photographing the building in New York, NY on December 15, 2016. On crowds constantly recording Trump Tower, Skellington said: "It's interesting, you see a lot of people, it's history. But this could be awkward, so many people taking pictures. I'd rather be behind the camera. My family and friends are always seeing me on the news. Tourists say, 'you're famous.' " - "Trump Gawkers" is a visceral look at what draws people to Trump Tower, through in-depth interviews and still photos - a project I started the day after the election. At first, I simply followed where my assignments sent me, but then found myself returning to the place on my own, unable to look away - and I wasn’t alone. Hoards of people undertake the trek, bearing security and weather roadblocks, to stare, gawk, absorb, record. The magnetism to Trump Tower (and by extension, to the man in the tower,) manifests in the sheer numbers of daily visitors, as well as in the fascination etched across their faces. Upon first look, the time so many spend there seems like sport and amusement, but underneath upturned eyes and selfie smiles prevails an undercurrent of anxiety - and not just for those who didn't want Trump in the Oval Office. Some of the electorate that voted against Hillary is now unsure for which version of Trump they voted. People's upward gazes, no matter their political views, seek answers: How could this happen? Or now that it has, what will it mean? David Skellington, doorman of Trump Tower of eight years, the current residence of Republican President elect Donald Trump, looks out onto passersby photographing the building in New York, NY on December 15, 2016. On crowds constantly recording Trump Tower, Skellington said: "It's interesting, you see a lot of people, it's history. But this could be awkward, so many people taking pictures. I'd rather be behind the camera. My family and friends are always seeing me on the news. Tourists say, 'you're famous.' " - "Trump Gawkers" is a visceral look at what draws people to Trump Tower, through in-depth interviews and still photos - a project I started the day after the election. At first, I simply followed where my assignments sent me, but then found myself returning to the place on my own, unable to look away - and I wasn’t alone. Hoards of people undertake the trek, bearing security and weather roadblocks, to stare, gawk, absorb, record. The magnetism to Trump Tower (and by extension, to the man in the tower,) manifests in the sheer numbers of daily visitors, as well as in the fascination etched across their faces. Upon first look, the time so many spend there seems like sport and amusement, but underneath upturned eyes and selfie smiles prevails an undercurrent of anxiety - and not just for those who didn't want Trump in the Oval Office. Some of the electorate that voted against Hillary is now unsure for which version of Trump they voted. People's upward gazes, no matter their political views, seek answers: How could this happen? Or now that it has, what will it mean? https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Trump_Gawkers_008.jpg A group of boys gather to photograph Trump Tower, the current residence of Republican President elect Donald Trump, in New York, NY on December 07, 2016. - “Trump Gawkers" is a visceral look at what draws people to Trump Tower, the current residence of U.S. President elect Donald Trump. Hoards of people undertake the trek, bearing security and weather roadblocks, to stare, gawk, absorb, record. The magnetism to the tower (and by extension, to the man inside it,) manifests in the sheer numbers of daily visitors, as well as in the fascination etched across their faces. Upon first look, the time so many spend there seems like sport and amusement, but underneath upturned eyes and selfie smiles prevails an undercurrent of anxiety - and not just for those who didn't want Trump in the Oval Office. Some of the electorate that voted against Hillary is now unsure for which version of Trump they voted. People's upward gazes, no matter their political views, seek answers: How could this happen? Or now that it has, what will it mean? A group of boys gather to photograph Trump Tower, the current residence of Republican President elect Donald Trump, in New York, NY on December 07, 2016. - “Trump Gawkers" is a visceral look at what draws people to Trump Tower, the current residence of U.S. President elect Donald Trump. Hoards of people undertake the trek, bearing security and weather roadblocks, to stare, gawk, absorb, record. The magnetism to the tower (and by extension, to the man inside it,) manifests in the sheer numbers of daily visitors, as well as in the fascination etched across their faces. Upon first look, the time so many spend there seems like sport and amusement, but underneath upturned eyes and selfie smiles prevails an undercurrent of anxiety - and not just for those who didn't want Trump in the Oval Office. Some of the electorate that voted against Hillary is now unsure for which version of Trump they voted. People's upward gazes, no matter their political views, seek answers: How could this happen? Or now that it has, what will it mean? https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Trump_Gawkers_007.jpg A passerby gazes at Trump Tower, the current residence of Republican President elect Donald Trump, in Manhattan, NY on November 28, 2016. - “Trump Gawkers" is a visceral look at what draws people to Trump Tower, the current residence of U.S. President elect Donald Trump. Hoards of people undertake the trek, bearing security and weather roadblocks, to stare, gawk, absorb, record. The magnetism to the tower (and by extension, to the man inside it,) manifests in the sheer numbers of daily visitors, as well as in the fascination etched across their faces. Upon first look, the time so many spend there seems like sport and amusement, but underneath upturned eyes and selfie smiles prevails an undercurrent of anxiety - and not just for those who didn't want Trump in the Oval Office. Some of the electorate that voted against Hillary is now unsure for which version of Trump they voted. People's upward gazes, no matter their political views, seek answers: How could this happen? Or now that it has, what will it mean? A passerby gazes at Trump Tower, the current residence of Republican President elect Donald Trump, in Manhattan, NY on November 28, 2016. - “Trump Gawkers" is a visceral look at what draws people to Trump Tower, the current residence of U.S. President elect Donald Trump. Hoards of people undertake the trek, bearing security and weather roadblocks, to stare, gawk, absorb, record. The magnetism to the tower (and by extension, to the man inside it,) manifests in the sheer numbers of daily visitors, as well as in the fascination etched across their faces. Upon first look, the time so many spend there seems like sport and amusement, but underneath upturned eyes and selfie smiles prevails an undercurrent of anxiety - and not just for those who didn't want Trump in the Oval Office. Some of the electorate that voted against Hillary is now unsure for which version of Trump they voted. People's upward gazes, no matter their political views, seek answers: How could this happen? Or now that it has, what will it mean? https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Trump_Gawkers_009.jpg A passerby takes a look at Trump Tower, the current residence of Republican President elect Donald Trump, in New York, NY on November 29, 2016. - “Trump Gawkers" is a visceral look at what draws people to Trump Tower, the current residence of U.S. President elect Donald Trump. Hoards of people undertake the trek, bearing security and weather roadblocks, to stare, gawk, absorb, record. The magnetism to the tower (and by extension, to the man inside it,) manifests in the sheer numbers of daily visitors, as well as in the fascination etched across their faces. Upon first look, the time so many spend there seems like sport and amusement, but underneath upturned eyes and selfie smiles prevails an undercurrent of anxiety - and not just for those who didn't want Trump in the Oval Office. Some of the electorate that voted against Hillary is now unsure for which version of Trump they voted. People's upward gazes, no matter their political views, seek answers: How could this happen? Or now that it has, what will it mean? A passerby takes a look at Trump Tower, the current residence of Republican President elect Donald Trump, in New York, NY on November 29, 2016. - “Trump Gawkers" is a visceral look at what draws people to Trump Tower, the current residence of U.S. President elect Donald Trump. Hoards of people undertake the trek, bearing security and weather roadblocks, to stare, gawk, absorb, record. The magnetism to the tower (and by extension, to the man inside it,) manifests in the sheer numbers of daily visitors, as well as in the fascination etched across their faces. Upon first look, the time so many spend there seems like sport and amusement, but underneath upturned eyes and selfie smiles prevails an undercurrent of anxiety - and not just for those who didn't want Trump in the Oval Office. Some of the electorate that voted against Hillary is now unsure for which version of Trump they voted. People's upward gazes, no matter their political views, seek answers: How could this happen? Or now that it has, what will it mean? https://cdn.neonsky.app/4bd5ec03b1d55/images/Trump_Gawkers_010.jpg A passerby points up at Trump Tower, the current residence of Republican President elect Donald Trump, in New York, NY on November 29, 2016. - “Trump Gawkers" is a visceral look at what draws people to Trump Tower, the current residence of U.S. President elect Donald Trump. Hoards of people undertake the trek, bearing security and weather roadblocks, to stare, gawk, absorb, record. The magnetism to the tower (and by extension, to the man inside it,) manifests in the sheer numbers of daily visitors, as well as in the fascination etched across their faces. Upon first look, the time so many spend there seems like sport and amusement, but underneath upturned eyes and selfie smiles prevails an undercurrent of anxiety - and not just for those who didn't want Trump in the Oval Office. Some of the electorate that voted against Hillary is now unsure for which version of Trump they voted. People's upward gazes, no matter their political views, seek answers: How could this happen? Or now that it has, what will it mean? A passerby points up at Trump Tower, the current residence of Republican President elect Donald Trump, in New York, NY on November 29, 2016. - “Trump Gawkers" is a visceral look at what draws people to Trump Tower, the current residence of U.S. President elect Donald Trump. Hoards of people undertake the trek, bearing security and weather roadblocks, to stare, gawk, absorb, record. The magnetism to the tower (and by extension, to the man inside it,) manifests in the sheer numbers of daily visitors, as well as in the fascination etched across their faces. Upon first look, the time so many spend there seems like sport and amusement, but underneath upturned eyes and selfie smiles prevails an undercurrent of anxiety - and not just for those who didn't want Trump in the Oval Office. Some of the electorate that voted against Hillary is now unsure for which version of Trump they voted. People's upward gazes, no matter their political views, seek answers: How could this happen? Or now that it has, what will it mean? https://yanapaskova.com/people 2026-03-16 monthly 0.8 https://yanapaskova.com/in-print 2026-03-16 monthly 0.8