What was Cuba like before Castro? Before the Revolution of 1959? The answer will probably make you more than a little uncomfortable. Today the country that was once one of the most glamorous places in the hemisphere, is just a shadow of its former self. Before the Revolution that set Cuba into a downward spiral, it was a glittering place ranked fifth in the hemisphere in per capita income, third in life expectancy, second in car ownership, and first in the number of TVs owned per person (source). Currently less than five percent of Cubans even have access to the internet. That said, income inequality was huge in the era presented in these photographs. The wealthy, like socialite Aline Johnson de Menocal, the woman you see in the photographs below, lived like royalty compared to your average Cuban person. It was another time, another world altogether.
