Even before nightfall, under a blazing sun that in the afternoon turns the central area of La Palma into an open air industrial over, the poorer class of jineteras decked out in the cheap clothes strut the four corners of Arroya Naranjo, the poorest neighborhood in Havana, declared on red alert for its high crime rate and numbers of people incarcerated.
Many are youngsters fleeing from poverty and lack of a future in the remote villages of eastern Cuba. They range from 17 to There are several options. The most requested is a quickie. If your wallet permits, there is accommodation in one of the innumerable private rooms.
Comfortable rooms with air conditioning, hot and cold water, and fridge full of dark Bucanero beer at 1. They also offer food. A TV hangs on the wall attached to a video player where you can see musicals or hard core porn. And in case you forgot, on the table is a carton of condoms from China. Although this latter is seldom lacking; the hard working jineteras of the area always carry several packets of condoms in the pirated-brand-name purses.
La Palma is a crossroads filled with hurrying pedestrians toting their nylon bags in search of food or household supplies. The roads 10 Octubre, Managua, Bejucel and Porvenir are born and die there. Of course these sites are not recommended for tourists passing through Havana. The regular clients of these prostitutes are often the workers in the agricultural markets or butchers who make good money by selling pork fresh and smoked. Also there are the self-employed and for-hire drivers who after twelve hours of driving revel in a cafe drinking beer and trying to latch onto a voluptuous prostitute.
Late at night La Palma is packed with disco lovers and card players, along with those who run the illegal dice games casinos in the area. In these hours the exchange of sex for money ramps up. And the rooms for rent are full. Then the prostitutes do their work in some dark hallway or along the banks of a stinky creek that runs through the area.
