New Meridian Arts is a creative community dedicated to publishing innovative literature and poetry that gives voice to original writers of talent and scope around the world.
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Between Ceausescu and Fidel
"After John Paul II visited Cuba in 1998, the expectations of Cubans for change were dashed. The Cuba I found before that visit was a country mired in poverty and decay, surviving through an uncommon spirit of generosity and pleasure in day-to-day interactions within families and neighbors. Music, art, and dance were everywhere, as were hopes for the future and plans of escape. The Cuba Pope Francis found in 2015 remained unchanged for Radu Polizu, but he had the good fortune of seeing Cuba changed by the internet, shortly after the Pope’s visit. He wrote a fascinating account of a true crossroads in Cuba, a country changing more under the pressure of technology than the moral dictates of governance. Vivid and spirited, this book is a true account of a new Cuba hatching as we speak."
— Andrei Codrescu, author of Ay, Cuba: a Socio-Erotic Journey
About the Author
Radu Polizu lived in Romania under the dictatorship of Nicolae Ceausescu until he found his way as a political refugee in the United States. In the U.S., he developed a career in television and started his own video production and consulting company, Flying Monk, specializing in video engineering and production of travel documentaries. Traveling independently, Radu shot footage in more than 70 countries, following the social and cultural aspects of those specific destinations. When he is not traveling, Radu does consulting for television and media companies and writes travel essays for a number of Romanian magazines. In 2016, he published at Scrisul Romanesc, a Romanian publishing house, his first book in Romanian language, Cartea Povestilor Uitate — The Book of Forgotten Stories —, about interesting cultural encounters that occurred during his many shooting assignments around the world. He lives in New York.
