Havana - Post Report Question and Answers
What is the relative size of the expatriate community? How would you describe overall morale among expatriates?
Expat community is small. - Jul 2023
Small and shrinking. Morale is in the toilet. - Oct 2017
Moderate size. There are many tiny missions in town, so there is a diverse community of diplomats. The morale among American officers is variable, with most seeming to have moderate morale. The frustrations of living in Cuba affect some more than others. "Home-life" morale does seem to be better than "work" morale, which seems to be pretty low. - Jan 2016
Expat community is large and morale is pretty high. Things are most difficult for U.S. officials because we have more restrictions on travel, what we can bring in, etc. Diplomats and businesspeople from other countries are pretty happy here. - May 2014
Small. Private businesses don't come here for fear of nationalization (The Spanish hotels are 51% owned by the government). Not a huge UN presence or other NGO. Most diplomats are family households. Makes life rough on singles. - Aug 2013
Very large, mostly diplomatic. Havana is said to have the largest diplomatic presence between Washington and Brasilia, exceeding even Mexico City. There is little private sector activity, but there are some brave foreign business people. - Jul 2011
