CUBA TOMORROW

Ten years from now, in a world of dreams, Cuba is a free and modern country, teeming with visitors and a hub for businesses

- GORDON MOTT

The year is 2032. On a Friday evening, all 50 gates at Havana’s newly inaugurated Aeropuerto Teófilo Stevenson, named for Cuba’s greatest Olympic boxer, are occupied by jets with the logos of every major American airline. They have arrived from New York, Chicago, Miami and Los Angeles, virtually every prominent American city. Lines at immigration snake back into the arrival terminal, designed by Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava, but the passport checks are quick. By the time most people have cleared the perfunctory look at their IDs, their luggage is waiting on the carousels. Unlike the Fidel Castro years, there are no huge stacks of TVs and electronics or other household items like soap, paper towels or clothes; Cubans can now buy them at local Wal-Marts and Costcos that dot the island.

The queue for taxis is chaotic but moves quickly as the long line of imported cars—mostly brand new electric models made by Ford, Volkswagen, BMW, Chevrolet, Kia, Hyundai and Toyota— pick up the arriving tourists and returning citizens. The latter are just in town for a long weekend before heading back to America to full-time, well-paying jobs. The steady stream of cars races into Havana on a perfectly paved six-lane freeway that ends at the Monumento de Restoración de la Libertad. The massive statue is topped by a huge, redesigned Cuban flag, a nod to the Betsy Ross flag of the United States with a circle of stars, one for each of Cuba’s 15 provinces.