HAVANA (AP) — There's been a carnival atmosphere Monday outside the new U.S. Embassy in Havana, overlooking the city's Malecon seaside promenade.
It's the first day of the new normalized relations between the United States and Cuba. And U.S. and Cuban diplomats in Washington and Havana noted the upgrade to embassy status in social media posts.
By mid-morning, the Cuban government had pulled back several of the eight or so security guards who had stood watch over what is now the U.S. embassy. A pair of officers stood on each corner around the building. And instead of casting stony glares at the passers-by, they smiled and said, "Buenos dias."
Curious Cubans were clustered around the forest of flagpoles in front of the embassy. They snapped photos, as U.S. tourists posed for selfies in front of the building.
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