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Revolico is Cuba’s Version of Craigslist
By Staff Writer – Boonsri Dickinson (@boonspoon)
Anyone with a computer and Internet access can sell and buy stuff on Cuba’s version of Craigslist, through a service called Revolico.
The direct translation of Revolico is “disarray.” Although the site was recently blocked by the government, there’s software that can get around that. The website went from having over 300,000 views per month in January 2008 to having more than two million visitors in August 2009.
The New York Times reports:
The offerings on this online bazaar run the gamut, although it is impossible to tell which sellers are legitimate, which are scam artists and which might even be government agents setting a trap. A recent posting offered illegal satellite dishes, which the authorities occasionally seize from rooftops to prevent outlawed foreign broadcasts from finding their way into Cuban homes. Also for sale were English classes, old typewriters, sex toys, purebred dogs and tooth whitening chemicals. People with permission to travel were sought out to buy clothing, electronics and other goods to bring back in their luggage.
Some people have been able to make a living on the Revolico. And like all things online, the good comes with the bad. Some posts are targeted to Cubans who want a way off the island through arranged marriages. As much as the Communist-run government tries to stop the influx of goods from being sold on this online black market.
The Global Post previously reported how this service has changed the market place in Cuba. Of all the goods, computers and computer equipment are the most wanted products. And just like Craigslist, ads for hookers and solicitations for love connections are a plenty.
The Global Post points to another interesting trend. The cars sold online are classic ones. Only cars built before the 1960s can be sold in Cuba, so you have cars like a perfect 53′ Chevrolet up for sale.
While Revolico is the most popular, there are other websites like dicuba.com and cu.clasificado.st that give Cubans access to the world.
Image: flickr/ judo dad1953
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Tags: black market
, classic cars
, Craigslist
, Cuba
, goods sold online
, Revolico 

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