Havana, Cuba (CNN) When Fidel Castro and his bearded rebels descended the Sierra Maestra mountains, Maria del Socorro Cadet was a teenager in the southeastern Cuban city of Santiago de Cuba.

The first shots of Castro's epic revolution were fired there. It's also where his ashes will be delivered to a final resting place on Sunday.

A 550-mile, cross-country funeral procession this week traced, in reverse, the triumphant 1959 march of Castro's ragtag guerillas from Santiago to Havana nearly six decades earlier.

Cadet, 73, in 1961 made the journey to the capital in the early stages of El Comandante's socialist experiment.

In Havana, she gave birth in 1964 to her first child, Manuel, who is now 52. She lives with him in a run-down concrete house next door to her granddaughter, Fatima, a 20-year-old University of Havana student.

Even within their close-knit family, the wide rifts created by Castro's long domination over this island of 11 million endure.

In the days after the Cuban leader's demise at age 90 one week ago, Cadet, her son and granddaughter reflected on Castro's reign and his revolution.

For many in the older generations, it is a time of grief and sorrow. Castro was like a father to them, an almost mythical figure who shepherded the island through conflict and despair.

Large swaths of the younger generations, however, are indifferent to his passing. Castro has been out of the picture most of their lives. They never sat through his hourslong speeches.

They surf the internet. They own smartphones. They chat with friends abroad on Skype. The all-consuming political battles that marked life in the time of Castro don't matter to them.

Cadet, old and frail, waxes nostalgic about the revolution's many achievements. Her middle-age son speaks of disillusionment and broken promises. Her granddaughter believes Castro's passing augurs new opportunities under younger leaders.

The story of three generations of Cadet's family is, in many ways, the story of Castro's Cuba.

Maria del Socorro Cadet Napoles, 73

Cadet, born in 1942, learned to toil the land in her father's small farm as a young girl.

After losing their mother to a heart attack, the 10 Cadet children lived with their father in a village outside Santiago near the shrine to Our Lady of Charity, the island's venerable patron saint.

She was 7 when her mother died. She went to work on the farm, carrying water-filled tins on her shoulders or stacks of firewood on her head.

"Life was hard," Cadet said. "If you didn't work, you didn't eat. We never missed a meal because we learned to work."

Her village was made up of mostly black, illiterate peasant farmers. Many walked around in their bare feet. Adequate health care was scarce.

Lighter-skinned Cubans dominated the economy and government under Fulgencio Batista, whose dictatorship was known for corruption, violence and cronyism.

Cadet, who is black, remembered the police regularly beating black Cubans, especially when they congregated to talk about the anti-Batista guerillas in the nearby mountains.

"In those days, white people stiffened at the sight of a black man," she said. "They viewed all blacks as thieves."

In 1961, at age 18, Cadet went to live with a sister who worked in a Havana preschool.

For a time, Cadet said, she earned a few pesos a week cleaning the homes and hand washing the clothes of well-heeled families who had not yet fled the island for Miami.

She did domestic work for Spaniards who were constructing factories in the early years of the revolution.

Cadet later cooked and served food at a military unit run by the late Vilma Espin.

A onetime socialite who fought alongside the Castro brothers in the mountains, Espin married Raul Castro and became an advocate of women's rights.

Cadet recalled serving food and drinks to "internationalists" every International Women's Day.

"I tended to them all," she said. "I worked like a mule. I was tired, but had to keep going."

The revolution enabled her, a black woman, to appear in movies and novelas after she answered a casing call by the Cuban Institute of Cinematographic Art and Industry. Cuba's hotels and nightclubs opened for the first time to blacks under Castro's reign, she said.

She was reminded that it was Raul Castro who lifted the ban on Cubans staying in tourist hotels in 2008.

"Under Batista, we were worse off," Cadet said.

Her son erupts in laughter.

"I'm being sincere," she said.

Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies Fidel Castro exhales cigar smoke during a March 1985 interview at his presidential palace in Havana, Cuba. Castro died at age 90 on November 25, 2016, Cuban state media reported. Click through to see more photos from the life of the controversial Cuban leader who ruled for nearly half a century: Hide Caption 1 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies A portrait of Castro in New York in 1955. He was in exile after being released as part of a general amnesty for political prisoners in Cuba. Two years earlier, he and about 150 others staged an unsuccessful attempt to overthrow the regime of Fulgencio Batista. Hide Caption 2 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies Castro with Argentine revolutionary Che Guevara during the early days of their guerrilla campaign in Cuba's Sierra Maestra mountains. Guevara, Castro and Castro's brother Raul organized a group of Cuban exiles that returned to Cuba in December 1956 and waged a guerrilla war against government troops. Hide Caption 3 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies Castro and his revolutionaries hold up their rifles in January 1959 after overthrowing Batista. Hide Caption 4 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies Crowds cheer Castro on his victorious march into Havana in 1959. Hide Caption 5 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies Surrounded by rebels who came with him from the mountains, Castro gives an all-night speech. Hide Caption 6 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies Castro, left, became Cuba's prime minister in February 1959. His brother Raul, right, was commander in chief of the armed forces. Hide Caption 7 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies During a visit to New York in 1959, Fidel Castro spends time with a group of children. Hide Caption 8 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies American talk-show host Ed Sullivan interviews Castro on a taped segment in 1959. Hide Caption 9 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies Castro shakes hands with US Vice President Richard Nixon during a reception in Washington in 1959. Hide Caption 10 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies Castro addresses the UN General Assembly in September 1960. Hide Caption 11 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies Castro jumps from a tank in April 1961 as he arrives at Giron, Cuba, near the Bay of Pigs. That month, a group of about 1,300 Cuban exiles, armed with US weapons, made an unsuccessful attempt to overthrow Castro. Hide Caption 12 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies Castro announces general mobilization after the announcement of the Cuban blockade by President John F Kennedy in October 1962. Hide Caption 13 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies Castro raises arms with Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev during a four-week visit to Moscow in May 1963. Hide Caption 14 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies Castro in July 1964. Hide Caption 15 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies Castro plays baseball in 1964. Hide Caption 16 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies Castro addresses thousands of Cubans in Havana in 1968. Hide Caption 17 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies In 1977, Castro uses a map as he describes the 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion to ABC correspondent Barbara Walters. Hide Caption 18 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies Iraq's Saddam Hussein, center, with the Castro brothers during a visit to Cuba in January 1979. Hide Caption 19 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies Castro greets Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev in Havana in April 1989. Hide Caption 20 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies Castro visits Paris in March 1995. Hide Caption 21 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies Castro meets with Pope John Paul II on an airport tarmac in Havana in January 1998. It was the first papal visit to Cuba. Hide Caption 22 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies Castro puts his arm around South African President Nelson Mandela in May 1998 with Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi, left, and Brazilian President Fernando Henrique Cardoso. They were in Geneva, Switzerland, for a conference of the World Trade Organization. Hide Caption 23 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies Castro welcomes Russian President Vladimir Putin to Cuba in December 2000. Putin was the first Russian President to visit Cuba since the fall of the Berlin Wall. Hide Caption 24 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies Castro is helped by aides after he appeared to faint while giving a speech in Cotorro, Cuba, in June 2001. He returned to the podium less than 10 minutes later to assure the audience he was fine and that he just needed to get some sleep. Hide Caption 25 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies In July 2001, Castro talks with Elian Gonzalez, the young boy who was the focus of a bitter international custody dispute a couple of years earlier. Hide Caption 26 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies Castro and former US President Jimmy Carter listen to the US national anthem after Carter arrived in Havana for a visit in May 2002. Hide Caption 27 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies Castro at the May Day commemoration of Revolution Square in Havana in 2004. He held tightly to his belief in a socialist economic model and one-party Communist rule, even after the Soviet Union's end and most of the rest of the world concluded state socialism was an idea whose time had passed. Hide Caption 28 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies Castro, left, and his brother Raul attend a session of the Cuban parliament in July 2004. Hide Caption 29 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies Castro speaks in Havana in February 2006. Hide Caption 30 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies Castro in Havana in September 2002. Several surgeries forced him to relinquish his duties temporarily to younger brother Raul in July 2006. Hide Caption 31 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies In footage from state-owned Cuban television, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez visits an ailing Castro in September 2006. That July, it was announced that Castro was undergoing intestinal surgery. Castro resigned as President in February 2008, and his brother Raul took over permanently. Hide Caption 32 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies Castro smiles before delivering a speech in Havana in September 2010. He had remained mostly out of sight after falling ill in 2006 but returned to the public light that year. Hide Caption 33 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies Pope Benedict XVI meets with Castro in Havana in March 2012. Hide Caption 34 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies In this picture provided by CubaDebate, Castro talks to Randy Perdomo, president of Cuba's University Students Federation, during a February meeting in Havana. Hide Caption 35 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies Castro visits with 19 cheese masters on Friday, July 3, 2015, in a rare trip outside his Havana home. Hide Caption 36 of 37 Photos: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies Leader of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill, left, visits with Fidel Castro during a meeting at Castro's home on February 14, 2016. Hide Caption 37 of 37

Cadet lived through key moments during the heady first years of the revolution.

There was Cuba's victory in the 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion, which was led by US-backed exiles intent on toppling Castro. In October 1962, a tense 13-day standoff between Washington and Moscow over the installation of Soviet missiles on the island brought the world to the brink of nuclear war.

Last Saturday morning, Cadet turned on the radio and learned of Castro's death. She recalled seeing him on state-run television several weeks earlier. His frail appearance pained her.

"I never thought Fidel would die," she said. "I thought he was eternal."

She took pills for her nerves that morning. Her heart pounded.

"That man did so much for Cuba and the world," she said.

"Look at how many doctors he has sent all over the world. I know everyone has to die some day but I thought he would live forever."

She said she's unsure of what course current President Raul Castro will take her beloved country.

Does she have as much faith in him as she did in his brother?

"I can't answer that," she said.

Manuel Giron Cadet, 52

Cadet gave birth to her first son, Manuel Giron Cadet, in Havana on October 12, 1964. She later separated from his father.

Giron learned about Castro's revolution in school and from his mother. He grew up around fading communist slogans plastered across billboards throughout the capital.

"I was taught a lot about the revolution, but I wasn't very revolutionary," he said.

As he got older, Giron started to ask questions about the struggles of everyday life under the socialist-nationalist system. About the inequalities and racism that persisted over the years.

"I was very tough," he said. "I spoke the truth."

For a time, Giron said, he attended the same schools as the children and grandchildren of Fidel and Raul Castro.

"I saw the differences in our lives," he said.

"That made me a little rebellious. There were the haves and the have-nots. The government people were not the same as the rest of us. They lived in houses with swimming pools. They traveled to Europe. We couldn't do that."

Cadet lived through the scarcity and severe hardships that started in 1991 after the collapse of the Soviet Union, Cuba's longtime benefactor.

The Special Period in Time of Peace, as the Castro euphemistically called it, lasted through the decade. Cuba continued to struggle well into the 21st century.

"It was all very hard for me," he said. "We have been living a lie."

Over the years, as Cuba slowly experimented with free-market reforms, Giron became disenchanted with the growing economic divide.

Three generations have differing views of Fidel Castro's legacy.

"There is a new bourgeoisie -- people with small businesses and people who receive money from abroad," said Giron, who earns just over $20 a month -- about the national average -- as a massage therapist.

The Castros have maintained power through repression, Giron said.

Human rights groups have said that among the practices that emerged under Fidel Castro's rule included surveillance, beatings, arbitrary detention and public acts of repudiation.

As a gay man, Giron said, he has never lost sight that gay men were put in labor camps in the early days of the revolution. Today, there is a little more tolerance.

He knows he could be jailed for his comments, he said. He has never spoken out publicly against the government.

"I'm not afraid," he said. "Raul himself has said we need to discuss things more openly. I speak the truth."

The pillars of Castro's revolution -- free access to public services such as health care and education -- have been undermined by repression, Giron said.

Photos: Cuba remembers Castro Photos: Cuba remembers Castro Workers place a plaque with the word "Fidel" on the tomb holding the remains of former Cuban President Fidel Castro in the Cementerio Santa Ifigenia where he was buried, Sunday, December 4, in Santiago de Cuba. Cubans are honoring his life this week. Hide Caption 1 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro A Cuban government supporter cries during Castro's funeral on December 4. Hide Caption 2 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro Fidel Castro's funeral in Santiago de Cuba on December 4. Hide Caption 3 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro Fidel Castro's ashes pass on the streets going to the cemetery in Santiago de Cuba on December 4. Hide Caption 4 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro Cuban government supporters chant for Fidel Castro near the entrance of the cemetery on December 4. Hide Caption 5 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro Cuban government supporters chant for Fidel Castro near the entrance of the cemetery on December 4. Hide Caption 6 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro The ashes of the former Cuban leader pass below an iconic revolutionary banner as the cortège makes the final movement to the cemetery on December 4. Hide Caption 7 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro Cubans await for the passage of the urn containing the ashes of Fidel Castro on December 4. Hide Caption 8 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro Cubans await the passage of Castro's ashes from Revolution Square in Santiago, Cuba on December 4. Hide Caption 9 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro Cubans wait on the side of the road for the caravan carrying the ashes on December 3. Hide Caption 10 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro A man on horseback Saturday, December 3, waits on the side of the road for the caravan carrying the ashes of former Cuban President Fidel Castro, who died at age 90 on November 25. Hide Caption 11 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro Cubans see the ashes of Fidel Castro being carried by a special convoy through the city of Holguin on Saturday, December 3. Hide Caption 12 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro A soldier reacts after the ashes of longtime Cuban leader Fidel Castro passed through Santa Clara, Cuba, on Thursday, December 1. Hide Caption 13 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro People watch from a rooftop as Castro's remains pass by in Santa Clara on December 1. Castro's ashes are on a four-day journey from Havana to Santiago de Cuba. Hide Caption 14 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro The trailer of a military jeep carries the flag-draped coffin containing Castro's ashes. Hide Caption 15 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro A car adorned with messages to Castro sits parked on a street in La Esperanza, Cuba, on Wednesday, November 30. Hide Caption 16 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro Castro's ashes are driven through Revolution Square in Havana on November 30. Hide Caption 17 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro People line up to pay their final respects at a Castro memorial in Santa Clara on November 30. The theater marquee reads "Thank you Fidel" in Spanish. Hide Caption 18 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro Schoolchildren react as a helicopter passes overhead in Cardenas, Cuba, on November 30. Hide Caption 19 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro Women comfort one another after watching Castro's remains pass by in Havana on November 30. Hide Caption 20 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro Ministry of Interior troops hold a Cuban flag as they wait for the military caravan transporting Castro's remains on November 30. Hide Caption 21 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro A girl in Havana holds a sign that reads "I am Cuba. I am Fidel. I am revolution" on Tuesday, November 29. Hide Caption 22 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro People in Havana participate in a massive rally at Revolution Square on November 29. Hide Caption 23 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro Cuban President Raul Castro, left, Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega, center, and Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa, far right, take part in the Revolution Square rally on November 29. Hide Caption 24 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro Navy cadets join the crowd during the rally on November 29. Hide Caption 25 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro Laurenso, an 80-year-old army veteran, pays his respects in Revolution Square on November 29. Hide Caption 26 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro A woman stretches her hand toward a picture of Castro at a memorial in Guanabacoa, on the outskirts of Havana, on November 29. Hide Caption 27 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro An honor guard fires a 21-gun salute to mark the start of services paying tribute to Castro in Havana on Monday, November 28. Hide Caption 28 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro People gather at Revolution Square to pay tribute to Castro on Monday, November 28. Hide Caption 29 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro A man in Havana pays tribute to Castro on November 28. Hide Caption 30 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro Thousands wait in line at Revolution Square on November 28. Hide Caption 31 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro Cubans hold photos of Castro as they wait to pay their respects at Revolution Square on November 28. Hide Caption 32 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro People pay their last respects to Castro in Revolution Square. Hide Caption 33 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro Cuban soldiers march near Revolution Square on November 28. Hide Caption 34 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro A woman dries her tears as she waits to pay her respects in Havana on November 28. Hide Caption 35 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro Alejandro Castro Espin, son of Cuban President Raul Castro, offers his condolences to his cousin Antonio Castro Soto del Valle, right, at Revolution Square. Hide Caption 36 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro Students sign a book of condolences and a loyalty oath for Fidel Castro at a community center in Havana on November 28. Hide Caption 37 of 38 Photos: Cuba remembers Castro Workers hang a giant banner of a young Castro from the Cuban National Library in Havana on Sunday, November 27. Hide Caption 38 of 38

Giron is not in mourning. The state, however, has held a number of public events honoring Castro

Millions of Cubans -- many waving flags and chanting "Fidel! Fidel!" -- lined the route of the rebels' cross-country caravan. Flags are being flown at half-staff. On the streets of Havana, where music is always blaring, there was an eerie silence during a nine-day mourning period. Only some tourist hotels sell alcohol.

Many Cubans, like Giron, go about their days as usual. They say they expect little change.

Giron, whose nickname is Manolo, said he felt nothing at the news of Castro's death.

"I'm not a communist," he said. "I'm not a Fidelista. I am Manolo."

He added, "The revolution will not die. This is a dynasty. It's all in the family."

Maria de Fatima Bell Zerquera, 20

Maria de Fatima Bell Zerquera, the only child of Cadet's daughter, was born in the Cuban capital on May 13, 1996. She studies accounting at the University of Havana.

Bell's mother works in a bank, her father at a market. They used money from their meager salaries to construct a small, two-story concrete house on what was a garden on the side of Cadet's home.

"We used to live better," she said. "After the construction, we've had to limit ourselves economically."

The two homes share a narrow backyard. The family cooks and eats together. They watch TV or sit on the front porch on hot nights. Their ability to laugh at their differences has brought them closer.

"My grandmother is a revolutionary," Bell said the other day.

Her uncle shot back, "No, she's a communist."

They burst out laughing.

"No, my grandmother isn't a communist or a revolutionary," Bell said. "My grandmother is Fidelista."

Photos: Reaction to Fidel Castro's death Members of the Cuban community in the Little Havana area in Miami react to the death of Fidel Castro on Saturday, November 26. Castro, who led a rebel army to improbable victory in Cuba, embraced Soviet-style communism and defied the power of US presidents during his half-century rule, died at age 90. Hide Caption 1 of 20 Photos: Reaction to Fidel Castro's death Rafaela Vargas mourns the death of former President Fidel Castro at the entrance of her home in the Vedado neighborhood in Havana, Cuba, on Saturday, November 26. Hide Caption 2 of 20 Photos: Reaction to Fidel Castro's death Cuban students chant slogans and carry a wreath as they mourn the death of revolution leader Fidel Castro, at the University of Havana, on November 26, 2016, in Havana. Hide Caption 3 of 20 Photos: Reaction to Fidel Castro's death A member of the Cuban community in the Little Havana area in Miami reacts to the death of Fidel Castro. Hide Caption 4 of 20 Photos: Reaction to Fidel Castro's death People gather outside the Cuban Embassy in Santiago, Chile. One of the world's longest-serving rulers and most singular characters, Castro defied 11 US administrations and hundreds of assassination attempts. Hide Caption 5 of 20 Photos: Reaction to Fidel Castro's death People take to the streets to react to the news of the death of former Cuban President Fidel Castro outside the restaurant Versailles in Miami. Hide Caption 6 of 20 Photos: Reaction to Fidel Castro's death Women cry outside Cuba's embassy in Buenos Aires, Argentina, after the announcement of the death of Fidel Castro. Hide Caption 7 of 20 Photos: Reaction to Fidel Castro's death Cuban-Americans react to the death of Fidel Castro in the Little Havana area in Miami. Hide Caption 8 of 20 Photos: Reaction to Fidel Castro's death Flowers, candles and a Cuban cigar are laid out in Moscow in memory of former Cuban President Fidel Castro. Hide Caption 9 of 20 Photos: Reaction to Fidel Castro's death Cuban-Americans take to the streets of Miami's Little Havana neighborhood early Saturday, November 26, upon hearing the news of longtime Cuban leader Fidel Castro's death. Castro died at age 90 after ruling the island nation with an iron hand for nearly half a century. Hide Caption 10 of 20 Photos: Reaction to Fidel Castro's death Cuban-Americans celebrate in Miami's Little Havana, the center of the Cuban exile community in the United States. Hide Caption 11 of 20 Photos: Reaction to Fidel Castro's death Celebrations continue into the early morning November 26 in Miami's Little Havana neighborhood. Few who came to the United States in the late '50s and early '60s believed Castro would hang on to power for so long, only ceding the presidency to his brother Raul in recent years. Hide Caption 12 of 20 Photos: Reaction to Fidel Castro's death Members of Communist Party of India march as part of a remembrance rally in Chennai on November 26, 2016. Hide Caption 13 of 20 Photos: Reaction to Fidel Castro's death People celebrate the death of Cuban leader Fidel Castro in Miami, on Saturday, November 26, 2016. Castro, who led a rebel army to improbable victory, embraced Soviet-style communism and defied the power of 10 US presidents during his half century rule of Cuba, has died at age 90. Hide Caption 14 of 20 Photos: Reaction to Fidel Castro's death The mood seems somber in Havana on November 26 as Cubans react to the announcement of the revolutionary leader's death. Hide Caption 15 of 20 Photos: Reaction to Fidel Castro's death A man places flowers at the Cuban Embassy in Moscow in memory of Castro on November 26. Russian President Vladimir Putin called the Cuban leader "a sincere and reliable friend of Russia." Hide Caption 16 of 20 Photos: Reaction to Fidel Castro's death Those out on the streets of Miami include Cuban-Americans of all ages. Some Cuban exiles have waited years to mark this moment. Hide Caption 17 of 20 Photos: Reaction to Fidel Castro's death The streets are quiet in the Cuban capital on November 26 following the announcement of Castro's death the evening before on national TV. Hide Caption 18 of 20 Photos: Reaction to Fidel Castro's death People gather at an office of the Popular Assembly in Havana in front of a picture of the iconic leader on November 26 after President Raul Castro announced his brother's death on television. Hide Caption 19 of 20 Photos: Reaction to Fidel Castro's death A sign that reads, "Long live Fidel," stands on a government building in Havana early November 26. Hide Caption 20 of 20

Bell said she has benefited from the fruits of Castro's revolution. She's grateful for the free health care and university education afforded to her.

But she admits there could be more personal freedoms and economic opportunities.

"Not everyone has the same rights," Bell said. "There are people who just move a finger and they accomplish everything and people who work harder than others."

She was 10 when an intestinal illness that required several surgeries forced Castro to relinquish his duties temporarily to younger brother Raul in July 2006.

Castro resigned as president in February 2008. Raul took over permanently.

Bell had little exposure to the man who was Cuba's leader for 47 years.

"I didn't know him and, in this time of my life, he wasn't in charge," she said.

Her uncle interjected, "Yes, I had to get Fidel."

They laughed.

Bell added, "What I can tell you is that Fidel did a lot of things that we should applaud and he will always be a part of Cuba's legacy. He's the most important person Cuba has had and he will always be."

When she awoke last Saturday, her mother told her Castro was dead.

"It wasn't that painful or emotional," Bell said. "I didn't have that feeling that other people who knew him felt, people who benefited from him."

Bell hopes Castro's death portends a new beginning.

"I'd like to see a lot of changes... toward more freedom, a better economy, something better," she said.

"We need more freedom of expression, liberty to ... travel, to know other countries, study in other countries, learn other cultures."

Bell's generation will be the real architects of change, she said.

"I don't consider myself a revolutionary," she said. "I consider myself a Cuban who is loyal to her country and who can help achieve big changes...a Cuban who wants to prosper and work for the well-being of her country."