LAJKOVAC, Serbia — Belquis Gonzales and her family enjoy something close to celebrity status in a small town in Serbia, where they live after fleeing Cuba five years ago. While most emigrants from the Caribbean island go to the United States or Spanish-speaking countries, Gonzales and her husband chose Serbia — a rare country in […]
Tag: Republic of Cuba
With Cuban Dissidents Wary Or In Jail, Call For Fresh Protests Falls Flat
HAVANA — A rallying cry for protests in Cuba in favor of greater civil rights fell flat on Monday as most Cuban dissidents stayed home in the face of government pressure, appearing to end a standoff on the same day the Caribbean island reopened its borders to tourists. Dissidents have for months called on social […]
U.S. Vacations In Cuba Still Come With Hangovers From Trump Sanctions
HAVANA — Cuba opens its borders next week signaling new opportunity for pandemic-weary travelers and the island’s tourism industry, but for U.S. citizens getting there requires jumping through hoops like never before, according to the heads of eight U.S. tour agencies. Former President Donald Trump ended cruise ship dockings, reduced flights to Havana and eliminated them […]
Latin America’s Resurgent Left And Caribbean Spurn U.S. Policy On Cuba
HAVANA — The United States doubled down on its tough stance and sanctions on Cuba after historic protests in the Communist-run island last month and said it would seek to support protesters. But many countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, a region which is still scarred by Washington’s backing of coups during the Cold […]
Mexican President Defies U.S. Sanctions On Cuba, Saying They Are ‘Inhumane’
MEXICO CITY — Mexico’s president today asserted his country’s right to send fuel to Cuba and said U.S. sanctions on the island were “inhumane,” after a diesel cargo shipped by Mexico’s state-run oil company Petroleos Mexicanos arrived in Cuba’s Havana port. Mexico’s left-leaning President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has criticized the U.S. embargo against Cuba and pledged […]
Police Patrol Havana In Large Numbers After Rare Protests Today
HAVANA — Large contingents of Cuban police patrolled the capital of Cuba today following rare protests around the island nation against food shortages and high prices amid the coronavirus crisis. Cuba’s president said the demonstrations were stirred up on social media by Cuban Americans in the United States. Sunday’s protests marked some of the biggest […]
Picking Up Speed, Tropical Storm Elsa Moves Towards South-Central Cuba
HAVANA — Tropical Storm Elsa strengthened late on Sunday as its center approached south-central Cuba with the Caribbean island nation’s government issuing hurricane warnings for the provinces of Cienfuegos and Matanzas. The U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC) forecast Elsa would strengthen some more before it moves over Cuba. Elsa had arrived earlier in the day in eastern […]
A One-Way Ticket From Cuba To Guyana Costs $7,000 On The Black Market
GEORGETOWN — Cubans who are required to fly to Guyana for visa interviews at the U.S. Embassy there are complaining that Havana-Georgetown tickets are selling on the black market for between $4,700 and $7,000, five months after the Cuban government suspended direct flights to Guyana because of the coronavirus pandemic. Washington suspended visa interviews and […]
NOT TOO LATE FOR HELLO: Julian Lennon On Taking Cool Pics In Cuba
HAVANA — Whether snapping daily life in Cuba or members of the Irish rock band U2, photographer and singer Julian Lennon says the pictures he most likes taking are spontaneous. “The ones that really I enjoy the most are … spur of the moment,” Lennon, 58, told Reuters. The son of late Beatle John Lennon […]
Cuba’s Tourism Workers Reinvent Themselves As Lockdown Lingers
HAVANA — Trumpeter Carlos Sanchez serenaded tourists in Old Havana for 30 years, earning handsome tips — until the coronavirus pandemic hit and Cuba closed its borders a year ago on April 1. Now the 57-year-old ekes out a living repairing fans. The global vaccination drive is sparking hopes worldwide of a tourism rebirth this […]