Tourism to CUBA is EXPLODING

 

    As a clear indication that Cuba has survived the Pandemic and is trying hard to survive the six-decade-old U. S. Embargo, Tourism to the Caribbean's largest island is exploding in 2023. In January of 2022 Cuba had 86,424 tourists and last month -- in January of 2023 -- the encouraging number was 246,000.

     Due south of Florida, Cuba is awash with some of the world's most intriguing cities...such as Havana, Cienfuegos, and Trinidad. And Cuba is also home to some of the world's Most Beautiful Beaches, such as world-renowned Varadera!!

     Yes, Varadero has been rated the "World's Best Beach" by international tourist experts such as TripAdvisor.

     In fact, as recent as 2021 Cayo Santa Maria has been rated as the "The World's Second Best Beach" by TripAdvisor. And both Varadero and Santa Maria are both on Cuba's northern coast a little bit south of Florida!!! If there was no U. S. Embargo of Cuba, could Florida's less beautiful beaches compete with Cuba's more highly rated beaches???

    This Iberojet airplane is owned by Iberostar Hotels & Resorts. Both Iberostar and Melia, based in Spain, have over forty 4-star and 5-star hotels in Cuba.

Four major Canadian airlines fly daily to Cuba.

     During the 62 years of the U. S. Embargo against Cuba, Canadian tourists, historic lovers of Cuba's beaches, have dominated Cuba's tourism. It is interesting to note that last month -- January of 2023 -- the countries sending the most tourists to Cuba were, in this order, Canada, the U. S., Spain, Germany, and Russia. The U. S. Embargo allows Cuban-Americans easier trips to Cuba while making it hard for most Americans to go, as a means of hurting the Cuban economy. Russian tourists have often been second in numbers to Cuba and, even during the bloody War with Ukraine, it is interesting that Russian tourists last month still were the 5th most visitors to Cuba.

     But, yes, these new tourist numbers are very interesting: Cuba had 246,000 tourists in January of 2023 compared to 86,424 in January of 2022.

   Again...it is interesting to wonder how much Cuba Tourism would cut into Florida Tourism if it was not for the U. S. Embargo of Cuba that has existed since FEBRUARY OF 1962!! Please note that the beautiful map shown above depicts Cuba as North America's Tourism Jewel back in the 1950s when both the U. S. Mafia Kingpins and major U. S. businesses were making vast fortunes during the vastly corrupt Batista dictatorship when the U. S. wildly promoted tourism to Cuba.

    Yes, any look at the archives in the 1950s tells us all about the 1950s when the U. S. and Cuba were "Good Friends" while Batista, the Mafia, and U. S. businessmen were all making vast fortunes and wildly promoting Tourism to Cuba!!! 

A typical "Beautiful Havana" ad in 1950's USA.

Since the 1950s "Welcome to Little Havana USA."

It is in Miami!!!!!!!!!

What HAPPENED?

Well, A Cuban Revolution happened!!!!

*&***********************&*

 

Cuba Headlines in February-2023

 

    Today -- on February 10th of 2023 -- Cuba remains the largest and arguably the most beautiful nation in the Caribbean, located due south of Key West, Florida. Like most days since Columbus discovered Cuba in 1492 and proclaimed, in his diary, that it "is the most beautiful land these eyes have ever seen," Cuba has made news. Since 1492 prime imperative nations have tried to dominate the intriguing and strategically located island. Today the Top Cuban Headlines flashing around the world, as always, are interesting and...intriguing...as shown above.

    The massive headline today regarding the amazing saga of Elian Gonzalez emerges from Cuba along with others such as the massive War in Europe, the latest U.S.-China confrontation and dispute over a shot-down spy balloon, etc. Yes, the 6-year-old Elian Gonzalez who dominated U.S.-Cuba headlines for over a week in 2000 is now 29-years-old in February of 2023 and, as a patriotic Cuban on the island, is still making big headlines as he now contemplates a prominent political move in his country.

     This is the memory of the massively afraid 6-year-old Elian Gonzalez that the world saw back on April 22nd, 2000. That day Elian was being hidden in a closet by Counter Revolutionary Cubans in Miami to keep him from reuniting with his father so he could return to Cuba. To this DAY -- February of 2023 -- this remains a colossal image of the vast Tug-of-War that has existed since 1959 between fierce Cubans in Miami and fierce Cubans in Havana. History registers the fact that the terrified six-year-old Elian survived that drama in the Miami closet and returned with his father to Cuba. Now 29-years-old and considered a revolutionary hero on the island, Elian is today a well-educated adult engineer, a married man and a father, and now wants to be a key politician.

      Today -- on Feb. 10th-2023 -- Elian Gonzalez -- is back in the news in a big way at age 29 in his beloved Cuba.

     But forever, or as long as the U.S.-Cuban conundrum drags on, the photo above will remain a massive image of the huge David vs. Goliath tugs-of-war between Cuba and the superpower United States. But below are other pertinent stages of Elian Gonzalez's life back in Cuba as a worldwide celebrity.

     This gorgeous baby is Eliz Gonzalez. Her father is Elian Gonzalez.

    This is Elian Gonzalez, his wife IIiana Escano, and their daughter Eliz. Still madly in love, Elian and IIiana first met when they were both students and soldiers.

    This interview broadcast by ABC News in the U. S. was the first major interview the mostly shy Elian Gonzalez and his father Juan Gonzalez gave to the U. S. media.

    Both Elian Gonzalez and his dad Juan have unwittingly been celebrities since the ordeal in the U. S. in 2000.

    Revolutionary icon Fidel Castro deeply loved the six-year-old Elian Gonzalez and the feeling was/is mutual. Very famously Fidel won some key battles against the U. S. -- such as the Revolution in 1959 and the military U. S. Bay of Pigs attack in 1961 -- and, of course, lost some -- such as the U. S. Embargo/Blockade that started in February of 1962 and still exists in February of 2023. But in 2010 on a trip to the Gonzalez home in Central Cuba, Fidel was asked how "proud" he was of Elian; after a hesitation and displaying rare public emotion, Fidel said, "This lad...this boy...is among my three greatest accomplishes, but that is all I will say about that." Therefore, as recorded live and with the audio preserved to this day by Radio Rebelbe, Fidel Castro, before he died in Havana at age 90 in 2016, had historically listed Elian as one of his three greatest accomplishments -- apparently along with the triumph of the Cuban Revolution in 1959 and the defense he led at the Bay of Pigs in 1961.

    Thus, for the historic record, let it be known that Fidel Castro's three proudest achievements were: {1} The triumph of his Cuban Revolution in 1959; {2} the successful defense at the Bay of Pigs in 1961; and {3} his battle to return 6-year-old Elian Gonzalez from that Miami closet back to Cuba in 2000.

     Yes, the terrified 6-year-old boy in the Miami closet on April 22nd in 2000, is Making Headlines Again in February of 2023.

     And, yes, in February of 2023 Elian Gonzalez and his wife IIiana are back in the worldwide headlines. At age 29 Elian has decided to enter politics in Cuba.

At age 29, Elian becomes a politician!!

*&***********************&*

BIDEN WANTS TO TALK ABOUT CUBA!!!

YES!!!

    This week -- on Feb. 7th-2023 -- U. S. President Joe Biden delivered his State of the Union speech to the American people and to the  535 members of the U. S. Congress. The speech was more than an hour long and, of course, he never mentioned the word "Cuba" not even one time. Yet, thanks to a noisy microphone, we now know that "Cuba" was very much on the President's mind starting when he made his way to the podium to deliver his speech at a time when mammoth domestic and foreign issues are seemingly overwhelming the 80-year-old President...and yet the U. S. President had Cuba on his mind!!!!

     It so happens that President Biden, on his way to deliver his State of the Union speech in Congress this week, apparently forgot that there were microphones picking up his verbal greetings to members of Congress. Therefore we know that, when he reached the line where powerful Cuban-American U. S. Senator Bob Menendez stood, President Biden said this surprising and amazing sentence to Bob Menendez: "I gotta talk to you about Cuba." It was/is a fantastic sentence!!!!!!

    "Bob, I gotta talk to you about Cuba." While the U. S. mainstream media, as always, is accustomed only to dealing with anti-Cuba propaganda, this sentence alone is extremely interesting, important, and was/is not propaganda.

    If the Democrat President of the United States, Joe Biden, actually plans to make new and important decisions regarding Cuba, he would first to have the permissions of, first, Democrat Senator Bob Menendez and, secondly, Republican Senator Marco Rubio. One of the undemocratic problems with the U. S. Cuban policies is the fact only a handful of powerful Counter Revolutionary Cuban-Americans, such as Menendez and Rubio, are allowed to make U. S. decisions on things such as the Embargo/Blockade of Cuba even though the majority of Americans, Cuban-Americans, and people around the world oppose it. "Bob, I need to talk you about Cuba." It is believed that President Biden made that drastic sentence to Senator Menendez to ask if he -- the President -- could made some decisions to ease the drastic EMBARGO-BLOCKADE on Cuba that has existed since February 8th of 1962!!!!!!!

   In America's two-party political system both President Biden and Senator Menendez are Democrats, not Republicans.

     It is believed that President Biden wants to ease the Blockade on Cuba that, with near-unanimity votes in the United Nations each year, reveals that most of the world wants to end the endless genocide against innocent families in Cuba. "Bob, I need to talk to you about Cuba." But this amazing sentence Biden said to Menendez right before the State of the Union speech this week apparently confirms that the President of the United States knows he has to get the permission of a powerful Counter Revolutionary Cuban-American before he can alter a drastic Cuban policy that has shamed the United States for over six decades...while it also drastically continues to punish generations of innocent Cuban families in Cuba while, of course, empowering and enriching certain Cubans in the United States.

      Many observers believed that President Biden, the Democrat, would change many of the extremely punitive and draconian Cuban decisions made by his predecessor, the Republican President Trump. But halfway through his 4-year term as President, Biden has been unwilling or unable to do much in that regard. Perhaps he is at least trying to do something about the image the BLOCKADE presents to the world.

*&***********************&*

 

Cuba No Longer Competitive in Baseball!!!

 

   Today -- February 8th, 2023 -- this is today's score as Panama beat Cuba 10-to-4 in Caracas. Cuba has now lost 6 games and won just 1 in the 65th Caribbean Baseball Classic being played in two Major League-caliber stadiums in Venezuela. This is a heralded regional event that Cuba in the past dominated but this year Cuba is the only non-competitive nation. The other 7 teams -- Mexico, Dominican Republic, Venezuela, Colombia, Panama, Curacao, and Puerto Rico -- are very competitive!!! Baseball-loving Cubans on the island are surprised and brokenhearted with the results from Venezuela this month, especially as the well-attended games are being well-covered by ESPN Deportes and other media sources.

*&***********************&* 

Baseball-loving Cuba Embarrasses Itself in Caracas

 

    In this beautiful baseball stadium in Caracas this afternoon {February 6th, 2023} baseball-loving Cuba again looked like the nation not trying to win games in the 65th Caribe Series. The other seven nations -- Mexico, Colombia, Venezuela, Dominican Republic, Panama, Puerto Rico, and Curacao -- all appear to be trying mightily to win the Series that is now halfway through its ten-day run that ends on February 10th. The heated competition by the other teams has exacerbated Cuba's lackluster efforts because ESPN Deportes is broadcasting the action for baseball fans to judge for themselves. Cuba's 1-5 record is the only non-competitive result so far and includes Cuba's embarrassing 20-3 loss to Venezuela and then 4 other losses Cuba has lost by just one run...embarrassingly. Today Cuba got good pitching from Cesar Garcia and Andy Vargas but their teammates weirdly gave the game away. Leading 3-2 in the top of the 9th inning, Cuba ended the inning by having a runner getting tagged out at the plate. Then in the last of the 9th with two out and still leading 3-2, the Cuban second baseman weirdly, instead of ending the game with a win, made an error to allow the tying run to score. Then the next batter for Puerto Rico also hit another grounder to second base that scored the winning run and ended the game with yet another Cuban one-run loss. Thus, as much as Cubans love baseball, this embarrassment in the 65th Caribe Series is disheartening. It makes fans wonder...will the same thing happen to Cuba in the 20-nation 5th World Baseball Classic that starts next month with Cuba opening in faraway Taiwan against the Netherlands. ??

😕

*&***********************&*

Cuba Is Losing Its Love & Fame For Baseball?

As U. S. Sanctions Take A Toll!!

    The 65th Caribbean Baseball Series is currently being held in two Major League-caliber stadiums in Caracas. Just like it won three Olympic Gold Medals in a row in baseball, Cuba once dominated events like the "Caribe Series"...but no longer. The 2023 Series is now in its 5th day and the 8 nations will continue playing until the Title Game on February 10th, 2023. After losing 5-4 to Colombia today {Feb. 6th-2023}, Cuba has the worst record at 1-and-4 and Cuba earlier embarrassed its baseball reputation with a 20-3 loss to host Venezuela. The other 7 teams -- Dominion Republic, Mexico, Colombia, Venezuela, Curacao, Puerto Rico, and Panama -- appear quite competitive...led by Venezuela and Mexico with 3-1 records while the favorite Dominicans are just 2-2. The games are being well-attended and some are being televised worldwide by ESPN Deportes. Last night viewers in primetime Sunday watched a brilliantly contested game as Venezuela defeated the Dominican Republic 3-2 with a walk-off hit in the last of the 12th inning of a game that was 0-0 after 9 innings.

   Yes, the Caribbean Series is being played in two Major League-caliber baseball stadiums in Caracas. That is interesting considering that Venezuela, a close ally of Cuba, has long been under massive U. S. economic sanctions that massively affect its economy, including how it trades with other nations. Back in the 1900s, including in the 1940s and 1950s when the U.S.-friendly Batista dictatorship ruled Cuba, the island per capita produced the best baseball players in the world and there was much talk that the U. S. Major Leagues would soon have a team in baseball-loving Havana, but by 1952 a burgeoning anti-Batista/anti-US revolution began in Cuba, ending the chance of Havana getting a Major League team. Now in 2023...although tightly sanctioned by the U. S...both Cuba and Venezuela are still sending a plethora of Major League superstars to the 30 U. S. teams where guaranteed long-term salaries of $40-million-a-year are commonplace. All 30 Major League teams have year-around world-class facilities in the Dominican Republic to keep massively training young Dominicans to become superstar Major Leaguers, but at the same time the U. S. has huge sanctions against Cuba & Venezuela, but both somehow also keep sending huge numbers of players to the U. S. Major Leagues.

   In that milieu, when the Caribbean Series ends on February 10th the attention will shift to the World Baseball Classic that starts on March 8, 2023. All of the world's Top Twenty baseball powers will play in the 2023 WBC -- including the top Caribbean nations as well as the United States, Japan, etc. And this year the WBC will be more powerful than ever because now Major League superstars...including many players who now have guaranteed deals paying them upwards of $300 & $400 millions in long-term contracts. The NY Mets, for example, have two pitchers -- Verlander & Scherzer -- that are each being paid salaries of $43.3 million for the 2023 season.

     Above is the potential batting order that the Dominican Republic can use in next month's 20-nation World Baseball Classic. All nine players above are Major League stars...and the top seven are extremely well-paid Superstars!!!! Many parents in the Dominican Republic are lavishly taking advantage of the state-of-the-art and very expensive year-around baseball facilities being lavishly funded by all of the 30 U. S. Major League teams. The WBC line-up shown above includes players with $300+ guaranteed million dollar contracts, a reason that 4-year-old boys in the DR are already starting serious baseball practices.

     This is the batting order that the U. S. might use in the World Baseball Classic and baseball fans can easily see that all nine starters above are Superstars. Mike Trout, the Center Fielder, for example, is being paid $430 million on his guaranteed contract with the Los Angeles Angels; the 9th-place hitter for the U. S. will be shortstop Tim Anderson of the Chicago White Sox and he is a two-time American League Batting Champion, etc.!!

    Other teams in the WBC will also have many Major League superstars...including Panama, Japan, China, Puerto Rico, Colombia, etc. Even the Netherlands team has several Major League stars, including a shortstop {Xander Bogaerts, born 30 years ago in Aruba} who just signed a new guaranteed $280 million contract with the San Diego Padres, a team that already had two young WBC players  -- Juan Soto & Fernando Tatis Jr. -- signed to guaranteed contracts worth more than $300 million each. And this time even Cuba's WBC team will include MLB stars!! The potential Cuban line-up in the WBC, as shown above, includes Major Leaguers such as Luis Robert in Center Field and Yoan Moncada at Third Base, stars with the Chicago White Sox. Cuba's first game in the World Baseball Classic will be in faraway Taiwan on March 8th against the Netherlands, which has 4 Major Leaguers including the very rich Xander Bogaerts.

    While most Major League teams are allowing their Superstars to play in the World Baseball Classic, Ronald Acuna Jr. -- the Superstar Center Fielder for the Atlanta Braves -- is being denied a chance to play for his native Venezuela. The Braves are worried he will get injured before the Major League season begins. As shown above, Acuna is begging the Braves to allow him to play in the WBC for a very strong Venezuelan team.

     And, yes, even Cuba might have a strong team in the World Baseball Classic starting in March...but the ultra-powerful Dominicans and Americans, with all of those obscene salaries, figure to fight for the championship after they both survive some strong competition. As the headline above indicates, for some reason the U. S. has chosen to ease its harsh Sanctions, Embargoes, and Blockades against Cuba enough to permit the besieged island nation to use some Cuban-born Major League players, perhaps giving Cuba a chance to compete somewhat fairly in the WBC. Incredible!!

*&***********************&*