Cuba’s Economy Surged in 2015

Cuba’s economic growth quickened significantly in 2015, according to the latest estimates from the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean. The island’s gross domestic product grew by 4 percent in 2015, after expanding by just 1.3 percent in 2014, according to the ECLAC data. That also represented Cuba’s highest year-over-year GDP … Read more

How Cuba Is Preserving Varadero’s Beaches

Cuba’s Ministry of Science, Technology, and Environment reports that it made intense efforts throughout 2015 to preserve Varadero’s beaches through the replacement of invasive plants with native species, which aid in the prevention of dune erosion. The work to restore vegetation to the coastal area is reportedly the most comprehensive undertaken in recent years in … Read more

Iberia Launching Daily Flights to Havana

Spanish air carrier Iberia is launching daily service to Havana, Cuba, the carrier announced. The new flights will launch on June 2, according to a media release on Facebook. Iberia will be operating the service on its new Airbus A330-200 aircraft. The addition of daily service represents a 30 percent increase in flights to Cuba, … Read more

Another Company Wants to Launch Ferry Service From Florida to Cuba

Global ferry and shipping group FRS and Clipper, operator of Clipper Vacations, will combine transportation and tourism expertise to launch a new ferry service from Florida to Cuba, pending government guidance and approval. The announcement comes following FRS’ recent acquisition of a majority interest in Clipper. “This is an exciting day for Clipper, as we … Read more

Spanish Travel Confab Celebrates Cuba’s Relationship with Spain

Spanish Travel Confab Celebrates Cuba’s Relationship with Spain

Cuba’s participation in the 36th International Tourism Fair (FITUR) 2016, in Madrid, Spain, showcased the vital link between Spain’s private sector and Cuba’s rapidly expanding travel and tourism sector. The Cuba delegation was led by Cuba’s Tourism Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz. The mission was to promote the island nation’s newest top tourist destinations: Varadero, Trinidad, … Read more

Price Controls Re-emerge in Cuba’s 2016 Economy

Price Controls Re-emerge in Cuba’s 2016 Economy

An experiment started a few days after the meeting of Cuba’s 2016 National Assembly meeting.  The issue is food prices, and the solution – or the experiment – is price controls, which are officially called, “variable.” The National Assembly of People’s Power, held at the Havana Convention Center on December 29, 2015, was called, “Year … Read more

Cuba Signs Agreement to Help Develop St. Lucia Health Services

Cuba Signs Agreement to Help Develop St. Lucia Health Services

On Tuesday, St. Lucia and Cuba signed a new agreement that would allow Cuba to continue to help in the development of St. Lucia’s public healthcare sector, expanding on years of cooperation between the nations’ health services. From “Operation Miracle” which provided tens of thousand of St. Lucia residents with eyesight-saving surgeries to scholarships for medical … Read more

Second Earthquake in A Week Causes Shaking in Cuba

A second earthquake in one week shook Cuba on Wednesday evening, according to the United States Geological Survey. The 4.2-magnitude quake came after a 4.6-magnitude earthquake on Sunday. Wednesday’s quake struck at around 37 kilometers south-southwest of Santiago de Cuba, and about 55 kilometers south of Palma Soriano. The quake, which hit at around 9:40 … Read more

Jennifer Lawrence is Fidel Castro’s Lover in Upcoming Film

Jennifer Lawrence is Fidel Castro’s Lover in Upcoming Film

According to a report in Hollywood Reporter, Jennifer Lawrence will portray Marita Lorenz in the biopic Marita, a pitch from Eric Warren Singer, co-writer of American Hustle. Sony Pictures picked up the project from the Oscar-nominated writer in a competitive situation. Matt Tolmach will produce the romantic spy drama with Lawrence and Scott Mednick. Andre … Read more

What To Do When Your Buddhism App Fails To Work In Havana

What To Do When Your Buddhism App Fails To Work In Havana

You have a deep curiosity about what it means to exist. You long for the mystery and vitality of spiritual life. You are an intrepid traveler always on the frontier – and today that means Cuba. Yet Havana’s emergence as a spiritual hot spot can become a major inconvenience for travelers, or should I say “pilgrims”, who arrive in Cuba and can’t use their Buddhism apps because of poor Internet connectivity.

Luckily, Havana offers many ways to channel spiritual pathways. You’ll have to take the matter into your own non-digital hands. Cubans sometimes call this “a lo Cubano”, referring to the crafty methods they have developed to cope with the lack of essential parts and supplies common to people in other countries. After all, scarcity is one of the most powerful fulcrums for releasing dormant creative energies.

Modernity collides with a basic truth about simplicity by convincing us that things of value, whether they are ideas or objects, are made more valuable because they are complex. Relax and reflect on the primacy of simple things.

Central Havana is an ideal place to trigger imaginative transformations. Enchantment is at your fingertips. Here’s what to do when you’re in Havana and your Buddhism app fails to fire up.