Yesterday the State Department confirmed that the Cuba government is seeking to establishing a banking relationship with a US bank. Today, we have learned that bank is South Florida-based Stonegate Bank. “We hope this is the initial step to normalize banking ties between the two countries, which will benefit American companies wanting to do business … Read more
By Cuba Journal MIAMI — You can now fly from New York to Havana, Cuba. Air carrier JetBlue has announced its first-ever charter service from New York City to Havana, Cuba. The flights, which will be operated by licensed travel firm Cuba Travel Services, are the first announced from New York to Cuba since recent … Read more
Google announced yesterday a Spanish-language toolbar for Cubans. The new toolbar, or barra de busqueda, streamlines Internet searching and bookmarking. In August of last year, Google made its Chrome web browser available in Cuba so people can search “faster and safer,” according to Pedro Less Andrade, the company’s director of public government and political affairs … Read more
Above: Varadero Beach in Cuba By Cuba Journal Cuba’s tourism sector is surging so far in 2015, according to the newest data from the country’s National Statistical Office (ONE). The Caribbean island received 995,670 international tourists in the first quarter of 2015, up 14.2 percent from the same period in 2014. The biggest increases came … Read more
Violent storms dumped over 7 inches of rain on Havana, leaving 3 dead and causing several buildings to collapse. Cuba’s Granma newspaper describes a line of severe thunderstorms packing winds of up to 61 miles per hour. Local media reports suggest that an elderly man drowned in the flood water in the Old Havana District … Read more
