Chavez gets permission to go to Cuba for chemo

<p style="text-align: justify;">Updated 02:06 p.m., Saturday, August 6, 2011. CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Legislators have granted Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez permission to return to Cuba for a second round of chemotherapy for his cancer.The 57-year-old Chavez announced Friday that he planned to go to Cuba this weekend after getting legislative approval. He is scheduled to undergo medical tests Sunday and Monday. Read More

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Venezuela's Chavez to go back to Cuba for treatment

<p style="text-align: justify;">By the CNN Wire Staff. August 6, 2011 -- Updated 0928 GMT (1728 HKT) (CNN) -- Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has asked lawmakers to approve a trip to Cuba, where he is expected to continue cancer treatment.Chavez announced in June that doctors had removed a cancerous tumor from his body, but the leader has not specified what type of cancer. He traveled to Cuba last month for about a week of chemotherapy. Read More

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Restoring the Cuban City with a French Colonial Air

<p style="text-align: justify;">By Patricia Grogg. CIENFUEGOS, Cuba, Aug 5, 2011 (IPS) - The city of Cienfuegos, known in Cuba as the "Pearl of the South", is unique for its spotless cleanliness, the orderly grid pattern of its streets, its 19th century architecture and its air of "Grande Dame" elegance. Now its past splendours, ravaged by time or left to deteriorate because of economic difficulties, are being restored."If you see anyone throwing trash in the streets, you can be sure it's a stranger from out of town," a woman born and raised in Cienfuegos told IPS, with a touch of civic pride and ownership. Read More

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TPA-HAV: Non-stop flights to Cuba set to takeoff from Tampa

<p style="text-align: justify;">12:47 AM, Aug 6, 2011. Tampa, Florida- For the first time in nearly 50 years, non-stop flights from Tampa to Havana, Cuba are on sale this week.The flights are set to begin around the second weekend of September and will be operated by various carriers including American Airlines through independent charter companies. The new service recently approved by the U.S. and Cuban governments gives those with roots in Cuba a more convenient option for traveling back to their home island. Previously, those eligible to travel, had to take charter flights out of Miami. Read More

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Charter flights from Fort Lauderdale to Cuba start in September

<p style="text-align: justify;">By Hannah Sampson.MiamiHerald.com. Charter service to Cuba, operated by JetBlue, will begin from Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport on Sept. 12. Airline Brokers Company, which already offers charter flights from Miami International Airport, is adding Fort Lauderdale to its schedule. U.S. Customs and Border Protection approved the Broward airport to host charter flights in March. Read More

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Obama calls for release of American in Cuba

<p style="text-align: justify;">The Daily Caller. White House officials are urging Cuba’s socialist government to release American Alan Gross, only a few hours after his 15-year sentence was confirmed by island’s top court.“We call on the government of Cuba to release Alan Gross immediately and unconditionally, to allow him to return to his family and bring to an end the long ordeal that began well over a year ago,” a White House statement read. (RELATED: Obama won debt ceiling fight, says DNC) Read More

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Amy Winehouse: new victim, but not the last

<p style="text-align: justify;">By Daniel Alejandro Benítez Quiñones . Amy Winehouse was back in the news in almost every newspaper in the world. First, the cause was her recordings, then her drug addiction and now, her death at 27. Nobody expected it. Despite of the scandals in her latest live performances and the tour cancellation, few thought that her end was so close. Many believed in the recovery of the winner of five Grammy Awards for the musical album Back to Black. Read More

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Leo Brouwer in Concert Featuring Jewish Composers

<p style="text-align: justify;">The concert "North America and Its Music," featuring the work of Jewish composers with live commentary by Cuban composer and guitarist Leo Brouwer, premieres in the Cuban capital. The program includes music from the soundtrack by John Williams for Schindler's List, a Steven Spielberg film; China Gates for piano, by John Adams; and Piano Trio No.1 Sweetgrass by Curtis Curtis-Smith. Read More

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Company with Miami link to manage golf hotel in Varadero

<p style="text-align: justify;">General Hotel Management Group Ltd., a British Virgin Island-based company with offices in Singapore and Shanghai, agreed to manage a beachfront hotel in Varadero, the developer of the hotel said. GHM Hotels’ flagship property is The Setai in Miami Beach; the company manages hotels in politically sensitive countries such as North Korea and Myanmar.GHM, according to London-based Esencia Group, agreed to manage and operate a boutique hotel and spa planned by Esencia to go up as part of the Carbonera Golf and Country Club. Read More

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Cuba, Int'l Agencies Team to Protect Biodiversity

<p style="text-align: justify;">By: Ileana Ferrer Fonte.12:02Havana, Aug 5 (Prensa Latina) A program financed by the World Environment Fund and the UN Development Program will seek to extend Cuba's southern mangrove swamps and provide more protection for coral reefs and fish.About 5.7 million USD will be earmarked for a five-year period to strengthen environmental education in the country, Martha Rosa Acosta Blanco, a protected areas expert in Pinar del Rio province, told Juventud Rebelde newspaper. Read More

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