British daily advocates cruise diplomacy

<p style="text-align: justify;">A tongue-in-cheek article Sunday in the British newspaper The Mail by travel editor Frank Barrett skewers the U.S. government for not restoring travel to the island and compliments a British travel agency for its initiative. "In certain recondite corners of the American government, Dr. Strangeloves let their missile launching fingers stray towards the red button whenever anyone mentions the word 'Havana,'" Barrett writes. "American diplomats spend so much of the world's resources in the Middle East trying to broker peace amongst the Israelis and Palestinians, you wonder that they don’t think about declaring peace nearer to home. Read More

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UNESCO Regional Office to be Awarded in Cuba

<p style="text-align: justify;">Escrito por Cosette Pérez. 10 de enero de 2011, 12:39. Havana, Jan 10 (Prensa Latina) The UNESCO Regional Office for Culture in Latin America and the Caribbean was awarded the Fernando Ortiz award by the foundation of the same name, which preserves the legacy of the late Cuban anthropologist. Read More

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Cuban Company La Colmenita in Merida, Mexico

<p style="text-align: justify;">Autor: Yllen Riquelme. PL. 10 de Enero 2011. Merida, (Prensa Latina).- The Cuban children´s theater company La Colmenita visited the ancient Mayan city of Chichen Itza in search of new horizons to enrich its presentations. The young members of the company visited the Mexican villa of Merida as part of the celebrations for the 469th anniversary of its founding. There they learned details about the history of the ancient Maya civilization. Read More

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Celebrating the Anniversary of the Birth of José Martí

<p style="text-align: justify;">ACN. 10 de Enero 2011. The Birthplace of José Martí will have this month the main celebrations for the158th anniversary of the birth of the Apostle and the 130th of his presence in Venezuela, according to the National Information Agency.The institution has designed, from January 22 to 28, a cultural program aimed at children, youths and adults, says a press release from the Office of the Historian of the City. Read More

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Miami's Three Kings Parade draws thousands to celebrate special day

<p style="text-align: justify;">BY DANIEL SHOER ROTH. [email protected]. For tens of thousands of South Floridians who attended the Three Kings Parade Sunday on Calle Ocho, it was a day full of colorful floats, school bands, huge inflatable dummies and the opportunity to see their politicians and favorite telenovela stars. Read More

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Scarabeo 9 rig to arrive in Cuban waters later than expected

<p style="text-align: justify;">A Chinese-built drilling rig that was expected to arrive in Cuban waters in first quarter 2011 and begin the first full-scale offshore oil exploration there has been delayed until mid-summer, industry sources said on Friday.They said construction of the rig, known as the Scarabeo 9, had progressed more slowly than planned and now it would likely not get to Cuba until late June or early July.“That’s the time frame we’re being told,” said an official from a company involved in the project, who asked not to be named. Read More

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Guest editorial asks for trade opening with Cuba

<p style="text-align: justify;">Posted: January 10, 2011 - 12:00am. Excerpts from an editorial in The Times Picayune, New Orleans, on U.S. policy toward Cuba: Cubans who rely on cash sent by their relatives in the United States will benefit from the Obama administration's decision to allow Western Union to pay out the remittances in Cuban currency instead of U.S. dollars.The change, adopted by the Treasury Department, will let recipients in Cuba avoid the 10 percent charge the Cuban government imposes to exchange dollars to a convertible peso. Until now, the Treasury Department had mandated that payouts be made in U.S. dollars. Read More

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Cuba grants self-employment licenses

<p style="text-align: justify;">HAVANA -- Cuban authorities granted more than 75,000 licenses for self-employment by the end of last year, state media reported Friday, with a further 8,000 still being considered. An increase in self-employment is among the main economic reform measures implemented by the government of Cuban President Raul Castro.The government of communist Cuba announced in October the eventual elimination of over 500,000 public-sector jobs. To counter the effect of that measure, the government moved to facilitate self-employment in a broad range of areas of economic life. Read More

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Campaign against Salvadoran Students in Cuba Rejected

<p style="text-align: justify;">07 de enero de 2011, 15:29San Salvador, Jan 7 (Prensa Latina) Cuban Ambassador in El Salvador Pedro Pablo Prada rejected a campaign carried out by local rightwing political parties and press media to discriminate and slander Salvadoran students who were graduated in the Latin American Medicine School (ELAM) in Havana. Read More

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Ohio program helps needy get new knees, hips

<p style="text-align: justify;">By MISTI CRANE, The Associated Press.2:28 PM Sunday,January 9, 2011. COLUMBUS, Ohio — Like many other American physicians, Dr. Adolph Lombardi Jr. makes time each year for medical missionary work. The orthopedic surgeon thinks of his trips to Cuba, Guatemala and Nicaragua as a way to give back. Read More

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