Friday, November 10, 2017

https://bestkidfriendlytravel.com/2017/11/07/explore-the-music-of-vienna-and-more-with-kids/

Here is a link to the story I wrote about my visit to Vienna Austria  a couple months ago

Tuesday, March 14, 2017

Victory at Verrado Buckeye AZ

In Buckeye AZ, in the west valley of Phoenix, lies the development of Verrado. It is virtually a town of its own and boasts two Tom Lehman Golf Courses.  The Founders Course which has been open just over 10 years, and The Victory Course which opened in Feb 13, 2017.  This may be the first new golf course in the Phoenix are in over 10 years.
There are no houses around this course yet, until you come to number 15 which is framed by homes.  Strangely enough the houses are set back far enough and placed in such a way that they actually enhance the attractiveness and the definition of the hole.

The views are dramatic, as you are almost cradled in the White Tank Mountains.  I expected a course with lots of elevation changes, but the  course is relatively flat with plenty of rolling fairways providing subtle  elevation changes,  That is until you come to 17 and 18— two wonderful finishing holes.  18 is the only hole with water in play and it is a challenging beautiful finish to a wonderful round of golf.





The fairways feature generous landing areas.  So for those of us who don't drive the ball  perfectly straight, its very forgiving,  There is plenty of challenge  from there in, however,  even though there are less than 25 bunkers on the course and water on only one hole.  If there is any rough, I can’t remember it.  It was quite windy the day we were there and with its proximity to the White Tank Mountains, I would guess that  wind is not uncommon.   We were  into the wind for 5 holes and on #6 we finally got a downwind break.

 Rock outcroppings and boulder fields, are clearly one of the defining points of Victory at Verrado, not only lining the holes but in the fairways as well— they definitely enhance the course, but be careful not to hit your ball behind  one  of them (especially on holes like number fourteen which turns a drivable par four into a real challenge).

This course would be a challenge to walk, there are some pretty substantial distances from  green to the next tee, but they do have concrete cart paths, some of which, were still dirt from green to the next tee.  (I assume that will change when the housing development is finished).

Bring you best putting game because the greens have plenty of movement in them with some very challenging pin placements on very large greens, the deepest being 51 yards  (that is at least a 3 or 4 club difference) To put that in perspective, there are  kickers in the NFL that can’t make a field goal from that distance.

There are 9 sets of tee boxes all the way from 7258 yards to 4646 yards.  All skill levels should find fun and challenge here.

Victory at Verrado is operating from a temporary clubhouse with the  new clubhouse  scheduled for completion in late fall of 2017.  They are not planning any GPS on the carts and the course is not fully   uploaded for our personal GPS devices-  Get a progress report when you book your tee time.  (The sprinkler heads are very well marked, however).

If you find airplane noise disturbing, this may not be the place for you. Luke Air Force base is no more than 10 miles away, and we heard the roar of jet engines over head at least 1/2 dozen times during our round.  However if seeing several formations of F-15 and the new F-35 fighter jets is exciting for you, then this may be exactly the place for you.  To me they were a treat to watch and a welcome distraction after a wayward golf shot.

Tom Lehman  has designed a very playable course here with wonderful mountain vistas—   Call them and check it out.


623-518-9967

Sunday, January 1, 2017

A long weekend in Borrego Springs California

Borrego Springs CA

  Never heard if it? Neither had I, but 45 or 50 miles south of  Palm Springs sits the tiny, sleepy, peaceful,  town of Borrego Springs. So peaceful, in fact, that there isn't a stop light in or even near the town  (the closest stoplight  is over 25 miles away).

  The town is surrounded by  Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, the largest state park in California with over 500 miles of dirt roads and many wilderness areas, hiking trails, bird watching and is an International Dark Sky Community.  The almost black night sky is a star gazers paradise.

What to do here
There are thousands of miles of hiking trails  (the most popular is Borrego Palm Canyon)   a Desert Botanical gardens, hundreds of miles of off roading and 4WD trails.
And of course the many sky art sculptures of Ricardo Breceda.  And don't let me forget to mention the Golf because that is primarily why  I came in the first place.  

At the Warner Springs Airport you can take a gilder ride over this beautiful mountain landscape.  This is a dark sky community so the star gazing is superb and if you are lucky you will spot some big horn sheep in the park.


Family Activities in Borrego Springs

Borrego Springs is a hidden gem for the family. There are families who make an annual pilgrimage here  to unwind, get away and spend quality family time together.  You could spend days exploring Anza- Borrego Desert State Park,  A couple examples:  drive 4 miles off road to visit Fonts Point.  Its like standing on the edge of the Grand Canyon with an awesome view. 


The park has a Junior Ranger program for kids 7-12 with a classroom in the visitors center where they meet with park rangers and are given a junior ranger log book. They learn the secrets of the desert environment, about  animals that do and used to live here, The ancient Indians who used to live here. Fossils from prehistoric times when this park was under the ocean and much more.  There are also Ranger led hikes and talks in the park everyday.


La Casa del Zoro
We stayed at La Casa Del Zorro,which reopened in 2013.  Its wonderfully renovated 44 pool side guest rooms and 19 private casitas with multiple bedrooms  make it an easy place to bring the entire family. And if you really want to live it up rent the Happy Days house, the former winter get away for publishing magnate James Copley.

There are enough activities here that you may never want to leave the resort and it  also has an extensive kids club with Bocce ball, horseshoes, dive in movies, treasure hunts and much more— just contact the hotel for details.


All this and world class golf too
Rams Hill is a golf course gem in the most unlikely of destinations. 
This Tom Fazio designed course is one of the few in the U.S. that is open to public play.  Lakes, streams, waterfalls, elevation changes and vistas for miles into the  Santa Rosa mountains of the Anza-Borrego State Park make this a very special place.  Stretching from  7247 yards down to 5064 yards with 5 sets of tees, make this a wonderful place for all levels of golfers.  And if you don't like golf  your are still going to love the views that keep changing on each and every hole.

 Numbers One and Two start off up the hill from the clubhouse and then three levels out.  The 4 par threes are all spectacular and the view of Santa Rosa Mountain from  the downhill number seven almost makes you want to just sit down and soak it all in for a while on the tee box.

Rams Hill is in a housing development  but the houses are set back so far that  after a few holes you forget they are even there, and the fairways are so wide that most errant tee shots will probably find a safe place to land.

You wont soon forget number eleven  a 556 yard downhill par 5 with a stream running down the entire left side. and views of the surrounding mountains that seem like they go on forever.  Number seventeen is a classic  drivable par 4 but  when you look at all the bunkering that lays before you, you better think twice about where to put your tee shot.  Number eighteen, a par 5 around a lake is a serene finish to a wonderful day.
Having spent 3 nights here I can clearly say that if you are coming to play golf in the Palm Springs area  you should include a night or two down here.

Rams Hill is not the only golf in town—- if you want a simpler yet fun round head for  Borrego Springs Golf Resort.  It is desigined by San Diego golf architect  Cary Bickler. With his creative use of mounding he turns a flat piece of desert land into one with some interesting elevation changes.

Getting here

1 hour 15 minutes by car from Palm Springs  and less than a two hour drive from San Diego—  Its also just a 4 hour drive from the Phoenix airport.

Monday, August 29, 2016

The Ryder Cup is coming to Hazeltine National in Minnesota


Things to Know about TheRyder Cup
2016
by Larry Berle


The Ryder Cup will be played at Hazeltine National Golf Club Sept 26- Oct 2, 2016.
Hazeltine has hosted several other major golf tournaments  but  this, by far, seems to have the highest level of interest.

Here is just a taste of what has gone into the preparation of this event.
  1. The course has been lengthened  to  7674 yards.  I will be surprised if anyone ever plays it again at that length,  in fact The Ryder Cup wont be played at that length because I can see that the first tee bleachers have been built in front of the back tee box on #1
  2. It’s August  28 and carts are no longer allowed out on the course.  The only play allowed is walking  and at that they must carry a mat and place their ball on the mat to hit from the fairway  (you can hit it from the rough if you land there)
  3. After Labor day  the golf course will be closed to all play.
  4. Many of the corporate,  media and merchandise tents are already up and in place  (but I have been told there are more to come)  Its huge.   
  5. The course has been rerouted. Please note this does not mean that  holes have been changed, just rerouted for crowd control and viewing purposes.  (for example the front 9 is now 1-4 followed by the old 14-18.and  #9 and#18 have been interchanged. It is undetermined if Hazeltine will go back to the old routing after the Ryder Cup or not. They wanted to be sure that the old number 16 (their signature hole)  would be played in every match  (many matches don't go past #15)
  6. The General Public Parking Lot for the 2016 Ryder Cup is at Canterbury Park located at 1100 Canterbury Road, Shakopee,  This is a half hour bus ride from the course.  There will also be no bike riding to the course and no walking either.
  1. There are 28 matches in total in the Ryder Cup, 8 on Friday 8 on Saturday and 12 singles matches on Sunday.   The amount of golf a spectator will be able to see in person seems to me to be severely limited.  I think this will be much better on TV.
  2. If you are going, and if you are a Prince Fan then you may want to know that Paisley Park is 3 or 4 miles from Hazeltine National. at the intersection of Highway #5 and Audubon Road
  3. With the 2016 Ryder Cup, Hazeltine will become one of two courses in the United States to have hosted the U.S. Open, PGA Championship, U.S. Senior Open, U.S. Women’s Open, U.S. Amateur, and Ryder Cup Matches.

The Ryder Cup is coming to Hazeltine National in Minnesota


Things to Know about TheRyder Cup
2016
by Larry Berle


The Ryder Cup will be played at Hazeltine National Golf Club Sept 26- Oct 2, 2016.
Hazeltine has hosted several other major golf tournaments  but  this, by far, seems to have the highest level of interest.

Here is just a taste of what has gone into the preparation of this event.
  1. The course has been lengthened  to  7674 yards.  I will be surprised if anyone ever plays it again at that length,  in fact The Ryder Cup wont be played at that length because I can see that the first tee bleachers have been built in front of the back tee box on #1
  2. It’s August  28 and carts are no longer allowed out on the course.  The only play allowed is walking  and at that they must carry a mat and place their ball on the mat to hit from the fairway  (you can hit it from the rough if you land there)
  3. After Labor day  the golf course will be closed to all play.
  4. Many of the corporate,  media and merchandise tents are already up and in place  (but I have been told there are more to come)  Its huge.   
  5. The course has been rerouted. Please note this does not mean that  holes have been changed, just rerouted for crowd control and viewing purposes.  (for example the front 9 is now 1-4 followed by the old 14-18.and  #9 and#18 have been interchanged. It is undetermined if Hazeltine will go back to the old routing after the Ryder Cup or not. They wanted to be sure that the old number 16 (their signature hole)  would be played in every match  (many matches don't go past #15)
  6. The General Public Parking Lot for the 2016 Ryder Cup is at Canterbury Park located at 1100 Canterbury Road, Shakopee,  This is a half hour bus ride from the course.  There will also be no bike riding to the course and no walking either.
  1. There are 28 matches in total in the Ryder Cup, 8 on Friday 8 on Saturday and 12 singles matches on Sunday.   The amount of golf a spectator will be able to see in person seems to me to be severely limited.  I think this will be much better on TV.
  2. If you are going, and if you are a Prince Fan then you may want to know that Paisley Park is 3 or 4 miles from Hazeltine National. at the intersection of Highway #5 and Audubon Road
  3. With the 2016 Ryder Cup, Hazeltine will become one of two courses in the United States to have hosted the U.S. Open, PGA Championship, U.S. Senior Open, U.S. Women’s Open, U.S. Amateur, and Ryder Cup Matches.

Friday, July 15, 2016

Grand Lake Colorado

 Grand Lake Colorado  
by Larry Berle

Come for the Winters and stay for the summers
Thats what the people who live here year round say— they came to ski but the summers are why they stayed. 
It would be hard to disagree since there is so much to do here  and the weather is so wonderful during the summer.
Grand Lake Colorado is about a 2 1/2 hour drive from Denver and a half hour north of Winter Park.
It is the Gateway to Rocky Mountain National Park and at the Headwaters of the Colorado River  (yep that  powerful Colorado River that cuts through the Grand Canyon)  This river was originally called the Grand River  but the state of Colorado changed its name.  

We are on the Western slope of  the Continental Divide.  What exactly is the  Continental Divide you may ask?  It defines which direction rivers run in the continental U.S..  Rivers on its western slope drain toward the Pacific Ocean and the Eastern slope drains  toward the Atlantic.  Thus the Colorado River heads west and provides a substantial part of the water for Utah, Arizona and California and some of Mexico.

Grand Lake is the largest natural lake in Colorado and sits at 8366 feet above sea level.  Gaze out at the iconic Rocky Mountain Views and  on the golf course hit it farther than you ever hit it before.  
Grand Lake is the Eastern entrance to Rocky Mountain National Park  where there is 415 Square miles of glorious views .  You can even see the  “Never Summer Mountains”  with snow covered peaks 12 months a year and deepen your education with park ranger led nature programs.

Come here and cross Hot air ballooning   off your bucket list with a sunrise flight through a mountain pass.

Just look around you and you will likely  encounter Moose, Soaring Eagles, Elk,  Black Bear,  Big Horn Sheep and if you are lucky maybe all of the above.

Go Fly fishing and  (but see the movie A River Runs Through it before you do)
Go Kayaking or River rafting
Go Horsebackriding
Go Mountain Biking  (we are talking real mountains here)




 Enjoy a sunset dinner at Grand Lake Lodge (  a hotel and  wonderful restaurant overlooking the lake).   My guess is you will love the food as much as you love the view.  visit  www.grandlakelodge.com



All this and golf too— which is the real reason we came here in the first place.  Probably not the first location that comes to mind when planning a golf vacation  but the courses are wonderful and there is so much more to do in addition to golf, that it truly should be on your destination list.  There are 4 golf courses in the area

Grand Elk Golf Course
Craig Stadler and Trip Davis  took some inspiration from Scotlands Glen Eagles in designing this golf course that opened in 2003, and the trouble around this course shows it.  Fairways lined, not with trees, rather with  Gorse and Sage and plenty of  tough rough.  If you don't find those hazards then you can find water in play on over 1/2 of the holes.  Grand Elk is part of a housing development and has now become semi private with over half of the play being public,  It sits in the Valley  and the rolling fairways  are relatively flat, but the surrounding snow capped mountains are always in view.

Greens fees are $85 weekdays and  $95  weekends  includes range balls, cart and very good GPS on the carts



Grand Lakes Golf Course..  
Hit it long on the Rolling Fairways of Grand Lake Golf Course designed by Dick Phelps.  Stroll among  lodge pole pines, aspens  and maybe even be visited by a Moose, Elk Chipmunk or who knows what else.    Stay focused on the golf which could be a challenge  as we are surrounded by snow capped peaks of the Rockies and we are right on the border of Rocky Mountain National Park  (which, by the way you should visit when you are here).  The front 9 is rolling fairways.  The back 9  has so much elevation change that you dare not walk it and  the views will challenge your concentration.  As you line up that putt  remember  “you are here to play golf  not to daydream.




Granby Ranch
Granby Ranch is a few miles down the road and well worth the visit.  The front nine plays down on the valley floor  but the back 9 climbs into the foot hills and this is where the interesting and challenging holes appear. A couple big up hill par 4s to start  but several glorious down hill holes on the way back. Bring your Sky caddie or laser finder because they don't have  GPS on the carts although the sprinkler heads are clearly marked with distances to the center.  Don't get too distracted by looking at  snow capped Mount Baldy which peaks out at 12,500 feet. If that does not get your attention the deep blue sky and never ending sunshine will.



Greens fees $95 and $60 after 2:00

Pole Creek Golf Club-
Pole Creek has 27 holes and today we played the Ranch and the Ridge.  The Ridge 9 is the newest (added in 1999) and climbs to the highest elevation (over 8600 feet) and the views and the holes are so very worth it.  The final hole on the Ridge is a 532 yard par 5 straight down hill.  I am not a long hitter but I was 50 yards short of the green in two.  and I felt like superman. It was designed by Dennis Griffith, whom I have never heard of but  this guy knows how to design a mountain golf course. In fact for 2 years running it has been rated the best public mountain golf course in Colorado by Avid Golfer Magazine
It also was the 1985 – Golf Digest – Best New Public Golf Course  in America




We are staying in the rustic Gateway Inn just down the block—  a beautiful log bldg with rooms all decorated in  Log furniture    www.GatewayInn.com    Just like you would expect in the mountain country of Colorado

One more thing — if rustic luxury is on your bucket list  then be sure to visit  Devils Thumb Ranch Resort and Spa.  We didn't stay there   (I wish we had) the dinner was awesome  and rumor has it that the towels are so fluffy that you probably wont be able to fit them in your suitcase.


What a wonderful place for a family vacation with plenty of golf    and even a great place to get away with the guys for  a few days.

Friday, April 1, 2016

More on Cuba chapter four


The changing landscape of hotels in Cuba
by Larry Berle

The hotel scene in Cuba has a dismal history,but that is about to change.
Both Starwood and Marriott are in negotiations to run, develop  or at least manage several hotels on the island.  Not only that, but booking.com, the hotel reservation service, recently reached an agreement with several Cuban hotels to begin booking with them.  Who knows what else is in the works.

 Cuba had a 25% increase in tourism visitors last year and with new rules making it much easier for Americans to travel to Cuba without organized groups  and  airlines flying scheduled service between Havana and the U.S., The demand is  out stripping the hotel supply in Cuba. and who knows what the demand will be next year.  This has been eased somewhat since airbnb.com was allowed to operate in Cuba and thousands of Cubans  have now opened their  homes to tourists.  I don't know what the financial arrangements are between the Cuban government and those private homes that are now listing on airbnb.com but  its got to be a financial boom for those who participate.  It looks like private enterprise is creeping its way into the Cuban economy.


Ultimately, if you are planning to visit Cuba  make your hotel reservations early. And hope you get a decent place to stay.

Thursday, February 18, 2016

The High Heat Driver

In the past few years my tee shots have gotten shorter and shorter and harder to control.  Then I met Dean Knuth and was introduced to the High Heat Driver.  At least 10 (sometimes more) yards were added and fairways hit increased.
Mr Knuth told me that the center of Gravity has been lowered and is farther back and the sweet spot on the face has been greatly increased.   Now he's onto something, I thought  but  could it be something else thats causing it?  So I loaned it to my friend Tim O'Phelan  and asked him to try it.
Tim confirmed  the thrill I found in this club. He said it  so well that I thought I should just share his post.


High Heat by Tim Ophelan

Each year millions of dollars are spent searching for the next great breakthrough in driver design. The pressure on engineering staffs to find that breakthrough or even a slight tweak has got to be tremendous. Ad campaigns with budgets of equal size are then created to present these new concepts to the millions of golfers looking for the “Holy Grail” in their game. But not all of the great ideas come from large corporations. The television show “Shark Tank” trots out dozens of new products every year – each one coming from an inventive person who views the world a little differently.
For those who haven’t seen “Shark Tank”, entrepreneurs pitch their unique product or service to a panel of very wealthy business people with the hope of “landing” one or more of the “Sharks” as an investor and mentoring partner. The next successful “Shark Tank” participant could easily be Dean Knuth – the inventor of the High Heat driver.
In my opinion Dean would “wow” the panel with his engineering background, five patents and for good measure his knowledge of the golf industry as he spent 16 years with the United State Golf Association. For an added kicker he could bring me onto the set to provide a testimonial of how the club works for this amateur golfer.
I had been using a Mizuno MP-600 for several years which (I think) helped me drop my handicap from 9 to 7. With the Mizuno I also settled into thinking that a 240 yard drive was the best that I could do and I regularly opted to play from 6400 yards or shorter. My scores would exponentially balloon if I tried to play from the longer tees and my ego as well as my handicap suffered.
Enter the High Heat driver – I used it for 45 holes and I am hooked.  For many of those holes I had the opportunity to hit both the Mizuno and High Heat for a true life comparison. And for whatever technical reason, I have developed a draw using the High Heat which resulted in an average of 15 additional yards off the tee. Dean explains it all in engineering speak on his website www.knuthgolf.com, but for me it simply works and it is staying in my bag.

I’m sure the “Sharks” would be impressed with my story as well as my willingness to pay the $399.00 price tag (I’m billing my ego for half of the cost). I’m also sure that the “Sharks” will be outbidding each other for a piece of Dean’s action because he offers a 100% money back guarantee and that is the piece of the marketing puzzle that will get this driver into the hands of all those golfers looking for the “Holy Grail”.
http://www.knuthgolf.com

Sunday, January 3, 2016

The Thing Charger


           

 Travel much?   Are you carrying chargeable electronic devices on the road with you?  Do you ever forget the charging cable in the hotel room when you check out?  or do you find that  your charging cable took the last electrical outlet and you still have one more thing to plug in?

I just spent a week with my new  Thing Charger.   It has   power tips that fit every electronic device you own and you plug it into an outlet and that outlet is still available to plug something else in.

Its wonderful at home too  (I now keep that outlet available) and I always put my cell phone in the same place, no more hunting for it— and  better yet, no messy cables sitting  on the countertops.   If that's not enough, there is no need to remove the case if its in one.

And if I should happen to need a USB port— its got two of those as well.

As a travel writer, who is on the road regularly, this is a fabulous new discovery.  Check it out at  
www.thingcharger.com

  

Thursday, December 24, 2015

More Observations about Cuba (3rd post about Cuba)

Baseball
Baseball is a game that is tightly woven into the culture of both the US and Cuba.  It is clearly the top sport in Cuba and if you play it, where and when you play is controlled by the Castro regime. That said, there are 18 Cubans now playing in the major leagues, including Yoenis Cespedas. who just played in the World Series for the Mets, and they all had to endure a risky defection to get there. ( in fact, because of that defection one of Mr. Cespedas relatives in Cuba has been jailed). Cuba does send some of its players to other countries but the Govt. decides when and where and takes a piece of the action.  Major League Baseball is exploring the possibility of playing exhibition games in Cuba this spring but more importantly, has been working on a system where they can recruit players from Cuba (and its believed there are many more who's talent is good enough for Major League Baseball), but the Castro regime wont allow it unless the government gets compensated and that would violate the US Embargo.— Who knows when and if that standoff will ever be resolved.
But if you love baseball, one of the Cuba trips that Insight Cuba offers is Baseball in Cuba.


The US Embargo 
Not only are US companies banned from doing business in Cuba but  any foreign company doing business with Cuba is not allowed to do business in the US.  That explains all the old  cars— because  if Volkswagen  or Honda want to sell in the US they can't sell to Cuba.     Is also why the cruise ships don't stop here-yet. Almost every Caribbean cruise  carries many U.S passengers— If a cruise ship docked in Cuban ports the embargo prohibits them from docking in the US for 6 months. That is going to soon change.


Cuba, until Raul took over, was 100% socialist.  Now only 85% of the people work for the state.  The demand for tourism is so great they are allowing people to put their homes on Air B&B. They are also allowing people to start restaurants. As you would surmise, no one can really afford to start a traditional restaurant so they start with a couple tables in the living rooms of their homes and make the meals in their home kitchens.  If it goes well they may take over another room in the home or Apartment and in some cases they were successful enough that they moved to a new home or Apartment  and let the entire home become a small restaurant.   We ate in one, The Magic Flute, on the 19th floor of an Apartment bldg, just across from the US Embassy with a capacity of about 40 or 50. It was outstanding.

MUSIC
The music in Cuba is worth the trip all by itself.  We heard several jazz bands that are world class.  Progressive jazz, Afro Cuban jazz and much more.  A very few of the lucky ones are allowed to leave Cuba to  do tour dates, but the hoops a Cuban citizen has to go through to get a visa to leave are overwhelming.   At the jazz club, La Zorra El Cuervo,  we heard the contemporary jazz group  Jazz En Trance.  These guys were world class. Then we  went to Pastorita performing arts high school in Matanzas, and heard several students play short recitals for us.  Everything is paid for by the Government, including room and board and the instrument they are studying.   
  
  There are only 4 recording studios in Havana and they are all very busy.  We visited Abdala, where Beuna Vista Social Club recorded, is the largest and most prestigious.   I asked a couple of the musicians what the biggest challenge of being a musician was in Cuba.  We heard about the problems with the economy  and communism  and travel restrictions  but the guitar player told us there is no place in Cuba where they can buy guitar strings.  I am sure it has to do with years of trade embargo with the US   If you go to Cuba  pack a few sets of guitar strings in your bag,  It will be easy to find someone who will greatly appreciate the gift.

Despite  the oppressive government, people of Cuba that we met seem to be happy and joyful


More observations about Cuba

Vintage Cars

Old beautiful vintage cars cruise up and down the broad avenues and seaside roads every day. When people talk about Cuba  the vintage cars are usually near the top of the conversation list.  I am sure that they are what remained from the start of the  US embargo period.  These are cars that are  50 to 60 years old now,  hundreds of them cruise the streets of Havana, and mostly in tip-top condition. The pride of ownership shines through.  
 I asked a couple car owners “what is the biggest challenge with having these cars in Cuba?”   The answer was overwhelmingly parts.  Due to the embargo, I am sure, the auto manufactures were not allowed to send auto parts to Cuba.  But the Cubans are nothing, if not clever and inventive,  good at finding innovative solutions  for their challenges…  so they learned how to rebuild parts,   found other sources than the US and had friends coming from the US bring them in their checked luggage.  Maybe even tires— who knows.  
They have made a mini-industry out of these cars being an attraction. Some even have new LED headlights and some even have brand new engines  (like a Toyota engine in a ’59 Ford Farlane).  We were told of one car that replaced their engine with a washing machine motor. They serve as taxi’s but on an even larger scale they offer 1 or 2 hour tour rides of Havana.  When they all convene at one location,it’s a bit like being at a back to the 50’s car show.

Cigars

As I prepared for the trip, if people were not asking me about the vintage cars they were asking me about Cigars.  The tobacco growing industry is very big here and the Cigars  are all hand rolled and in high demand around the world.  I stopped at a Cigar store to buy some for friends who asked for them, and the store was packed with people buying boxes of them.  I learned that cigar aficionados are very choosy about the kinds of cigars they want, thus the lines to purchase them are long and slow because  everyone has questions  “ whats the best?”

Tuesday, December 22, 2015

The many faces of Cuba

Vintage Cars, Cigars,  and Colorful architecture is what comes to the minds of most people when they think about Cuba.   But there is so much more. I have been interested in visiting Cuba for several years now— and as US Cuba relations improve, I can just imagine the growth and development that will occur once things are totally normalized.    So I wanted to see Cuba before all that changed.  It seems to me,  the development will be so great that most of Havana may end up like  Cancun  or Miami Beach.  I guess we will have to see.

That is why I chose to go now.  So I signed up for a People to People trip  with Insight Cuba.  The tour  is called  “Jazz in Havana.”
The majority of the world visits Cuba without restriction. Not so for  US citizens,  who are highly restricted and the tours must have specific purposes.  Before 2011 even these kinds of tours were not permitted. It's a shame, because you don't have to be here but a few hours to see  what a wonderful country Cuba is to visit.

Our group of 24,  met in Miami, got acquainted, and had a short introductory orientation.  The next morning I left the hotel after breakfast at 10:00 AM and for 10 minute ride to the airport and a 90 mile flight  to Havana 

 My first stop was the small town of Jaimanitas, and the studio of ceramic artist Jose Fuster. Just over 30 years ago he began decorating  ceramic tiles, mostly in his home. He has now expanded to decorating most of the neighborhood and most of the neighbors homes.  His work is fabulous and  he is a brilliant folk artist, who chooses  ceramic tile as his medium.  I bought one of his tiles for $30 and I am proud to add it to my meager art collection.

At 5:30 I checked into the Melia Cohiba hotel, on the waterfront in the center of Havana.  For a country that is poor, and is  considered to be  3rd world , this hotel is  quite luxurious.  Then I was off to dinner at El Templete which is famous for its traditional Cuban style seafood.  Cuban food in general is quite bland, but this meal was scrumptious.

Day Two
After breakfast we  had an hour lecture with Cuban musicologist Alberto Faya.  In the context of survival he talked about what we do to preserve our lives and our culture.  Conquerers, he told us, not only bring their concepts and culture , they impose it on those whom they conquer. So the Spanish, when they landed here in the late 1400s  pretty much wiped out the culture of the native Cuban inhabitants. Thus came Spanish  musical influence to Cuba.  Shortly after that came the slave trade and the Africans infused the culture and music of their native lands into Cuba.  That was his first example of  what he calls Transculturation.

His second example was Jelly Roll Morton .  Because of the proximity to the US  the influences of Cuban and American music  became intertwined, with some American music (mostly Jazz) absorbing Cuban influence and vice versa. His talk was  fascinating.

Then it was onto our bus with my 24 newest friends for a walking tour of Old Havana.  This used to be a walled city, but as it grew beyond its walls, the walls finally came down. Some remnants remain.  Old Havana is now pedestrian only. As I walked on the Plaza de Armas we learned about the Capitan Generals wife  who got splitting headaches from the loudness of the cobblestone streets. So he had the street in front of his house dug up and replaced with a much quieter wood surface, which still exists today.

Plaza de Vieja is a beautiful old plaza with very colorful and beautiful buildings, but we can already see  stores like United Colors of Bennetton and Lacoste,   staking out locations  in preparation for the normalization of relations with the US   Carnival Cruises is planning to add Cuba as a stop  sometime in the next 6 months— then things are gonna change quickly. 
My lunch at  Los Mercaderes was delicious,  Cuban jazz accompanied our  BBQ chicken and beans —  Most restaurants here are state owned and operated but this one is private and I can see there is a big difference.

We stopped at the jazz club,La Zorra El Cuervo,  where we heard the contemporary jazz group  Jazz En Trance.These musicians are world class. They have toured Eastern Europe, but are  hoping  they will soon be able to tour the US.  I am going to see if I can get them introduced to the right people in the US
  
Then our tour group split up.  Maggie and I were the only ones who went on the Abdala recording studio tour and it was fascinating. There are only 4 recording studios in Havana.  Abdala, where Beuna Vista Social Club recorded, is the largest and most prestigious.   I asked a couple of the musicians what the biggest challenge of being a musician was in Cuba.  We heard about the problems with the economy  and communism  and travel restrictions  but the guitar player told us there is no place in Cuba where they can buy guitar strings.  If you go to Cuba stick a few sets of guitar strings in your suitcase.  It won't be hard to find someone who needs them.  

Day Three
On the bus at 8:30 this morning and we headed for the town of Matanzas,  a couple hours east of Havana. The first stop was at a publishing house where they preserve the culture of publishing  hand made books.  By handmade, I mean from scratch.  They make the paper, stitch the binding, create the artwork,   some of which may just be a collage, and make a limited edition of only 200 copies of each book.  I think its safe to say J.K. Rowling won’t be looking for a publishing deal here.  Some are in Spanish and some in English.  I bought a book that is 1” by 1” and is an abbreviated history of Cuba.  I am thinking about renaming it  “Everything I ever knew about Fidel Castro”.
Then it was off to the Pastorita Art School where we heard several of the students play a musical recital for us.  This is one of the choices these kids can make for High School. There are 108 students in the school and it's completely paid for including room and board and they are issued the musical instruments for training.  (they must return them when they are done at school)

This brings me to the educational system here in Cuba. It seems to operate at quite a high standard, in fact they have a literacy rate of 99.8% making it the second highest in the world. And its all free including University or a trade school, whichever you choose. And yes that could even include medical school, of which there are 23.  The average salary here in Cuba seems to be  25-35  CUC a month.  (1CUC=$1.00 US)  A doctor makes an average of 70-80 CUC per month.  That would be a very wealthy person in Cuba.
The overwhelming  majority of people work for the Govt.  but they are given full education, complete health care and food rations. Not much to pay for but housing. A very few work in the private sector mostly at restaurants and Hotels that serve tourists.  These lucky people seem to be able to  earn  more than government workers.  All due to the recent changes that Raul Castro has allowed in Cuba since taking power from his older brother Fidel.

I had lunch at Amelia Del Mar where we also enjoyed a performance by the dance and Congo drum group  Afrocuba de Mantanzas.  They were wonderful.  If I didn't understand the African influence on Cuban music from Dr. Faya's earlier lecture, I certainly could see it in this performance.

Day Four
Today started with a visit to the local food coop.  If I thought I understood the difference in lifestyle between Americans and Cubans,  I had another think coming.  My eyes were really opened up here.  Food rations are issued to every citizen in Cuba at a cost of about fifty cents a month.  For this they get staples like rice, pasta,  sugar, milk some meat and a few  more basics.    Next door to the Rations store is the local market, which to me looked like a farmers market.  
Our group divided into 6 teams. We were each given  approx. 1CUC and told to go in the market and buy enough food for one meal for a family of four.  We all were able to accomplish it  (amazing eh)? We brought it back to the bus and  our bus driver Leo, chose which   team presented the best meal.  Leo got to take all the groceries home that we purchased.  I think that gave him enough food for almost a weeks worth of dinners for his family.— So I now see their low earnings in another light.  But it did create a wonderful discussion “Our standard of living is clearly much higher than the average Cuban, but are we happier because of it?”  I don't know but I can safely tell you it's not as easy of an answer as you might think.




Day Five
There was one final stop on the way to the airport and this may fall under the category of saving the best for last.  I visited a neighborhood  dance studio, that they just call the Jazz Club, in  the Santa Amalia neighborhood with several senior citizen jazz dancers.  What a blast!!  There were a couple young dancers but they were mostly in the late 70’s and 80’s and they not only danced the  Rumba and Tango for us ,but after affecting us with their abundant enthusiasm they pulled me and everyone else in our group onto the floor to dance with them.  We learned that for several years these dance gatherings were banned by Castro, but they kept going anyway. That ban has now been lifted.   The joy on their faces as they all waved to us as our bus pulled away was truly inspiring.



That afternoon,  we rode around Havana in  50’s  and even 40’s cars that catch everyones attention when they visit Cuba. Mine was an immaculate  ’57 chevy.   We drove down to Revolution Square   where Pope Francis held mass here a few weeks ago just prior to his visit to the US   




Cuba is a beautiful country, no doubt about it, but visiting here is more like a college course in culture and lifestyle.  Come visit, meet the people and you will see what I mean.