Behind the facade of decayed elegant architecture and archaic music forms that never moved on from 1950s - which I happen to have a lot of respect for, but rap and rock exists in communist Cuba, believe it or not - there is horrible grubby police state on each corner, with the remnants of an excellent first world health service on the back of Soviet largesse.

Poverty, suffering and socialist graft can look very beautiful when exposed to in tropical climes.

And there are TONS of mid-century American cars roaming the streets of Havana.  Not that the drivers have a choice.

I think that Cuba is ripe for another shot at revolution, isn't it? Over 50 years of rule by one guy and his brother is enough. Let Cubans show us that they can turn it around and convince the USA government to start importing Havana cigars again. That way I won't have to pay the mob inflated prices no more for a decent smoke.

I have been to Cuba on a few occasions and have travelled all over the island and not just the tourist centres.
I can assure you all that it is not a shit hole at all.
It will change and is changing rapidly but with the coming of the Yankee dollar it will also lose much.

I know a few Cubans, in the UK and in the US.  Opinions on what it's like, and on Castro, vary enormously.  As you may suspect, those in Europe tend to have a lot better things to say about Cuba and Castro than those who moved to the US.  I have a Cuban friend who never stops rhapsodizing about how wonderful the place is.

Let's be real: I wouldn't want to live somewhere with worse human rights than those of the UK.  And not all Cuba's problems can be blamed on the embargo.

However look at JA and numerous other Caribbean islands, that are completely screwed by the US.  No wonder some Cubans are so resistant to US colonialism.

Monserrat is pretty cool.

Ex brother in law is from there. Visited it about 20 years ago during carnival, which was a sound system on the back of a truck touring the island for three days of rum and madness-my memory is very hazy-great time though -friendly folk. lots of kelly's and reilly's. Not much else though. You'd go mad there eventually.

My aunty and uncle lived in the Cayman islands in the mid-70s, my grandparents went over there a few times, it seemed awfully exotic to me at the time. All that snorkelling and sea fishing. They had an opportunity to stay there and my grandfather always said they were mad to come back.

Last edited by meister (2013-06-24 05:43:59)

The Cuban guys I knew also taught me something else; no one is so staunchly conservative as someone who has escaped a Communist country.  Those guys were, without exception, Republicans to the core.