Final day in Havana, departure for Miami, observations and conclusions about Cuba — Thursday, 3 March 2011 First thing after breakfast I visited the Cuban Art building of the Museo National de Bellas Artes. I was quite favorably impressed by every aspect of what I saw: the edifice itself, the range of art, its quality, and its display. …

The view of work in France is quite different than it is in the USA — *Usonian: a word invented by Frank Lloyd Wright as a means of distinguishing people from the USA, as compared to all other citizens of the American continents, from Canada in the north to the southern tip of South America I was sitting with a friend here in the USA while…

Havana, trying to figure out the money — Tuesday, 1 March 2011 During breakfast with Maria Elena, Chris and I struck up a conversation with Lars, a German guy who had just arrived and is working for a German aid agency. He visits here frequently and lived in Cuba about fifteen years ago. He said that there have been many changes in…

I still laugh at the one very unexpected turn. — Though it was twenty years ago, I still vividly remember many details about the interview I had with my Peace Corps recruiter. I was 54 years old at the time and was, at last, on the path towards realizing a dream that I had held for more than 40 years…

Enjoying Havana —

Being older means more preparation for travel — A few months ago, my partner Kevin was perusing craigslist.org when he found a gorgeous oak roll-top desk that some people in Santa Cruz were giving away for free! All we needed to do was come over, pick it up, and haul it away. The deal was too good for…

Departure from Cienfuegos, Trinidad, arrival in Havana — Wednesday, 23 February 2011 When I woke up and left my room (in Cienfuegos), I saw that Milagros had slept in the room where two of the Czech tourists had stayed the night before. She evidently gives up her own room when she can rent it out to travelers. …

Maybe it has another name. If you know it, please tell me. — My definition of “Newcomer’s Mind” I am defining this as the thinking of a person who is a newcomer to an organization that has been in operation for quite some time. …

Departure from Miami, arrival in Cienfuegos — Monday, 21 February 2011 The first thing I noticed when I arrived at the Miami airport was that people had huge amounts of heavy bundles that they were taking with them to Cuba. Many of the plastic-wrapped items were labeled with their names and either “comida” (food) or “ropa” (clothing). Some people were bringing…