POPE FRANCISCO AND RAÚL CASTRO Meet at Vatican. *** SE REÚNE EL PAPA CON RAÚL CASTRO en el Vaticano.

Posted on May 5, 2015 by admin

SE REÚNE EL PAPA CON RAÚL CASTRO EN EL VATICANO.

Pope Francis is planning to meet with Cuba’s President Raul Castro on Sunday, May 10, according to News.va, the official Vatican Network.

Vatican spokesperson Federico Lombardi told Reuters that the meeting will be a private affair, and not an official state visit.

The two leaders will talk in a papal studio at the Vatican, according to America Magazine.

News of the scheduled meet up comes just five months before Francis, the first Latin American pope, is slated to visit Cuba.

The Vatican has maintained close ties with Cuba over the years. More than half of the citizens of the Caribbean island identify as Catholic, according to thePew Research Center. St. John Paul II visited Cuba in 1998, followed by Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI in 2012.

The pontiff has been praised by the leaders of both countries for his efforts in spurring on a historic deal in December that eases tensions between United States and Cuba. Francis wrote letters to both President Obama and President Castro, urging them to “resolve humanitarian questions of common interest,” according to the Vatican.

Francis will head to the United States to attend the World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia in September. He is also due to become the first pope to address Congress.

Huffington Post/Carol Kuruvilla/InternetPhotos/www.thecubanhistory.com
The Cuban History, HOLLYWOOD.
Arnoldo Varona, Editor.

CUBA PHOTOS.

SE REÚNE EL PAPA CON RAÚL CASTRO EN EL VATICANO.

Papa Francisco tiene previsto reunirse con el presidente de Cuba, Raúl Castro, el domingo 10 de mayo, según News.va, la Red oficial del Vaticano.

El portavoz del Vaticano, Federico Lombardi, dijo a Reuters que la reunión será un asunto privado, y no una visita oficial.

Los dos líderes hablarán en un estudio del Papa en el Vaticano, según la revista América.

La noticia de la reunión programada hasta viene sólo cinco meses antes de Francis, el primer Papa latinoamericano, está programado para visitar Cuba.

El Vaticano ha mantenido estrechos lazos con Cuba en los últimos años. Más de la mitad de los ciudadanos de la isla caribeña identificar como católica, según el Centro de Investigación thePew. San Juan Pablo II visitó Cuba en 1998, seguido por el Papa emérito Benedicto XVI en 2012.

El pontífice ha sido elogiado por los líderes de ambos países por sus esfuerzos en el impulso de un acuerdo histórico en diciembre que alivia las tensiones entre Estados Unidos y Cuba. Francisco escribió cartas a tanto el presidente Obama y el presidente Castro, instándolos a “resolver cuestiones humanitarias de interés común”, según el Vaticano.

Francis se dirigirá a los Estados Unidos para asistir al Encuentro Mundial de las Familias en Filadelfia en septiembre. También se debe de convertirse en el primer Papa en dirigirse al Congreso.

Huffington Post/Carol Kuruvilla/InternetPhotos/www.thecubanhistory.com
The Cuban History, HOLLYWOOD.
Arnoldo Varona, Editor.

CUBA: PLACES of Natural Beauty. *** CUBA: LUGARES de Belleza Natural.

Posted on May 5, 2015 by admin

SOROA FALLS.

A complex located in the heights of Sierra del Rosario. The road goes along very inclined sides of the hill, almost touching the top of red flamboyant trees and snow trees, thus called because it is full of white flowers in this season of the year. The tropical woods become thickest as we are getting into a natural reserve of great ecological attractions, that is why the site has been declared Reserve of the Biosphere by UNESCO. Hundreds of orchid types and many other kinds of plants are found at Soroa orchid garden. An unfortunate and painful love of a father is hidden behind this overwhelming vegetation and the magnificence of the landscape.

The founder of all that was a wealthy Spaniard who decided to build in 1943 an exotic garden in honor to her late daughter who loved orchids. For him, every flower symbolized a breath of life he would have liked to give to her late daughter. Going up the road is the El Castillo de las Nubes (Cloud Castle). It is located in an amazing stone construction from which a beautiful view is seen. The sight is extended to the north all over the hill covered by palm trees and to the south along the savanna that borders the sea. On the other side of the small road the fall is found. Visitors should walk along the woods, going up hundred steps until reaching the highest part of the fall, we can see the 21-m fall of Manantiales River. After ten minutes more one can go down where a natural pool has been formed fit for swimming and from there the view of the fall is much more spectacular.

VALLE DE VIÑALES.

Located in the foothills of Guaniguanico corresponds to a National Park agricultural valleys and cultivation of snuff, home to huge rock formations rounded tips, known as hummocks. Declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO because of its rich cultural landscape.

Situado en la cordillera de Guaniguanico, corresponde a un Parque Nacional de valles agrícolas y cultivo de tabaco, hogar de enormes formaciones rocosas de puntas redondeadas, conocidas como mogotes. Declarado Patrimonio de la Humanidad por la Unesco dada la riqueza de su paisaje cultural.

BARACOA.

Baracoa has beautiful natural landscapes, between routes Toa River and waterfalls, tropical forests, the open sea and the mountains of El Yunque.

Baracoa tiene hermosos paisajes naturales, entre las rutas del Río Toa y sus cascadas, los bosques tropicales, el mar abierto y las montañas del Yunque.

VARADERO.

Varadero is one of the most popular beaches of Cuba, is located on the north coast of Cuba, just two hours by bus from Havana. Famous for its white sand and crystal clear water.

Varadero es una de las playas más populares de Cuba, se encuentra en la costa norte de Cuba, a sólo dos horas en autobús desde La Habana. Famosa por su arena blanca y agua cristalina.

PARQUE NACIONAL GUANAHACABIBES.

Declared a Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO, the Guanahacabibes National Park is located on the peninsula of Guanahacabibes in the westernmost end of the island and 5 hours from the capital Havana.

Declarado Reserva de la Biósfera por la UNESCO, el parque nacional Guanahacabibes se encuentra localizado en la península de Guanahacabibes en el extremo más occidental de la isla y a 5 horas de la capital La Habana.

Agencies/InternetPhotos/www.thecubanhistory.com.
The Cuban History, Hollywood.
Arnoldo Varona, Editor

US-CUBA: The European Union Faces Stiff Competition. *** EEUU-CUBA: Intensa Competencia para la Unión Europea.

Posted on May 5, 2015 by admin

US-CUBA: THE EUROPEAN UNION FACES STIFF COMPETITION. .

Having crossed Cuba from the list of nations that sponsor terrorism, the United States would repeal the embargo remains held since 1961 and to pursue the full normalization of relations.

Despite the obstacles imposed by the Helms-Burton Act, adopted in 1996 to tighten the embargo, the EU companies managed to overcome disadvantages and took advantage of the void left by US sanctions, thanks to its own bilateral agenda.

Experts predict that economic openness between Cuba and the US will inevitably affect the second economic partner of the island, the European Union, with which Havana makes 22% of its trade. By 2013 more than 1.834 million euros were registered in exports to the island, with Spain, Holland, Italy and France the main suppliers.

In the case of Spain, Cuba was until 2008 the third largest export market in Latin America, behind only Mexico and Brazil. This advantageous position deteriorated sharply in 2009 and began to recover from 2010 gradually. In 2013, Spain achieved record numbers to the island to export products worth 799 million euros, which places Cuba as the sixth largest customer of Spain in Latin America ahead of much larger countries like Colombia or Peru.

His presence is not limited to trade, but extends to other areas, such as tourism. The European Union provides approximately one-third of annual tourists visiting the island -recibió a total 3.5 million visitors in 2014 and the tourism industry is dominated by companies from Spain, France and Germany, mainly.

Without the restrictions of the embargo, and thanks to the geographical proximity to the US that lowers costs, European exports face stiff competition and may lose, to cite one example, some 150 million of the wheat market in Cuba, second import item island after refining oil.

Only in 2014, USA exported to Cuba in the field of agriculture thanks to exemptions to the embargo in 2001 approved $ 299 million, which could increase considerably with increased access to financing Havana and US credit.

Another strong competitor is China, which gives the island 12.5% of trade in goods and loans of around six billion dollars under preferential terms. Havana has strengthened relations with China since 2012, intensifying trade and sponsoring projects in infrastructure, technology, energy and transportation.

The Objective / Claudia Delgado Barrios / InternetPhotos / TheCubanHistory.com
The Cuban History, HOLLYWOOD.
Arnoldo Varona, Editor.

CUBA PHOTOS.

EEUU-CUBA: LA UNIÓN EUROPEA ENFRENTA UNA DURA COMPETENCIA.

Tras haber tachado a Cuba de la lista de naciones que patrocinan el terrorismo, a Estados Unidos le resta derogar el embargo que mantiene desde 1961 y proseguir con la total normalización de las relaciones.

A pesar de las trabas impuestas por la ley Helms-Burton, adoptada en 1996 para endurecer el embargo, las empresas de la Unión Europea lograron sortear inconvenientes y le sacaron partido al vacío que dejaron las sanciones estadounidenses, gracias a una agenda bilateral propia.

Los expertos prevén que la apertura económica entre Cuba y EEUU afectará inevitablemente al segundo socio económico de la isla, la Unión Europea, con el que La Habana realiza el 22% de su intercambio comercial. Para 2013 se contabilizaron más de 1.834 millones de euros en exportaciones hacia la isla, siendo España, Holanda, Italia y Francia los principales proveedores.

En el caso concreto de España, Cuba fue hasta 2008 su tercer mayor mercado de exportación en América Latina sólo detrás de México y Brasil. Esta ventajosa posición sufrió un fuerte deterioro en 2009 y comenzó a recuperarse a partir de 2010 de forma paulatina. En 2013, España logró cifras récord al exportar a la isla productos por valor de 799 millones de euros, lo que ubica a Cuba como el sexto cliente más importante de España en Latinoamérica por delante de países mucho más grandes como Colombia o Perú.

Su presencia no sólo se limita al comercio, sino que se extiende a otras áreas, como el turismo. La Unión Europea aporta aproximadamente un tercio de los turistas anuales que visitan la isla –recibió un total 3,5 millones de visitantes en 2014- y la industria turística está dominada por empresas de España, Francia y Alemania, principalmente.

Sin las restricciones del embargo, y gracias a la cercanía geográfica con EE.UU. que abarata los costos, las exportaciones europeas enfrentarán una dura competencia y podrían perder, por citar un ejemplo, unos 150 millones de dólares del mercado del trigo en Cuba, segundo rubro de importación de la isla después del petróleo refinado.

Solo en 2014, EE.UU. exportó a Cuba en el sector de agricultura –gracias a exenciones al embargo aprobadas en 2001- 299 millones de dólares, que podrían incrementarse considerablemente con un mayor acceso de La Habana a financiamiento y crédito estadounidenses.

Otro duro competidor será China, que le proporciona a la isla 12,5% del comercio de bienes y con préstamos que rondan los 6 mil millones de dólares, bajo condiciones preferenciales. La Habana ha estrechado relaciones con China desde 2012, intensificando el intercambio comercial y auspiciando proyectos en áreas de infraestructura, tecnología, energía y transporte.

The Objective/Claudia Delgado Barrios/InternetPhotos/TheCubanHistory.com
The Cuban History, HOLLYWOOD.
Arnoldo Varona, Editor.