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FEBRUARY 14, 2015
SIRIUS B MEDIA
HU CUBA
2015
FROM HOWARD
TO HAVANA
12TH HAVANA
BIENNIAL
WORLD CLASS
DINING
5 STAR HOTEL
MELIA COHIBA
HU CUBA ITINERARY
THE PROGRAM
In honor of President Obama's recent decision to renew relations
with the nation of Cuba, travel with the extended community of
Howard University family and friends on this once in a life time
program of art, history, food, music and culture to Havana, Cuba.
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FEBRUARY 14, 2015
You will spend five days exploring Havana's picturesque colonial
streets, magnificent 20th-century architecture and the lush
beauty of the surrounding areas. You will interact with Cuban
professionals, artists and scholars in a rich, engaging and
intimate exchange.
SIRIUS B MEDIA
The Presidential Palace
This program, customized to meet the demanding tastes, interest
and passions of the Howard community, will unravel the wealth of
Cuban culture and facilitate genuine connection with people from
all walks of contemporary Cuban life. DAY 1
May 25 • Monday •
Arrive Havana Depart Miami International @ 8:15 AM - Arrive
Havana Jose Marti @ 9:15 AM
Upon arrival we will immediately visit the Presidential
Palace, a huge ornate building topped by a dome and now
known as the home of the Revolutionary Museum. The
history of Cuban political development is illustrated here
from the slave uprisings to joint missions with the ex-Soviet
Union. A few minutes away by foot is the Granma Memorial which
preserves the vessel that brought Fidel Castro, Che
Guevara and other revolutionaries from Mexico to Cuba in
1956. The Granma, a surprisingly large launch, embodies
the powerful, unstoppable spirit of the revolutionary
movement. Drive to the Hotel Nacional for a welcome “mojito” in the hotel’s
Hall of Fame.
The Hotel Nacional, an iconic hotel opened in 1930 when Cuba
was a prime travel destination for Americans. In 1955 Meyer
Lansky managed to persuade Batista to give him a piece of the
property and that same year Pan Am’s Intercontinental Hotels
Corporation took over management of the hotel. The Hotel Nacional, an
iconic hotel opened in 1930
when Cuba was a prime
travel destination for
Americans. In 1955 Meyer
Lansky managed to
persuade Batista to give
him a piece of the property
and that same year Pan
Am’s Intercontinental Hotels
Corporation took over
management of the hotel.
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FEBRUARY 14, 2015
The architecture of
Havana captures the
essence of a city where past
and present co-mingle by
juxtaposing images of old
and new. The architecture
of Havana bridges the
expanse of time and does
something extraordinary:
it takes you on a journey to
an era long ago while
remaining rooted in the
here and now.
SIRIUS B MEDIA
Enjoy lunch at La Barraca Restaurant, located
outside on the grounds of the Nacional Hotel.
After lunch enjoy a city orientation tour by bus
which will be led by Ayleen Robaiyna, an
architectural historian.
The tour will include an inside visit to the
wonderful Riviera Hotel which, when it opened
in 1958, was considered a marvel of modern
design.
It was owned at the time by Meyer Lansky. The hotel has recently
been restored to recapture its 1950s ambience.
We will Drive along La Rampa which climbs past the offices of
Cubana, the Hotel Havana Libre and Art-Deco apartment buildings
to the Parque Copelia , an entire block of a large, lush park. In the
middle of the park, visit a remarkable design icon, an ice-cream
parlor designed in 1966, which serves an estimated 30,000
customers a day.
We will check into The Melia Cohiba, our home for the next four
days.
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SIRIUS B MEDIA
DAY 2
May 26 • Tuesday
After breakfast we will attend a lecture by
Professor Ricardo Torres called:
The Changing Faces of Cuba’s Economic
Structure.
We will then continue to explore Havana by foot.
Havana was declared the capital in 1519, and on December 17 of that year
the first mass was celebrated under a ceiba tree which, according to legend,
is an ancestor of the one standing at the east end of the Plaza de Armas.
We will end the morning at the Plaza Vieja, a stunningly beautiful old
square. Although the square was in a sad state of repair for many years,
that decay is being reversed by the caring restoration of Habana Vieja.
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FEBRUARY 14, 2015
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After lunch drive about 20 minutes to visit to Ernest Hemingway’s home which has been lovingly
preserved and recently restored by the Cuban government.
The house was designed by Spanish architect Miguel
Pascual y Baguer in 1922 and was inhabited by
Hemingway from 1939 to 1960. Today, it hosts a large
collection of over 22,000 items including books,
records, furniture, paintings and stuffed animals.
The house is just as Hemingway left it, with the books
on the tables and many of his favorite photographs on
display. Whilst it is not possible to go inside the house
– the windows are left open for a decent view of the
interior.
Dinner will be at Café Oriente where a jazz trio will
perform.
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FEBRUARY 14, 2015
SIRIUS B MEDIA
DAY 3
May 27 • Wednesday
Depart for a full day excursion to the west part of Cuba, with its
jungle-covered summits dropping down limestone cliffs to verdant
valleys. Drive along one of the new roads in Cuba to the town of
Pinar del Rio.
Stop at the Orchid Farm at Soroa, which is maintained by the
University of Pinar del Rio. The hilly grounds contain over 800
species of plants, including 200 endemic to Cuba, all thriving in the
humid climate
Continue by a smaller road to the Valle de Vinales to admire Cuba’s
most famous landscape, located in the province of Pinar del Rio.
This area was the last refuge of the Ciboney, the hunter-gatherers
who were pushed here by the more advanced Taino.
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FEBRUARY 14, 2015
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Stop at a tobacco farm to learn more about this industry so
important to Cuba.
Enjoy lunch at a private farm with beautiful views
overlooking the valley. It is possible from here to appreciate
the valley’s distinctive landscape, with its steep-sided
limestone mountains called mogotes rising dramatically from
fertile flat-floored valleys where farmers cultivate the red soil
for tobacco, fruits and vegetables. The terrain resembles a
Chinese brush painting.
Return to The Melia Cohiba.
Meet in the Antilles room for a discussion led by Dr. Rena Pérez. Dr. Pérez was formerly with the
Ministerio de Agricultura (Ministry of Agriculture) and is now an advisor to the Grupo Empresarial de
la Agroindustria Azucarera (Sugar Industry Enterprises, formerly the Ministry of Sugar).
Dr. Pérez’s slide-illustrated presentation will address contemporary life in Cuba.
Dinner at a local restaurant followed by a concert at Havana’s best jazz club – El Zorro y el Cuervo.
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FEBRUARY 14, 2015
SIRIUS B MEDIA
DAY 4
May 28 • Thursday
Morning discussion on US/Cuban Relations to be led by
Professor Raul Rodriquez from the University of Havana.
Dr. Rodriquez has written extensively on US-Cuban
Relations including an article last year written for the David
Rockefeller Center for Latin American Studies Working
Papers Series 1-10, Harvard University 2010 entitled
“Canada, the United States and Cuba: Triangular
Relations as seen in Cuban Diplomatic History
1959-1962.”
Continue on to watch a rehearsal of the Danza
Contemporánea de Cuba. This extraordinary dance group
melds the techniques of classical ballet and American
modern dance with the rippling spines and head rolls of
traditional or folkloric, Afro-Cuban dance; the complex
rhythms of Cuban rumba; and the twirling hands and
syncopation of Spanish flamenco.
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FEBRUARY 14, 2015
SIRIUS B MEDIA
Private lunch at the home and studio of artist Jose Fuster who has turned his neighborhood into one
enormous piece of mosaic art.
Fuster is an artist who is dedicated to his creations, a vast array of
artwork from ceramics evoking the nation’s African roots, as
represented in the Santeria religion, to whimsical paintings drawn from
ordinary life in Cuba: commuters crowded inside creaky, smokebelching buses, the ubiquitous dominoes games in backyards and
street corners. Drive though his neighborhood known as Jaimanitas
before arriving at his studio and home for lunch.
Afternoon briefing at the US Interest Section where there will be a
opportunity to talk with staff from the Interest Section about US/Cuban
relations and what the likely changes will be as President Obama
seeks to normalize relations with Cuba,
End the day at the Museo
Nacional de Bellas
Artes: Arte Cubano
(Cuban Collection). The
museum’s origins date
back to 1842 when the San Alejandro Art Academy
started its collection, forming the nucleus of the museum
founded in 1913. It expanded greatly after Castro took
over in 1959, notably with works from the private
collections of Julio Lobo and Oscar Cintas. The tour this
morning will be accompanied by a contemporary art
curator, Lucila Hernandez.
Farewell dinner at a wonderful private restaurant, La
Gaurida.
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FEBRUARY 14, 2015
SIRIUS B MEDIA
DAY 5
May 29 • Friday
Depart the hotel for the airport for your flight back to the US
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FEBRUARY 14, 2015
SIRIUS B MEDIA
Program Costs & Inclusions
Trip Price: $2890 per person
Single supplement: $420 per person
Tour Price Includes educational
program of lectures and discussions,
roundtrip airfare on charter flights
between Miami and Cuba,
accommodations in hotels as outlined in
the itinerary based on double occupancy,
all meals listed in itinerary, one drink with
lunch and one with dinner, bottled water
kept on the bus, sightseeing and
excursions as listed, transportation in a
deluxe, air conditioned motor coach, the
services of a Distant Horizons tour
manager and of a local Cuban guide, a
Cuban visa, all basic gratuities, and
mandatory health insurance and
evacuation required by the Cuban
Government which provides $25,000
worth of medical coverage and $7,000
worth of medical transportation. Please
note that if bookings fall below the
minimum group size of 20, we reserve
the right to send the program with
modified staffing.
Tour Price Does Not Include domestic airfare
to and from Miami, meals not specified in the
itinerary; personal items such as laundry, email,
fax or telephone calls, liquor, room service,
independent and private transfers, departure tax
of 25 CUCs in Cuba, and excess luggage
charges. Any increases in the in-tour airfare
(included as part of the program cost), security,
or fuel surcharges imposed after the initial pricing
of this program are not included. Airfare is
subject to change without notice by the airlines.
Reservation Instructions To confirm your space on
this trip, please visit our reservations page at
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Your deposit is refundable up to 60 days prior to
departure less a $250 per-person administration fee.
Travel insurance information will be mailed to you
upon receipt of your deposit. Also, please note that
due to the charter flight schedules we strongly
recommend that you overnight in Miami on May 24.
For more information, please contact Melissa Costa at Distant Horizons / Relevant Excursions’ tour
operator, at 800-333-1240 or via email at melissac@distanthorizons. com.
Relevant Excursions’ tour operator, Distant Horizons, is a California Seller of Travel (CST #2046776-40)
and a participant in the California Travel Restitution Fund. Information regarding the rights of California
residents to make a claim may be found at tcrcinfo.org. California Law requires certain sellers of travel to
have a trust account or bond. Distant Horizons has a trust account.
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FEBRUARY 14, 2015
SIRIUS B MEDIA
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