Understand
Before the 1959 Revolution, Cuba was a popular tourist destination for United States citizens. Since the Revolution, Cuba has been embargoed by the United States, and travel between the two neighbors is restricted... albeit still possible, either legally or not.
After 1959, Cuban tourism was mostly for Cubans only, and the facilities were not renewed until the 1990s, when Cuba lost financial backing from the defunct Soviet Union and opened its doors to foreign tourism. Now, many Europeans, Canadians, and even U.S. visitors come to the island. In the typical tourist regions like Varadero and Holguin, a lot of modern 3-star to 5-star hotels are available, while in less popular tourist regions, visitors are still able to rent rooms in many Cuban homes (called casas particulares).
Due to several long-standing factors (e.g. bureaucratic ineffectiveness, the U.S. embargo, lack of resources, and the loss of Soviet subsidies), much of the country's infrastructure is in need of repair. In major tourist destinations, there will generally be few problems with either power or water, although such outages may occur. Outages have been common in Cuba, except in tourist facilities that have a generator. 2006 was designated the Year of the Energetic Revolution in Cuba, and many small generators have been installed in an attempt to avoid blackouts. Many tourist accommodations offer 220V as well as 110V power sources.
NewsGranma has a daily edition and an international version.Juventud Rebelde, .Cuba Vision, is the national television station.Radio Reloj, broadcasts news 24 hours and states the time every minute on the minute — dos cuarenta dos minutos...Radio Rebelde, , another news radio station.Most of the radio stations are available live
online.
TelevisionIf you're staying at a hotel or casa particular, it's likely there will be a television, and watching Cuban television is a good place to observe Cuba's unique mix of vibrant culture, sports and controversial politics.
The Cuban telenovelas are one of the state's key instruments for addressing sexual taboos and educating young people about AIDS, for example. The locally produced cartoons are the most interesting and uniquely Cuban. They range from abstract and artsy to informative to entertaining.
The most famous of the genre is the children's program Pidio Valdez, which chronicles the adventures of a band of rebels in the 19th century revolt against the Spanish. The mix of cartoon slapstick humor and images of violent revolution (dashing revolutionaries stealing rifles, blowing up Spanish forts, and sticking pistols into the mouths of goofy Spanish generals) in a program geared at children is simultaneously delightful and disturbing.
Eat
Being that all restaurants are owned by the government and run by underpaid employees, the food in Cuba is notoriously bland. If you are expecting the fiery pepperpot spiciness found on some of the other Carribean islands, consider that the national dish in Cuba is rice and beans (moros y christianos). A popular saying goes that the best Cuban food can be found in the U.S. Within Cuba, the best food will generally be found...
