Cuba in a nutshell




Courtesy of Cuban Tourist Board

Cuba is a fascinating island nation, a country that has been famous for its postcard images of sun, palm trees, sugar cane plantations and clear blue sea. All that coexist in a place where history has been made on its own, a unique land where music and colour vibe in every corner, and its ethnic mosaics of race have shaped a complex culture that have merged in a unique rhythm.

Most of all, it is a land of proud people that will captivate you with their friendly smile, their uniqueness, that despite its own difficulties, will enchant you with its particular identity, and will welcoming you with open arms and making sure you won’t feel a visitor… you are at home!

The Caribbean’s largest island, Cuba is in fact an archipelago comprising the main island (Cuba, slightly smaller than Pennsylvania), the Isle of Youth (south of Artemisa province) and thousands of cayos (cays and small islands) in the Greater Antilles, laying just south of the Tropic of Cancer between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, its closest neighbour are Florida (US) to the north, the Yucatan Peninsula (Mexico) to the west, and the islands of Jamaica and Haiti to the south and east respectively.

Cuba is a long and narrow island that, on an east-west axis, is about 1250 km (776 miles) long and 100 km (62 miles) wide on average, covering 110,992 square kilometres (42,828 square miles). It is mostly flat to rolling plains, with rugged hills and mountains and has more than 300 beaches, unspoiled cays and small islets, mountains, caves, forests, savannas and swamps, making the island more than just a “sun, sea and sand” destination.

The Republic of Cuba is composed of 15 provinces and has over 11 million inhabitants, and about 2.5 million of whom lives in the capital, Havana.  The official language is Spanish, although you will find that English, French or Italian are spoken in almost all hotels and tourist areas.

The climate in Cuba is tropical, moderated by trade winds and sea breezes. Average temperature is 25C (77F), although from June to August it can rise up to 35C (90F). There are clearly defined two seasons: dry season (November to April), and rainy season (May to October). The east coast is subject to hurricanes from August to October (in general, the country averages about one hurricane every three years).

Thanks to the island mild weather, any time of the year is good for visit, but the best period is from December to April (coinciding with the winter months in most northern countries), when the climate is warm without being unbearable.

Cuba is five hours behind Greenwich Mean Time (GMT), like Canadian Eastern Standard Time (EST) and the US east coast, and in summer there is daylight saving time, same as in Canada.

I have promised that this blog would not be a mere tourist guide, but as a start I think it is logical to put us on the map.
Cuba is not a dream of mine, is a reality, Cuba is something that even if you think away is very close...