Americans find ways around Cuba travel ban

Americans find ways around Cuba travel ban
Sunday September 27, 2015 12:01 AM
By Beth J. Harpaz

HAVANA - "Is travel to Cuba for tourist activities permitted? No."
That's what the U.S. Treasury Department website says. And yet Havana is
loaded with Americans, from the Floridita bar, where they pose for
photos with a bust of Ernest Hemingway, to the Rum Museum, where they
swig rum samples.

Sure, some Americans follow the rules on sanctioned travel, bringing
supplies to Cuban churches or synagogues, for example, on a religious
activities license. Others come on approved group tours known as
people-to-people trips with themed itineraries such as the arts.

But the 36 percent increase in American visitors here since President
Barack Obama and Cuban President Raul Castro announced a thaw in
relations includes many travelers who sidestep the rules. Some fly to
Cuba from Mexico or the Bahamas. Others go on their own from the U.S.,
casually filling out paperwork for one of 12 categories of travel
authorized by the U.S., without much worry that anyone will check on its
accuracy.

The fact is, "there's been almost no active enforcement" of the tourism
ban under the Obama administration, according to attorney Robert Muse,
an expert on the legal aspects of Cuba travel.

Here are some stories of Americans visiting Cuba on different types of
trips.

'It's so easy'

New Yorker Zach Chaltiel, 28, traveled to Havana from the U.S. with some
buddies after graduating from law school. He researched the trip online,
booked a villa through Airbnb, hired a driver, and filled out a form
saying the purpose of his trip was "support for the Cuban people," one
of the 12 authorized travel categories.

"It's so easy," said Chaltiel as he shared drinks with friends at the
Hotel Nacional, overlooking the sea as a peacock strutted by. "I just
wanted to go before it becomes all Americanized."

Curious about the country

Two Americans peered inside Hemingway's house, Finca Vigia, marveling at
the animal trophies, bookshelves and open liquor bottles that made it
seem as if the writer was still there. Nearby, Cuban students lined up
for a peek and tourists from around the world took photos.

But the Americans didn't want to reveal too much about themselves other
than first names, Sabine and Anna. They'd come via the Bahamas because
getting permission to travel from the U.S. seemed complicated, given
their varied interests and lack of official itinerary. Mostly, said
Sabine, "we're interested in coming to a country that has been so isolated."

Diapers, aspirin and religion

They traveled from Manhattan to a synagogue in Havana, bringing diapers,
aspirin and questions. Nicole Gordon, Roger Bernstein and daughters
Danielle and Lara obtained permission to travel to Cuba for religious
activities with a letter signed by the New York Board of Rabbis.

A Cuban government tour guide accompanied them to El Patronato synagogue
in Old Havana and other sites such as Jewish cemeteries.

"We want to tell the people in America what we see here, the
conditions," Gordon said as the guide translated for members of El
Patronato.

The visitors saw Spanish-Hebrew prayer books, broken stained glass
windows and old photos. And they learned facts like this: There is no
rabbi in Cuba, so couples marry under civil law, then wait for visiting
rabbis to perform weddings.

After their donations were delivered, Bernstein tucked some cash in a
charity box.

Sailing from Key West

On May 16, five Hobie Cat sailboats and more than a dozen support
vessels ran the first official boat race from Key West to Havana in more
than 50 years. The race had been scheduled for April 18 but was
postponed because getting U.S. government permission took longer than
expected. Two Hobies were wrecked in rough seas on the way over - though
all aboard were accounted for - but organizer George Bellenger said the
trip's value outweighed the losses.

"We kicked the doors open with our Hobie Cats," he said over lunch at
the Hemingway Marina in Havana, where the group stayed awaiting a boat
parade in Havana harbors. Describing centuries of connections between
Key West and Havana, he added: "Our working mantra is 'Bridging cultural
divides through traditional maritime heritage.' "

Source: Americans find ways around Cuba travel ban | Reading Eagle -
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