November 3 – November 13, 2014
Photo by David Schnack, taken on a hilltop in Gibara
A multicultural arts and history journey through Cuba—
Havana, Matanzas, Santiago de Cuba and environs.
Curated and led by Anya Achtenberg, Arts Focus on Cuba
In conjunction with the Center for Cuban Studies in New York
About this multicultural arts and history journey through Cuba
The richness of Cuban culture and identity has been fed by many streams throughout its
history of migrations, free and forced. Most of us know that Cubanidad, or Cuban identity
and ethnicity, was formed essentially by the mix of Spanish, African and indigenous
peoples, but on this journey we will visit with some of the many vibrant ethnic
communities in Cuba, including communities of Haitian, Jamaican, Yoruba, Chinese, Arab
and Jewish descendants, and with their artists, writers, musicians and dancers, filmmakers,
scholars and organizers.
Not your generic tour, this journey aims to bring us to a fuller understanding of the
profoundly multicultural nature of Cuban society; its complex and moving history; its
spectrum of artistic sensibilities in many genres. The arts are central to Cubans of all
cultural backgrounds; central to the Cuban spirit, critical intelligence, economy, social life
and societal participation; central to commemorating and celebrating the past, and creating
the future. We will have extraordinary opportunities to interact with people involved in a
range of community arts projects in a way that will give us a sense of current
developments, and a view of how Cubans use the transformative power of the arts and the
creative process. Our meetings with people nationally and internationally recognized for
their accomplishments in the arts, and meetings with those in community settings, will
have much in common, because excellence, creativity, and accessibility of artists and
scholars in Cuba are found at all levels.
The growing attention paid on the island to its own deeply multicultural composition and
history forms a crucial dimension in the vibrant community arts projects and arts
education that characterize Cuba. Join us for a rich immersion in the mind-blowing arts of
this complex country; an experience of both the iconic and the unknown; and real
interaction with both professional and community artists and the multicultural sources
that inspire them, during this time of fascinating changes and challenges.
Center photo by Victor Manual Sigué Castellanos in Santiago; the others by David Schnack in Havana
Tour Overview
Santiago de Cuba: cradle of Afrocuban music and culture, and of the Cuban
Revolution; the city of heroes
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Performance and discussion with the Sociedad de Tumba Francesa de la Caridad del
Oriente. 19th century Tumba Francesa merges French and African dance, music, and
extraordinary drumming.
Visit a Haitian community outside of the city of Santiago, where Haitian traditions
have been preserved. Exchange with musicians Grupo de Gagá Haitiano, and with
practitioners of vodú.
Meet with English-speaking hiphop/spoken word artists, often Jamaican
descendants.
Visits to Taller Cultural Luis Díaz Oduardo, a multigenerational artists’ workshop;
and Galería de Arte Universal for women artists. See the work! Talk with the artists!
Informed and authentic encounters with practitioners of Yoruba Santería and
Bantu-based Spiritism.
Visit the Moncada Barracks, site of the first armed attack by Cuban Revolutionary
Forces.
Visit the community of Cobre: the Sanctuary of the Virgin of Charity, worshipped as
Oshún; and the Monument to the Cimarrón, the Rebel Slave.
Casa del Caribe’s music/dance events with rumba, changüí, son, and more.
Visits to Casa del Caribe, and the Union of Artists and Writers, to dig deep in
discussion and address your many questions about Santiago’s deeply multicultural
population and its arts, history, and current conditions; with a stunning line-up of
scholars, writers, anthropologists, etc. They love questions!
Havana, one of the most exciting cities in the world!
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Walking tours of Habana Vieja—Old Havana, founded in 1519—a UNESCO World
Heritage Site. And, yes, you can be in love with a place…
Visits in various Havana neighborhoods with transformative community projects –
including, Muraleando, creating visual arts, and music and dance performances to
affirm people’s cultures; and Cabildo Quisicuaba, working with the spiritual, cultural,
and material needs of the community.
Meeting/exchange with women filmmakers: Lizette Vila, Nobel Peace Prize
nominee, Director of the Palomas Project, documentary filmmaker addressing
gender equity issues; Lourdes Prieto: There’s a group that says…, a documentary of
culture and politics in Cuba, through the new song movement; Rosa María Rovira,
filmmaker and producer, former Director of International Relations at the Cuban
Film Institute.
The Experimental Printmakers’ Workshop—Taller Experimental de Gráfica—at the
Plaza de la Catedral. Visit with cutting-edge artists; see their extraordinary work.
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Saturday Rumba—Sábado de la Rumba—at Centro Cultural El Gran Palenque, with
renowned Conjunto Folklórico Nacional.
Visits with: the Arab community at Casa Árabe; El Patronato Jewish Community
Center; and Chinatown’s Chinese Historical and Cultural Project.
A visit to one of the associations (organized by region, as Asturias or the Canary
Islands) of descendants of Spain who fled the 1930s Spanish Civil War and the
Franco dictatorship. There are often flamenco performances with dinner!
Caserón del Tango, time permitting! And, yes, we will have lunch at the iconic
Bodeguita del Medio.
Matanzas, called “the Athens of Cuba” for its poets, “the Venice of Cuba” for its rivers
and bridges, and an important center of Afrocuban culture.
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Visit the Museum of the Route of the Slave in the San Severino Castle: a UNESCO
heritage site, and a great place to learn about Afrocuban religion.
Visit the Cuban Association of Artisans and Artists, including a talk with its
fascinating president, Luís Octavio Fernández, descended from the mambises
independence fighters.
Nearby—Ediciones Vigía, a publishing collective producing unique handmade books
of literary and artistic value. And, a great place to meet with local writers and
artists!
Rehearsals/performances with world-renowned dance and music groups: Grupo
Afrocuba de Matanzas, and, Los Munequitos de Matanzas, whose repertoire comes
from a spectrum of African traditions. An embarrassment of riches in one day…
Photo by David Schnack, of Abrir Puertas, or, Open Doors
Traveler Information
We are traveling under the legal auspices of a People to People license granted by the US
government to organizations that have demonstrated the ability to connect their guests with
Cuban people in real and substantial ways.
Cost: $3250.00 per person, double occupancy, for 15 travelers.
$3400.00 per person, double occupancy, for 10-14 travelers.
Single room supplement, add $450.00.
Registration and Payment schedule:
Deposit: $500.00
Balance: due upon receipt of your invoice, or by October 1.
Register with the Center for Cuban Studies; inform Anya upon registering.
Contact information: traveltocubanow@gmail.com or 212.242.0559 for the Center
aachtenberg@gmail.com or 651.214.9248 for Anya
Tour Inclusions
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Airfare round trip, Miami to Cuba.
Entry visa (for US citizens) to Cuba.
All land transportation that is part of the itinerary, and intra-country flights as
stated.
English speaking tour guides and interpreters.
Daily breakfasts; and specific lunches and dinners as noted in the itinerary.
Entrance fees and donations to museums, galleries, and other venues as noted in
itinerary.
Hotel accommodations.
Health insurance while in Cuba.
Airport Transfers on international flights.
Tour Exclusions
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Fees for visas for travelers who are not US citizens; departure fees, passports,
baggage fees, personal gratuities; meals and beverages not mentioned in the
itinerary; travel insurance, unless otherwise noted in the itinerary; and donations
for special events.
U.S. domestic airfares.
Personal phone calls, faxes or other personal items, like laundry or dry cleaning.
Refunds and Cancellations
Cancellation notice received 30 or more days prior to departure will result in full refund
less $500.
Cancellation notice received 29 to 14 days prior to departure will result in full refund less
100% airfare + 50% of program cost.
Cancellation notice received 13 days or less prior to departure will result in no refund.
Anya Achtenberg, Arts Focus on Cuba
aachtenberg@gmail.com or 651.214.9248
https://www.facebook.com/ArtsFocusonCubaTrips
Center for Cuban Studies:
traveltocubanow@gmail.com or 212.242.0559
Center for Cuban Studies Website:
http://www.cubaupdate.org/travel-to-cuba