When it comes to taking care of people– borders don’t matter for healthcare professionals. That certainly couldn’t be more true for the president of St. Mary’s Hospital.

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Through the Wisconsin Medical Project, Frank, along others from St. Mary’s, Dane County health leaders, and even his 16-year-old son took a week of vacation to go on a trip to Madison’s sister city, Camaguey, Cuba.

“We visited the cancer hospital, we visited the pediatric hospital, visited the provincial hospital which would be kinda like a St. Mary’s that provides specialized hospital care,” said Frank.

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“The most overwhelming feeling you have is a sense of gratitude for what we have here,” said Frank. “For the talented people we have here, plus the resources at our disposal.”

And that the human spirit is the same, no matter what country you are in.

“I think you see pretty quickly that people are people,” said Frank. “That generally, our needs are the same, our hopes are the same, our dreams are the same for the future.’

For Jacinto Jaime García his 1922 Ford Model T is something more than a vintage car; it is much more personal than his own name since this car has belonged to the patrimony of the family for many years, once his father drove it home in 1944.

There isn’t any crack nor fault on the car that Jaime doesn’t recognize. Mechanic and lathe operator, Jaime García is like the personal doctor of his own car, that he maintains and cares like a jewel from India.

Painted in red and without having suffered from significant changes, this Model T is conserved practically identical to those millions of Model T cars that left Henry Ford’s assembly lines some 80 years ago from Míchigan, U.S. and represented almost half of all the cars rolling through the roads of the world in that time.

“Everything you see on this car is original, except the horne and tires”- assures the owner of this 1922 Ford who snared the Special Award at the Contest of Classic Cars and Motorcycles, attraction that takes place for the first time in the Camagueyan festivities honouring Saint John.

People of cheerful and creative spirit

A town prolific in legends and traditions, Camagüey offers a blow of fresh air to its oldest and more massive feast with a parade of classic cars and bikes that though doesn’t have the luxury and the pomp of those 18th century rides in which volantes and decorated horses participated, it does convey the cheerful and creative spirit of this people.

Amid shortages caused by a four decade rough commercial and financial blockade led by the US government against the Island that nowadays becomes toughest due to the recently dictated measures, the country has been refused to access the US market including spare parts of many brands of cars and motorcycles.

But such an obstacle has not impeded that the lovers of vintage and classic automobiles conserve and show them with satisfaction and pride.

Celia Cardoso Muñoz and her 1955 FordWe have the case of Celia Cardoso Muñoz, who lives in Altagracia, Camagüey. Out of a total of 25 automobiles, this lady drove a very original sedan to which the jury granted the First Award in the category of Classic Cars. “My car is a 1955 Ford Fairlane”, tells us the lady that has driven it for 34 years.

“As you can see it has the original engine and although logically it is not have the same painting, it does keep the two tones blue and white”, Cardoso Muñoz adds.

A very heterogeneous jury made up by people that in a way or another have contributed to the carnivals in Camagüey, advised by specialists of the Ministry of the Transport, based their criteria on diverse parameters to grant the prizes, for instance the classicism of the brands and models, the originality of their production and conservation.

Two wheels relics

Together with the “almendrones”, as the popular voice recently has called these old cars manufactured particularly before 1960; classic bikes, bici-taxis and horse drawn carriages paraded along the main streets of Camaguey such as Avenue of The Martyrs, República, “Ignacio Agramonte”, “Cisneros “, the Central Highway and others.

In the unusual parade, the curious and un-slept eyes of those who the previous night danced with the congas Los Comandos, Los Retoños or La Farola; could appreciate the multicoloured ride of old motorcycles, including the BSAs, Harley Davidson, Max, 125 cc CZ, or the Whizzers moped.

The jury recognized a classic bike from United Kingdom, a BSA made in 1956, owned by Oscar Arango who said that he bought it second hand to a resident of the municipality of Minas seven years ago.

The winning BSA, “still with the original painting,” as Arango assures, is characterized by its low fuel consumption, and although it is not a racing bike it has a sober displacement and roars elegantly, since it has a four times, 250 cc engine.

Although the young Yanco Pérez, also a 1953 BSA owner, knows that there is no so many vintage or classic motorcycles in the province, he would want to make a club of bike fonds.

Another youth man handles a 125 cc CZ (made in 1963 or1965). He is about to leave; his motorcycle didn’t win this time, but he is sure that he drives one of the noblest and most durable copies that the industry in Eastern Europe created in the 20th century.

Eliseo Rodríguez, an old “San Juan” festivity organizer and one of the main promoters of this event, also participates in this parade with his Whizzers, a moped that is able to reach speeds of 50 km/h.

This parade of old cars and bikes accompanied by the carriages and of the so-called bici-taxis, which is the most useful alternative urban transport mean in the City of the Tinajones, is a very smart initiative and it is a continuity of an old tradition in these low lands of Camagüey….

Botanists from Camagüey have developed and reproduced a new variety of orchid.  Fittingly, it is called Orchidaceae Encyclia × camagueyensis, common name, Amalia

Camagüey General Cemetery, the oldest graveyard still in operation in Cuba, was founded on May 3, 1814, in what was then the outskirt of Puerto Principe; and today is part of Camagüey city, National Monument and UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Architect Adela García Yero, who has a master degree in Conservation and Rehabilitation of the Built Heritage, has devoted most of her research career to study the history of Camagüey General Cemetery.

“The Cemetery does not enjoy the category of National Monument, and of course, this has a highly negative effect on its conservation. In the Cemetery-City confrontation, there are always other priorities and the graveyard is pushed into the background. However, it has many aesthetic values that even make it stand out from other patrimonial cemeteries in Cuba”.

Its origin is linked to the Parish of the Christ of the Good Travel, also known as the Church of Christ (La Iglesia del Cristo), built 1792, as a complementary parish to the Nuestra Señora de la Soledad church.

In the 18th century and even before, the churches and their surroundings were used as burial sites. That’s why in 1790, they began to take the first steps to build Puerto Principe Public Graveyard, but they failed in that venture.

In 1805 the matter is resumed by the City Hall that finally approves the project for a cemetery in the Village on September 1812, after long deadlock that lasted 24 years.

Municipal Solicitor José de Villavicencio Varona was the one who raised the proposal to the City Hall and the Council “for avoiding the stench and other inconveniences, as a result of the burials inside the churches.”

In Puerto Principe the burials took place beneath La Merced church, which still preserves its catacombs, in the Cathedral, in San Juan de Dios convent and in La Soledad and Santa Ana churches.

City Mayor Don Diego del Castillo wrote in 1803 that “…it was necessary that we find a solution to the dilemma over the construction of the cemetery, taking into account the cleanliness of the churches, the decency and fulfilment of the Royal Warrants”, and although it seems that the process continues, instead it reaches a dead point. It is in 1813 when its construction begins.

On May 3rd, 1814 the cemetery is blessed and inaugurated; legends began to be woven around it.

ITS BEGINNINGS

According to the legend, the first person buried was mayor Don Diego del Castillo on December 13, 1813 even before its inauguration. However, the first event on record was the burial of freed Black slave Sebastián de la Cruz on May 4th, 1814.

Camagüey General Cemetery was built in the backyard of the parish and the eldest graves correspond to the typology of vaults fixed to walls.

“Per ce, this is something unique. It is not the construction of a new cemetery, but the adaptation of a parish graveyard to ensure the necrology services in the city. And this explains how the Iglesia del Cristo is the prelude to the General Cemetery. And its own name breaks dependence on the Roman Catholic Church – comments MA García Yero.

“It is not a cemetery that responds to a Saint, but to a city. And this arose friction between the Church and City Council”

Camagüey General Cemetery treasures a rich patrimony where styles are mixed; featuring more than 10 000 funerary constructions and each one of them has a story to tell.

STORIES TO BE TOLD

The Panteón de los Caídos por la Defensa (mausoleum for those fallen on the battlefield).Architect Adela García tells that the cemetery, like the city of Camagüey, has been assimilating the different styles through the years. And even, when you are in town but running out of time, you are recommended to visit the cemetery because it also shows the constructive image of the city.

“The cemetery grows three times its size in the 19th century and, of course, in each expansion, the constructive style of the epoch reigns. Neoclassical architectural style sets the pediment, the columns and the pilasters as well as several levels in the construction. By the end of the 19th century and in the early 20 century, eclecticism leaves its imprint. Several chapels were built embellishing the so-called Angels Street; then Art Deco begins to break into the people’s preferences, becoming a very commercial style where geometricity and the use of granite, lamps and crucifixes rule. “

The chaos came after that: “carelessness has prevailed from the figurative and formal viewpoint. We have lacked the right people to design attractive and coherent proposals, also shortages of materials have caused the decline of a restrained style that should reign in a cemetery. The lack of room in a city that grows, imposes practical solutions, which seldom meet the aesthetically beautiful, though there are some exception like the Panteón de los Caídos por la Defensa (mausoleum for those fallen on the battlefield).

But the epitaphs of Camagüey General Cemetery also can tell their own stories. Some of them tell a legend, some are odd, some are patriotic, and some are funny.

The most famous epitaph in this cemetery belongs to Dolores Rondón, a woman whose life is surrounded by a centenarian legend.

“Dolores Rondon did here
reach the end of her career
come mortal, and ponder
on where lies true grandeur.
Pride and arrogance,
power and prominence,
All is bound to perish,
because only is immortal the wrong
That can be economized and the good that can be made.”

Religiosity and filial relations characterized the first epitaphs. So you can find in the vault of de El Lugareño the following script: “Like a sad and funeral prayer, blessed by the tears of my eyes, I offer this solitary tomb.”
There are other outstanding epitaphs with a patriotic character, like the one dedicated to Joaquín de Agüero y Agüero.

Ill-fated victim of a sincere love,
felt by mankind and by glory
Here lies leader Joaquín de Agüero
His life is engraved in the Cuban history,
His death is mourned by all Camagüey.

Tradition hasn’t vanished, there are inscriptions more recently written that also have left a mark in the history of Camagüey General Cemetery like the one dedicated to singer-songwriter Miguel Escalona: “We owe you a slice of life soak in alcohol”. Or the phrase that accompanies local baseball star Miguel Caldés: “The good ones never say good bye” and the epitaph to motorcycle rider José Luis Moreno, known as El Diablo Moreno: “Your life went by as speedily as your bike, and you gave it when you crossed the finish line of glory.”

ODD COMENTARY

The Masonic Lodge erected a pantheon to pay honor to Camaguey’s hero Ignacio Agramonte y LoynazCamagüey General Cemetery over the last 195 years has witnessed odd stories for which it stand out from other funerary locations in this island nation.

A freak occurrence happened in 1873 when they tried to burn the corpse of Ignacio Agramonte by one of the walls of the cemetery’s third segment. “This breaks with the hypothesis that the hero’s body was cremated at San Juan de Dios Square and his ashes were scattered to the wind”.

“The research reveals that the corpse is burnt on the third segment of the cemetery. A boy that had climbed to a tree could witness the flames arising from the body”.

“The corpse was not completely cremated, because it meant many hours and a huge amount of fuel. Besides, the Spanish soldiers were in a hurry. They didn’t want to leave any trace of the patriot. They then had his half-burned remains thrown into a common grave, of which there remains no trace.

On the site the partial incineration of Major General Ignacio Agramonte took place; in 1941 the Masonic Lodge erected a pantheon – a cenotaph in deed- to remember the eponymous hero of Camagüey, also known as the “la provincial Agramontina”.

Camagüey General Cemetery, the oldest graveyard still in operation in Cuba is an outdoor museum.
Monuments, statues and other outdoor art make this cemetery the most decorated site in town, with a peculiar iconography, closely linked to the rituals of the death and of the unknown. That’s why it is different to other museums that the mortals are used to.

Camagüey General Cemetery, as indissoluble part to history of the legendary village of Santa Maria de Puerto Principe, also needs to be safeguarded and protected in a city that is National Monument and recently proclaimed World Heritage Site.

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El Cementerio General de Camagüey, el más antiguo en funcionamiento en Cuba, fue fundado el 3 de mayo de 1814, en lo que entonces se consideraba la periferia de la Villa de Santa María del Puerto del Príncipe; y hoy forma parte de una ciudad, Monumento Nacional y Patrimonio Cultural de la Humanidad.

La Master en Conservación y Rehabilitación del Patrimonio Construido, Arquitecta Adela García Yero, ha dedicado parte de su obra a la investigación histórica del Cementerio General de Camagüey.

“Como caso particular, no posee declaratoria de Monumento Nacional, y eso, por supuesto, repercute negativamente en la conservación, pues en el enfrentamiento cementerio-ciudad, siempre hay otras prioridades que lo relegan a un segundo plano de un largo alcance; pero, valores tiene muchos, incluso algunos que lo distinguen entre el resto de los cementerios patrimoniales de Cuba”.

Su origen está muy ligado a la Parroquia del Cristo del Buen Viaje, aunque popularmente se le conoce sólo como la Iglesia del Cristo, erigida en el año de 1792, como auxiliar de la Parroquial Mayor de la Soledad.

En el siglo XVIII, y antes también, los enterramientos se realizaban en el interior de las iglesias o en lugares aledaños a esos templos; razón por la que en 1790, comienzan las gestiones para la construcción de un Cementerio Público en Puerto Príncipe; empeño que no se logra en esa época.

En 1805 el asunto es retomado, y llevado al Cabildo Capitular, que, finalmente el 15 de septiembre de 1812 define el proyecto del Cementerio de la Villa, luego de un dilatado proceso de aprobación y construcción que duró 24 años.

Las gestiones para la creación de la necrópolis se inician en 1790, cuando el Síndico Procurador General, José de Villavicencio Varona, eleva la solicitud al Ayuntamiento y al Cabildo “para evitar las pestes y otros inconvenientes que resultan de que se hagan enterramientos de los difuntos en las iglesias…”

En la Villa de Santa María del Puerto del Príncipe, los enterramientos se realizaban en la iglesia de La Merced, que aún conserva sus catacumbas, en la Parroquial Mayor, en el Convento de San Juan de Dios, en las iglesias de La Soledad y la Santa Ana, y en muchos otros lugares.

El 19 de abril de 1803 se retoman las gestiones, esta vez por parte del Alcalde ordinario Don Diego del Castillo: “ … es preciso activar los trabajos para la solución del camposanto de la ciudad, teniendo en cuenta la limpieza de las iglesias, y además, las normas de la decencia y el cumplimiento de las Reales Cédulas”, y aunque parece que avanzan los trámites, el proceso se detiene otra vez, hasta mayo de 1811, y dos años después se inicia la construcción.

Así fue bendecido y abierto al público el 3 de mayo de 1814; y desde entonces lo acompañan las leyendas.

De los inicios

Según la tradición, el primer enterramiento fue el del propio Alcalde Don Diego del Castillo, el 13 de diciembre de 1813, aún sin estar abierto; pero cuando comenzó a prestar servicios, el primer suceso que recuerda su historia fue el enterramiento del moreno libre Sebastián de la Cruz, el día 4 de mayo de 1814, en el que ofició como capellán Don Francisco de Zayas, perteneciente al hospital de San Juan de Dios.

El Cementerio General de Camagüey, surgió, prácticamente, en el patio de una iglesia, y las tumbas más antiguas, las del primer tramo, corresponden a la tipología de panteones adosados a paredes, lo mismo a las de la iglesia, como las que marcan el límite de los terrenos

“De por sí, ya esto es una particularidad, es decir, no es la construcción de un nuevo cementerio, sino la adecuación de un cementerio de parroquia para asumir la función de un cementerio de ciudad, y esto hace que tenga como singularidad que la iglesia sea la antesala del Cementerio General, y ese propio nombre, -comenta la Msc. García Yero- también rompe con la dependencia de la Iglesia Católica.

“No es un cementerio que responde a un santo patrón, sino al título de la ciudad; incluso, eso formó parte de los conflictos Iglesia-Ayuntamiento, hasta que se da un voto consultivo en el cual al Ayuntamiento le corresponde lo que es civil, y a la Iglesia lo que es del alma”.

El Cementerio General de Camagüey, atesora un rico patrimonio arquitectónico, que mezcla estilos y llega hasta la modernidad, reflejado en las más de 10 mil construcciones funerarias, y cada una guarda un recuerdo, tiene una historia que contar.

Historias para contar

La arquitecta Adela García, estudiosa de estos temas, refiere que “con el cementerio sucede lo que con la ciudad: va asimilando el desarrollo evolutivo de los estilos por épocas, e incluso, cuando se recomienda un paseo por una ciudad y no hay mucho tiempo, se visita el cementerio porque da también la imagen constructiva de la ciudad, y Camagüey no escapa a eso.”

“El Cementerio crece tres veces en el propio Siglo XIX, y por supuesto en cada una de las ampliaciones prima el gusto constructivo de la época: con el Neoclásico llegan los frontones, las columnas y las pilastras adosadas y varios niveles en las construcciones.

” A fines del Siglo XIX y principios del XX, el eclecticismo deja su impronta, y de ahí surgen la serie de capillas que adornan la llamada Calle de Los Ángeles; luego, el Art decó comienza a penetrar y se convierte en un estilo muy comercial con predominio de la geometricidad, y el uso del granito, el crucifijo y el empleo de lámparas.”

Después llega el caos: “ha habido un descuido desde el punto de vista formal figurativo en el planteamiento del monumento funerario. Ha faltado una mano que guíe los diseños y su aprobación, y también la carestía de materiales han provocado la merma del gusto sobrio que debe imperar en un cementerio. La carencia de espacio, en una ciudad que crece, por supuesto que impone soluciones prácticas, casi siempre alejadas de lo estético, aunque de ello se salvan honrosas excepciones como el Panteón de los Caídos por la Defensa.”

Pero el Cementerio General de Camagüey también puede contar su historia por los epitafios, algunos curiosos, otros de leyenda, singulares, de corte religioso, varios patrióticos, y hasta humorísticos.

Ocupa lugar destacado el epitafio de Dolores Rondón. (Foto: Miozotis fabelo Pinares).Ocupa lugar destacado el epitafio de Dolores Rondón, rodeado de la leyenda centenaria que marca las tradiciones de la comarca, y es el más popular y conocido:

Aquí Dolores Rondón
finalizó carrera,
ven mortal y considera
las grandezas cuáles son
el orgullo y presunción,
la opulencia y el poder,
todo llega a fenecer,
pues sólo se inmortaliza
el mal que se economiza,
y el bien que se puede hacer.

De los primeros años de historia del cementerio, son los epitafios caracterizados por el sentido religioso, y los que refieren las relaciones filiales. Así, puede leerse en la bóveda de El Lugareño: “Como una triste y funeral plegaria, bendita por el llanto de mis ojos, esta tumba le ofrezco, solitaria, ¡Hija del corazón!, ¡A tus despojos!”

Sobresalen otros epitafios de carácter patriótico, como el dedicado a Joaquín de Agüero y Agüero, con el tributo al héroe:

“Víctima infausta de un amor sincero,
Sentido por el hombre y por la gloria
Yace aquí el adalid Joaquín de Agüero.
Su vida guarda la cubana historia,
Su muerte llora el Camagüey entero.”

Más cercanos en el tiempo, también otros epitafios marcan la historia del Cementerio General de Camagüey, pues la tradición no desaparece. Así se cuentan, entre otros, las curiosas inscripciones sobre la tumba del trovador Miguel Escalona: “Te debemos un trozo de vida empapado en alcohol”. O la frase que acompaña los restos del pelotero Miguel Caldés: “Los buenos nunca dicen adiós”. Y el epitafio de José Luis Moreno, conocido como El Diablo Moreno, corredor de motos: “Tu vida transcurrió veloz como tu moto y la entregaste al traspasar la meta de la gloria.”

Cementerio singular

Por iniciativa de la Logia Masónica se erigió un Panteón a la manera de cenotafio para recordar la memoria de Ignacio Agramonte. (Foto: Miozotis Fabelo Pinares).La historia del Cementerio General de Camagüey registra singularidades que lo distinguen del resto de los sitios funerarios del país.

Un hecho insólito sucedió en 1873: el intento de quema, en uno de los muros del tercer tramo, del cadáver de Ignacio Agramonte: “Ese es un hecho único en Cuba y rompe la tradición hasta ahora aceptada de que su cuerpo fue incinerado en la Plaza de San Juan de Dios y sus cenizas esparcidas al viento.

“La investigación plantea que el cadáver se quema en un terreno correspondiente al recién inaugurado tercer tramo del Cementerio, lugar del que se levantan las llamas y son observadas por un niño, encaramado en un árbol.

“Cierta o no esta versión, el cadáver fue sólo chamusqueado, no pudo haber quema total, pues eso implica muchas horas, gran cantidad de combustible; y además, la urgencia y la premura de los españoles por no dejar rastros del patriota hacen que los restos a medio quemar se lancen a una fosa común, de la cual no se tiene evidencia alguna”.

En el sitio que se realizó la parcial incineración del cadáver de el Mayor Ignacio Agramonte y Loynaz se colocó, para guardar su memoria un Acta Capitular del Centro de Veteranos y del Ayuntamiento de Camagüey; y la Logia Masónica erige, en 1941, con todo el simbolismo posible, un Panteón a la manera de cenotafio, es decir, un lugar donde se recogen las cenizas, -que nunca estuvieron- y que por eso está vacío, para recordar la memoria de Ignacio Agramonte, el Héroe epónimo del Camagüey.

El Cementerio General de Camagüey, posee características y particularidades que lo distinguen del resto de los cementerios patrimoniales del país: es el más antiguo de Cuba en uso todavía; mantiene los servicios necrológicos; y está localizado en la principal vía de acceso a la ciudad: la Carretera Central, de interés nacional.

Es un museo a cielo abierto, dotado de un bagaje escultórico y monumental que hacen de él el espacio más decorado de la ciudad, con una iconografía peculiar, vinculada indisolublemente al ritual de la muerte y lo desconocido, y por eso, es diferente al resto de los museos tradicionales que los mortales conocen.

El Cementerio General de Camagüey, integrado a la historia de la legendaria Villa de Santa María del Puerto del Príncipe, también necesita de la salvaguarda y la protección, en una ciudad declarada Monumento Nacional y devenida Patrimonio Cultural de la Humanidad.

Magnificent and reddish the sun rose at their backs. The stars that had helped Captain Mariano Barberán to trace out the route to be followed by no less heroic Lieutenant Joaquín Collar were fading away. It was the dawn of June 10th, 1933.

The two pilots, who represented the corps of aviators of the then, Republic of Spain, were about to set, on board of the plane Cuatro Vientos, what was considered a feat of courage: the first nonstop flight Seville-Camagüey.

Having no precedent in history, Barberán and Collar’s flight covered a distance of over 4 500 miles crossing the southern Atlantic Ocean, just like Christopher Columbus and his intrepid sailors of La Pinta, La Niña and the Santa María did in 1492.

Cuba would be their main goal in America, then they would continue the expedition toward Mexico, where the brave airmen are going to die as a result of a combination of adverse factors that led to the fall of the Cuatro Vientos in the wild, and so the possible murder of the two, as historic researches indicate.

Yet, it is not the mystery involving this catastrophe what interests us in this brief article, but the meaning of Barberán and Collar trip for the development of the aviation and the communications, and mainly for the rapprochement it prompted between the peoples of Cuba and Spain united by blood, history and culture.

PREPARATIONS FOR THE TRIP

As described in the book Barberán and Collar: Legend and reality by Camagüeyan writer Franklin A. Picapiedra Montejo, and issued by the local publishing house Ácana; Spain worked hard to develop a technology in order to accomplish such an ambitious plan, making a nonstop flight from Spain to America and setting the record of the longest trip over the ocean.

Picapiedra asserts that the key factors for the success of that project, for many an unfeasible undertaking because of the limited technological level at that time, was the wonderful combination of the terrific genius and the mathematical accuracy of the Spaniards.

In the book, Picapiedra Montejo – an expert on the subject – describes each feature of Cuatro Vientos airplane, not only praising the technical modifications thanks to which the aircraft could fly for over 33 hours and 50 minutes across the Atlantic Ocean, but also some elements that he disapproves.

4:45 A.M. TABLADA AERODROME, SPAIN

The time of the great bound finally came. Once in Camagüey, Barberán said: “My mate Collar has shown a wonderful self-control and stamina, making in Tablada Aerodrome one of the most difficult takeoffs that I’ve ever seen in my career as a pilot.”

With a burden of 5 400 litters of gasoline and 220 litters of oil, to the maximum of its weight capacity, the aircraft took off.
Fifteen airplanes arrived from Madrid to escort Cuatro Vientos in its historic departure from Seville’s airfield.

DETAILS OF ITS ARRIVAL IN CAMAGÜEY

After leaving the Iberian Peninsula, the world lost contact with Barberán and Collar, since it was necessary to make Cuatro Vientos lighter, they decided not to carry radio transmitters.

But the doubt was cleared up at 2:20 p.m. (hour of Cuba) when the plane made its entry into the Island’s air space. It happened over the eastern city of Guantanamo; where the Iberian pilots did not decide to go down because of a local storm.

Like Camagüey, the cities of Guantanamo and Santa Clara had been chosen by the Spanish aviators as possible places to land.

Nevertheless, a Waco 101 belonging to the Cuban Army, crewed by Lieutenants José Marrero and Eduardo Tomeu, was waiting in the Camagüey airfield.

El Camagüeyano newspaper under the title An extraordinary feat narrates the details of the event that aroused among the locals noble expressions of joy, respect and hospitality toward the visitors, who were not only courageous, but also warm and kind.

“I think that I’m going to get married in Cuba – said Lieutenant Collar, 26 –the fame enjoyed by the Camagüeyan girls as beautiful maids is true.”

Their stay in Camagüey was brief but they fulfilled a packed agenda in town. In each place they visited here (General Hospital, Hotel Camagüey, CMJK radio station, El Camagüeyano newspaper), Barberán and Collar received nothing but signs of generosity, affection and love; in the same manner they were welcomed in Havana during the following days.

When Barberán was asked about the impressions he had regarding Camagüey, the Captain said: “The name of Camagüey has caused in us the most pleasing emotion of our lives.”

Those who have discovered Camaguey through tourist guides, maps or Internet, could think that the wide territory of this province is made only by large meadows, thousands of hectares sown with different crops, beautiful beaches bathed by the Atlantic Ocean, or simply an old inland city seasoned with tinajones and palm trees. But this Cuba’s eastern region shows other nuances.

Here, the visitor who wishes to see each detail of this “smooth land of herdsmen and hats”, as wrote Cuba’s National Poet Nicolas Guillén, can find the Ecological Reservation Limones-Tuabaquey (See video) in the Sierra de Cubitas, a spot listed in the National System of Protected Areas.

By the side of a kartst range of hills there is base from where a group of specialists and qualified personnel living nearby are creating conditions for the conservation and enjoyment of such a peculiar environment.

Jorge R. Aguilar Pérez, Director of the Reservation Limones-Tuabaquey. Camaguey, Cuba. Photo: Leandro Pérez.According to Jorge R. Aguilar Pérez, director of the reservation, the first handling actions began in 1998, chiefly focused to the ecological tourism, for which six paths were fitted out to teach visitors about the flora and fauna of that ecosystem.

For a long time before, Jorge says, this was the main road used between Camagüey and Sola, but in 1974 it disappeared when El Paso del Lesca highway was built, so the rock layer was removed and the vegetation grew again.

WORKING FOR THE BENEFIT OF NATURE

After some years of hard work and appropriate management, Limones-Tuabaquey has been able to recover 90 per cent of its damaged areas and nowadays the reservation counts with 600 species of plants, including 232 timber trees and 22 precious woods.

The conservation and protection projects have made possible to recover the parrot and the catey, two species that have almost disappeared from the ecological reservation and today slightly increase their populations.

In the same group are included species that had started to migrate to areas of better environmental conditions and others like the purple-tailed pigeon, which decided to settle down definitively in the site after finding a proper setting in Limones-Tuabaquey.

The Cuban trogon, the Cuban hutia, the Cuban tody, the Cuban boa and even the mancaperro (Giant Cuban millipede) are some of the vertebrates and invertebrates that dwell in the surroundings of the El Hoyo de Bonet and El Paso de los Paredones protected by some 20 park rangers.

While walking the path we perceive that under an apparent calm life emerges strongest within Limones-Tuabaquey, an astonishing site now rescued for the heritage of Camaguey and of the nation.

THE MAN’S HAND

Photo: Leandro PérezCuban State, through the Forest Development Fund, began to take part directly in the project in 2002 and since then a base has been built there for making better use of the reservation.

This also includes the construction of lodging cabins (a total of 15) to accommodate around 60 visitors, as part of the idea to bring people close to nature and teach them how to preserve the natural resources and protect the environment.

Investments foresee a restaurant, a convention centre, and an exhibition area or arboretum, so that sightseers can contemplate certain vegetable species instead of going to the restricted areas.

Limones-Tuabaquey already has a kind of hospital where an injured or ill animal find specialized attention.

According to Jorge R. Aguilar Pérez, once these plans are done, Limones-Tuabaquey will become the first protected area in Cuba to implement a self-management system.

What has been done so far pursues a fundamental aim: to preserve the biotic and abiotic elements present there, as well as the cultural and historical elements since four caves located in the reservation are candidates to be declared UNESCO World Heritage.

Likewise, another important issue is to attract and hire neighbours, because most of the aggressions come from the individuals who live nearby. So, two community projects are underway: AMANECER, dedicated to grown up people and ALAS LIBRES, with the participation of children. The ultimate aim of these two projects is to influence in the traditions of the dwellers so that they can coexist with the requirements for the conservation of Limones-Tuabaquey as a treasure of Camaguey and of Cuba.

Baseball or ballet: that is the question

By Gualveris Rosales Sánchez .

Baseball or ballet: that is the question Choosing between the popular bat-and-ball game and the elite theatrical art was the dilemma Rafael Saladrigas Ruíz, current maître and main regisseur of the Ballet of Camagüey, had to solve when he was just 11 years old.

His decision would determine his career and his life, and why not, it would leave a mark in the dance creation in Camagüey, Cuba.

In 1969, together with other kids of his neighbourhood La Caridad, his name appeared on the roster of Las Aguilas baseball team, that every weekend contended against Los Halcones, Los Tigres and Los Leones, in a tough student baseball league, sponsored by the CV Deportivo in his home town.

“There was a lot of passion for baseball in that time, and the CV Deportivo brought together all the sports areas of children and teenagers in the municipality,” remembers my interviewee.

By that time the restless boy attended elemental classes of ballet at the Marcelo Salado School, an institution that later would be the Vicentina de la Torre Art Academy.

“I went to the entrance examination of that school by chance”, says Saladrigas in the shade of an old almond tree, that abounds in the gardens of the venue of Cuba’s second classic ballet company.

“I was accompanying a little friend that wanted to enter the plastic arts course, when two girls came and led me to the audition. All of a sudden I was in front of the judges’ table. I passed the exam, so in that moment my professional life took its path.”

However, you continued playing with Las Águilas?

“Yes, till the moment I had to make up my mind”•

Being a working-class family child why did you choose the ballet?

“I felt attracted by the ballet because it was different, saw major success chances and a broader field to develop myself professionally. I saw even the possibility of being a teacher, a choreographer; that was what I thought then and that was what I chose”.

Saladrigas tells how, out of a group of 20 kids, he was the only one left by the end of the year. In spite of having an opportunity to continue his studies in Havana, he decided to stay in Camagüey. For his own luck the middle level of ballet was created here in 1972, four years later he finished the degree and began in the company.

For over 20 years his feet slid along the floor and his chest vibrated with emotion in each performance. His active career as a dancer coincided with the golden years of the company.

Ballet of Camaguey performing Giselle.He remembers the great productions, the mark left by maestro Frenando Alonso, who “opens so many doors for the Ballet of Camaguey”, the festivals in Havana, the company’s appearances at the Garcia Lorca Hall, its performances at the theatres Sauto, La Caridad, El Terry and the Principal. The tour around Europe, mainly the visits to Germany and the former Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia and the Soviet Union.

He also recalls the Choreographic Workshop that brought together the most outstanding figures of the Ballet of Camaguey then. By that time Saladrigas –aside from dancing as a soloist or as a part of the Corp de Ballet – he also gave lessons in two levels: elemental and middle.

Apart from teaching in Camagüey and in Santiago de Cuba, you also provide technical advisory services abroad.

“To comply with a collaboration agreement between Cuba and Guyana I travelled to that South American country in 1989 to give classes at the National School of Dance. That was a extraordinary experience, since their ethnic and cultural components and the conception of the dance are different from ours.

Later in 1990 I went as an advisor to the Ballet Municipal de Trujillo, in Peru. I also danced there. Finally I worked as a professor for the Ballet Clásico Moderno of Paraguay in 1999.”

Right now, Rafael Saladrigas Ruíz, 49, is also Senior Professor from the Highest Institute of Arts in town, a position he combines with his main task, stage director (regisseur) of the Ballet of the Ballet of Camaguey.

Second creative brain of the local ballet company, this good-humoured man is the one who coordinates the schedule, selects the repertoire and his criteria weigh a lot within the Artistic Council.

As a cultivated person, Saladrigas appreciates the lasting things in art, but as a simple mortal he enjoys the fleetingness of a strong and bitter cup of coffee, prepared by the next door neighbour and the exaltation that a homerun or a spectacular catch cause.

It is time to say good bye, classes begin and the teacher comes back with his students; but we agree on a new meeting. This year the institution founded by Vicentina de la Torre commemorates its 40th anniversary, so projects are many and time is gold for this company, that in spite of limitations accumulated by the Special Period, does great feats to maintain the artistic and technical level of the company applauded in Cuba and overseas.

Children playing, the smile of a grandfather, the joy of first love, the shade of the ceiba tree, the carob and the eucalyptus,  the first steps of the child and always the return — they invite us to the Casino Campestre, a treasure of Camagüey.

The main green space of the city, the park is a regular gathering-place for the locals, a living record of a city that takes delights in it,  a must-see for those visiting the City of Tinajones for the first time and those making a return visit to the homeland.

A little history and a gift for the Camagüeyanos

The Society Casino Campestre was formed in what was then the villa principeña in 1860.  Its organizers were looking for an appropriate place for  agricultural  and industrial expositions, were they could also hold dances for blacks and whites.

Thus the park came about. Linked to this, through the Society, were the national hero Salvador Cisneros Betancout, Tomás Betancout, author of the first known history of Puerto Príncipe, and other children of the illustrious hero.

The Casino Campestre de Camagüey is much more than an open space, full of trees and flowers.  There the doctor, Francisco Argilagos, began to vaccinate against smallpox; there, the chief mambí Augusto Arango Agüero died; and there,  baseball was first played in “tierra agramontina” at the end of the nineteenth century

After being closed during the Ten Years War and after being occupied by the Spanish military, the park became for a while a private reserve.  Only after they opened it up was it restored.  They made it a city park and built the gazebo (La Glorieta)

A jewel within the park

The Casino Campestre sits on the outskirst of the historic old downtown.  Located in the park’s center, simple, austere and solid, stands the gazebo, a sign of the greater vitality of the urban republican aesthetic.    In August 1901 the Camagüeyanos proposed construction of the gazebo, but it took seven years before they accepted the design of Alberto Casas Clopera.  It was inaugurated on July 19, 1908 with the performances of the bands “Libertad” and “Infantil”, which from then on regularly alternated their schedule with open-air concerts in the Parque Agramonte.   The Office of the History of the City in recognition of the preservation of the material and spiritual patrimony of Camagüey, guarantees the conservation of the architecture of this important urban element.

More on the Casino Campestre

Palm trees, Ceibas, Anacagüitas, Cedars and Casuarinas adorn the Casino, which spans an area of more than 130,000 square meters and is a place of open space, pure air and beauty for the 18,000 Camagüeyanos and visitors who visit each month.

After more than five years of work on restoration and rejuvenation in several areas, this park has in its 64 workers men and women who love nature and are faithful guardians of its treasures.  They have the status of “Colectivo Vanguardia Nacional”.

In the Casino Campestre, there is the statue of the Unknown Liberator that guards a sealed urn of the mortal remains of a mambí of our war of independence.  They say also that there was a mayor of Camagüey who when alive and in power, erected a bust of himself, which was conveniently made to disappear by his opponents during the hurricane of 1932.

A year later and at the side of the statue of Salvador Cisneros Betancourt, a group of students and workers founded the first group of the Young Communist League.  It was the scene of powerful struggles of the students against the tyranny of Fulgencio Batista.

The work to restore the Casino Campestre,  the largest park in urban Cuba and the pride and joy of the “agramontinos”, gave new life to its zoo.  There, you will find more than 237 animals of 65 species, in what is really another must-see destination under the protection of the shady groves next to the cooing of the birds and the friendly looks of those who tend it so that they can preserve it as the jewel of the City of the Tinajones (Raysa Mestril Gutierrez)

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Los juegos de la niñez, la sonrisa del abuelo, el primer amor, la sombra de la ceiba, de la algarroba, del eucalipto, los pasos iniciales del hijo y el regreso siempre, invitan al Casino Campestre, un tesoro de Camagüey.

Parque de permanente encuentro de los lugareños, es el principal pulmón verde de la ciudad; historia viva de un Camagüey que se regodea en ella y punto obligado para quienes visitan por primera vez la Ciudad de los Tinajones, o retornan al terruño.

UN POCO DE HISTORIA Y UN REGALO PARA LOS CAMAGÜEYANOS

La Sociedad Casino Campestre se creó en la entonces villa principeña, en 1860. Sus organizadores buscaban un lugar apropiado para exposiciones agropecuarias y de productos industriales y manufacturados, donde se celebraran, además, bailes para blancos y para negros.

Así surgió este parque. Vinculado a él mediante la Sociedad, estuvo el prócer independentista Salvador Cisneros Betancourt; Tomás Betancourt, autor de la primera historia conocida de Puerto Príncipe, y otros hijos ilustres del Legendario.

El Casino Campestre de Camagüey es mucho más que un espacio abierto, lleno de árboles y flores. Allí el médico Francisco Argilagos comenzó a vacunar contra la viruela, fue escenario de la muerte del jefe mambí Augusto Arango Agüero y lugar donde se jugó pelota por primera vez en tierra agramontina, a finales del siglo XIX.

Después de ser clausurado durante la Guerra de los Diez Años, y tras permanecer ocupado por militares españoles, el parque camagüeyano fue un coto cerrado que sólo tomó auge cuando eliminaron las cercas, lo urbanizaron y construyeron la glorieta.

UNA JOYA DENTRO DEL PARQUE

Sencilla, austera y sólida, ubicada en medio del Casino Campestre, la Glorieta fue signo de una mayor vitalidad en la estética urbana republicana a las afueras del antiguo centro histórico.

En Agosto de 190l los camagüeyanos propusieron la construcción de una glorieta en esta área de recreo; pero hasta 7 años después no quedó seleccionado el proyecto del albañil Alberto Casas Clopera.

Fue inaugurada el l9 de Julio de 1908, en acto amenizado por las bandas de música “Libertad” e “Infantil”, que desde entonces alternaron sus funciones con las retretas ofrecidas en el Parque Agramonte.

La Oficina del Historiador de la Ciudad, en aras de salvaguardar el patrimonio material y espiritual de Camagüey, garantiza la conservación arquitectónica de este importante elemento urbano.

MÁS DEL CASINO CAMPESTRE

Palmas, Ceibas, Anacagüitas, Cedros y Casuarinas adornan el Casino, que cuenta con un área superior a los 130 000 metros cuadrados y es lugar de esparcimiento, aire puro y belleza para los l8 000 camagüeyanos y forasteros que mensualmente lo visitan.

Tras más de cinco años de un trabajo de recuperación y remozamiento en varias de sus áreas, este parque tiene en sus 64 trabajadores a hombres y mujeres amantes de la naturaleza, fieles guardianes de sus tesoros y poseedores de la condición de “Colectivo Vanguardia Nacional”.

En el Casino Campestre existe la estatua del Libertador desconocido, que guarda en urna sellada los restos mortales de un mambí de nuestra guerra independentista.

Cuentan también que existió un alcalde de Camagüey que, en vida y en el poder, erigió un busto suyo, oportunamente desaparecido por sus opositores durante el ciclón de 1932.

Un año después y al lado de la estatua de Salvador Cisneros Betancourt, un grupo de estudiantes y trabajadores fundó la primera célula de la Liga Juvenil Comunista. Allí también se escenificaron fuertes luchas estudiantiles contra la tiranía de Fulgencio Batista.

El trabajo de reanimación del Casino Campestre, orgullo e identidad de los agramontinos y el mayor parque en área urbana de Cuba, dio vida nuevamente a su zoológico.

Allí habitan actualmente más de 273 animales de 65 especies, sitio que constituye otro punto focal de obligada visita a la protectora sombra de su floresta, junto al arrullo de los pájaros y la mirada amiga y vigilante de quienes lo cuidan, para que se mantenga como una joya de la Ciudad de los Tinajones. ( Raysa Mestril Gutierrez)

“Just say no,” is the prescription offered by moralists
“Don’t smoke,” that’s good advice, except . . .
When one encounters the essence of Cuba, in the rolled product of Cuba’s land
When one experiences the spiritual uplifting that comes with a deep draw
When one sets aside standard proscriptions and considers another path to nirvana
When one sits backs, lights up, accepts, as intimately as a lover, the engagement
When one infers from the burning leaf messages from the awesome

Then one receives and appreciates the fruit of the field
The blossom of plants destined by the gods to offer
The fullness of the high experienced by espirito santo
Shared, but thoughtfully, with seekers for higher truths

That’s when one slowly draws from the leaf its message
Receives from the burnt sacrifice what only a fine Cuban cigar can give

It is, in part, the touch of a fine product, craftfully rolled
The essence of fine tobacco harvested at just the exact time
The tactile experience of a work of art and craft
The subtle sound of tobacco whose time has arrived
The taste of mellow product—precisely moist and ready

You may need a bit of courage to rise above judgments
You’ll need determination to light up knowing that smoking “may be harmful . . .”
You’ll want a dash of hedonism to face adverse comment
But on discovering the essence of a fine Cuban cigar you will

Full of appreciation for the better things life offers
Aware of the spiritual dimensions of a free spirit
Open to the symphony of ecstasy
Launched, as a skydiver, into the excitement of a free fall
Buoyed upward by a timely parachute providing a gentle decent

Rise to higher highs
Experience a larger universe
Touch the edge of the heavens
Receive the confirmation that life is, indeed, good
And discover the essence of an enlightened life

You’ll be ready to slay dragons
Inspired to write poetry or
Prepared simply to cope with life’s stresses

You’ll appreciate this gift of Cuba and as you share, others will be able to
Reach for the best life can provide

or so it seems to me: jim sykes

 Travel Prep
The total cost of the trip we paid to Marazul, the travel agent was around $1,150. We originally authorized Marazul to charge up to $1,000 on our credit card for each person for the trip. We had to give 2 additional authorizations as charges were added that exceeded the $1,000.

• A plane ticket for the charter flight to Camaguey.
• A voucher for the hotel.
• A Cuban visa. The visa is a small piece of paper with a perforation across the middle. The immigration official tore it in half along the perforation, keeping half and returning half. The half of the visa that was returned had to be presented to Cuban officials when leaving the country.
• A letter from the Wisconsin Medical Project describing the license.
• A membership card for the Wisconsin Medical Project.

Luggage
Each person was assigned 2 large roller suitcases that were provided by the Wisconsin Medical Project. One suitcase was the “donation” bag and the second was the “personal” bag. The donation bag was entirely filled with medical equipment and supplies that went to the hospitals or clinics in Camaguey. The personal bag was partially filled with non-medical equipment and supplies that go to places/organizations like Project Hope and the school for the deaf. The remainder of the space in the personal bag was used for our personal items.

• Q: How long I was going to stay? A: 7 Days
• Q: Where I was going to stay? A: Hotel Puerto Principe.
• Q: What I was doing there? A: A Humanitarian trip bringing medical donations. (This was difficult to convey. The official had a hard time understanding this).
• Q: What was my profession? A: I work with computers.
• They also asked a lot of questions about Peru. My passport was recently renewed and the only stamp on my passport was from Peru immigration, so I don’t know what that was about.

The immigration agent took half my visa, stamped the other half, and did not stamp my passport.

We adopted a tactic for the return trip where all the WMP travelers lined up one after another for the same immigration official. After the first couple WMP travelers, the immigration official rubber-stamped the rest.