By Niall O'Dowd
April 10 (irishcentral.com) - The Obama Administration has refused to allow Irish American traditional musicians (and Irish musicians resident in the US) to participate in the Second Annual Celtic Festival in Cuba, April 15-26.

The festival is being organized by Kilian Kennedy of Ireland who discovered during a vacation in Cuba a lively Celtic tradition sustained by immigrants and descendants from Gaelic provinces of northern Spain. Last year, he arranged for musicians from Ireland and Canada to come to Cuba for a week of performances, workshops and seisiuns based in the lovingly restored Old Havana. This year's festival is receiving support from Culture Ireland as well as Havana's Office of the Historian, Dr. Eusebeo Leal. Read more.

By Dawn Gable
Havana, April 8 (Havanatimes.org) — Last week hundreds of scholars gathered at the City University of New York’s Graduate Center  to share their Cuba related research and projects;  to discuss the island’s current affairs, history and future; and to enjoy each other’s anecdotes about their travels to the country where most US citizens are still forbidden to go.

The more than 50 panels covered a wide range of topics such as literature, biotechnology, race and gender, the colonial period, José Martí, social theory, religion, the diaspora, and tourism. To browse through or read the more than 200 papers presented at the Cuba Futures event, check the Bildner Center website from time to time where they will all be published eventually. The following is just a peek at some of the event highlights which addressed US-Cuba relations, the Cuban economy, humanitarian assistance, and digital media and included intimate discussions with legends of Cuban literature and Latin Jazz. Read more.

"An orderly, market-oriented economic reform process is decidedly in the best interests of Cuba, the United States and the region," the organization said the paper "Supporting Small Business in Cuba: Recommendations for Private and Public Sector Leaders," produced in cooperation with the Americas Society/Council of the Americas and the Center for Financial Inclusion at ACCION International.
Read more.

HAVANA, April 11 (Xinhua) - Cuba registered the arrival of one million tourists in the first quarter of 2011, the Ministry of Tourism reported Monday.

The figure represents an increase of 10.4 percent compared with the same period in 2010.

The ministry said in a statement the rise was attributed to more tourists from Canada, Russia, Argentina, Britain, Chile, Poland, Venezuela and Belgium.

The ministry also said the revival of cruise operations since last November had provided an important boost to the tourism industry. The cruise industry resumed after a three-year standstill caused by ongoing travel restrictions by the United States. Read more.

By Ronnie Crocker
Houston, April 10 (Houston Chronicle) --Houston Airport System officials are evaluating the market potential for charter flights to Cuba after Bush Intercontinental Airport was named one of 10 U.S. airports that can begin offering such flights in limited situations.

"We're going to do everything we can to position Houston as a gateway to Cuba," said Genaro Peña, air service development director for the airportz system.

Peña said the system has been in "very preliminary" discussions with several, mostly Florida-based operators already authorized for such flights. He said no individuals or groups have inquired about arranging trips yet. Read more.

April 12, (Startelegram.com) - Weekly charter flights to Cuba will begin on August 27 out of Dallas/Fort-Worth Airport now that the airport is on the government’s list of approved airports to offer charter service to the island nation.

Airport staff told board members at the its monthly meeting on Thursday that Miami-based ABC Charters will operate its service out of D/FW. Charter operators are permitted to sell seats only to those eligible to travel to Cuba under government regulations which includes Cuban-Americans and their families, educators and religious groups. Read more.

By Shelagh McNally
April 10 (CanWest News Service) -- When you live in a cold country, it’s good to have some southern friends. In the 1800s, we traded our cod for Cuban rum; today we trade tourist dollars for the country’s sun. Last year just over 800,000 Canadians visited; we represent 36 per cent of all foreign visitors to Cuba, and many of us are repeat customers who can’t get enough of the Cuban experience. Read more.

From March to June, fourteen New York institutions convene to celebrate the rich artistic vitality of Cuba, presenting ¡Si Cuba!, a festival showcasing the diversity of Cuban culture from the traditional to the modern. Join us for screenings of award-winning films; lively concerts of son, rumba, hip-hop, and more by musical legends and rising stars; intimate discussions with Cuban writers, musicians, and thinkers; dance performances, from the classical to contemporary; compelling visual art exhibitions; and more as we discover the creative spirit of Cuba in forms both old and new. Read more.

New York, April 7(artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com) – Thanks to the Si Cuba! Festival, music and dance from the island are everywhere in New York this spring, and though American Ballet Theater isn’t on the festival program, it feels as if the company were doing its part to add to the mix. Its annual spring gala, set for May 16, will feature a tribute to Jose Manuel Carreño, the retiring principal dancer who was born in Cuba, and a one-night-only performance of the Cuban choreographer Jorge Garcia’s “Majisimo.” Cuban-born dancers will be featured in the work, including Xiomara Reyes of Ballet Theater and the sisters Lorena Feijoo (San Francisco Ballet) and Lorna Feijoo (Boston Ballet). Read more.

From Progreso Weekly
By Albor Ruiz
New York, April 10 (NY Daily News)-- 'I left Cuba, but Cuba never left me."

That's how Candi Sosa expressed the longing she has felt for 40 years for the country where she was born, and from which she - and thousands of Cuban children - was torn when she was 10.

Her dramatic story is reflected in a gripping documentary, "Operation Peter Pan: Flying Back to Cuba," by award-winning director Estela Bravo, a native New Yorker who lives in Cuba. Read more.

By Irina Echarry
Havana, April 10 (havanatimes.org) --Have you ever heard of Irish baroque mixed with traditional Cuban music?  Can you imagine “sucu sucu” (originating from Cuba’s Isla de la Juventud) fused with “changui,” from the island’s east?

Rachid Lopez directs a trio that offers these pleasures.  Wherever the group Trovarroco is presented, it’s well received by critics and the public alike, and not only for their modesty and friendliness, but also for their musical search and the aim of using their instruments to push themselves to the heights of expressiveness. Read more.

By Prince George Free Press
Havana, April 8 (Cubaheadlines.com) --Cuba will be represented at the World Baseball Challenge, presented by the Toronto Blue Jays and the City of Prince George, slated for July.

The decision was received in writing on Tuesday and immediately raises the level of a tournament that already boasts participation by the Beijing Tigers and the Bahamas. More teams will be announced in the coming weeks. Cuba is ranked No. 1 in the International Baseball Federation rankings, one spot ahead of the U.S. Read more.