Cuba The Land of Miracles

*The definitive book on modern Cuba. For a growing number of British holidaymakers, Cuba is a Caribbean paradise, but it is also a land of cutbacks and economic instability. Stephen Smith comes to live on the island, and his search for the real Cuba inevitably becomes a search for Fidel Castro too. Before meeting his quarry, Smith travels extensively through the 'land of miracles' in an old American automobile. His highly-personalised account features a bloody initiation into a voodoo-like cult, dining on giant rat, and checking into the Love Hotel. And he goes on manoeuvres in the Everglades with armed, but not especially competent, Cuban exiles dreaming of a second Bay of Pigs. With disarming wit and considerable insight, Stephen Smith investigates a country where communism and voodoo coexist, and where the influence of its leader of forty years continues to throw a long shadow.

For a growing number of British holidaymakers, Cuba is a Caribbean paradise, but it is also a land of cutbacks and economic instability. Author Smith went to live on the island, his search for the real Cuba becoming, inevitably, a search for Fidel Castro. Before meeting his quarry, Smith travelled extensively through the "land of miracles" in an old American car. His account features a bloody initiation into a voodoo-like cult, dining on giant rat, and checking into the Love Hotel. He also describes going on manoeuvres in the Everglades with armed, but not especially competent, Cuban exiles dreaming of a second Bay of Pigs. He investigates a country where communism and voodoo co-exist, and where the influence of its leader of 40 years continues to throw a long shadow.