European tourists pour into Cuba despite reports on Castro

Patrick stepped onto a high-speed train in Brussels last week and in 75 minutes he arrived at the Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris, where he boarded a flight to Havana.

Patrick went to Cuba to enjoy the sunshine and his favorite sport, water skiing, at a Caribbean beach because a mild winter in Europe had spoiled his original plan of skiing in Switzerland.

"I hate the weather in Belgium and I want sunshine," said Patrick, who declined to give his full name.

Like Patrick, hundreds and thousands of European tourists boarded flights to Havana last week amid heated speculation on the health of Cuban leader Fidel Castro.

Last Tuesday, Spanish newspaper El Daris quoted two doctors from the Gregorio Maranon hospital in Madrid as saying that Castro was in "very grave" condition after three failed operations and complications from an intestinal infection. The report ignited world-wide sensation.

A Cuban diplomat in Madrid later rejected the newspaper's report as "an invented story."

European tourists, however, turned a deaf ear to the debate on Castro's health condition and the political changes his death will bring. They continue to fill the daily flight from Paris to Havana, their enthusiasm for Caribbean sunshine unabated.

Knud E. Noerr, a police officer from Denmark, came all the way from Copenhagen to board the flight last Saturday with his wife.

"This is the first time I go to Cuba, I'm looking forward to the sunshine there," Noerr told Xinhua.

Noerr was not ignorant of the reporting on Castro's illness.

"I heard news about Castro. Castro is an iron man just like late Yugoslav leader Tito, but I don't think Cuba would be in turmoil if he passes away one day," he said.

For most Europeans, especially those live in the central and northern parts of Europe, a cloudy and rainy winter has dampened their mood and enjoying sunshine in Spain, Italy, the Caribbean and Southeast Asia is a popular option for their Christmas and winter holidays.

"Just like China, Cuba has become a hot destination for us," said Noerr.

With abundant sunshine, broad beaches and unpolluted sea and atmosphere, Cuba has increasingly become a popular destination for tourists from across the globe.

Statistics show that Cuba attracted around 2.3 million foreign tourists, mainly from Europe and Canada, in 2006, making it the second most popular tourist destination in the Caribbean region.

Currently the United States embargo against Cuba prohibits tourism and flights to the country. Observers believe that if the embargo is lifted one day, Cuba would become the number one tourism destination in the Caribbean region.

Florida, the closest of the United States, just 90 miles away from Cuba, has felt the pressure. The tourism bureau of Florida has reportedly warned of competition from Cuba. More and more Americans are eager to see Cuba but are turned away merely because of the embargo.

European tourists dominate the President Hotel in Havana and French, Spanish and Italian is heard in the elevators and lobbies.

During the day, they head for tourism hot spots like the Revolution Square, the Hemmingway Museum and the Caribbean beaches. At night, they dance to Cuban music. Castro's health is a faraway story.

It is not just the tourists who are ignoring Castro's condition. On Monday, Cuba's official newspaper Gramma carried a three-page story recalling Castro's historical visit to Venezuela in 1959 but did not mention the leader's current health.

And the lives of ordinary Cubans go on. Last weekend, several small concerts and football matches were staged along a road near Havana Bay.

Source: Xinhua