[imcarthur]

Let's keep this one out of Parf, OK Island? You already have a thread there to crap on.

The ROW have been long term investors. A lot of resorts are jointly owned by Spanish firms. I know that it is hard to fathom but in Cuba you can't use your debit card & VISA, MC & Amex are useless. The almighty US dollar is just green paper & not accepted. Canadian or Euro only. You can't even buy a can of Coke. Gas (from Venezuela) is limited & it is common for stations to be out of 'tourist' gas (local gas is mixed with diesel). Foodstuffs come from Europe or South America. Toyota, Suzuki & other Asian car makers are visible on the roads mixed with ancient trucks & old junky 50s iron.

When/if US investment arrives it will be preceded by a literal invasion of lawyers who will try to press the claims of the expats in Miami. But do any of us really give a crap that so & so used to own a nightclub in Havana 50 years ago & wants his money? They can go in the same bin that holds the British claims from India or the Palestinian claims from Israel etc. It's time to move on. The Bacardi family did.

As for the population, they have excellent schooling & great medical care & very little else. They will have their own expectations & that is what will ultimately result in real change.

Ian