Another shred of progress has been bestowed upon the residents of Havana. It is not so large in the grand scheme of things, but it does make day-to-day life just a tad bit easier. The very first bulk goods store has opened in Cuba. This means Cubans can buy items in larger amounts (think Costco but with only 3 aisles), which is heavenly because the usual task of buying simple things at your local bodega can drive you to madness due to random episodes of missing items — i.e. lack of toilet paper, lack of olive oil, lack of napkins, etc. In Cuba, there is an unspoken rule when visiting your corner store — IF YOU SEE IT, BUY ALL OF THEM. It’s very possible that when you need butter, none of your local markets carry it, so you will go a month or two without butter. Thus, when you see butter, you buy 10 packs and freeze the rest. This squirrely behavior usually empties local shelves the second an item comes in stock.

The name of this experimental shop is called Zona+ which is located in Miramar, a neighborhood with good families and sometimes elegant homes. The shop has constant traffic of buyers since it opened 2 months ago. One of the main customers are independent business owners, those who own restaurants in their homes (paladars) and hotels in their home (casa particulares) who are jumping for joy that now they now get to buy goods in massive amounts at one place.

Upon walking into the store, I looked up the aisles with a silly grin on my face. No more scrounging for toilet paper rolls one by one. I quickly ran to the isle and picked up not one, but two 10-packs like a giddy kid. The quality of the tissue is excellent too (compared to the low grade stuff found in corner stores).

Another item I noticed flying from the shelves was beer. Earlier in the year, Cuba had announced a shortage of beer due to the massive influx of tourists. The State announced it was creating an extra brewery plant to create more Bucanero and Cristal (the 2 national beer brands). Well, it seems this vice can be satiated now by visiting Zona+ and picking up cases for the first time. Of course this stock runs out fast too, but that doesn’t keep private business owners from flocking in to get as many cases as possible. With the limited size of the store, the offerings could be bigger, but the word from above is that if all goes well, the State plans to roll out more Zona+ stores across the country. It is a nod to the business owners who need more goods at better prices. Although a few bulk items are sold at better prices, overall the shop does not offer wholesale (something that is in very high demand with the new private sector). So in reality, it’s not really the Costco of Cuba, because it is not truly wholesale.

My only creative note with the whole operation is the illegible logo. Driving past it, the letters appear more like “Jova+” than “Zona+”. Beggars can’t be choosers, and nobody is complaining. Business is brisk. And the best Cuban marketing is “word of mouth” anyways, and it’s spreading fast. Crossing fingers that the notion of “wholesale” becomes a reality soon for those trying to build their business. Step by step. Inch by inch. This is how we’re all living in Cuba.

(Photos: Sourced CCTV, by Michael Voss)

“With Cult Hero, I wanted to draw attention to the saturation that causes the image of Martí to be repeated everywhere. I do not think we need it in every workplace, in every block for the need to remember. I do not need to see the bust everywhere to think about it; and seeing it doesn’t makes me a better human being, because for me this belongs internally.”— Ernesto Sanchez, Director of Cult Hero

The new documentary, which won an Award at Cuba’s Muestra Joven Film Festival is summarized as this: “The tradition in Cuba is to pay homage to José Martí with busts and statues dating from the early twentieth century. Today many of his busts are produced in plastic through a complex manufacturing process. This initiative is part of the effort to keep his legacy and thoughts alive, but beyond achieving the objective, this action inserts Marti into a society that sees it as something so routine that it becomes an invisible object.”

This cerebral doc touches upon the wildly complex conversation about ideology and youth today, discussed through the beautiful vehicle of Marti busts. Keep your eye on filmmaker Ernesto Sanchez, a strong new voice in Cuban cinema. Trailer below:

In honor of this mornings epic Flight 387 Jetblue, from Ft Lauderdale (Florida) to Santa Clara (Cuba)… Kudos to the first commercial flight in over 50 years! Here’s a cheat sheet of upcoming flight routes:

Flights to Cuba from the U.S.

JetBlue – All flights originate in Fort Lauderdale (FLL)

• Beginning Aug. 31: Three weekly flights from Fort Lauderdale to Santa Clara
• Oct. 1: One daily flight from Fort Lauderdale to Santa Clara
• Nov. 3: One daily flight from Fort Lauderdale to Camagüey
• Nov. 10: One daily flight from Fort Lauderdale to Holguín

American Airlines
 – All flights originate in Miami (MIA)

• Sept. 7: One daily flight to Holguín and Cienfuegos
• Sept. 9: One daily flight to Camaguey and Santa Clara
• Sept. 11: One daily flight to Varadero

Frontier Airlines
• Oct. 27: Daily flights between Chicago O’Hare and Santiago de Cuba
• Dec. 15: Four weekly flights between Philadelphia and Camaguey
• Dec. 15: Three weekly flights between Philadelphia and Santa Clara
• Jan. 7: One weekly flight each from Chicago O’Hare and Philadelphia to Varadero.

Silver Airways – 
All flights originate in Fort Lauderdale (FLL)
• Sept. 1: Daily flight to Santa Clara
• Oct. 13: Five weekly flights to Camagüey
• Oct. 21: Two weekly flights to Cienfuegos
• Oct. 27: Daily flight to Holguín
• Nov. 3: Daily flight to Santiago de Cuba
• Nov. 17: Three weekly flights to Cayo Coco
• Dec. 2: Four weekly flights to Varadero
• Dec. 8: One weekly flight to Cayo Largo del Sur
• Dec. 16: Three weekly flights to Manzanillo

Southwest Airlines – 
All flights originate in Fort Lauderdale (FLL) and Tampa (TPA)
• TBD: Two daily flights to Varadero
• TBD: One daily flight to Santa Clara

Sun Country Airlines
 – All flights originate in Minneapolis (MSP)
• TBD: One weekly flight to Varadero
• TBD: One weekly flight to Santa Clara

(Source: Travel&Leisure)

Rumour mill says, MasterCard is now allowed in Cuba? It seems lots of American friends keep telling me MasterCard can be used in Cuba now. This is partly correct, and partly incorrect. Here is the real deal. Are you willing to change Banks? For those that remember, last year, a Florida-based bank named Stonegate rose to the occasion of saving and handling all domestic banking transactions for the Cuban Embassy in the States (after M&T bank dropped out of that role). This is the first US Bank to accept a relationship with Cuba’s Banco International de Commercio aka BISCA, since the 1960 embargo (as well as Banco Popular from Puerto Rico). Reported June 27th, Cuban ATM’s will now accept MasterCard cash advances, including those from Stonegate Bank. Irma Margarita, VP of Cuban Central Bank (BCC), confirmed MC is already being used at Cuban points of Sale. This must mean mostly at State Hotels and State restaurants. The Cuban Bank also admitted that the service is only offered in the Capital of Havana, but will be expanded t the whole island in the future. Irma confirmed her desire to expand to more US Bank-issued Credit cards to be authorized for use in Cuba.

From my experience, it’s possible to travel a whole week in Cuba without entering State businesses. If you’re the type to frequent only casa particulars (home B&B’s) and paladars (Home restaurants), and use taxis, etc, then these sellers only accept Cash. That means, if you are an American, don’t get to comfortable in your plastic. Continue bringing all cash as usual until this makes more sense. The new rules can perhaps benefit only those who visit Cuba frequently for corporate travel. A big plus is that the Cuban government plans to waive the 10% penalty exchange on US dollars if you use the Stonegate Card. Stonegate is creating a Limited Edition MasterCard, issuing only 1,000 cards at first, with Cuban painter Michel Mirabal’s art 96 artist which Usher recently visited in Havana).

US Embassy, Havana (June 2016)
Photo: By recent visitor, Futura2000

Check out the new Sheraton Havana, located in the Miramar district (on Fifth Ave, between 76th and 80th). Reuters reports a fresh new sign posted on the wall — “Four Points by Sheraton”. This will make Sheraton is the first hotel in Cuba to operate under a US brand since the 1959 revolution (according to Cuba Journal). The area is chic, mostly residential homes with several world embassies. Room listings start at $249, just to further separate the “have” and “have-nots” on the island (just to make matters more confusing in this 2 tier economy). However more tourism means more money trickling into the local economy, including the new cuenta-propistas (Cuba’s private sector, and sort of their new middle class).

Time will tell how all these forces will converge to help Cuba. Starwood is the first US company to commit major dough to Cuba’s tourism sector. It’s important to know that all these deals are joint ventures with the Cuban state, which means it is a delicate dance in business control. The second Sheraton deal, announced last month, is the takeover of Hotel Ingalettera (much more centric to foreigners in the Habana Vieja area). Hotel Inglaterra will fall under Starwoods “Luxury Collection” end of this year. For now, the existing Miramar Sheraton will not close for renovations, which will take several months. Business is open as usual. Yesterday, some painters were spotted painting the lobby walls. Stay tuned.