The Cruising Guide to Cuba

Rating:
Summary: The best book on Cuba by land or by sea.
Review: The "Cruising Guide To Cuba" covers in great detail in a first person narrative the entire coast and all of the coastal cities, ports, and harbors, i.e., about ninety percent of what is worth seeing in Cuba. Written as a first person memoir, the book is extremely readable as a novel, with local customs and situations described extensively to place the reader in Cuba, at the docks, talking with the friendly Customs guards and mechanics. Having been to Havana many times, I find the character of the country better captured in this book than in any travel guide or any other book about Cuba, including "Our Man in Havana". With humor, fairness, and keen insight into the truly comfortable Latin American way of doing things such as living intelligently with spontaneity and vitality, Charles goes farther than anyone to rectify the embedded Yanqui mistrust of Cuba by describing actual experiences which let the reader know that the embargo against that counrty has resulted in a great loss to our people: knowledge and understanding of one of the most beautiful places, and most enlivening cultures on earth. This seems to be one of those classics like "Zen and The Art of Motorcycle Maintenance" which some readers will dismiss as too narrow for their general interests. This book is as much about boats and cruising as that classic was about machinery: it is in there, but there is a wonderful, on-going essay about cultures, philosophy, and, without asking it directly, the one big question: who has lost the most in the ridiculous campaign of hatred against this proud, historically magnificent country, us or them? There are other cruising guides to Cuba which are dry and obviously format and budget driven. There are similar travel guides by the usual publishers for inland excursions. "The Cruising Guide To Cuba" stands out because it is obviously a labor of love, written by a man and his mate who have spent years in research and preparation; some seven months alone for the second edition just to circumnavigate the island one more time. Other authors write of Cuba as they would any other assignment, with predictable and often useful factual results, as if they are writing about a beautiful actress they saw on stage and later interviewed. This book goes far beyond the quick glance infatuation, as if the author went to the beautiful woman's house and lived with her intimately and came away with enduring respect and admiration. A sage exile architect I know listened to my account of feeling miserable for not having been to Havana in over a year. "Yes," he said, "it started as lust, but then it turned to sincere love, and you cannot forget her, can you? None of us can." Forget the leg shows and cigars; Cuba without those pop buzz topics is a direct shock to the heart, it will leave you wondering why we remain so poorly informed about one of the most relaxing and desirable places on earth. Charles' book brings that message across, with respect and admiration for what is actually there and what it is like to be there. In the same way that "The Old Man and The Sea" was not necessarily about fishing, this cruising guide is not necessarily just about boats and charts, although as just that, it is worth the price.