UPDATE, March 7, 2015
Our trip is filling up very quickly, and there is talk of Tim and Dede doing another one in March, 2016, so don’t worry!
The trip will be led by Tim Weed, an author and widely traveled National Geographic featured expert who has made countless extended trips to Cuba since the late ’90s. Tim is a published novelist and a fluent Spanish-speaker with a deep and extensive network of contacts within Cuba’s arts, literary, and educational communities. The trip will be co-hosted by Dede Cummings, a writer/publisher, who also has agent experience, and a domain-changing editor who has traveled the globe.
Cuban poet, Dulce María Loynaz, wrote:
“Cuando vayamos al mar yo te diré mi secreto.
When we go to the sea, I will tell you my secret.”
On this trip, we will have a chance to absorb a culture on an island that is rich in history and has had its culture preserved, due in part to the isolation as a Communist state in this hemisphere. This is a unique opportunity to join a small group of easygoing and open-minded travelers exploring a rapidly changing country that has been inaccessible to most U.S. citizens for over half a century in ways not available to mainstream tourists.
Itinerary
Our itinerary includes Havana and several locations in the island’s interior. Each day there will be one or more meetings with Cubans: writers, artists, academics, musicians, dancers, foundation officials, craftsmen, and entrepreneurs. Using Tim’s connections, we will have the opportunity go in-depth on such topics as Cuban literature, Cuban art history, the history of the Cuban Revolution, Santería, Hemingway in Cuba, US-Cuba relations, and new directions in Cuba’s vibrant contemporary arts and cultural scenes. We will visit an urban organic farm, the Caribbean’s largest colonial fortress, several World Heritage Sites, legendary Finca Vigía, where Ernest Hemingway lived and wrote for more than two decades, and the other important Hemingway sites in and near Havana, including the Hotel Ambos Mundos, where he wrote much of For Whom the Bell Tolls, the bars where he went for his various favorite cocktails, and the restaurant that became the setting for The Old Man and the Sea.
Time . . .
There will be plenty of down time as well—time for writing, sketching, and reflection. Because the group is limited in size, there will be a great deal of flexibility built in to take advantage of the interests of the people in the group, and enough spontaneity to seize upon anything interesting that happens to come up. For those interested in special areas like medicine (we have two doctors already signed up), Tim can arrange special hospital visits and other special requests.
“Cuba is trapped between two eternally competing visions. One is that it’s a socialist paradise; the other is that it’s a Communist hell. In reality, Cuba is neither a paradise nor a hell, but, rather, more of a purgatory, where some of us have the possibility of salvation.”
—Havana-based novelist Leonardo Padura
“When I first traveled in Cuba in 1999, it struck me, as it continues to strike me today, as an utterly unique place: a time capsule, an anomaly, a treasure trove of historical architecture, a country of great natural beauty with an inspiringly creative and resourceful population. What’s different today is that Cuba is changing, rapidly and dramatically. This is one of the reasons I’m excited about this new trip: in addition to being part of a small group exploring a country that has been inaccessible to most U.S. citizens for over half a century in ways not available to mainstream tourists, we’re going to be front-seat witnesses to history.”—Tim Weed
Dede Cummings 
This sounds like fun, Dede. As you may know, our mutual friend Robert Schelling is now on his third trip to Cuba. I have always wanted to go, and speak Spanish very well.
You should join! Thanks for writing and stay warm 😉