Cuba

Relief, rivers and climate:

Cuba, one of the largest countries in Caribbean region, is also the longest one with 1.250 km in length but only 190 km in its maximum width point. To the north, Florida strait separate the country from the American state with the same name and the closest neighbor is Jamaica in south, only 140 km away. The main island is also called The Island of Pines. The relief is at a low level, but to the eastern part of the country there is the mountain chain called Sierra Maestra. The highest peak is Pico Real del Turquino with its 1.974 m height. Cuoto river is the longest one, navigated from west to east by small ships. The climate is tropical wet with two seasons: the wet season from May to November and the dry season from November to May.

Name, economy and agriculture in Cuba:

The name of the country comes from Columbus after the Portuguese town Cuba. Coming from Taino language, Cubao means fertile soil and Coabana means wonderful place. The Cuban people obtained the independency from Spain in 10 October 1868, but for a period of time it was under the U.S. influence. (Find more journeys on blog.worldlifetimejourneys.com) The dictator Fidel Castro was the president of the country between 1958 and 2008. Cuba was helped by the Soviet Union for many years, but lately the economy was built upon its reserves of nickel and on tourism.

The agriculture is a very important sector in the life of the Cuban people, because more than 80% of the country’s soil is fertile. It’s called The Island of Pines because of the pines that grow here. Over 5 million cattle are grown here and as about the cultures there are cultures of rice, coffee trees, citrus, tobacco (the famous Cuban cigars) and sugar cane, the island being the 3rd world producer of sugar. Visit Cuba!

Varadero beach from Cuba