Peoria, AZ. Brian Lamb, the founder of C-SPAN, says he has learned in his long career that people want choices. Certainly that is evident in cycling. Among the delights of Wickenburg, 66 miles nort of Phoenix, was connecting with a dozen or so touring cyclists who had come up from Tucson in the southern part of the state. They had ended their ride for the … Continue reading Choices in Cycling
Brenda, AZ. There’s an I Love Lucy episode from the 1950s in which Lucy and Desi stop at a motel that is so close to the highway that the lamp on the table rattles so loudly when traffic goes by that they can’t sleep. My motel in the village of Brenda wasn’t that bad, mainly because there were not that many vehicles going by at … Continue reading Blythe, CA to Brenda, AZ
Palm Springs, CA. The wind that was so strong Friday was unchanged Saturday. I resolved not to continue in such adverse conditions. With the perilous ride of the previous day in mind, I needed a plan B and it emerged overnight. Could I rent a car in Palm Springs and transport the bike the 90-plus-miles to Blythe on the Arizona border, return the car to … Continue reading Saved by the Wind, Plan B
Beginning with a trickle and then growing rapidly, a steady flow of money into Cuba will be the first tangible effect of normalized US-Cuban relations. With more cash reaching the island’s impoverished citizens comes hope for a better life, something all Cubans desperately want. Cubans typically earn only $20 per month so that tips from visitors rank just below remittances as a financial lifeline. Like … Continue reading Easing of US Restrictions Promises Better Lives for Cubans
HAVANA, CUBA: In light of the historic thaw in US Cuban relations announced on December 17th, three items stand out from a four-day visit to Havana: 1/ Cuba’s economy is a disaster in desperate need of reform. 2/ The communist party retains its tight grip and political change is a long way off. 3/It is likely to be months before normalized bi-lateral relations produce real … Continue reading A Look at Cuba Before Normalization Takes Hold
Barry D. Wood 