CUBA - After more than half a century, a U.S. commercial plane touched down on Cuban soil.
JetBlue Flight 387 touched down today, August 31st, making a notable stride in our relations with the country since the Cold War, and stirring up possibilities of what this means across the board from travel to trade.
The door is not yet completely open, U.S. citizens still need to sign an affidavit swearing their travel falls within permitted categories, including educational, religious, and humanitarian reasons, according to a CNN report. However, Cuba has seen almost double the amount of U.S. visitors since the relaxation of the embargo.
"This process of establishing regular flights is a positive step," said Eduardo Rodríguez, the Cuban Vice Minister of Transportation at a news conference on Monday in Havana. "Although the restrictions of the blockade remain, which among other things impede United States citizens from traveling to our country as tourists."
That could mean key exposure to Cuban culture and, of course, Cuban foods.
According to the Global Exchange, fruits and veggies are playing a critical role in guiding the Cuban diet in a more healthy direction in recent years, including tropical fruits, peppers, and other fresh produce.
And Americans are curious about that untouched culture, it appears.
"Our friends had been here and said, why don't you come to Cuba before it’s too Westernized," Gerry Hall, a New York educator who joined a "people-to-people" tour of the island in August, told CNN. "We wanted to come before you see McDonald's and Walmart and other U.S. companies in Cuba.”
So is this one small step for tourists, and one big step for fresh produce? We can’t wait to find out.
