Description

Our return visit to Cuba highlights many important mills not featured in part one. Faced with the collapse of the Soviet trading bloc, the US trade embargo and strained relations with Latin America, hard currency from any source is critical for Cuba.

Although to a certain extent, sugar’s dominance as the primary source of foreign currency earnings, has been overtaken by Tourism, the annual sugar crop is still very important particularly in rural areas where most jobs rely directly or indirectly on sugar.

Castro’s already well into his seventies, and it’s impossible to predict what will happen when he dies. Some speculate anarchy, mayhem and chaos, while others foresee an ordered but gradual change to capitalism.

One thing is for certain – any political changes will affect the sugar industry – and the steam railways of Cuba dramatically. The ancient and labour intensive steam locos featured in these two volumes could soon become a thing of the past as they are replaced by fleets of newly imported diesels – or even lorries – serving a much modernised and streamlined industry. Sugar is grown in nearly all parts of Cuba, although the actual harvest time varies considerably.

The last mill featured in this excellent programme spotlights Rafael Freyre – the most scenically attractive of Cuba’s sugar lines which is always amongst the last to harvest.

Mills featured include:-

– 105 Augusto C’sar Sandino

– 107 Pablo de la Torriente Brau

– 315 Jos’ Smith Comas

– 314 Jes’s Rab

– 319 Ren’ Fraga

– 413 Espartaco

– 424 Primero de mayo

– 409 Antonio Sanchez

– 443 Pepito Tey

– 515 Ciro Redondo

– 522 Venezuela

– 504 Ecuador

– 520 Noel Fernandez

– 635 Rafael Freyre