Western Cuba cuisine

(Cuba Twitter)-Western Cuba's cooking is technically criollo as well (as this term signifies the existence of Spanish roots), its style can be separated from mainstream criollo, particularly in Havana. This city, for a number of reasons, was more continental and closer to the European cuisine[citation needed]. There's also a notable Chinese influence, in dishes such as sopa china (an egg and onion soup) and arroz salteado (sauteed rice), among others. Rice is usually consumed separately from beans, and flour is much more commonly used (it is almost completely ignored in mainstream criollo cooking). Some Havana dishes make frequent use of alcaparrado, a mix of olives, raisins and caper which provide the sweet-and-sour-inspired flavor that is typical of this cuisine. Alcaparrado is used as an ingredient in several recipes, usually as part of sauces to accompany meats. It is also cooked together with ground beef to provide the meat stuffing for a variety of Cuban pastries, or finger food, very popular with Cubans.

Other common finger foods and dishes of Havana are Cuban pastries (puff pastry filled with fruit pulps (especially guava) or ground beef), croquetas (small cylinders of paste, made with a heavy bechamel sauce and ground beef, ham, chicken, fish, or cheese, covered with breadcrumbs and deep fried), papas rellenas (fried potato balls filled with ground beef), picadillo à la Habanera (ground beef with alcaparrado, served with white rice, black beans and fried plantains) and niños envueltos (beef filled with alcaparrado and served in pepper sauce).

Western cuisine also makes wider use of eggs, particularly omelettes (such as tortilla de papa) and fried eggs (huevos à la habanera, fried eggs served over white rice and fried plantains). Fish dishes are also common, especially in coastal areas, and although Cuba has a well-developed lobster fishing industry, it is used very sparsely. Aside from Cuba's present economic condition, which makes lobster an unreachable food for most families, Cuban cuisine was always of inland origin, therefore fish and sea products are as commonly used as in coastal areas, where crab is another common food staple. Popular fish recipes are enchilado (shrimp, fish, crab or lobster in a sauce that, despite its name, contains no chili), and à la vizcaína, a tomato-based sauce of Basque origin used to cook bacalao (salted cod).

Other Spanish dishes can be found in Cuba, such as the paella, arroz con pollo (chicken cooked with yellow rice much like a paella), and the empanada gallega (which is similar to an English meat pie). Due to heavy Galician and Asturian migration during the early 20th century, many northern Spanish dishes made their way to Cuba and influenced the cooking of many families, like the pulpo à la gallega.

Cuban cuisine

(Cuba Twitter)-Cuban cuisine is a fusion of Spanish, African and Caribbean cuisines. Cuban recipes share spices and techniques with Spanish and African cooking, with some Caribbean influence in spice and flavor. This results in a unique, interesting and flavorful blend of the several different cultural influences. A small, but noteworthy, Chinese influence can also be accounted for, mainly in the Havana area. During colonial times, Cuba was an important port for trade, and many Spaniards who lived there brought their culinary traditions along with them.

As a result of the colonization of Cuba by Spain, one of the main influences on the cuisine is from Spain. Along with Spain, other culinary influences include Africa, from the Africans that were brought to Cuba as slaves, and Dutch, from the French colonists that came to Cuba from Haiti.Another important factor is that Cuba itself is an island, making seafood something that greatly influences Cuban cuisine. Another contributing factor to Cuban cuisine is the fact that Cuba is in a tropical climate. The tropical climate produces fruits and root vegetables that are used in Cuban dishes and meals.

A typical meal would consist of rice and beans, cooked together or apart. When cooked together the recipe is called either, "Congri" (red beans and rice), or “Moros” or "Moros y Cristianos" (black beans and rice) if cooked separately it is called “Arroz con/y Frijoles”--Rice with/and Beans. A main course (mainly pork or beef), some sort of vianda (not to be confused with the French viande which stands for "meat", this term encompasses several types of tubers, such as yuca, malanga, and potato, as well as plantains, unripe bananas and even corn), a salad (usually simply composed of tomato, lettuce and avocado, though cucumber, carrots, cabbage and radish are not uncommon). Curiously, typical criollo meals largely ignore fruit, except ripe plantains, which are usually consumed together with the rice and beans. Tropical fruit could be served, however, depending on each family's preferences. Usually, all dishes are brought together to the table at once, except maybe for desserts.

Rice and beans are a culinary element found throughout Cuba, although it varies by region. In the eastern part of the island, "arroz congri oriental" is the predominant rice and bean dish. White rice and red kidney beans are cooked together with a sofrito and then baked in the oven. The same procedure is used for the above mentioned Congri (also known by the terms Arroz Moro and Moros y Cristianos - literally "Moors and Christians") which instead uses black beans. Although the process of preparing the black bean soup contains basics (onion, garlic, bay leaf, salt) each region has their tradition of preparing it.

Meat, when available on ration book is usually served in light sauces. The most popular sauce, used to accompany not onlyroasted pork, but also the viandas, is Mojo or Mojito (not to be confused with the Mojito cocktail), made with oil, garlic, onion, spices such as oregano and bitter orange or lime juice. The origin of Cuban mojo comes from the mojo sauces of the Canary Islands. Cuban mojo is made with different ingredients, but the same idea and technique is used from the Canary Islands. Of course with so many Canary Islander immigrants in Cuba, the Canary Islander influence was strong. Ropa vieja is shredded beef dish (usually shank) simmered in tomato-based criollo sauce until it falls apart. ropa vieja is the Spanish name meaning "old clothes", in which the dish gets its name from the shredded meat resembling "old clothes". Ropa vieja is also from the Canary Islands, as is many of the origins of Cuban food. Boliche is a beef roast, stuffed with chorizo sausage and hard boiled eggs.

Cuban American culture

(Cuba Twitter)-Cuban food is varied, though rice is a staple and commonly served at lunch and dinner. Other common dishes are arroz con pollo (chicken and rice), pan con bistec (steak sandwich), platanos maduros (sweet plantains), lechon asado (pork), yuca (cassava root), flan, batido de mamey (mamey milkshake), papayas, and guava paste.

A common lunch staple is the Cuban sandwich (sometimes called a mixto sandwich), which is built on Cuban bread and was created and standardized among cigar workers who traveled between Cuba and Florida (especially Ybor City) around the turn of the 20th century

Cuban versions of pizza contains bread, which is usually soft, and cheese, toppings, and sauce, which is made with spices such as Adobo and Goya onion. Picadillo, ground beef that has been sauteed with tomato, green peppers, green olives, and garlic is another popular Cuban dish. It can be served with black beans and rice, and a side of deep-fried, ripened plantains.

Flags mingle with anti-Castro protest signs in the Cuban Day Parade in Union City, New Jersey.

US citizens of Cuban descent tend to be slightly more politically conservative than other Hispanic groups in the United States and form a major voting block for the Republican Party (GOP) in the state of Florida. Many Cuban Americans fled the island to escape the political and economic repression that they experienced under the Fidel Castro's communist government. As such, they tend to identify with the strong anti-communist stance of the Republican Party. However there has been a noticeable change since the 2008 elections, in which Democrat Barack Obama received 47% of the Cuban American vote in Florida.According to Bendixen's exit polls, 84% of Miami-Dade Cuban American voters 65 or older backed McCain, while 55% of those 29 or younger backed Obama. Showing that the younger Cuban-American generation have shifted to becoming more liberal.

The failed Bay of Pigs invasion, and its association with John F. Kennedy, left many Cubans distrustful of the Democratic Party. Ronald Reagan, on the other hand, is particularly popular in the Cuban exile community (there is a street in Miami named for Reagan). Moreover, the Clinton administration's 2000 use of armed INS agents in the seizure and return of Elián González to his father in Cuba under the direction of Janet Reno and Eric Holder may have affected the outcome of the 2000 Presidential election by stoking the passions of the exile community and serving to increase the Republican turnout in a contest that was ultimately decided by fewer than 1,000 votes in Florida.

Beverages

Cubans often drink cafe cubano: a small cup of coffee called a cafecito (or a colada), which is traditional espresso coffee, sweetened, with a sugar foam on top called espumita. It is also popular to add milk, which is called a cortadito for a small cup or a cafe con leche for a larger cup.

A common soft drink is Materva, a Cuban soda made of yerba mate. Jupiña, Ironbeer and Cawy lemon-lime are soft drinks which originated in Cuba. Since the Castro era, they are also produced in Miami.

Cuban American people

(Cuba Twitter)-Cuban American, Cubano estadounidense, is a United States citizen who traces his or her "national origin" to Cuba. Cuban Americans are also considered native born Americans with Cuban parents or Cuban-born persons who were raised and educated in US. Cuban Americans form the fourth-largest Hispanic group in the United States and also the largest group of Hispanics of European ancestry (predominantly Spanish) as a percentage but not in numbers.

Many communities throughout the United States have significant Cuban American populations. However Miami, Florida, with a Cuban population of 837,985 in its environs, stands out as the most prominent Cuban American community, in part because of its proximity to Cuba. It is followed by the Tampa Bay Area and North Jersey, particularly Union City and West New York. With a population of 141,250, the New York metropolitan area is the largest Cuban community outside of Florida.

Immigration policy

Before the 1980s, all refugees from Cuba were welcomed into the United States as political refugees. This changed in the 1990s so that only Cubans who reach U.S. soil are granted refuge under the "wet feet, dry feet policy". Cuban immigration also continues with an allotted number of Cubans (20,000 per year) provided legal U.S. visas.

According to a U.S. Census 1970 report, Cuban Americans as well as Latinos lived in all 50 states. But as later Census reports demonstrated, the majority of Cuban immigrants settled in south Florida. A new trend in the late 1990s showed that fewer immigrants arrived from Cuba than previously. While U.S. born Cuban Americans moved out of their enclaves, other nationalities settled there.

In late 1999, U.S. news media focused on the case of Elián González, the 6-year-old Cuban boy caught in a custody battle between his relatives in Miami and his father in Cuba, after the boy's mother died trying to bring him to the United States. On April 22, 2000, INS agents took Elián González to the Cuban Interests Section in Washington, D.C. From there, his father took him back to Cuba.

US Census and ACS

In the most recent census in 2000 there were 1,241,685 Cuban Americans, both native and foreign born and represented 3.5% of all Hispanics in the US. About 85% of Cuban Americans identify themselves as being White, mostly Spanish, which is the highest proportion of all other major Hispanic groups. In Florida, Cuban Americans have cultural ties with the state's large Spanish American or European Spanish community. In the 2007 ACS, there were 1,611,478 Americans with national origins in Cuba. 983,147 were born abroad in Cuba, 628,331 were U.S born and of the 1.6 million, 415,212 were not a U.S citizen.

Coins of Cuba

(Cuba Twitter)-In 1915, cupro-nickel 1, 2 and 5 centavos, silver 10, 20 and 40 centavos and 1 peso, and gold 1, 2, 4, 10 and 20 peso coins were introduced. These coins were designed by Charles E. Barber, who also designed the Barber dimes, quarters, half dollars for the US. The coins were minted at the US mint at Philadelphia. The gold coins and 2 centavos were not produced after 1916, with the silver 1 peso ceasing production in 1934. Brass 1 and 5 centavos were issued in 1943. 10 centavo coins were last produced in 1952. In 1953, silver 25 and 50 centavo coins were issued. These were the last silver coins issued for circulation. The last US produced coin was the 1961 five centavo piece.

In 1962, cupro-nickel 20 and 40 centavos were introduced, followed, in 1963, by aluminium 1 and 5 centavos. In 1969, aluminium 20 centavos were introduced, followed by aluminium 2 centavos and brass 1 peso in 1983. Cupro-nickel 3 peso coins were introduced in 1990, with brass-plated-steel 1 peso and nickel-clad-steel 3 peso coins following in 1992. 40 centavo coins were withdrawn from circulation around July 2004 and are no longer accepted as payment. Coins currently in circulation are 1, 2, 5 and 20 centavos and 1 and 3 pesos.

Between 1981 and 1989, the National Institute of Tourism (Instituto Nacional de Turismo, "INTUR") issued "Visitors Coinage" for use by tourists. In 1981, cupro-nickel 5, 10, 25 and 50 centavos and 1 peso were introduced, followed in 1988 by aluminium 1, 5, 10, 25 and 50 centavos. The INTUR coins were demonetized on October 15, 2001 and were replaced by fractional convertible pesos in 1, 5, 10, 25, 50 centavos and 1 peso, minted in Canada. In late 2004, a 5 convertible peso coin, dated 1999, was placed into circulation.

Banknotes of Cuba

(Cuba Twitter)-In 1857, the Banco Español de la Habana introduced notes in denominations of 50, 100, 300, 500 and 1000 pesos. As well, 25 peso notes were introduced in 1867, followed by 5 and 10 pesos in 1869. During the Ten Years' War, notes were issued dated 1869 in the name of the Republic of Cuba in denominations of 50 centavos, 1, 5, 10, 50, 500 and 1000 pesos.

In 1872, 5, 10, 25 and 50 centavo, and 1 and 3 peso notes were introduced by the Banco Español de la Habana. In 1891, the Treasury issued notes for 5, 10, 20, 50, 100 and 200 pesos. In 1896, the name of the bank was changed to the Banco Español de la Isla de Cuba, and it issued notes in denominations of 5 and 50 centavos and 1, 5 10, 50, 100, 500 and 1000 pesos, followed by 10 and 20 centavos in 1897.

In 1905, the National Bank of Cuba (Banco Nacional de Cuba) issued notes for 1, 2, 5 and 50 pesos. However, the 1905 banknotes were not issued (source: Pick's catalog) In 1934, the Government introduced silver certificates (certificados de plata) in denominations of 1, 5, 10, 20 and 50 pesos, followed by 100 pesos in 1936 and 500 and 1000 pesos in 1944.

In 1949, the Banco Nacional de Cuba resumed paper money production, introducing 1, 5, 10 and 20 peso notes that year, followed by 50, 100, 500, 1000 and 10,000 peso notes in 1950. Denominations above 100 pesos were not continued. In January 1961, all previous bank notes were demonetized, with new bank notes, printed in Czechoslovakia, placed into circulation. 3 peso notes were added in 1983. The 1961 bank notes were demonetized on May 1, 2002 (source: Banco Central Cuba, Granma, February 27, 2002) Banknotes currently in circulation are 1, 3, 5, 10, 20, 50 and 100 pesos.

Currency of Cuba

(Cuba Twitter)-Peso (ISO 4217 code: CUP, sometimes called the "national peso" or in Spanish moneda nacional) is one of two official currencies in use in Cuba, the other being the convertible peso (ISO 4217 code: CUC, occasionally referred to as "dollar" in spoken language). It is subdivided into 100 centavos.

Cuban state workers receive a portion of their wages in convertible pesos, the rest in national pesos. Shops selling basics, like fruit and vegetables, generally accept only the normal peso, while "dollar shops" sell the rest. The word "pesos" may refer to both non-convertible and convertible money. Cuban convertible pesos are 25 times more valuable, but this does not completely eliminate the confusion for tourists: since goods bought in national pesos have controlled prices, tourists are sometimes confused by prices perceived as "too cheap.

The CUP and the CUC

The peso (CUP) is used by tourists only for staple and non-luxury products. However, local citizens are paid most of their wages in pesos and pay everyday expenses in CUP. For some accounting purposes, the exchange rate is set at 1 CUP = 1 CUC. However, for practical purposes, the exchange rate is that applied by the Cuban banks and Cadecas (exchange bureaux). From March 18, 2005, that rate has been set at 1:24 when exchanging CUC for CUP and 25:1 when going from CUP to CUC. The convertible peso, used for luxury products and services, was for several years pegged at US$1.08. All other exchanges rates are set in relation to the CUC. In March 2011 the government announced it would devalue the CUC to US$1.00, without changing the 10% tax on exchange with the US dollar.

Economy of Cuba

(Cuba Twitter)-Economy of Cuba is a largely state-controlled, centrally planned economy overseen by the Cuban government, though there remains significant foreign investment and private enterprise in Cuba. Most of the means of production are owned and run by the government, and most of the labor force is employed by the state. In the year 2000, public sector employment was 76% and private sector employment was 23% compared to the 1981 ratio of 91% to 8%. Capital investment is restricted and requires approval by the government. The Cuban government sets most prices and rations goods to citizens. In 2009, Cuba ranked 51st out of 182 with an HDI of 0.863; remarkably high considering its GDP per capita only places it 95th. Cuba also significantly outperforms the rest of Latin America in terms of infant and child mortality, morbidity, educational attainment and an array of other social and health indicators.

Cubans receive low housing and transportation costs, free education, and health care and food subsidies. Corruption is common, though far lower than in most other countries in Latin America.

Self-employment

To provide jobs for workers laid off due to the economic crisis that the government was having difficulty providing, and to try to bring some forms of black market activity into legal, and regulated, channels, Havana in 1993 legalized self-employment for some 150 occupations. The government tightly controls the small private sector, which has fluctuated in size from 150,000 to 209,000, by regulating and taxing it. For example, owners of small private restaurants (paladares) can seat no more than 12 people and can only employ family members to help with the work. Set monthly fees must be paid regardless of income earned and frequent inspections yield stiff fines when any of the many self-employment regulations are violated. Rather than expanding private sector opportunities, in recent years, the government has been attempting to squeeze more of these private sector entrepreneurs out of business and back to the public sector. Many have opted to enter the informal economy or black market. In recent years there has developed what is called "urban agriculture", production which takes place on small parcels of land in the cities. Growing organopónicos (organic gardens) in the private sector has been attractive to city dwelling small producers who get to sell their products in the same place where they produce them, avoiding taxes and enjoying a measure of government help from the Ministry of Agriculture (MINAGRI) in the form of seed houses and advisers.

Energy production

Due to the reliance on declining Soviet era electricity generators, many areas of Cuba suffered[when?] frequent blackouts and brownouts for extended periods, creating additional pressure on society. To counter these problems, the government has put Cuba through an "Energy Revolution", which has placed increased emphasis on the efficient use of electrical energy and more efficient,[citation needed] small-power generators linked in a synchronized network. The country has increased the number of solar- and wind-powered generators. Citizens are also encouraged to swap their old, electricity consumptive lamps with those of newer model to reduce consumption, which is also complemented with a new power tariff, which imposes economically punitive measurements on inefficient use of power.Though development was hampered by large-scale damage created by Hurricane Dennis and Hurricane Wilma, which cut Cuba's electricity generation capacity by half in the areas most affected, Cuba now exceeds the government set demand in electricity production. Raul Castro told Cubans in his July 26 speech in 2007, that the Special Period is not yet over.

Other statistics

Electricity - production: 16.89 billion kWh (2007 est.)

Electricity - production by source:

fossil fuel: 89.52%

hydro: 0.65%

nuclear: 0%

other: 9.83% (1998)

Electricity - consumption: 13.93 billion kWh (2007 est.)

Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2008 est.)

Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (2008 est.)

Oil - production: 62,100 bbl/d (9,870 m3/d) (2008 est.)

Oil - consumption: 176,000 bbl/d (28,000 m3/d) (2008 est.)

Oil - exports: 0 bbl/d (0 m3/d) (2007 est.)

Oil - imports: 104,800 bbl/d (16,660 m3/d) (2007 est.)

Oil - proved reserves: 197,300,000 bbl (31,370,000 m3) (1 January 2009 est.)

Natural gas - production: 400 million cu m (2008 est.)

Natural gas - consumption: 400 million cu m (2008 est.)

Natural gas - exports: 0 cu m (2008 est.)

Natural gas - imports: 0 cu m (2008 est.)

Natural gas - proved reserves: 70.79 billion cu m (1 January 2009 est.)

Agriculture - products: sugarcane, tobacco, citrus, coffee, rice, potatoes, beans, livestock

Annual budget: revenues: $47.08 billion expenditures: $50.34 billion (2009 est.)

Public debt: 34.6% of GDP (2009 est.)

Current account balance: $513 million (2009 est.

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $4.647 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

Casa particular

(Cuba Twitter)-Casa particular (Spanish for "private house"; plural casas particulares) is a phrase meaning private accommodation or private homestays in Cuba, very similar to bed and breakfast although it can also take the form of vacation rental. When the meaning is clear the term is often shortened to simply casa.

Origins of the term

Casa particular literally means "private house" but it started to be used to mean “private accommodation” in 1997, when the Cuban government allowed Cubans to rent out rooms in their houses or apartments to tourists, providing Cuban families with new sources of income. As any other type of accommodation in Cuba such as hotels, camping and motels were owned by the government, the term “casa particular” stated that this kind of paid lodging was privately operated.

Varieties

A casa particular is basically a private family establishment that provides paid lodging, usually on a short-term basis. In general under this term you can find full apartments and houses, rooms inside people's homes, mini-apartments or rooms with separate entrance (studio or efficiency type rooms).

It is also considered a type of boarding house typically operated out of a single family residence where guests can be accommodated at night in private bedrooms (which may or may not be equipped with private baths) and where breakfast, sometimes continental and sometimes the full English variety, is served in the morning. The business may be operated either as a primary occupation or as a secondary source of income, and the staff often consists of the house's owner(s) and members of their family who live there.

Services and facilities

Rooms are generally clean and upgraded to tourist standards. It ranges from basic accommodation of a room with a bed, a closet, a small table to full furnished independent apartments upgraded to western standards. Other features found may be a telephone, an alarm clock, and a TV. Food and drink may be supplied by a mini-bar (which often includes a small refrigerator) containing snacks and drinks (to be paid for on departure).

In keeping with the similarity to B&B's, breakfast is usually included in the price, although one should ask first. Dinner is often also served, but not included in the price. However, if it becomes clear that one plans to generally eat out, the price may go up because this is an important second source of income.

Casas particulares have several advantages over other types of lodgings:

The guest can quickly develop genuine Cuban relationships and become deeply involved in the culture of the country. Before he/she knows it, the guest will be part of the family. In a big resort one may only meet hotel workers and other tourists.

The guest will, probably, enjoy the usually free and easy atmosphere, feel at home in the casa particular and will be able to invite friends over. Current regulations for state-run hotels don’t allow Cuban guests to be invited to hotel rooms.

It is almost always cheaper to stay in a private room than in a hotel.

By renting a casa particular, the guest will be directly contributing to a person or family's standard of living. This is often obvious through the fact that casas particulares are freshly painted. This has been heavily criticised in Cuba as it is evidence of the reemergence of class divisions, since the early nineties special period (where tourism was used to compensate the drop in trade due to the collapse of the socialist bloc), that the Cuban revolution did away with.

Tourism in Cuba

(Cuba Twitter)-Tourism in Cuba attracts over 2 million people a year, and is one of the main sources of revenue for the island. With its favorable climate, beaches, colonial architecture and distinct cultural history, Cuba has long been an attractive destination for tourists. Having been Spain's last, oldest, and closest colony until 1901, in the first part of the 20th century Cuba continued to benefit from big investments, creation of industries, and immigration. Its proximity and close relation to the United States also helped Cuba's market economy prosper fairly quickly. As relations between Cuba and the United States deteriorated rapidly after Castro's abrupt expropriation (without pay) of all private property following a strong Soviet model, the island became cut off from its traditional market by an embargo and a travel ban was imposed on U.S. citizens visiting Cuba. The tourist industry had already declined to record low levels within two years of Castro's accession to power. By the mid 1960s Havana's Soviet backed communist government had banned and eliminated all private property, outlawed the possession of foreign currency, and eliminated the tourist industry all together. Internal movement within the island was also restrained.

Until 1997, contacts between tourists and Cubans were de facto outlawed by the Communist regime. Following the collapse of Cuba's chief trading partner the Soviet Union, and the resulting economic crisis known as the Special Period, Cuba's government embarked on a major program to restore old hotels, remaining old pre-communism American cars, and restore several Havana streets to their former glory, as well as build beach resorts to bolster the tourist industry in order to bring in much needed finance to the island. To ensure the isolation of international tourism from the state isolated Cuban society, it was to be promoted in enclave resorts where, as much as possible, tourists would be segregated from Cuban society, referred to as "enclave tourism" and "tourism apartheid. Until 2008 Cubans were not allowed to enter such tourist only stores, hotels, restaurants, beaches, etc. By the late 1990s, tourism surpassed Cuba's traditional export industry, sugar, as the nation's leading source of revenue. Visitors come primarily from Canada and western Europe and tourist areas are highly concentrated around Varadero, Cayo Coco, the beach areas north of Holguin, and Havana. The impact on Cuba's socialist society and economy has been significant. However, in recent years Cuba's tourism has decreased due to the economic recession, escalating foreign investment conflicts and fears, and internal economic restrictions. Since its reopening to tourism in the mid 1990s Cuba has not met the projected growth, has had relatively little restoration, and slow growth due in major part to the fact that many foreigners don't feel secure investing in Cuba under its current regime and Cubans are still forbidden by the state from owning private property or participate in any development. Since then, the Dominican Republic has surpassed Cuba in tourism, new development, and investment.