Woodson Art Museum Finally Gets Its License

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2012

Cuba on My Mind

Is Cuba on your bucket list? Have you long wished that it was possible to travel to Cuba?

If you answered “yes” to these questions, then you likely know that the Obama Administration has made it possible for organizations such as museums, colleges, and universities to undertake travel programs to Cuba that are focused on meaningful people-to-people exchanges.

The process actually is not as easy as it might sound. The people-to-people requirements are stringent and involve a lengthy application to the Office of Foreign Assets Control, which is part of the Department of the Treasury and ultimate issuer of the necessary license for Cuba travel.

The Woodson Art Museum has been in pursuit of a license since early 2011 and now, after jumping through multiple hoops and completing three license application revisions, we can proudly boast a bona fide people-to-people license for Cuba travel.

We’ll offer two trips in the coming months – the first in late May and the second in November – so make certain your passport is up to date and that your name and address are included on the Museum’s Preferred Traveler List to ensure that you receive advance notice of trip details later this month. Either call 715.845.7010 or emailmuseum@lywam.org to add your name.

Cuba is among “the” hot travel destinations for 2012. It was number 10 on the New York Times’ list of 45 top travel spots for the New Year. No surprise, really, despite its tantalizingly close proximity to south Florida – about 90 miles, as the crow flies, from Key West – Cuba has been officially off limits to U.S. travelers since the 1960s.

Now, with our people-to-people license, the Woodson’s Cuba itinerary will offer travelers an exceptional opportunity to experience the “real” Cuba through one-on-one visits with artists, art historians, and art educators as well as farmers, naturalists, environmentalists, and ornithologists. We’ll explore the rich and colorful Cuban culture, too, by sampling music, dance, and culinary treats.

Cuba has been on my mind for some time and if it also has been on yours, 2012 will be the year to check Cuba off your must-visit list.