Cuba US People to People Partnership: Irish and Celtic Heritage Tour with Niall O'Leary April 21

Cuba

an Irish/Celtic cultural
and educational tour
with Niall O’Leary

April 25-28, 2014
or
April 25 - May 8
(combined with introduction to Cuba program)

Niall O’Leary with dancer from Cuban Educational TV, CeltFest 2013

“Two island peoples in the same

sea of struggle and hope:

Cuba and Ireland"

a plaque on Old Havana's

O'Reilly Street

Hundreds of tours bring US citizens to Cuba legally every year for its Caribbean and Latin history, culture and people to people contact. Only this trip adds a unique window through the Irish diaspora.

Irish and Cuban ties go back to the 17^th Century, reflected by names on streets, sugar estates and buildings. The 19^th century brought Irish-American railroad workers, engineers and teachers to Cuba; plus gun runners for a hunger and disease wracked independence struggle that paralleled Ireland’s.

Celtic music is preserved today among descendants of Spanish immigrants from Asturia and Galicia.

Accompany famed Irish and Irish American singers and dancers in their artistic encounters with Cuban counterparts.

Discover a long forbidden neighbor, plus the little known legacy of centuries of interaction between Cuba,

Ireland

and Irish Americans.

Join the 5th annual CeltFest where traditional musicians from Ireland and the US share stages and sessions with local bandas de gaitas.

Highlights of Cuba’s Irish history http://tinyurl.com/IriishCubanHist

(translation from above slide by Rafael Moya, CeltFest 2013)
Irish in the railroad. Daniel Warren, married to Honora Ryan, was authorized to create a society responsible for helping sailors in transit and workers in the construction of the Havana-Guines railroad. The first railroad accident happened on that route in 1842, for which the engineer Patrick Doherty was found guilty.

Irish Heritage Tour

An Unforgettable Three Days

Enjoy an unequaled combination of Cuban and Irish music and warmth!

Hear local experts on the Irish presence in Cuba from the 17^th to 19^th centuries

See Irish linked homes from the 18^th and 19^th centuries in Havana.

Meet with international journalists and Cuban academics

Slide from talk by Dr. Margaret Brehony

CeltFest Cuba

The 5^th annual CeltFest has been reduced in scope and will take place April 25 to 27. Because of Culture Ireland's budget constraints only the piper Gay McKeon is coming to do workshops.

A concert is planned for April 26th with Naill O'Leary and the Asturian band pictured below.

Session at CeltFest 2012 with Irish and Cuban pipers

Introduction to Cuba

We are offering an opportunity for participants in the heritage tour to join a program that has been designed for travel professionals from April 28 to May 8. It will cover much of the same geography without the Irish focus, and add five other destinations. The additional cost will be approximately $1500 plus some meals and incidentals with most accommodations in five star hotels. An overnight will not be required in Grand Cayman. Information at http://tinyurl.com/FAMCuba

Banda de Gaitas de La Habana. CeltFest 2012

Cost

Participants will depart New York on Friday, April 25, leave Cuba on April 28, overnight in Grand Cayman and return to New York on Tuesday, April 29th. A registration fee of $250 is required as a confirmation of interest. Estimated ground price and program cost in bed and breakfast for 3 nights, $400; round trip air from Grand Cayman to Havana $400 + $200 if overnight on return.)

Please contact us as soon as possible with questions, or for a PDF registration form: irishcuba@ffrd.org 914-231-6270.

Festival and tour background http://tinyurl.com/tripbackground

Registration

Write for form irishcuba@ffrd.org

Session at CeltFest, 2012

Another opportunity in the fall of 2014

If you can't join us in April, our full Irish Heritage Program in Cuba is planned for November 15-23, 2014 with the participation of Mick Moloney, Athena Tergis, Niall O'Leary, and Billy McComiskey (details here).

The itinerary will include visits to Irish sites in Havana and adjoining provinces. Mick and friends will do concerts and workshops for Cuban audiences. They will also offer presentations at academic and cultural venues about the role of music in the Irish immigrant experience and about today's traditional music and dance scene in the US. We hope to create opportunities for tour participants to meet Cuban counterparts.

Write to irishcuba@ffrd.org for dates, costs and a registration form.