Just returned from an amazing eight-day trip to Cuba.

I travelled with ACCESO (Americans and Cubans building Community through Exchanges Support and Outreach), a non-profit, non-partisan, all volunteer organization that delivers humanitarian aid directly to the people of Cuba. ACCESO travels to Cuba under the authority of a special humanitarian license issued by the U.S. Treasury. I am an Officer and founding Director of ACCESO, and am very proud of the important work we are doing there.

It was my sixth trip to the “forbidden island.” And, like every other time, I returned home with a renewed enthusiasm for the work we do there and a restored resolve to do more for the Cuban people in the future, to raise awareness on both sides of the Florida straits of our shared history and culture and to continue to bring Americans and Cubans together to celebrate what we have in common.  To learn more about ACCESO and our work, please visit our website:  www.acceso.us

I’m always amazed when I visit Cuba that despite 50 years of estrangement from each other, Cubans and Americans still retain a special fondness for each other and for each other’s culture.  We love their music, their art, their food, and of course, their cigars and rum.  And Cubans?  Well, Cubans are as warm as the weather — they love Americans and all things American.  Marvelously generous, staunchly proud and wonderfully hospitable, Cubans willingly share the little they have with others.  Like Americans, Cubans love to chat, laugh and have a good time — a bottle of rum is all that’s needed for a party.

During this friendship visit, ACCESO’s fourteen delegates personally delivered a vast array of material goods directly to many different projects on the island.  Our efforts included providing books and assistive technology for the disabled to libraries and equipment and supplies to hospitals and schools serving children with disabilities.  Many of the items we delivered had been specifically requested by the programs we support to address a dire existing and ongoing need.

ACCESO is a small organization with very limited resources, while the needs in Cuba are great.  Like in the starfish proverb, ACCESO’s work may seem insignificant in light of the vast problems, but we make an enormous difference to the individuals our programs touch.  The gifts we deliver enrich lives and relieve suffering.  Moreover, after we’re gone, they bring hope as they remind the Cuban people on a daily basis that they have friends in the United States. Through our humanitarian visits and the material support our friendship projects provide, we let the Cuban people know they are loved and not forgotten.

Bienvenidos and Welcome Readers!

Wow!  I am pretty darn excited about my shiny, new blog, To Cook is To Love.  Pretty spiffy isn’t it?  Sleek and stylish, warm and inviting. Hop in and let’s take her for a spin!

To Cook is to Love is high performance, fully loaded with lots of great features and gadgets, and she can do 0 to 60 words per minute with no mistakes.  Now that I’ve settled in behind the wheel it feels quite comfy and the view of the road ahead is open and wide!

I’m itching to get out there on the information superhighway and feel the wind in my fingertips as the megabytes fly by.  I’ve been hearing lots about blogs for several years now and I’ve visited quite a few, but I never imagined I’d actually have one of my very own.  It’s a new world and a new life with adventures untold awaiting me.

My strategy guru Rachel is the one that got me interested in this as she is one of the original bloggers on the planet and she’s been tooling around in one of her many blogs, www.rachelsdatingdiary.com for years.  She told me to just start in and let it rip. So I’m taking her advice and here goes!

I’m using my new blog to pimp my business Mucho Gusto Inc., and my new cookbook, To Cook is To Love, that I just completed and that will be published soon. To Cook is To Love is a combination cookbook and memoir that the captures the essence, flavors and magic of old world Cuba, and brings new techniques and ingredients into the kitchens of adventurous home chefs!  Going forward I’ll be sharing tidbits of info about Mucho Gusto, Inc. — we get to do lots of interesting things — a fabulous personal party chef service for your next event and a small business consulting practice centered on coaching and management support services and delivered in a low-key, casual manner.

I also be sharing my favorite recipes, cooking techniques, my podcasts, stories about my volunteer work, and updates on my culinary adventures and international travels to places like Cuba and Puerto Rico.  And, as I’m an avid reader of anything I can get my hands on I’ll also be recommending books that you might be interested in.

Muchas Gracias, Mucho Gusto y Buen Provecho!!!

John