A large format full colour history, travel and cultural guide and nature tour of the Caribbean's greatest island. THE HISTORY: Cuba from the time of Columbus's discovery through the colonial era, independence from Spain, Fidel Castro's revolution and the transformations and contradictions of the post-communist era. CITIES & ARCHITECTURE: A tour of Cuba's urban environment to see the colonial buildings and the gaily coloured modern architecture, plus the legacy of flashy 1950s American cars still in daily use. THE CUBAN PEOPLE: The habits, folklore, music, art & culture of the descendants of European, African and Asian immigrants which personify the spirit of this exuberant and hospitable land - the son, the salsa, the cha-cha-cha, the rumba, the guarancha, the bolero, the mambo, and the mysterious Santeria. NATURE: a journey of discovery through Cuba and the Cayos (the uninhabited coral beaches), the deserted beaches, the tropical forests, the rolling hills covered with sugarcane and tobacco plantations, and the barren mountains of the Sierra - a refuge for numerous threatened wildlife species.