Cuba

Less than 100 miles off the Florida coast rests one of the most fantasized Islands in the Western Hemisphere:   Cuba. Why? Considering a history rife with lore, the island has been a haunt for America's rogue since the early 1900s. Ernest Hemingway  wrote The Old Man and the Sea during his 22 year tenure on the island as diplomats and American mafia frequented its clubs. Simultaneously, Cuban revolutionaries plotted rebellions in musical cafes as CIA trained operatives botched ground assaults at the Bay of Pigs. The Soviet Union then builds secret nuclear bunkers discovered by U.S. spy planes in 1962, prompting what became known as the Cuban Missile Crisis. Embargoes followed, prompting flotillas of asylum seekers. Fast forward to 9/11, which made the U.S. Navel base at Guantanamo Bay an elite depository for Al-Qaeda and a love shack for movie director Michael Moore. Smother this rich history with luscious salsa dancing and generous portions of heavenly sung ballads by Rodriguez, Cruz, Portuondo in Supper Clubs, and you'll be pondering, "Why can't I go?"