First Official State Trade Mission to Cuba Since the Announcement to Begin Process of Restoring Diplomatic Relations

Trade Mission Delegation Will Include New York State Officials and Business Leaders and Will Leave for Cuba on April 20^th

Chief of the Cuban Interests Section José Ramón Cabañas and Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced that Governor Cuomo will lead the first official state trade mission to Cuba since President Obama began the process to normalize diplomatic relations between the United States and Cuba. President Obama’s change in policy is the first step in opening new markets and new opportunities for New York businesses, and New York is poised to take advantage of reestablished relations. This upcoming trade mission will allow New York State officials and business leaders to explore new opportunities and advance shared interests. The trade mission delegation will leave for Cuba on April 20, 2015, and will include New York State government officials and business leaders.

“I am pleased to join Governor Andrew Cuomo in announcing this historic trade mission to Cuba. It is only right that New York’s Governor will lead the first official state delegation to Cuba since President Obama’s December 17^th announcement,” said Chief of the Cuban Interests Section José Ramón Cabañas. “As the gateway to America, New York State has always been a great symbol to the Cuban people. It has welcomed Cubans over the years as they came to visit and live in the United States, including the great José Martí. We are greatly excited that Governor Cuomo has agreed to be the first Governor to lead an official state trade mission to our beautiful island.”

“I am pleased to announce that New York will be the first in the nation to conduct an official state trade mission to Cuba since President Obama’s announcement,” Governor Cuomo said. “This mission will be a tremendous stepping stone for our State’s relationship with Cuba, and will help open the door to a new market for New York businesses. Creating an environment that supports growth and economic development is one of our administration’s top priorities, and Global NY is the perfect example of how we’re taking that approach to the international stage. As the first state to launch a trade mission to Cuba in this new era, New York will continue to stand at the forefront of opportunity.”

Global NY, an initiative launched by Governor Cuomo in 2014, has positioned New York State to enhance its international competitiveness. With offices in New York, Canada, China, Israel, Mexico, South Africa, and the United Kingdom, Global NY has on-the-ground experts around the world creating new business opportunities for New York State. In addition, the $35 million Global NY Development program will soon provide loans and grants to help small- and medium-sized New York businesses export abroad. The Governor also recently unveiledwww.global.ny.gov, a one-stop shop for trade and investment. The Global NY trade mission to Cuba will be the first of several trade mission destinations, including Canada, China, Israel and Mexico.

Howard Zemsky, Acting President, CEO & Commissioner of Empire State Development, said, “The Global NY trade mission to Cuba will seek to expand economic development opportunities across New York by creating a trade relationship that will leverage the State’s unparalleled resources. The business environment in the Empire State is thriving, and under Governor Cuomo’s leadership, we will take these successes to new heights by creating a truly global New York.”

There's a (pretty cool) disturbance in the Force...

According to this article, Disney Cruises will start to offer a Star Wars day on their cruises out of Port Canaveral starting in 2016.

The good news: this is awesome.

The bad news: you still have to pay Disney cruise prices to partake (why is everything Disney sooo expensive?) As Luke might have said - $17,000 credits? We could buy our own ship for that.

The Blastr piece lists these things being offered on Star Wars Days at Sea:

• Character meet and greets with Darth Vader, Chewbacca, Boba Fett and others
• The Jedi Training Academy
• Star Wars trivia games
• Arts and crafts for kids
• Night clubs decked out as the Mos Eisley cantina with music, characters, cocktails and more
• Screenings of the first six films
• Screenings of episodes of Star Wars Rebels 

The world of travel just got a wee bit smaller with the announcement of Expedia buying out some of its competition.

Expedia Inc. agreed to buy Orbitz Worldwide Inc. for about $1.34 billion, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Expedia bought Travelocity earlier this month for $280 million.

Now Expedia's only main competitor is Priceline. We'll see how that works out for pricing.

Some interesting alternatives to AirBnB on this New York Times travel feature online:
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/15/travel/giving-airbnb-a-run-for-its-money.html?mabReward=A1&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&region=CColumn&module=Recommendation&src=rechp&WT.nav=RecEngine&_r=0

So far, I've had two very good experiences with AirBnB and one very annoying experience (which turned into an OK experience once the owner reimbursed our money).

I am still an AirBnB fan but it's not for everyone. The listed options seem interesting.