Caveat Emptor already activated

So, as I was talking to Tim last night he pointed out that the wording for the OFAC general license was different when we flew to Cuba in January.

I checked, and sure enough it was.

I looked further and there was an update to the OFAC general license January 7, 2017.

So, the wording that stated People-to-people contact has been removed and now is stated as 'support for the Cuban people'

That being said, our boat trip fell under the general license guideline of sporting event or exhibition because of the boat parade.

So, let me reiterate--if you are going to CUBA, make sure you due your OWN research.  Make sure your travel can be justified by one of the guidelines stated under the OFAC general license.

Document. Document. Document.  That's not meaning that Uncle Sam is going to ask you for a book report, but you better be able to prove that you went to Cuba for a good reason and spent a majority of your time for that reason. 

Take pictures/write a blog or diary/keep receipts and fliers from the places you visited, get to know the locals and document their stories.

And guess what?  Laying on the beach sipping mojitos is not an acceptable cause.

But in my humble opinion--visiting Cuba is completely worth the extra legwork you have to do to get there.