Photo: Julie Schwietert Collazo
More than Matador editor and good looks, our own Julie Schwietert Collazo is also resident know-it-all for Havana, Cuba.
With president Obama easing up on travel restrictions to Cuba, she might be needed more than ever to offer tips and suggestions for those visiting the capital of the Caribbean’s largest island.
I’m fired up on: I’m fired up on life and all its complexities. I’m fired up on good grammar and excellent writing and mostly true stories only slightly exaggerated. I’m fired up on travel, of course. I’m fired up on new spices and new combinations, on new colors, on new sounds.
I’m fired up on finding a suitcase or backpack that is actually practical and simultaneously durable (if you know of one, please let me know). I’m fired up on making a difference in the world on the most intimate local level since larger efforts seem to confound me. I’m super fired up on marriage…mine, specifically.
Tunes I rock out to: Ana Belen, Ani Difranco, Bebo Valdes, Johnny Hartman, Sam Cooke, Ella Fitzgerald, Bamboleo, Laura Pausini, Carlos Varela, Mario Frangoulis, Angelique Kidjo, Cesaria Evora, Joao Gilberto, Polo Montanez, Francisco Cespedes…
I want to make a difference by: Telling stories and being the medium through which others can find a voice.
Always interested in a story, Julie works as a freelance writer, editor, researcher, and translator (English to Spanish and vice versa). She is also the managing editor of Matador, so if you’d like to pitch a story, Julie says, “I’m your woman.”
To learn more about her, or to contact her for some killer tips on Havana, visit her Matador profile.
Julie would also love for you to check out her other work at her blog Collazo Projects.
COMMUNITY CONNECTION
In this article, Julie explains how to travel to Cuba and why you should do it now. She also gives the low down on the 10 hottest nightlife spots in Havana.
For information on how to become a destination expert yourself, click here.
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7 Comments... join the discussion!
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Tim-
You’re funny & wonderful. I think I’ll print out your comment and put it on the wall in front of my laptop.
And I can’t wait to meet you either– a cabin in Vermont is still on my mind!
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I second Tim’s comment. Julie, I don’t know how you manage to stay so grounded and yet to do and see and experience so many different things. I have definitely not managed to strike that balance between being rooted and being out and about and discovering. Someday you’ll have to share your secrets.
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Sarah– You’re too sweet.
And Carlo– good looks? My goodness, my ego was really stroked yesterday!↵ -
Well, Julie…I just call em like I see em.
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Hey Julie, how expensive is it to travel in the Dominican Republic? I’m having a hard time finding any info about it on the interwebs:p
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Elliott-
Do you mean how expensive is it to fly from Santo Domingo to Havana? If that’s the question, you can look at Copa, Taca, or Cubana airlines.
If you’re asking how expensive it is to visit the DR, I’ll have to defer to someone else, as I haven’t been to the DR.
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