Ross, here's more than you may have wanted to know:
 
Shelling is not banned, although some species (Polymita) are protected. The
US has laws (unenforceable) against spending dollars there without a permit
and had no direct flights until this year. The country is an aboslute
disaster with extreme poverty. Due to the extreme poverty, I'm certain that
any shell protection is also unenforceable.
 
In my opinion, the US embargo does nobody any good, except possibly Canada.
Our foreign policy is dictated by expropriated Cubans in Florida who fled
Castro.
 
The people in the country are lovely and will share what little they have.
The army has built shelters in the limestone caves "for the next war" (with
the US obviously), but the locals laugh about it. They are grateful for the
most raggedy clothing or anything we were able to give them. In Havana in
1998, the panhandling, sex for sale (my wife alongside did not deter them),
and crime (one of our party was mugged) was disturbing. I have since read
that the police have cracked down. Many Russians and Europeans are visible.
The officials and some government store employes came across as arrogant,
and disdainful, typical of non-democracies. And there is an atmosphere of
"Big Brother" watching; people are afraid.
 
Cubans are not permitted to enter the tourist hotels or shop in the tourist
stores (which have hardly any goods anyhow) which require dollars. The
Cubans have set up a dual economy and minted their own coins for making
change for dollars, separate from the Cuban currency. Except for an
occasional computer and copying machine, I would guess they are 30-40 years
behind the world economy. In Havana, I saw water being hoisted to
apartments from the street in buckets by rope. It's a disaster.
John Wolff
2640 Breezewood Dr.
Lancaster, PA 17601, U.S.A.