Going off the beaten track

Cuba

OTHER than North Korea, there is no place on Earth as stuck in a time warp as Cuba. Unlike isolated Pyongyang, the Caribbean island-nation's destinations of Havana and beyond are now relatively well served, thanks to a rush of tour operators taking advantage of the United States' easing of decades-long travel restrictions, part of widespread embargoes imposed after Fidel Castro seized power in an armed revolution.

Thanks to this, Cuba is frozen in a 1960s snapshot. Streets are teeming with vintage Cadillacs and Chevys lovingly cared for due to the scarcity of parts, and the buildings, while in need of refurbishment, are still standing in all their neoclassical and Spanish colonial glory. Although you will not find a McDonald's or a Starbucks (yet), you will meet locals who are friendly and curious about foreign cultures, especially those of rarely seen Asians. The influx of American tourists will soon change Cuba for better or worse, so get in before this unique slice of history is gone forever.