“I write to you, from this island. Cuba, the island of fire, the island of passion”. The poem “From Cuba” by To Huu has stayed with me since my school days. Ever since, I have held a special affection for Cuba - a distant land possessed a beauty both nostalgic and intense, where culture, music, and history blend into a rhythm uniquely of its own…

In Greek mythology, the supreme god Zeus transformed himself into a bull to seduce the beautiful princess Europa. When she mounted his back, the bull carried her across the sea to the island of Crete, where she gave birth to great kings, seen as an allegory for the birth of European civilization. The continent of Europe was therefore named after her – Europa, later known by the common name Europe.