CUBA

“Havana daydreamin’, oh he’s just dreamin’ his life away…”

You can dream of Havana, but unless you fit into some very specific categories, you can’t go there. Restrictions on U.S. citizens’ travel to Cuba, even via a third country such as Mexico or Jamaica, are serious, and enforcement recently has increased. Go without a U.S. government-issued visa and face civil penalties and criminal prosecution. It used to be possible, but with passports now required for travel to the Caribbean and Mexico, your U.S. passport would get an extra entry stamp upon your return from Cuba en route back to the U.S. Two entry points in one trip? You’d have some ‘splainin’ to do.

For specifics, check with the U.S. State Department. To get a license, you go through the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the U.S. Department of the Treasury.

Cuba has definitely inspired Jimmy over the years. He’s been there, and even performed “Havana Daydreamin’” at the Bodega del Medio in downtown Havana, with CIA, KGB and Cuban secret police in the audience.

“Cuban Crime of Passion” (on the album “A White Sport Coat & A Pink Crustacean”) tells the story of one Billy Voltaire, “a piano player up from Miami way,” who ended up in Havana. He fell in love with a dancer named Meritta, “half woman, half child, she drove him half wild.”

’Til one night he did find her in the arms of Shrimper Dan
So he pulled a knife, took poor Danny’s life
And then he turned his own cold hand.

And it’s just a Cuban crime of passion
Messy and old fashioned.

Yes, this is the same Billy who taught Slade Patterson to play piano in the “I Wish Lunch Could Last Forever” short story (from the book “Tales from Margaritaville”).

Jimmy’s love of Caribbean history is woven together with a very personal family tale in the lyrics to “False Echoes” (on the album “Banana Wind”), which takes place in 1921, back before Castro and travel restrictions.

The skies over Cuba turned pink with the light
And the waterfront ritual began to ignite.
All the ships in the harbor were warmed by the sun,
Twenty-fifth of November, 1921.

On the old Chicamauga the signal jacks flew
And the message they spelled out caused a great ballyhoo.
Every ship in Havana then hoisted away.
All the pennants were flyin' on my dad's first birthday.

As it often does with Jimmy, the song comes back to family. His songs can reveal pieces of his past, capture recent moments with great immediacy and pay tribute to those family members who touch him the most.

The bottom line: traveling is fun, but going home to those you love is the most fun of all.

JAMAICA

Head for Kingston, mon. Jamaica has the third-largest English-speaking population in the Americas, after the U.S. and Canada. And of course you can’t beat the music. But take Air Jamaica, or make sure your plane is well-marked. Otherwise, you just might find yourself mistaken for a drug runner. It happened to Jimmy.

In 1996 Jimmy was flying to Jamaica in his Grumman HU-16 Albatross “Hemisphere Dancer.” The plane was shot at by Jamaican police, who suspected it was smuggling drugs. No one was hurt, although the plane suffered a few bullet holes. You can see for yourself: the plane is now on view at his Margaritaville restaurant in Orlando.

Based on these lyrics from “Jamaica Mistaica” (on the album “Banana Wind”), all is now forgiven:

Come back, come back, back to Jamaica.
Don’t chu know we made a big mistaica.
We’d be so sad if you told us goodbye,
And we promise not to shoot you out of the sky

In “Woman Goin’ Crazy on Caroline Street” (on the album “Havana Daydreamin’”) Jimmy sings about someone he saw in Key West, “Stoppin’ every man that she does meet.” He imagines that:

Her lover left her stranded in Jamaica
And just right now she can't recall his name.

You can’t talk about Jamaica without mentioning reggae. Jimmy’s “life is a mixture of reggaes and tangos” in “Lone Palm” (on the album “Fruitcakes”). On the “Take the Weather with You” album, he sings about “Reggabilly Hill”. And on the title “Fruitcakes” track, he sings:

So I’ll put on my Bob Marley tape
And practice what I preach.
Get Ja lost in the reggae mon
As I walk along the beach.

Twelve years later, Jimmy is still carrying reggae with him except now he sings that “I got Bob Marley on my ringtone”. (In “Everybody’s on the Phone” on the “Take the Weather with You” album)

Jamaica is all about music. And beaches. And lilting accents...

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HAITI

A former French colony, Haiti became the world’s first independent black republic in 1804. Unfortunately, Haiti suffers from political unrest and is one of the poorest countries in the world. Aggressive deforestation has led to soil erosion and exacerbated flooding problems. Still, despite the problems the Haitian people have had to endure, in the liner notes to “African Friend” in the boxed set “Boats, Beaches, Bars & Ballads” Jimmy says, “they are the warmest and friendliest people I have come across in my travels.”

The music of Haiti also bears mention. The best-known Haitian artist is Wyclef Jean; others include T-Vice and Carimi. Styles include kompa, rasin and kadans. Haitians have also imported zouk from the Lesser Antilles and merengue from the neighboring Dominican Republic. If you travel to Haiti, expect to dance!

Speaking of music, Jimmy sings of Haiti in two of his songs.

On a timeless beach in Hispaniola
A young girl sips a diet cola
She’s worlds apart, worlds apart.
The spirit of the black king still
Reverberates through Haitian hills.
He rules the sea and all the fish
What if he had a TV dish?

(From “That’s What Living Is to Me” on the album “Hot Water”)

And “African Friend” (originally on the album “Son of a Son of a Sailor”) was written after a wild night in a Port-au-Prince casino. Jimmy has said he felt like he was in a Humphrey Bogart movie there.

Disembarking at Duvalier Airport,
Seeking transportation to town.
As the purple ink dried on his passport
He could still feel the eyes look around.

“Monsieur, ou est le casino?”,
He spoke to the cabbie and smiled.
The driver replied “Vieux ou noveaux?”
As he motioned the dark man inside.

Business in Aruba concluded
He now had a little money to spend.
That's how I came to meet my African friend.

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Ah, the Caribbean. So many mysteries. Like which syllable gets the accent, the RIB or the BE? And which islands have the gentlest breezes? The bluest waters? The friendliest natives? Should I cruise via Royal Caribbean or take more of a DIY approach?

Jimmy knows. He became fascinated by the history of the Caribbean while a history major at the University of Southern Mississippi. He’s traveled the Caribbean for years, by boat and seaplane. The various islands are the subjects of numerous songs, and receive tangential mention on even more. To sum it up, In “Migration” (on the album "A1A") he claims, “Got a Caribbean soul I can barely control.” So what’s his take on it all? And what’s in it for you?

PUERTO RICO

She was down In Puerto Rico
Doing a scientist.
True, he was no geek though
She was taken with his kiss.

(From “Desdemona's Building A Rocket Ship”, on the album “Banana Wind”)

Yes, Puerto Rico has plenty of action. This U.S. Commonwealth (no passport needed; U.S. dollars are the local currency) consists of a main island and various smaller islands.

On the main island, San Juan is the largest city. The most picturesque neighborhood, Old San Juan, has cobblestone streets and buildings daing back 100 years or more. Once a walled city, Old San Juan retains much of the original massive walls as well as two forts from the 16th and 17th centuries.

For something a little less urban, head out of town to the El Yunque National Rain Forest, with its miles of hiking trails, or Río Camuy Cave Park, 268 acres of subterranean caverns carved out more than a million years ago.

Puerto Rico’s outlying islands are Vieques and Culebra to the east and Mona and Monito to the west. All are diving destinations. In fact, according to Scuba Diving Magazine, Puerto Rico is one of the best-kept secrets in diving. Mona and Monito Islands are known as the Galapagos of the Caribbean and are home to endangered marine turtles, sea birds and occasional migratory marine mammals. Vieques, with its bioluminescent waters, is great for night swims. And Culebra is a capital of eco-tourism, with its National Wildlife Refuge and Canal de Luis Peña Nature Reserve. That island’s Flamenco Beach is one of the top beaches in the world.

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Like many who have spent time in the City of Light, Jimmy can sound wistful when he refers to it: “I think about Paris when I’m high on red wine; I wish I could jump on a plane,” he sings.. Even a single visit to Paris can give a traveler a proprietary feeling, the sense that here is a place where I can feel in touch with history, beauty and my own emotions, all suddenly more vivid. The memory of time spent in Paris can inspire physical longing for a return to that heightened awareness.

Jimmy’s most detailed portrait of Paris comes in the song “Quietly Making Noise” (on the album “Fruitcakes”). Traveling alone, he takes in the sights and sounds of the subway and night spots:

Down in the Metro I feel the world start to multiply.
Bastille, rubber wheels, spiked heels, subterranean lullaby.

and:

Following the beat, I found myself in this patois spot.
Outside a blizzard was blowing, but inside the joint was hot.
Zouk songs, rubber thongs, sing-a-longs.

At the end of the song he sums up what draws him back repeatedly:

Singers and writers and poets
Have flocked here for centuries.
The City of Light is built upon mountains of memories:
Baritone saxophone, monotones.

Then there’s Paris when you’re not alone and the city brings out the lover in you. In “I Wish Lunch Could Last Forever” (on the album “Off to See the Lizard”), Jimmy describes a “covert rendezvous” that begins with a kiss and ends with “cafe au lait beneath the Paris moon.” (A true Parisian would be drinking espresso at that hour, but never mind.) In between are Parisian details like the smell of fish on the grill and walking “in time to the cathedral bell.” And in “Distantly in Love” (on the album “One Particular Harbour”), he’s alone but trying to change that situation:

Tried to phone from Paris thinking
Things could be arranged.
Me and you would rendezvous
But I found your number changed.

In the song “He Went to Paris” (on the album “A White Sport Coat & A Pink Crustacean”), Jimmy tells the story of an old man, now living in the islands, fishing, drinking and writing his memoirs. In his youth, he had turned to Paris to widen his horizons:

He went to Paris looking for answers
To questions that bothered him so.
He was impressive, young and aggressive,
Saving the world on his own.
But the warm summer breezes,
The French wines and cheeses
Put his ambitions at bay.

Paris can do that to you. The cafés beckon with a siren’s song, making you feel you’re doing what you should be, even when you’re only sucking down caffeine, people-watching and considering taking up smoking. Before you know it, you’ve extended your visit a couple of times and Key West is a distant memory.

Blame it on the Champs Elysees
Blame it on a tune
Blame it on the stroke of Monet
But you can’t escape the moon

(From “A Frenchman for the Night” on the album “Fruitcakes”)

Moonlight over the Champs Elysees. Ah, just imagine it. And start pricing airfares.

Your Own Personal Paris

If you want to walk in the footsteps of Oscar Wilde and Jimmy Buffett, Paris works any time of the year. In the winter when they have New Year’s fireworks over the Eiffel Tower and install an ice skating rink in front of Town Hall. In the spring when you can wander through the Bois de Boulogne and experience that trademark Paris beauty. In the summer, with the rest of the tourists, when a beach is set up along the Right Bank of the Seine. And in the fall, the romance of umbrellas and vin nouveau.

Any time of year you have the non-seasonal reasons to visit Paris: the restaurants, museums, architecture, public spaces, stores, even the French themselves. (Yes, despite their reputation as tourist-hating snobs, the French can be warm and helpful--as long as you put in a little effort. Speaking French to them doesn’t hurt.) A few sights you won’t want to miss:

The Louvre. Duh. From Mona (Lisa, that is) to the Winged Victory (aka Nike) to the Da Vinci Code tie-in tours, this one has it all. Take a walk in the Tuileries gardens afterwards.

Centre Pompidou. Almost as comprehensive on the modern front as the Louvre is on every other front. Don’t miss the Agam room­, and the restaurant, Georges.

Musee D’Orsay. Where all the best Impressionists are found.

Eiffel Tower. A great restaurant, the Jules Verne, is about halfway up.

Notre Dame de Paris. If you visit only one church, this is the one.

Oh, let’s face it. It doesn’t matter what you do. You’re in Paris! Wear a beret. Soak it up. Hum a Buffett song. Walk for miles, wandering into cafes and chic shops. Ride the Metro, which is easy to navigate. Take a boat ride along the Seine. Alone or with the love of your life ­ or something in between ­ you won’t be disappointed.

Travis McGee's still in Cedar Key
That's what John MacDonald said.
My rendezvous so long overdue
With all of the things I've sung and I've read
They still apply to me, they all make sense in time.

So, who is Travis McGee? He's the main character in a 21 book series published between 1964 and 1985 by American mystery writer John D. MacDonald. One of Buffett's favorite authors, "John Mac D" would reappear seven years later in "Prince of Tides" (on the album "Hot Water"):

Paperback novels make young girls dream and
Judy's spending quieter days in the stream
With Goodman, Giovinno, and John Mac D
They were such good friends to me.

If you want to see why Jimmy's such a fan of McGee and MacDonald, here's the Travis McGee series in its entirety:

1. The Deep Blue Good-by (May 1964)
2. Nightmare in Pink (May 1964)
3. A Purple Place for Dying (June 1964)
4. The Quick Red Fox (October 1964)
5. A Deadly Shade of Gold (February 1965)
6. Bright Orange for the Shroud (September 1965)
7. Darker Than Amber (June 1966)
8. One Fearful Yellow Eye (January 1967)
9. Pale Gray for Guilt (February 1968)
10. The Girl in the Plain Brown Wrapper (January 1969)
11. Dress Her in Indigo (September 1969)
12. The Long Lavender Look (October 1970)
13. A Tan and Sandy Silence (January 1972)
14. The Scarlet Ruse (July 1973)
15. The Turquoise Lament (June 1974)
16. The Dreadful Lemon Sky (September 1975)
17. The Empty Copper Sea (January 1978)
18. The Green Ripper (June 1980)
19. Free Fall in Crimson (December 1981)
20. Cinnamon Skin (June 1982)
21. The Lonely Silver Rain (August 1985)

Well the coffee is strong
At the Café Du Monde,
And the donuts are too hot to touch.
But just like a fool,
When those sweet goodies cool,
I ate 'til I ate way too much.

The donuts of which Jimmy sings are not really donuts, but actually beignets (pronounced "ben-yay"), a popular powdered sugar covered diamond-shaped somewhat puffy pastry that is a tradition in the French Quarter of New Orleans. If you make it to Café Du Monde, forget about your diet and order a plate of beignets with your Café Au Lait. Just remember not to inhale when you take a bite of a beignet, or else you'll choke on the powdered sugar that's just piled on top.