Ray Oliver is an English sailor who lost his boat, and his home, when he ran aground on a reef in Cuba. His story of mishap and then endless red tape and shady actions by Cuban officials is a sobering one. Check it out on the Cuba Cruising Net website.
An excerpt:
As a lad growing up in Newcastle, England, I read the novels of Ernest Hemingway and imagined traveling the world, with Cuba being one of my dream destinations. After sailing the Atlantic in 2000, and landing in Barbados, I knew that one day I would have to travel north to see Havana for myself. This is the story of that misadventure.
My boat Cymar, an 11-meter Amel Kirk I bought 10 years previously in Port Carmargue, Southern France, carried me across the Atlantic. I cruised the Med with my wife, until she died six years ago. Since then, I have sailed alone most of the time. A 66-year-old yacht master, I have worked for Sunsail in the Solent and Canaries during the summer months, returning to Cymar to winter in the Caribbean.
