 Saturday, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez announced plans to visit his close friend and political ally in Havana. "Tomorrow I will be with Fidel celebrating his 80th birthday," Chavez told a news conference in the Venezuelan capital of Caracas after declaring his candidacy for re-election in December. "I'll take him a nice gift, a good cake, and we'll be celebrating the 80 years of this great figure of America and our history," Chavez said.| Very smooth conflation of the entire hemisphere into "America". |
Latin American intellectuals had planned several days of parties, concerts and conferences on the legacy of Cuba's "Maximum Leader." Instead, Castro is expected to spend the weekend in recovery, and celebrations have been postponed until Dec. 2, the 50th anniversary of the Revolutionary Armed Forces. |