Artimus Keiffer recently visited Cuba for his 11th visit with the humanitarian group St. Augustine/Baracoa Friendship Association. The group has assisted its sister city, the first colonial settlement in the Americas, for about five years. It also completed oral histories and donated wheel chairs, crutches and PET (personal energy transport) vehicles to amputees in the city. Keiffer visited Baracoa for the first time, the place where Columbus made contact with the Taino in 1492. He also went to Santiago, where he has several friends in the medical school. He passed Gitmo (U.S. Naval Base) on the way and was intrigued with the security lighting around the perimeter. "It lit up the whole night sky...it was annoying," he said.

Annie Aird's trip to Cuba was like sending a five year old to the candy store. The colors, doorways , stucco walls, types of transportion and most of all the wonderfully beautiful, friendly, enterprising Cubans are subjects that express love and joy. So put on a Cuban CD and browse. Here's hoping you enjoy your vicarious trip to Cuba, I have tried to capture the spell this island paradise casts on you.

It is wonderful to have you here - welcome! As you weave your way throughout this site, you are invited to read both Reflections and Letters to enhance your experience:

Reflections accompany the images, inviting you to partake in the moment when I took each shot.

Yet, just a portion of the full story is communicated through these photographs. It is within the mind's eye where the most poignant of memories reside. To entertain armchair travelers and adventure aficionados alike, I have also included excerpts from Letters - composed in memory of my dear departed mother, Patricia Anne Taylor Scarlett.

With over 15 years experience, Ann Summa specializes in assignment, editorial, corporate, reportage and stock photography. Her editorial clients include: Fortune, People, Weekly, Forbes, Time, ESPN Magazine, Wired, Garden Design, the New York Times, Entertainment Weekly, Details, Parenting, and others.

Her corporate clients include: The Macy Foundation, the Ford Foundation, Anthony Industries, Security Pacific Bank, Pacific Care, Houghton-Mifflin, William Morrow & Company, MacMillan Publishing, and others.