Phil Davison gauges the welcome awaiting John Paul in Havana and what Castro and the Catholic leader hope to gain from the papal visit

It's a revolutionary survivor, home to the remains of Che Guevara and ruled by the world's longest-serving political leader. Simon Calder visits Cuba

A good cigar is a celestial indulgence rarely seen. Squeezed out by economic sanity and olfactory puritanism it has become a lost pleasure. But in London's West End Nicole Veash sniffs something in the air: the rich perfume of Havana.

Thousands of Cubans stood in silent tribute to welcome the remains of Ernesto "Che" Guevara to Santa Clara, the city where the legendary leftist guerrilla will finally be laid to rest. The remains of Guevara, and six of his former comrades-in-arms who died with him trying to spark a revolution in Bolivia 30 years ago, were brought from Havana in a slow military cortege.

Cubans pay tribute to Che

Once Fidel Castro goes, the American blockades will come down, and Cuba's unique character will vanish forever. Tony Kelly visits before it's too late

Cuba is investigating whether disgruntled military officers, political dissidents or Miami-based infiltrators were behind the bombing of three Havana hotels on Thursday in which an Italian businessman was killed, as well as the later blast at a well-known tourist restaurant.

How do you smoke the finest cigars? To separate puff from bluff, John Windsor fires up in a London shop dedicated to chic cheroots

Simon Calder visits Ernesto Guevara's eventual resting-place

For the people of Cuba,today is the crucial date in the revolutionary calendar, marking Castro's first assault on the Batista regime. But for the Cubans on Calle Ocho in Florida, it's just another hazy day spent smoking, not toasting, writes Simo n Calder You know how smoking has virtually been eradicated from public places in the United States? Well, there is still one pocket-sized park where this morning, as usual, a heavy blue haze will rise through the muggy Miami air and plod lazily along South West Eighth Street.

With an improved shark cage and a better idea of what she faces, the 22-year-old Australian distance swimmer Susie Maroney said at the weekend she is ready to make a second try at swimming from Cuba to the United States.

It would be quite wrong to dig about in Peter Mandelson's past, so let's do it.

Anybody wanting to get into summer early should head for London's Jazz Cafe on Monday, when the Afro-Cuban All Stars bring their exuberant brand of big-band jazz to town. Latin-flavoured music has been in vogue before - trumpet great Dizzy Gillespie was an aficionado, while more recently Panama's Ruben Blades has cut a swathe through the mainstream - but there is nothing like the intensity and sheer enjoyment displayed by the four generations of the island's musicians who make up the All-Stars. The famously eclectic guitarist Ry Cooder, who appears on one track of their recently released World Circuit album A Toda Cuba Le Gusta (No 1 in the World Music chart), has labelled them "the greatest musicians on the planet today". But don't take his word for it. Teenage percussionists and more aged singers and brass players alike display a technical virtuosity that's mixed with genuine soul.

Havana, once home to late-night bars and dollar-friendly brothels, has recaptured its musical roots.