Attendees included Carnival's Gus Antorcha, evp guest shipboard operations, representatives of Port Tampa Bay, Ybor City Museum Society and invited guests.
Today’s voyage marks the first of a dozen four- and five-day cruises, each with a day and overnight call at Havana. Five-day voyages add a stop in Cozumel or Key West.
Miami and Tampa Cuban cultures were represented in the 'World’s Largest Cuban Sandwich at Sea.' The 10-foot sandwich contained the traditional ingredients: a light white bread, slice ham (five pounds), marinated and roasted pork (50 pounds), Swiss cheese (six pounds) and dill pickles, mustard and mayonnaise (one gallon each).
There's a long-standing rivalry between Tampa and Miami over which claims the most authentic Cuban sandwich. Tampa’s Cuban community predates Miami’s and in Tampa they include one additional ingredient—Genoa salami—as a salute to the city’s large Italian population.
The 'World’s Largest Cuban Sandwich at Sea' was created to be half Miami-style and half Tampa-style with the addition of eight pounds of Genoa salami.
'Carnival is the only cruise line with a year-round ship in Tampa and we have a long-standing partnership with the local community, so it is exciting that we are inaugurating our cruises featuring Havana from this city with its very large Cuban population and strong affinity for Cuban culture,' Antorcha said. Carnival is seeing 'tremendous demand for these cruises,' he added, from consumers and travel agents who are sharing this new option with their clients.
Paul Anderson, president and ceo, Port Tampa Bay, called Carnival’s commitment to serving the market for nearly a quarter of a century 'a testament to the strong support they receive from our community.' In return, he added, the impact of Tampa's operation is substantial considering a single call from an average size cruise ship generates more than $350,000 in direct economic contribution.
Today’s event also included the $25,000 donation to the Ybor City Museum Society, which is celebrating its 35th anniversary in 2017. This nonprofit organization's mission is preserving, promoting and celebrating the cultural heritage of Ybor City and supporting the Ybor City Museum State Park.
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