The quasi-farcical Church of Maradona, a group of like-minded Argentines who believe in Diego Maradona as the saviour of Argentine football (soccer) held a dual celebration recently: their idol turned 48 and was named head coach of the Argentina national team last week. The tongue-ín-cheek church celebrates thier idol’s birthday every year as well as June 22, the anniversary of the legendary 1986 “hand of God” goal against England. Maradona himself even phoned his “followers” during their festivities  – about 300 turned out – to promise that the national team would shine under his direction.

For the seventeenth straight year, the United Nations has overwhelminghly passed a resolution urging the United States to end its economic embargo of Cuba, established in 1962. A US spokesman said that as long as Cuba is not democratic and continues repression, the embargo will stand. In recent years, world opinion has changed to increasingly favor Cuba, which suffers greatly from the economic embargo which restricts imports and exports between the two countries in addition to tourism. Hopefully, American tourists will soon be free to visit this wonderful Caribbean nation once more.

At the tip of Baja California is a laid-back beach paradise simply known to locals as “Cabo.” Ready to hit the beach? Viva Travel Guides has the information you need about Cabo San Lucas.

That’s right! The long-awaited Viva Colombia book is finally ready. Don’t believe me? Check out the press release. The best thing about the book is that it’s comprehensive and all new: other guidebooks have been relying on old Colombia information for a while now. Why? I don’t really know, maybe their writers didn’t want to go to a “dangerous” place. Believe me, this is THE book to have if you’re visiting Colombia. You can buy it here or at Amazon or the retailer of your choice!

On Tuesday, Bolivia’s Congress approved a new constitution, which will be voted on by the people of Bolivia in January. Thousands of indigenous peasants had marched on the capital and were demonstrating in the streets when they heard the good news. The approval is seen as a victory for President Evo Morales, who has staked his political career on the new constitution. It still rmeains to be seen if rebellious lowland eastern provinces will obey the new constitution if and when it is approved.

The border city of Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, is going through an unprecedented police crisis. In recent months, drug gangs have ratcheted up their battles against the police, resulting in the deaths of several honest officers. The other honest ones, fearing for their lives, resigned, leaving only those crooked enough to have nothing to fear from the drug gangs. This past weekend, the city weeded out some 334 cops for having probable ties to drug gangs. Another 175 who have admitted to personal drug use will be allowed to remain. The city is recruiting new officers all over the country and hopes to restore order soon. In the meanwhile, the army has been patrolling the streets as part of President Calderon’s crackdown on organized crime.

Just to let you all know…Chile set its clocks ahead last week in observance of daylight savings time, and will set them back again on the second Sunday in April.

Chilean President Michelle Bachelet has a message for whales: weclome. All of Chile’s territorial waters have been declared a whaling-free zone. Whales are now fully protected from scientific and commerical hunting. The last Chilean whalers packed up their harpoons in the 1970′s, so the move was a symbolic one, meant to reflect Chile’s commitment to the environment. Chile joins a number of Latin American nations which have banned whaling, including Mexico, Argentina and Brazil.

Ethnic native Colombians from the Nasa tribe have closed the road between Cali and Popayan in protest of government economic policies that they claim have damaged their communities over recent years. Closing major roads is a time-honored South American tradition intended to draw attention to any given cause. Riot police clashed with the protesters, causing several injuries and possibly one death as well. If you’re traveling around southewestern Colombia in the next few days, you’ll want to keep tuned to this story.

While in Chile, be sure to look for the “Guía Turismo Joven” put out annually by the Chilean Ministry of tourism: it’s available at all of their offices. This is an extremely helpful guide, especially for the cash-starved backpacker set. It lists hotels, restaurants and tour agencies. Many of the businesses listed within offer a discount if you’re under 30 and show them the book. Until we here at Viva get our own Chile book completed, this is a good one to have.