Diario las Américas Newspaper, May 2, 1954, Page 26

: —_ PAG 14 MINERALS $ 16 suo ———— : INTERNATIONAL TRADE According to preliminary figures, Venezuelan ocean freight imports for the first 9 months of 1953 were valued at 1,818,101,944 bolivares, up slightly from the 1,790,- 964,878 bolivares recorded in the comparable period of 1952. In the first 9 months of 1953, imports from the Unit- ed States totaled -1,208,961,800 bolivares, or 66.5 per cent of the total, compared with 1,231,121,452, or 68.7 per cent, for the like period of the preceding year. Venezuelan ocean freight exports for the first 9 months of 1953 totaled 3,377,201,727 holivares, compared with 3,570,380,265 bolivares in the first 9 months of 1952. The exportation of crude petroleum and refined products re- mained the dominant force in the overall export situation, and the decline in total export value in the 1953 period re- flected the overall drop in those items. GENERAL BUSINESS CONDITIONS Venezuela in 1953 had its most prosperous year, and more people had more possessions and enjoyed a higher standard of living than at any other time in the country’s history. The volume of wholesale and retail trade was good and the year witnessed increased industrial and agricultural production and notable plant expansion. There was no shortage of merchandise. Owing to the continued increase in the number of re- tail outlets, competition was extremely keen. The high velume of retail trade was sustained by the granting of extremely liberal credit terms. As a result, the demand fer money was strong and interest rates were firm. Bank, insurance, and electrical energy share prices were at rec- ord highs. ‘ OUR COVER: Miss Irene Reineke, a deputy clerk in the Dade County Regis- trars office, checks the infor- mation of some of the many thousands ef voters who will take part in the forthcoming elections. HEMISFERIO | TONY’S TALKING TOURS By ANTONIO RUIZ _LATINS IN THE UNITED STATES DON JULIO, as his friends affectionately call him, is Julio Tudela, who with his pretty wife, Jean, has built one of the most charming places in the Miami area. And when we say they have built, it means just that, because in every wall, in every little corner of the place, the touch of their artistic hand is to be seen. The place is Don Julio’s Adobe House and Patio Restaurant, located in the commercial section of N. B. 20 th. Street, near Second Avenue, among unsightly loft- building, warehouses and similar structures, like a beautiful flower growing in a hidden corner of a rocky wilderness. As you go in, you have to pass through a large patio, shaded with beautiful, big trees, a well-kept lawn, a fish-pond and, on one side of the building, a beautiful Grotto of Nuestra Senora de la Caridad (Our Lady of Charity). Next to it is a box, in which you can deposit a few coins for Father Coyle’s Special Fund for the Poor. This gives you the first hint that you are in a really unusual place, and prepares you for the calm, sooth- ing atmosphere you are about to find inside. The Adobe House is a perfectyreplica of the adobe houses built by the Spaniards during the Colonial period, scores of which still stand for the delight of the tourists in cities and small towns of Venezuela and Colombia, Cuba and Mexico, or any other Latin American country. It has large windows, with the charming balusters or cross-bars of oddly turned wood, as were used by the Spaniards in Latin America, before they introduced the iron grates for the protection of windows... Inside, the walls are painted with soft colors, adorned with beautiful decorations by Jean, who proves to be quite an artist. Sarapes, a Mexican hat, paintings by Latin artists, a jai alai cesta, and even a colorful poster advertising a bulf- ight in Mexico, are casually scattered all over the place, giving it an artistic, as well as a bohemian atmosphere. In the back corner of the dining room, a couple of steps above the floor level, is the Music Room, which has, painted in the main wall, the flags of all the countries of the Pan American Union. Under them, there is a huge map, showing North, Central and South America, as well as the Antilles. On the other walls hang dozens of pictures of artists and show people, friends of the owners, all of them dedicated with warm, friendly feelings and good wishes. In one corner of this room stands an organ, in which Melody Miller, a totally blind lady, plays, in the most soothing and relaxing manner, old favorites like “Cielito Lindo”, “Ojos Verdes’, or any other American or Latin American tunes at your request... My knowledge of the culinary art is so limited, that I do not venture even to try to describe the delicious dishes you can get at Don Julio’s. All I can say is that never have I tasted any better. I have been in Spanish and Latin American restaurants in New York, Los Angeles, New Orleans and other American cities, and I believe that Don Julio’s is among the best. I find it somewhat similar to the famous Jai Alai Restaurant in New York. Those who visited Valentin Aguirre’s place in The Village will know what I mean. The prices? — Just to fit anybody’s purse: Complete dinners from $1.50 to $2.25. Is there anyth- ing more reazonable?... But‘ the colorful and romantie atmosphere, the beautiful surroundings, the excellent food, and the convenient price, would be nothing without the friendly greetings, the warm hospitality of Don Julio and his charming Jean. Even on your very first visit they make you feel completely at home. They claim that they have no customers, only friends. Perhaps that is the reason why they have a selected clientele of writers, artists, newspapermen, show people, and just plain lovers of the good Latin American things. On the back of the chairs you can see, artistically painted, the names of many famous persons, who have become “parroquianos” (steady customers)..-. Under the name The Tuddels—Julio and Jean Tudell, they were dancing partners for 22 years, performing in the Casino de La Habana and Sans Souci, in Havana; El Patio, in Mexico City, and most of the best night-clubs in the United States. They also danced far dozens of movies made in Mexico and Hollywood. Finally, tired of so much traveling and wandering, they decided te settle down, and-selected Miami as the site for their Adobe House, where they are always ready to greet their old friends, besides making new ones every day. fee ok DESI ARNAZ is to the people of Santiago de Cuba, his home town, the traditional local boy who made good in far- off lands. The Municipal Council, in special session, has ap- proved a motion’to declare Desi A Favorite Son of the City of Santiago de Cuba. As was to be expected, the motion was carried by unanimous vote, as was a second one, declaring Lucile Ball, his wife, Adoptive Daughter of Santiago, “in recognition of their good work in behalf of Cuba during their programs over the radio and television.” If anybody deserves all the credit for success and all the honors anybody can bestow upon them, the charming couple certainly are it... As a young musician and composer, Desi struggled with all his heart and strength to reach success, while his pretty wife was engaged in a similar struggle of her own. Separated, sometimes for several months, by their respective careers they were several times about ready to give up, but a great love and an even greater courage prompted them to continue - the struggle, until finally they got their reward in the form of a success greater than anything they had dreamed of, reaching the peak as Number One Entertainers of television, “working together, and raising a family, which was their fondest dream. It couldn’t happen to a: nicer couple!! DOMINGO, 2 DE MAYO DE 1954