ALTA GRACIA, Argentina - Fidel and Hugo went on a pilgrimage Saturday to
Che's house.
In an emotional journey, Cuban President Fidel Castro and Venezuelan ally
Hugo Chavez toured the Argentine boyhood home of Castro's fallen comrade and
legendary guerrilla, Ernesto "Che" Guevara. It was a first visit for both.
"Fidel! Fidel!" and "Hugo! Hugo!" the crowd of 2,000 chanted as the
79-year-old Castro, wearing his trademark green military fatigues, got out of
his limousine. Chavez was right by Castro's side as they entered the house amid
a crush of security agents.
While Castro made no public comment, he smiled broadly and shook hands with
supporters in the crowd. Chavez told reporters the two were delighted by their
tour: "Fidel invited me to come and get to know the house. For me, it's a real
honor being here."
"We feel it! We feel it! Guevara is right with us!" the crowd shouted
Saturday.
Castro first visited Argentina in 1959 after the Cuban revolution and
returned to attend a regional summit Friday that inducted Venezuela into the
Mercosur trade bloc.
Guevara spent most of his childhood in central Argentina, where his family
hoped a mild climate would ease his severe asthma. Guevara's family later moved
to Buenos Aires, where he enrolled in medical school before launching the famous
motorcycle trip around South America that inspired him to give up medicine for
leftist revolution.
He was killed in 1967 while directing a guerrilla movement in Bolivia. His
remains were taken three decades later to Cuba, where they are entombed under a
massive monument.
On Saturday, black-uniformed police with guard dogs kept back the crowd as
bystanders jammed the space outside the green-painted, brick-and-tile middle
class home in Alta Gracia.
The house bore the famous iconic photograph taken in 1960 that shows the
legendary "Che" wearing his classic beret at a jaunty angle. A bronze statue out
front also depicted Guevara as a young boy, and a vintage motorbike inside was
like the one used by Guevara for his cross-South American trip.
The two Latin American leaders also saw memorabilia including Guevara's birth
certificate and hand-written letters.
"I'm sure Fidel will be touched because he knew Che so well," said their
house tour guide, Lauren Gonzalez. She said Cubans are among favorite pilgrims
to the house, but it also draws admirers worldwide because of Guevara's
legendary status.
Castro and Chavez viewed the house with three childhood friends of Guevara's
— Calica Ferrer, Enrique Martin and Ariel Vidoza — and left 90 minutes later
without talking to the press.
Guevara's former home is owned by the city government. Guevara lived in the
house for two stretches, first from 1935-1937 and then again from 1939-43.
The home is typical of many on narrow streets of Alta Gracia, a community 35
miles southwest of Cordoba, where Castro, Chavez and six other Latin American
presidents attended a regional trade summit Friday.
Ana Ledesma, a 50-year-old housewife, said the Castro-Chavez visit had caused
a real fuss in her quiet community.
"The truth is we are all surprised by Castro's visit," she said. "This has
thrown the whole city into a state of shock."
If he had lived today, Guevara would be 78 years old. But his early death in
Bolivia at the hands of that country's army helped transform him into a
larger-than-life figure.
Guevara launched an armed revolt in 1966 to bring communism to Bolivia after
helping lead the 1959 Cuban Revolution that ousted dictator Fulgencio Batista
and thrust Castro into power. He waged a guerrilla insurgency for 13 months in
Bolivia but was captured and executed by the Bolivian army at age 39.
On Friday night, Castro and Chavez, who openly admires the Cuban leader as
his political mentor, rallied thousands in Cordoba against U.S.-backed free
market policies they blame for many of Latin America's woes.
