Just like his arrival, Castro's admirers were present to see him go. The mood. however. was very different as they were sad to see him leave. It was even said that he seemed to have tears in his eyes as he said his goodbyes.

Published Saturday, October 22, 1977

Castro ends his Jamaica visit

President Castro waved goodbye to Jamaica around 4 o’clock yesterday afternoon at the Norman Manley International Airport, Kingston, at the end of his six-day visit.

The president’s car and entourage, escorted by police motorcycle outriders, pulled onto the airport tarmac around 4:40 p.m. Before that, there had been a keen guessing game among the members of the press and airport personnel about which of the four Cuban aircraft on the tarmac the president would board. The agreement was that it was going to be the jet, the only one among the four planes.

But it was not the jet, sitting way out towards the southern end of the tarmac. It was the turboprop Cubana Cu T94 alongside which the president’s car pulled up. As he alighted from the vehicle, many remarked pn how grim the President looked.

He shook hands with members of the Jamaica Defence Force, then with plain clothes security men and the motorcycle outriders. He shook hands with female airport workers who jostled one another for the privilege, laughing excitedly as the big burly bearded Cuban president clasped their hands firmly.

But, during all this, President Castro’s eyes hardly stayed with the people to whom he was saying farewell.

He moved slowly through the crowd of admirers looking sad, his gaze averted. Someone whispered that the president had tears in his eyes.

His eyes were misty and a bit red.

Wearing his usual olive green military uniform, he signed a few autographs before saying farewell with the 'abrazo' to Prime Minister Michael Manley and Minister of State for Information and Culture, the Hon Arnold Bertram, who were at the plane to see him off.

On the waving gallery, a fair-size crowd waved to the Cuban president and others on the tarmac at the side of a red, blue and white Cuban aircraft with the green and yellow propellers.

About 5 p.m., the president, after bidding farewell to all on the tarmac, saluted and, with shoulders hunched, walked up the ramp. At the top, he turned, clasped his hands then turned again abruptly and quickly went inside the plane. The people at the plane side clapped.

Jamaica’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Hon P.J. Patterson, the Cuban Ambassador to Jamaica, Mr Ramon Pez Ferro, Mrs Michael Manley and others, members of the military and police and the diplomatic corps bade President Fidel Castro of Cuba farewell.

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