The 72-year-old's son, Sergio, lives in Miami and had not been eligible for a trip to Cuba until next year.

His request for an emergency visa was pending in March when his father passed away.

"What hurts me most is that my husband died just a little while ago without seeing him," Sierra stammered, tears welling in her eyes. "If only Obama had made this decision sooner."

Word that President Barack Obama had loosened restrictions on family travel and remittances - among other measures softening US sanctions against the communist-run country - elicited cheers and a few tears in Havana on Monday.

Bush admin regulations

Under the Bush administration rules, Cuban-Americans were eligible to travel here only every three years and send up to US$300 to relatives every three months.

Other steps taken Monday include expanding the things allowed in gift parcels sent to Cuba, such as clothes, personal hygiene items, seeds, fishing gear and other personal necessities.

The administration also will begin issuing licences to allow telecommunications and other companies to provide cellphone, television and radio service to people on the island, and to allow Americans to pay for such services for their relatives there.

Cuban gov't participation

This step requires the participation of the Cuban government, as companies can't operate there without its approval.

"The president would like to see greater freedom for the Cuban people. There are actions that he can and has taken today to open up the flow of information to provide some important steps to help that," said presidential spokesman Robert Gibbs.

Former president Fidel Castro responded Monday by calling on Obama to lift the US trade embargo against Cuba.

Writing in a column published on the website of Granma, the official newspaper of the Cuban Communist Party, Castro said that in announcing the easing of restrictions "not a word was said about the blockade, which is the cruelest of measures".

"The conditions are in place for Obama to use his talent in a constructive policy that ends something that has failed for nearly half a century," Castro wrote.

Many Cubans are happy that relatives in America will now be able to come whenever they want, stay as long as they want and send as much cash home as they can. About 1.5 million Americans have relatives in Cuba, which turned to communist rule after Fidel Castro seized control in 1959.

But while analysts say the move could usher in a new era of openness between the two countries, few here think it will mean the end of Washington's trade embargo, which has choked off nearly all US trade with the island for 47 years and counting.

"I'm not hoping for much more from Obama," said 43-year-old office worker Layna Rodriguez. "I don't know that he can do much more since to him, the important thing is what the Americans in his country do."

No money to travel

Jose Pilar Ramos, a 20-something looking for work in the Old Havana tourist district, said his cousin in Miami does not have enough money to visit Cuba - regardless of what US law now allows.

"Obama can do what he wants, but the problem is here. People don't want to work for $4 a week, even if they get more money from family members over there," he said, nodding toward the waters of the Florida Straits, which lap at the Havana coastline.

Nearly all Cubans work for the government, earning an average of 414 pesos - just $19.70 - a month.

Ramos said he lost his state job after trying to flee Cuba three times by small boat, most recently in February when he was picked up on the high seas by the US Coast Guard and sent home.

For many, the moves are only a beginning. Alberto Sal, a 68-year-old retiree, said he had high hopes when Obama was elected but is still waiting for significant action.

For instance, the president said nothing Monday about bipartisan measures in both houses of Congress that would effectively allow all Americans to travel to Cuba.

"He should do more and lift travel restrictions for all Americans," Sal said. "Until he does that, I don't think he's doing much."

- AP