"There have been nothing but obstacles and difficulties of all kinds," Castro said
                  as four classmates, three parents and Elian's doctor left Havana on Thursday, en
                  route to visit Elian. Castro wants visas granted to 31 Cubans.

                  The 6-year-old is staying at Wye River Plantation in Maryland with his father,
                  Juan Miguel Gonzalez. The site is 70 miles from Washington, D.C. --
                  outside the 25-mile travel limit imposed on Cuban diplomats.

                  Castro said Cuban physician Caridad Ponce de Leon was not allowed to treat the boy in
                  Maryland. Medications she carried were confiscated by U.S. Customs agents, according
                  to Cuban state television. U.S. officials said the physician is not licensed in Maryland.

                  "They have said that we want to move Cardenas (where Elian lived in Cuba) to the United States,"
                  Castro said.

                  Castro said that because visiting classmates were limited to 15-day visas, the visits would be
                  rotated, preventing a stable, school-like environment.

                  Castro's complaints came as the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta put off the father's
                  request to remove Elian's great-uncle in Miami from the case, and denied a request by the boy's
                  Miami relatives to visit him.

                  Catching up with schoolmates

                  On Friday, Elian and his family remained at Carmichael Farm, a secluded private residence
                  near the Wye River Plantation in Maryland.

                  Elian's former kindergarten teacher and a cousin, who flew to Washington Wednesday, had been
                  expected to visit him Thursday. The Cuban Interests Section would not comment on whether
                  that reunion had taken place.

                  The teacher, Agueda Fleitas, said she was bringing "a whole series of materials" so that Elian
                  could catch up with schoolmates. "He's behind," she said. "We are going well-prepared to advance
                  as much as possible."

                  Father gets limited role in appeal

                  Juan Gonzalez had asked the court to name him as sole representative to speak on behalf of the
                  6-year-old boy in all legal matters and to substitute him for the great-uncle, Lazaro Gonzalez .

                  "We grant the motion to intervene, but the motion to remove and to substitute will be carried with
                  the case," the appeals court said in its ruling.

                  "Although we permit Juan Miguel Gonzalez to intervene in this appeal, we recognize that his
                  belated intervention might prejudice the present parties' efforts to prepare for argument and to
                  otherwise prosecute this appeal."

                  The court gave Juan Gonzalez until 4 p.m. Monday to file a brief. A hearing on the appeal is
                  scheduled for May 11 in Atlanta.

                  Earlier, the same court handed a victory to the government, rejecting a motion by the Miami
                  relatives that an independent guardian be appointed for Elian Gonzalez.

                  In addition, the court turned down the Miami family's request for "regular access" to the
                  6-year-old for family members and their specialists, including attorneys, physicians and
                  psychiatrist.

                  The appeals court also reaffirmed and expanded a previous order that Elian Gonzalez
                  may not leave the United States by adding the boy may not be taken to a place which
                  is covered by diplomatic immunity.

                  The three-judge panel did accept a government offer to have a psychiatrist and a
                  social worker monitor Elian and report every two weeks to the appeals court.

                  Elian was one of three survivors of a shipwrecked immigration attempt that took
                  the life of his mother and 10 other people. He was rescued from the Atlantic
                  Ocean off the coast of Florida last November 25 and placed in the temporary
                  custody of Lazaro Gonzalez.