By LUISA YANEZ AND ELAINE DE VALLE

  Although exiles throughout Miami observed Cuba's centennial with patriotic tributes, emotional renderings of the national anthem and flag unfurlings, the
  pomp and circumstance was carried out with heavy hearts.

  Marking the 100th anniversary of the end of Spanish rule on the island nation is bittersweet, many say, as long as Fidel Castro is celebrating his 43rd
  year in power. Cuba, the exiles say, is again under oppression.

  ''We are really commemorating what was interrupted in 1959 and hope to reclaim one day,'' said Rosa Leonor Whitmarsh, president of the centennial
  organizing committee. A revolution that year swept Castro into power.

  On Monday, the Cuban flag was even more visible than usual, cries of ¡Viva Cuba Libre! rang through the city and freshly pressed guayaberas were the
  style of the day.

  ''I love my country, that's why I'm here today,'' said Clara Mirabel, tears slipping down her cheeks as she sang the Cuban national anthem at an event in
  Little Havana. ``Unfortunately, Cuba is not free.''

  The most ambitious tribute -- the carrying on horseback of the Centennial Torch from Key West to Miami -- wound through downtown Miami, headed for
  exile strongholds such as the Freedom Tower, the Bay of Pigs monument and a Little Havana cemetery where three former Cuban presidents are buried.

  Carrying the torch on the lead horse was Wenceslao ''Lao'' Aguilera, the great-grandson of Francisco Vicente Aguilera, a hero from one of Cuba's battles
  with Spain. His face was once on the Cuban $100 bill.

  `PROUD DAY'

  ''It's a proud day for me to take part in this celebration in the memory of my great-grandfather,'' said Wenceslao Aguilera, who is also the head of
  Caballeria Mambiza, a group of horseback riders who make appearances at patriotic events.

  The nine horsemen in Cuban cowboy attire carried a banner honoring Cuba's six provinces in front of the Torch of Friendship along Biscayne Boulevard.

  In opening remarks, Rafael Peñalver, another of the centennial organizers, set the tone.

  ''We are really just commemorating the 100th anniversary; the real celebration comes when Cuba is free again,'' Peñalver said.

  The next stop was the Freedom Tower a block north on Biscayne Boulevard, once a processing center for exiles who arrived here starting in the early
  1960s.

  On Monday, a giant Cuban flag was draped down the side of the building.

  Attendees stood on the steps of the tower, hands of their hearts, singing the Cuban national anthem.

  Across from the tower, at the AmericanAirlines Arena, the horsemen were greeted by a delegation from the Cuban American National Foundation, the
  influential exile lobby group which is renovating the tower.

  Among those accepting the passing of the torch was the widow of the late Cuban exile leader Jorge Mas Canosa.

  ''For my husband, it would have been a special day to celebrate the republic of Cuba's 100th anniversary. I'm here in his memory to mark that dark period
  in Cuban history,'' said Irma Santos de Mas.

  The horsemen's stops on Monday also included the Miami-Dade government center, where Miami-Dade Mayor Alex Penelas greeted the group, the Bay of
  Pigs monument on Southwest Eighth Street and 13th Avenue, and Woodlawn Memorial Cemetery at 3260 SW Eighth St.

  Three former presidents are buried at Woodlawn: Gerardo Machado, who died in 1939 on a Miami Beach operating table after being deposed in 1933;
  Carlos Prio Socarras, who led the country from 1948 to 1952, and shot himself in Miami Beach in 1977; and Carlos Hevia, who spent one day as leader in
  1933 before the ruling junta changed its mind.

  The next stop was in Coral Gables at the newly dedicated Liberty Park off Ponce de Leon Boulevard, home to a bust of Cuban war patriot José Martí.

  After winding through the city, arrived at La Ermita De Caridad -- the shrine to Our Lady of Charity -- on Biscayne Bay at 8 p.m. for the closing of the day's
  ceremonies.

  NOSTALGIA

  About 1,000 exiles came to the shrine of Cuba's patroness to mark the centennial with a mixture of nostalgia, sadness and hope.

  ''I would like to have celebrated in Cuba,'' said Nicolas Alvarez, who left his family behind on the island two decades ago, outside the shrine in Miami's
  Coconut Grove. ``I wish that the independence won in 1902 could be celebrated by all Cubans.''

  The ceremony at La Ermita, which featured a candlelit vigil near the waters of Biscayne Bay, drew even those who have grown up with only the memories
  and stories of Cuba.

  Best friends Isabel Moreira and Iris Moreno, both 20, were among the young faces at La Ermita on Monday.

  ''Our parents have brought us up with pride for their country that was taken away from them,'' said Moreira. ``So anything we can do to support them,
  we do.''

  Staff writer Tere Figueras contributed to this report.