Oh! Those Cuban Cars

One cannot mention Cuba without talking about the old cars, American classics that make collectors drool. These are left over from the glory days of the late 1940's until the revolution that brought Fidel Castro to power in 1959. One taxi driver told me he didn't trust them because the body might be Chevrolet, the frame Dodge, and the engine could be from a Lada. I paid close attention and, even with my limited knowledge of cars, I sometimes couldn't tell what they actually were.Thus I declare the Cubans to be masters of the cutting torch. I loved to stand on the curb in the Capitol Plaza with my camera, shoot the cars and watch the people.

If one is lucky enough to own a car in Cuba there is money to be made as a taxi. Spiffy convertibles, colorful and carefully restored, offer rides to tourists with big bucks. Many of the others taxi the locals. They are designated by a white sign on the windshield that simply says 'taxi'. A person stands on the street, sticks an arm out, the taxi stops and the hopeful rider gives a location. If the driver is going that way the rider piles in with the other passengers and off they go. If not, the taxi pulls away and the person needing a ride flags another. The more passengers a taxi can fit, the more money he makes. If one owns a station wagon or van he is fortunate indeed. If not,why not make one? These are what I like to call 'cutting torch taxis'

Definitely tourist rides.

This vehicle is vintage Chevy up fron and Toyota van in back.

For those who prefer their rides a little on the cute side there are coco-taxis. I did not see many of these in transit.

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