Cars and Cuba: A detailed list of links
(Updated: Nov. 20, 2011 )
Blogspot’s doohickey for recommending links doesn’t permit annotation, so here’s a more detailed list of sites about Cuba’s cars and related topics. I welcome your nominations for additions to this collection and please let me know if any of the links here aren't working.
Facebook Cars of Cuba: This group boasts nearly 650 photographs submitted by Facebook members, with a great range of locales, photographic styles and, most important, Cuban automotive subjects. Many vehicles are identified as to make, model and year, and the general discussion can be interesting.
Books by Baker: Award-winning writer Christopher P. Baker is the author of the “literary” work Mi Moto Fidel: Motorcycling Through Castro’s Cuba, the coffee-table heavyweight Cuba Classics: A Celebration of Vintage American Automobiles, and numerous travel guides to Cuba and other destinations. His prose is elegant and entertaining, and the photography is spectacular.
Flickr: This photo-sharing site has el-mucho images of our favourite topic. To see the work of individual contributors, search for “Cuba cars” from the homepage; for a more organized view, look at the Flickr groups described below. One caveat: few Flickr photos are accompanied by information about the vehicles in the pictures or even where the shots were taken.
Groups:
Rusty Nuts Car Club --- Cuba Project: Car hobbyists in Holland Landing, Ont., near Toronto, have reached out to provide aid to Cuban owners of 1950s cars, and have even established a Cuban chapter of their club. See photos of the First Annual Rusty Nuts Car show in Santa Cruz del Norte. Find them also on Facebook. (Update: website doesn't seem to be active, but Facebook group is alive and well.)
Yank Tanks - Carros Classicos De Cuba: A friendly, detailed review of the 2002 David Schendel documentary (Blue Collar Films) that celebrates Cuba’s vintage vehicles and the self-taught mechanics who maintain them.
Sixpack Tech: A concise, objective explanation of why Cuba’s old cars are preserved while more recent vehicles are abandoned.
Havana Old Timers: Not sure what I admire more in this series of 20 side-profile views of Havana cars by Thomas Kalak – the way he bathes each scene in soft light, or the delightful texture of the backgrounds. Unpretentious and deceptively simple, this is photography of a high order.
Classic Cars of Cuba: A German family visits Cuba, and returns with a fine selection of photographs. All cars are carefully identified by model and year.
Trams and Trolleybuses: Ymtram Maske, a Russian website with English translations, has a fascinating section on the public transit of Cuba, from trains to buses to taxis (both horse-drawn and self-propelled), with about 90 photos taken across the island. For a detailed look at the Hershey Electric Railway and an extensive selection of car photos and other shots, visit the site's main Cuba page.
Not Just Tourists Ottawa: Visiting Cuba? Take along a suitcase of much-needed medicines and other health supplies, collected by this volunteer humanitarian-aid group. Site has links to chapters across Canada.
Cuba Junky: Honest and charming guide by a Netherlander.
Cubamaniaks: “A non-political, non-commercial website and discussion forum”
Havana Journal: Based in the United States, Havana Journal offers a professionally presented, wide-ranging discussion of Cuban current events and issues.
Cuba Black and White Film Photography: From Yuko Tanabe, a multimedia YouTube offering with engaging music and images (including several of our favourite subject).
Blogspot’s doohickey for recommending links doesn’t permit annotation, so here’s a more detailed list of sites about Cuba’s cars and related topics. I welcome your nominations for additions to this collection and please let me know if any of the links here aren't working.
Facebook Cars of Cuba: This group boasts nearly 650 photographs submitted by Facebook members, with a great range of locales, photographic styles and, most important, Cuban automotive subjects. Many vehicles are identified as to make, model and year, and the general discussion can be interesting.
Books by Baker: Award-winning writer Christopher P. Baker is the author of the “literary” work Mi Moto Fidel: Motorcycling Through Castro’s Cuba, the coffee-table heavyweight Cuba Classics: A Celebration of Vintage American Automobiles, and numerous travel guides to Cuba and other destinations. His prose is elegant and entertaining, and the photography is spectacular.
Flickr: This photo-sharing site has el-mucho images of our favourite topic. To see the work of individual contributors, search for “Cuba cars” from the homepage; for a more organized view, look at the Flickr groups described below. One caveat: few Flickr photos are accompanied by information about the vehicles in the pictures or even where the shots were taken.
Groups:
- Cuban Cars / Carros Cubanos
- Cuba Cars
- Cars of Cuba – the greatest American car museum in the world
- Diplomat Automobiles (DeSotos built for Export)
- Transportation of Cuba
Rusty Nuts Car Club --- Cuba Project: Car hobbyists in Holland Landing, Ont., near Toronto, have reached out to provide aid to Cuban owners of 1950s cars, and have even established a Cuban chapter of their club. See photos of the First Annual Rusty Nuts Car show in Santa Cruz del Norte. Find them also on Facebook. (Update: website doesn't seem to be active, but Facebook group is alive and well.)
Yank Tanks - Carros Classicos De Cuba: A friendly, detailed review of the 2002 David Schendel documentary (Blue Collar Films) that celebrates Cuba’s vintage vehicles and the self-taught mechanics who maintain them.
Sixpack Tech: A concise, objective explanation of why Cuba’s old cars are preserved while more recent vehicles are abandoned.
Havana Old Timers: Not sure what I admire more in this series of 20 side-profile views of Havana cars by Thomas Kalak – the way he bathes each scene in soft light, or the delightful texture of the backgrounds. Unpretentious and deceptively simple, this is photography of a high order.
Classic Cars of Cuba: A German family visits Cuba, and returns with a fine selection of photographs. All cars are carefully identified by model and year.
Trams and Trolleybuses: Ymtram Maske, a Russian website with English translations, has a fascinating section on the public transit of Cuba, from trains to buses to taxis (both horse-drawn and self-propelled), with about 90 photos taken across the island. For a detailed look at the Hershey Electric Railway and an extensive selection of car photos and other shots, visit the site's main Cuba page.
CUBA LIFE
Along the Malecón: One of the best of the Cuba blogs, with alluring images and artful writing on contemporary events and other topics.Not Just Tourists Ottawa: Visiting Cuba? Take along a suitcase of much-needed medicines and other health supplies, collected by this volunteer humanitarian-aid group. Site has links to chapters across Canada.
Cuba Junky: Honest and charming guide by a Netherlander.
Cubamaniaks: “A non-political, non-commercial website and discussion forum”
Havana Journal: Based in the United States, Havana Journal offers a professionally presented, wide-ranging discussion of Cuban current events and issues.
Cuba Black and White Film Photography: From Yuko Tanabe, a multimedia YouTube offering with engaging music and images (including several of our favourite subject).
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