The busman’s paradise

    That famous occupational holidayer would want to make Cuba a stop. On an island with spotty train service, limited in-country flights and low private car ownership, the bus is a transportation mainstay – so there are plenty to see.
    But, as with Cuba’s automobile fleet, it’s the range of vintage and origin that really pulls the cord. In a day’s travel, our busman might come across a modern articulated urban carrier, an old GM Silverside, a repurposed Quebec yelllow bus still bearing its “Ecoliers” markings ... even a venerable Leyland Olympic.
Apart from Havana’s municipal Yutongs, the new and shiny stuff is usually reserved for tourists and their convertible pesos. Cubans get the older machines.
    These three veterans carry resort workers. Above is a Cuba-assembled Girón, built under licence from Hungary’s Ikarus company. The yellow bus is a DAF from the Netherlands, which has sent many decommissioned buses to Cuba. Some still bear original destination boards such as “Haarlem Noord” or “Holwerd.”
    Not sure what the blue bus is; could also be a DAF.