CARISTAS

Doubt this  Girón bus was decorated with any particular holiday in mind, but today, it does make me think of a Christmas tree. Made-in-Cuba Girón, built under licence from Ikarus of Hungary.  Hino wings are a later addition.

    In cities around the world, crowded buses are a regular sight at rush hour. In Cuba, crowded buses are a common sight at any time. These images were taken in Havana in the early afternoon.

Circa-1980 DAF bus, built in the Netherlands.       If this truly is a zero-sum universe, does that mean some old Cuban bus with a "HABANA DEL ESTE" destination board is just now leaving Eindhoven? See also 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 , bu ilt under licence from Hungary’s Ikarus company. The yellow bus is a DAF from the Netherlands, which has sent many decommissioned buses to Cub...