by Jason S.
March 29, 2008 12:37 AM EDT
Havana is a potent mixture of the old and the new. Modern office
buildings punctuate the skyline alongside deteriorating Eastern European
residential towers.
Ancient vehicles, some with more rust than paint, share the road with
newer, shinier models, while horse-drawn carts mingle with motorcycles.
Flea markets display Cuba holiday mementos - wooden models of cars built
in the 1950s, which are still seen on Cuban streets.
"Yank tank," "máquina" "cacharro" ans "bartavia" are all words used to
describe the American classic cars in Cuba. It is the only place where
history and circumstance have combined to enable a whole society to
preserve these amazing vehicles and turn them into a national treasure.
About 150,000 classic cars existed at the time of the 1959 Cuban
Revolution when the U.S. imposed a trade embargo on Cuba. After this,
international trade was made very difficult, so the cars that were
present at the time have been nurtured and cared for ever since.
Of the 60,000 classic cars in Cuba, about half are from the 50s, another
25 percent from the 40s and a similar number from the 30s. Brands
include Chevrolet, Ford,Cadillac, Buick, Plymouth, Chrysler, Dodge,
Willy's, Oldsmobile and De Soto – vintage models of all of these can be
seen on Cuba's roads today.
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