Today I visited the Southward Car Museum; this is a fantastic collection of cars and various other bits & pieces, including some of the NZ's earliest wheeled conveyances and also some special pieces such as a car once owned by Marlene Dietrich, and another that belonged to a gangster (friend of Al Capone), complete with bullet holes. There are a couple of 1970s Valiants - but not one like this one!


The museum is in stark contrast to the old car museum in Havana, perhaps partly because most of Havana's old cars are still on the road but also in terms of restoration, lighting and display. There are about 30 exhibits in the dimly lit space, mostly visible from the street but I wanted to contribute my two convertible pesos - apparently a new improved museum is in the (very long) pipeline.

Traffic fleets of the world #1 - Cuba

The traffic in Cuba is really great - you can see almost anything on the road, from horse-drawn vehicles, coco-taxis and motorbikes with sidecars to truck buses, tourist buses and late model cars; and yes, there are lots of classic cars. One of the highlights of my trip was a ride in a 1959 Chevrolet Impala. As for the environment, well, I really couldn't comment! But the Solar Taxi, which hails from Switzerland, has recently visited Wellington ... a purpose built solar car driving around the world with no petrol. If he can do it ...