Pimp my ride- the chicken bus gets a makeover

Generally speaking there are two ways to get from A to B throughout Latin America- tourist transport (with allocated seats, direct routes and of course higher ticket prices) and local transport, known as chicken buses for the simple reason that in addition to sharing your seat with one or perhaps two locals, you may also have a bag of chickens, a piglet and sometimes even a goat underfoot.

In Central America, chicken buses are retired American school buses, no doubt rather alarmed at the way their jubilee has turned out. Nicaraguans seem to like the classic yellow look (though the interior usually has at least a few glittery Jesus pictures and various overtures to the lord to protect passengers on board...not a bad idea considering driving habits in Nicaragua).

Guatemalans on the other hand, go all out in a country wide competition as to who has the sexiest wheels. For a population that is not particularly wealthy (and I don't imagine bus drivers to be in the upper echelon of Guatemalan earners), they invest an astonishing amount of time and money in their buses.

 

Back in the good ol' US of A, these buses probably carried 50 school kids at a time. Here in Central America, their carrying capacity is miraculously increased to about 100 to 150. I have never, ever seen a Central American bus driver refuse to pick up passengers because the bus was full. I wonder if it has ever happened?? It's a good thing all the windows are broken and permanently fixed in the open position or else suffocation would be a real threat.