HAVANA (AP) \u2014 It\u2019s almost noon in Havana when a handful of tourists tumble out of a small yellow bus and rush toward a row of shiny classic cars, cameras in hand. <\/p>\n
Nearby, under the shade of a beach almond tree, a group of drivers jump to their feet, some hoping for their first customer of the day.<\/p>\n
But the tourists take a couple of quick selfies in front of brightly coloured cars ranging from a 1950 Pontiac to a 1960 Buick and walk away.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is grim,\u201d said Reymundo Aldama, who drives a bubblegum pink 1957 convertible Ford Fairlane. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re waiting for them to come, we\u2019re waiting for work.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tourism in Cuba is plummeting at a time when the island desperately needs that revenue, with the number of visitors dropping by nearly 70% since 2018. For almost two decades, a steady stream of visitors sparked a boom in tourism, only for the COVID-19 pandemic and severe blackouts to hit, coupled with increased US sanctions.<\/p>\n
Now, Cubans whose livelihood depends on tourism are among those suffering the most as the island braces for what experts warn could be a catastrophic economic crisis following a disruption in oil shipments from Venezuela after the US attacked the South American country and arrested its president.<\/p>\n
In another blow, Mexico\u2019s president said Tuesday that her country would temporarily suspend oil shipments to Cuba.<\/p>\n
The situation is already acute for Rosbel Figueredo Ricardo, 30, who sells a popular Cuban street food known as \u201cchivirico,\u201d fried flour chips sprinkled with sugar.<\/p>\n
He used to load 150 bags of chips every morning onto a plastic tray he balances on his shoulder and sell out by late afternoon. Nowadays, he only loads 50 bags a day, works from dawn until night-time and sometimes doesn\u2019t sell a single bag.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m a mid-level industrial mechanical technician, and look at me here,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Figueredo has a partner and three children, with a fourth one on the way, so he frets.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is our day-to-day, so we can eat,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
On a recent afternoon, unable to find any tourists near Havana\u2019s famed seawall, he walked toward the Spanish embassy, hoping that some of the dozens of Cubans who line up daily seeking a visa to leave the island will buy from him.<\/p>\n
For decades, tourism generated up to $3 billion a year for Cuba.<\/p>\n
Visitors would pack into restaurants, crowd along Havana\u2019s seawall and gather at imposing monuments and state buildings. <\/p>\n
The constant flow of passengers boosted employment and led to the opening of hundreds of small businesses including hostels and restaurants.<\/p>\n
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