Nowhere near as busy as a bee...

While we're on the topic of all things miniature, I thought you might get a kick out of these photos. These are both mini-trucks about the size of a Volkswagon Beetle.

The Coca-Cola truck looks like it can haul a grand total of four cases of Coke. Which begs the question: how many deliveries can this thing really make? It's parked outside the bar/bakery in my village, where the delivery guy unloaded a case of Coke. He then spent 45 minutes drinking coffee, chatting with the villagers, and reading the local newspaper. At this rate, it should take him all morning to deliver that Coke...no need for a large-capacity truck, now--is there?

The red truck above is called an Ape (AH-peh), which means "bee" in Italian. It must get its name from the sound of the motor--a high-pitched whine that intensifies as the driver puts the pedal to the medal, bringing the vehicle to it's maximum warp speed of about 25 mph.

At first glance, it may seem as if the front wheels are missing. But look closely, and you'll see one wheel in the front center...that's right, this thing's only got 3 wheels. It's the tricycle of the truck world. Two regular-sized adults can squish into the cab, but only if they know each other well (and get along). The Ape is popular with farmers, and you'll often see everything from hay to wood to jugs of wine hauled in the back. This model is actually the deluxe long-bed model--here's a regular-sized Ape: http://dev.null.org/_gal/i/travel/SmallCarsOfItaly/img_9285?s=V

Like the smart car from yesterday's post, I wouldn't want to travel in one of these mini-trucks, but they are cute to look at...unless you're running late picking your kids up from school (again), and you're stuck behind one of these three-wheeled wonders. Then they're not so cute...