Thursday, November 12, 2009

Things go better with Coca-cola!

...or should that be "Cars go better with Coke?" I had to pull over at a distance from this parked car last weekend to take this photo. The gas and motor oil on the roof reminded me so much of how gasoline was sold during the sanctions imposed on then Yugoslavia, and the subsequent bombing of Serbia. Gasoline was more than scarce, and was smuggled in from neighboring countries. It was possible to buy it as you see it here, by the Coke bottle, but more often such bottles were advertisements that more of the brew was available in larger quantities. Gasoline 'merchants' even provided home delivery, and people kept large canisters on their porches. This made me very uneasy, since Serbs smoke big time, and often flick cigarette butts off their balconies...

This lady (yep, a lady's sitting in there) probably has a steady clientele. By the way, I hadn't realized gasoline is pretty much colorless, and it's the additives that give it color. Don't know what the red one is.

11 comments:

Gaelyn said...

So the bottles on the roof are really like an advertising sign? Is there still scarcity of gasoline? A very interesting capture.

Lowell said...

This is amazing...are you saying that gasoline and motor oil are still scarce? How would you possibly know what you were getting if you bought gas and oil this way?

Pat said...

Gaelyn/Jacob,

No, there is no scarcity of gasoline at all, despite its high price==roughly $4.00 a gallon. I too was surprised to see this lady selling like this. Can only imagine it's either gourmet gasoline (!) or else she sits in a place where people run out a lot!

Mara said...

Wow, that is something I've never seen before. It's a great photo though and I love the story attached.

Thérèse said...

E120 = bug blood :-)
I try do demotivate my children to drink bad stuff with whatever I can find...

Chuck Pefley said...

-:) On my San Francisco scooter trip one of my companions was carrying a quart of gas in an oil bottle. I'm happy he was because I needed it!
Don't think I've ever encountered gas being merchandised this way, however. But, I've never lived in a war zone, either.

Cupcake flight, eh? Well, one never knows LOL!!

marley said...

That could be a very bad tasting mistake!

B SQUARED said...

Fascinating! Gas must have been expensive during that time.

Tash said...

Really surprising to see that...but I like her display. I remember they showed the neighborhood gasoline dealer in the movie "Nataša"

Marie-Noyale said...

She must be selling it at a very good price!!

Kim said...

Our intrepid reporter helping us understand the things she sees out on the street. This is so interesting!
-Kim

SPRING FASHION

 This is a post that would be better in color, but maybe not. These colors were soooo pale.