Wildcat Nation has its piece of the Summer of Love in 12th grader Violet Cabral’s 2004 Volkswagen Beetle. We spoke to her about the car and her memories on the road.
Cabral has worked for over three years to call herself a proud owner of the legendary VW Beetle. She nannied for a local family saving up money and bought the car all by herself. She pays her own gas and insurance.
One of the iconic accessories associated with the Volkswagen Beetle is known in German as “blumenvasen”, in English flower vase. The automaker incorporated a small flower vase into the car’s dash to incorporate a little splash of color and fun. The addition went out of style during the 90s but VW brought it back for Cabral’s edition. She always has a fake flower in the vase to bring color and light to her daily drive.
As a member of the Beetle community, Cabral told us that when seeing another Bug driver tradition says you have to exchange a wink.
Cabral told us to customize her Bug she crocheted a flower steering wheel cover and put on flower stickers to the exterior adding splashes of color and a ’60s flavor to her ride.
She told us about a seminal moment in her Bug when she drove to sunny Santa Barbara and had to navigate the iconic streets of San Francisco. Driving her VW Beetle through the heart of the Summer of Love “just felt right”, Cabral told us.
Wade Clark is a Sophomore at Ukiah High School. He plays guitar and listens to many different genres of music. He has lived in Ukiah his whole life and has never lived anywhere else. Wade loves to research music, guitar, and different types of electronics for music. He believes everyone has a right to their opinion.
