In the early morning of October 8th, while her family waited nervously, young Maydelín Álvarez Avilés prepared to fulfill a dream she had pursued since childhood. It wasn't just any exam; it was the final test to become a driver.

Las Tunas, Cuba.– Amidst men and surprised faces, there she was, small in stature but resolute. That day, after several attempts, she succeeded, passing the practical exam that would allow her to follow in her father's footsteps. With this, she made the seemingly impossible a reality: to be both a lawyer and a bus driver.

A 2021 graduate with a Law degree from the University of Camagüey, she has worked for the past year and a half as a legal advisor at the Stainless Steel Company (Acinox Las Tunas). Although she is satisfied with her chosen profession, driving a bus has been her goal for as long as she can remember.

“I always loved driving. First, I got my car license, category B, and then I had to wait two years and a day to get the next category. Trucks never appealed to me; what I like are buses, because that's what I saw every day with my dad. He didn't teach me; I learned by watching him.”

Her story is marked by family tradition, as his grandfather was also a driver. Before retiring, his father drove a city bus, and during that time, he was able to get closer to driving.

After his father retired, a family friend who worked as a driver for Ómnibus Nacionales allowed her to practice. “In his free time, at night, when he went to park the bus, I would take it to get it ready, always guided by him. It wasn't an everyday thing, but it was constant, and little by little I learned.

“The road to getting my driver's license was full of obstacles. When I went to take the test, they told me I had to do it in a vehicle that didn't belong to that company. So we turned to another friend of my dad's, a driver of a rented Diana bus, and I practiced with him a couple of times; it wasn't much, but I learned quickly."

“Then came two months of vacation, and it wasn't possible because the driver was giving trips to the beach. Everything was on a rotating schedule, and the situation became increasingly difficult; however, I kept trying. From the first day I took the test, everyone was surprised; I was the only woman among men and in front of a large vehicle.”

For more than a year, she practiced tirelessly, with the complicity of quite a few people. “My mom did see me, because almost every time classes ended, the drivers would try to get me to drive right to our front door. It wasn't common, but I did it with all the joy in the world.”

Maydelín is an excellent professional, a 27-year-old entrepreneur who doesn't let prejudice get her down; today, she's preparing for a national course that will give her the necessary knowledge, as her goal is, with time and experience, to drive interprovincial routes.

“I'm responsible for 45 people, on trips that last at least four hours. I like driving long trips, and if they're at night, even better; it's more complicated, but I feel like I enjoy driving more at that time.”

Although she doesn't like being the center of attention, she acknowledges that people's acceptance makes her feel good. Thus, between laws and highways, she combines two worlds that seem opposite, but which complement each other perfectly.

A young lawyer longs to be a driver for Ómnibus Nacionales, and with each step, she gets closer to making what was once just a childhood dream a routine.