Riding the Bus

Sept. 15, 2008

This evening. Becky and I were on our way home from the pool after swimming with our hermana grandmothers. We took a bus down the street, closer to our house. This bus ride was quite the adventure. In fact, it was absolutely crazy. Let me explain a typical bus ride in Guayaquil. The buses drive with the door open and you are lucky to get both feet in the door before they start driving. You are also lucky if they even come to a complete stop, time and time again I saw people get on while it came to an almost stop, and more people getting off while it came to even less of an almost stop. And people stand in the doorway while the bus is driving. The open doorway, mind you. And all the while the bus driver is telling everyone, "hurry up, hurry up". So, you get on, immediately grab onto a metal bar while paying 25 cents, and try your best to avoid being the last one in line so you have less of a chance getting thrown backwards and out the open door. But you're not safe yet. Because now all the seats are full and you are carrying bags from the grocery store. And when I say you, I mean I. So, the bus lurches violently and you stumble and grab onto a bar, while accidentally knocking some poor lady in the head with the bags that are hanging from your wrist, but you don't have time to think to say sorry or even realize it's happened until it's too late because you are clinging for dear life and trying to move forward. All around you cars are driving and honking every 10 seconds, signaling to others that they need to get a move on and they're not starting up fast enough for their liking. So now, you're crammed into the aisle, standing up, getting lurched around, and watching your reflection in the window to make sure no one slips a hand into your backpack. Then a bus is next to you and you're making a turn right next to each other. The buses come within an inch of each other and you really think they're going to hit. You hope they don't, because if you don't get thrown through the open door or the open windows, you will for sure hit your head on something metal, since there isn't one part of the bus that is made of something different. By some miracle you are saved from all 3 of these unattractive options and the buses don't collide. By now you can't help but laugh because you are in a crazy country where everyone honks, steals, and stares at you because you are a young woman from the United States. And you love it all. And even though your wrist hurts, and your broken finger hurts from clinging for dear life, and you've now hit that same poor lady a few more times, this time with your backpack as you get thrown around, you still smile and think of all the things you could write about this experience. And then finally, a seat opens. And you sit down with relief. And then you get off and you are sent on your way, with a banana in hand, compliments of the hermanas. They tell which options you have to take a bus down the street. But it's only 6:30 and even though it's dark, there are lots of people about so you want to walk instead of paying 25 cents more for a bus ride. Because you and your companion are cheap. So you walk. And while walking you push your companion to the side because there is a huge gaping square hole in the street in front of you. And you both almost walk right into it, where you would fall into a deep dark abyss of who knows what. You laugh some more because you really did almost step into it. It's not until later that you wonder what on earth cars driving in the street do. How do they miss it? And then you laugh some more because you still can't believe there was a huge gaping hole in the street that wasn't marked off. And then you stop dead in the middle of the street because there is a cockroach crawling on the curb in front of you. You almost hyperventilate. But you don't. It goes away and you start walking again. And silently give thanks that you have miniature ants in your apartment instead of roaches. Then you go through the 2 bolted gates and 2 locks on your front door to enter your house. Then you lock them all again. Then within 5 minutes the phone is ringing. It's the hermanas. They have been worrying about you and want to make sure you arrived safely. You assure them you did, and there weren't any problems. You hang up and smile at their concern. Then you start dinner which will actually be postponed for 2 hours because Latinos like to talk.