04 October 2007

Riding the bus

To hop on a bus here means propelling yourself into crazy, crowded, chaotic existence. (I mean "hop" literally: they don't stop, really...ever.) The ability to navigate the convoluted intestines of this sprawling city via bus will mean that we have made it.

We took our first bus yesterday. But yesterday doesn't count. A work colleague drove us to the bus stop, found the right bus, and told the driver our destination. Once we reached Ghamra metro station, the driver (and other helpful fellow passengers) made it abundantly clear that we had arrived. There was no exhilarating self reliance, with its accompanying confusion. Someday.

We also hope at some point to get a good picture of a bus lurching through heavy traffic, with three people hanging out the door and another guy standing on the rear bumper.

3 comments:

Uttara said...

Nate a year of living in Cairo is a good practice if ever you will be going to Mumbai:) Hope you are enjoying your adventure.

Anonymous said...

Josh kept wanting to "hop" on the buses in bangladesh... with our packs! I had enough mild anxiety with the easy city to city buses (which also didn't stop mid-route, but slowed down some for us since we were alone, apparently fascinating, and on some rural road rather than in the middle of a city).

Josh thought we could handle the Dhaka buses that sound like these Cairo ones- you have to listen to the caller or yell out your destination to see if it's the right bus and then just hop on while it's still moving. But with my 13kg backpack? I think not! I convinced Josh the $1 autorickshaw ride would be much more convenient...

I would love to come visit after you've managed to figure out a bus or two and let you take us for a ride! All in good time, though... be safe!!

Unknown said...

get on a random bus and get lost sometime... it's one of the best ways to see the city ^_^