October 19, 2009

I'll Take the Ghetto Bus, Please!

Early Saturday morning we hopped a few buses and arrived two hours later at the home of the mechanic who had our truck. He'd just found another problem and said it wouldn't be ready until the evening, but we NEEDED to do things in Asuncion. So what's a gal to do? I threw all our stuff in a backpack, handed the pack to Ken, and we started hopping more buses.

Now, for those Paraguayans who do this regularly, the bus system can be a good thing. Fifty cents to a dollar per person, per ride, to various stops throughout the city isn't so bad, right? Well, it adds up when you don't know exactly which bus to catch, and exactly where to get off to arrive at the desired locations. Let me just say that we walked a WHOLE lot of miles and rode a WHOLE lot of buses, but we had a good time in the process. It was an adventure, and one we were thankful didn't come with rain or too much heat.

(Photo from NRCSA.com)I found that I prefer the ghetto buses that resemble old-timey school buses, because they have plastic seats, frilly tassels hanging from the windshield, and pictures of Jesus all over the place inside. The nicer buses have the padded seats, and while that may SEEM more comfortable, I didn't have the nerve to lean back (think lice), and rode with my head forward on those types of seats. Poor Ken, who gets a little motion sick when he's not driving, had several opportunities to ride standing up because there weren't seats available. Bless his heart...I married a gentleman. We walked no less than 50 city blocks, sometimes uphill, and he never once allowed me to carry the backpack. What a fella!




4 comments:

  1. Riding the bus is an adventure in Paraguay, and everywhere actually. I like doing it on occasion.

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  2. haha....wilson would of said to take turns...hahah..j/k!
    i'm so glad we've had plp to go with us when we go to the capital. omgsh!! it can be so intimidating, even for a girl from ny who speaks the language!!! father god has mercy!! Lol!!

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  3. what a great MOG you have. praying daily there are a few left of him...hehehheee! i totally understand the getting sick if not driving...glad you had fun! luv you bunches. :o)

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