Public Bus in Grenada

So today was the new experience of riding on the public bus.  

In case you missed it when i got back i wrote about the taxi ride back to the marina and the winding, hilly, steep, sharp curvy, bumpy, swales in the middle for drainage, big ruts, some not paved roads.  Since then we have taken the private buses (really are like toyota vans that are long with bench seats) that are organized to take cruisers to the grocery store, hardware, chandlery etc.  you do get a little crowded sometimes in those if there are tons of groceries.

Today i really met some of Grenada.  Yeah.  we took the dingy to Whisper Cove Marina and hiked up a steep paved road to a paved road that then turned into a non paved road with houses right along the downhill side on the right. It then turned back into a paved road.   We were walking to the main road to catch the bus.  The houses had chickens in the yards and kids and anything else you could want.  When we got to the main road, you wait for a bus with the correct number (another post).  I must say the view from where we caught the bus was spectacular.  you could see all of hog island and i saw where i had kayaked with Rebecca when we went around the island into the ocean last saturday.  I could see all the reefs that we had to go around.  Next time i will take my camera…   another post.

So the bus comes, it does not matter which way it is going cause as we soon found out it goes down the road a bit and then turns a u turn at a main junction and heads back towards where we were picked up.   The houses we could see were fabulous in that they were carved into the land on the steep hills with gardens in terraced plots.  one even had old tires to hold all in place.  the soil is so rich here.  lots of banana trees.

So at a very fast pace, with much horn beeping (the driver blows the horn to let anyone else know that the bus is coming, i think he blows it when he is highballing around a curve to warn anyone coming the other way, which is every 20 yards or so) we wound our way to st georges.  Now let me explain one thing.  There is always room on the bus.  Just when you think it is full another person gets on and shifting of seats occurs.   we had three in the back seat and then #4 came on in.  the back seat is all the way across the back of the bus and the three seats in front of that are doubles on the right with a fold down seat (jump seat) attached to the left side of the bus.   ok so that makes three across.  but wait, when someone else wants to get on a little padded board goes from the jump seat to the 2 seater so now the 2 seater is a 4 seater. and you are packed in like sardines in a can.   no matter how big or small all get in the bus.   oh wait again.  kids are on the lap or standing next to an adult, they do not count for a seat. so here we all are, big and small, cruisers and locals jammed into this bus.  when we arrived in st georges there were 22 people in this bus.   oh i forgot to mention that there is NO leg room between the seats which actually keeps you wedged in.  It was just great.  most of the locals when they get on say good morning.  some do not.  Most are pleasant and polite.  It is almost like they sing when they talk, kind of melodious.  Kind and soft words with a big smile.  

the bus has a "bus boy" or a conductor.   Our first bus today had a "bus man".  he was a big dude. he directs where you sit and collects your money.  oh the fare.  the fare is 2.50 EC no matter how long you ride.  2.50 EC is less than a us dollar.  The conductor handles getting the fares.  He will be hanging out the sliding window or door if going slowly (only in town)(ha) hollering if anyone wants a ride.  the bus stops all the time to pick up and let out people.  you rap your knuckles on the ceiling of the bus to indicate that you want out.  hopefully the driver hears you over the blaring radio.

There are chicken bars on the back of the seat in front of you to hold on to.  even when you are packed in like sardines you still need to hold on cause you are going up and down hills, stopping and starting and careening around curves like no other.

So if the bus rider in the back seat needs to get out (we did) before everyone else, all have to pile out of the bus and then get back in.  it is musical bus seats.

Our second bus of the day was a lively one with a young bus boy who was drumming up business (that is how we got on the bus) (we were not at a bus stop, the bus was just going by), anyway there was an elderly gentleman in the seat in front of me  dressed to the nines and next to him was a lady with a matching hat and jacket.  super to see the culture.  we had to get out to let the people in the back seat out and it was musical seats again.

The hysterical part was our bus ride back was with the same bus driver that we rode in with, but he was much slower going back.

Many more firsts today,  i had a roti (just the filling) for lunch.  I will go in to detail about that in another post.  the bummer is i am pretty sure there was flour in what i ate as my elbows are itching and have hives on my legs.  bummer