Back of the Bus

May 7, 2009 | Category: India | by: Spencer

Street life as seen from the window of a bus.

We finally figured out how to get reservations for ourselves on India’s vast train network, even during the busy summer holiday (from school, for Indians) season.  And good timing, before a very long trip north from Hampi to Udaipur, in Rajasthan.  But in the meantime, we’ve gotten very good at India’s very complete bus system.  The buses provide travelers like us the chance to not have to be too pre-planned in our adventures.  There are buses going every day – and often every hour or more – between most towns within 1 to 10 hours distance.  We just have to keep asking around, till someone points us to the right bus.  There are private, overnight and long-distance buses, with all levels of luxury and comfort, but we prefer the open-air, rickety, stripped-down-hunks-of-metal government buses, because they are super cheap.  Plus, they take the cake when it comes to providing a memorable experience each time you ride them and they are a good way to see both countryside and cities, with all their sights and smells.  The buses  have seats with legroom for hobbit-size people.  Then they are packed with people and their stuff: chickens, boxes, luggage, food, bags of bricks or who-knows-what, until there is little breathing room, and people are hanging out windows and doors.  If you’re lucky, there will be blaring Hindi music, or you will get to watch a Bollywood movie.  The screen might be tiny, but the speakers are plenty big; anything to keep one’s mind off the suicidal driving.  It is a rocking good time, every crammed minute of it!

2 Comments

  1. Linzi south
    on May 12th, 2009
    1

    Hi spence and heather, this is the South House. I love reading about your adventures and I hope someday I get to do the same, maybe when the kids are grown and When crazy Sam will be done with school, like that will ever happen. But it’s good to hope right? It’s finally warm and beautiful here and we love playing outside, and Sam is now on the wait list foe the medical school program at OHSU, so we are back to waiting. We will keep you posted and let you know what happens. thanks for sharing your adventure with us.
    -Linzi

  2. RJ Christensen
    on May 21st, 2009
    2

    I have heard of these crazy buses and all the stuff they cram in them. Do you have any pics of what it looks like inside? btw – Emily and I are moving to Houston in August. I just got a super rad job teaching art at a BIG high school there with a sweet art program. In a couple years they want me to take over the Ceramics program. How cool is that?! So no traveling to India anytime soon, but we will be going somewhere exciting at least.

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