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Is India still the standard for Backpackers? vo.1


I was taking a bus from Johdpur to Pushkar. I got a bus terminal early. I made sure the destination of the bus at the door with a family in front. I got a seat in smooth. No trouble at all. But it went too smooth. So generally, we tend to get some punch line end of the story. Got an absolutely wrong bus ... for example.


Fifteen minutes later, the bus was already out side of the city. The conductor came for inspecting ticket.
"Ticket" I passed it out. Silence ... "No, You took a wrong bus. We are not going to Pushkar" Bingo! but the negative one. "Well, OK. I get off here and return to the terminal" I didn't have other idea. "However is a bus come soon on this country road?" Hitch hike? if it's possible. While I thought, the conductor told me "Stay on for a while"


Before long the bus pulled over. The conductor said "You get off here" It's a rural bus stop. He talked to the ticket vendor in the shack, might be, what had been happened to me. He looked back and said. "Wait here and take the next bus. OK?" Then he'd gone.
Well, that kind of happening was nothing to me. The winter sun of India wasn't too hot, comfortable. "By the way, how often a bus passes by on this country road?" Actually an old lady in front of me looked tired for waiting. Checking the coming traffic every minute.
After a while, she told something to the ticket vendor. So the vendor came out and said "The bus is coming. Take it" The mistake was recovered soon with flexibility. Quite rational, Uh? No extra charge.


I got on the bus. It's different from the former one. It's packed. Apparently, it's a regular route bus. However it's just starting point. Because the passenger became doubled, tripled at each stop. Finally a kid sit on my lap. Beyond that, people just gave up for getting on.
The passenger never complained of the crowd. Just took the bus quietly. The tough India made bus ran with dust smoke. Fresh air came from the opened up window.


My three hour trip with express bus turned to six hour route bus trip. But not be bored at all. Watching the ordinal Indian people was, physically, tough. But quite interesting for me. The landscape was also great. "It's lucky to get a wrong bus ..." I made me believe myself.


May 2013



Today's piece
" Rural bus stop " Johdpur, India 2012




fumikatz osada photographie