I have been using public transportation to travel the prairies since I was a teenager. Large passenger buses and then passenger vans as companies closed or downsized have often been my mode of travel.
When you travel with strangers you meet up with all kinds of interesting characters. You have a lot of time to think and observe. No matter what setting you are in, whether it is at work or play, someone is there to fill the different roles and when they are gone there is another similar individual that comes along to take their place. They seem to be totally oblivious to anyone around them.
Listed below is a sampling of the people I have observed in my travels:
Luggage Loafers
You are allowed to bring a small carry on bag and a suitcase, this is included in the price of your ticket. If you want to bring additional luggage you are charged an extra fee. There is always that person that drags a huge bag along as carry on; hitting the rest of the passengers with it as they try to inconspicuously wrestle it into the vehicle.
Smokers
I know a lot of you smoke, but for those of us that struggle with the smell of smoke, it is a challenge as well. The Hubs has fought to kick the habit for years. At the appointed rest stop, they pile off and stand outside the van door to have their smoke. The smoke usually wafts back into the vehicle. Then when they get back in the stench of stale smoke fills the air in the vehicle for miles.
Phone Talkers
Passengers are usually quiet, but you sometimes get someone who will talk loudly on their phone throughout the trip. It is impossible not to listen to their conversation and it makes everyone uncomfortable. If you have a bone to pick with your spouse, please save it until you get home.
Sickies
One trip just before Christmas I got in the van careful choosing what I thought was the best seat. Just before we departed a lady got on and sat right behind me. She started to cough and continued coughing for the next three hours. I was certain she had the plague, but I was trapped there with nowhere to run. I thought to myself you are going down girl, sure enough a short time later I was sick. I missed three days of work and it took two rounds of antibiotics and several weeks to recover.
Complainers
I have been known to grumble as much as the next guy, but some people live to corner any unsuspecting person they can find and unload all of the perceived injustices life has thrown at them.
Snoozers
I am so jealous of people who can sit down and instantly fall into a deep sleep. They sleep the entire trip. I must confess though that when they start snoring an image of myself holding a pillow over their face flashes through my mind.
Music Lovers
I like to listen to a peppy tune once in a while. Music is a great way to relax, but you need to be mindful that if you have your headphones on with your music cranked up everyone near you can hear it also. If you need it turned up that loud to hear it maybe a visit to the audiologist should be the next trip you book. Just saying.
Chatty Cathys
Every trip someone takes on the role of the Chatty Cathy. Some trips there are two or three of them all talking at the same time. I just want to say to them slow down and take a breath. I assume they are lonely and are so happy and excited to have someone to talk to that they get carried away. They will talk nonstop to anyone that will listen, and often they will choose to sit beside the driver. Those poor drivers must have the patience of a saint to listen to that every day. It must be hard to concentrate on the road when you have to be polite and listen as well as drive. As a passenger observing this from the back I would prefer it if the driver was able to concentrate on the road, but I know that front passenger seat is another paid seat.
Chewers - Chip Guy
It is tricky trying to eat on public transportation without anyone hearing you or having to smell your food. I always think it through before I pack my road snacks. On one trip the guy next to me had his head phones on jamming to some head banging tunes. He pulled out a bag of potatoe chips and started munching away. With his music so loud in his ears he had no clue how much noise he was making eating that bag of chips. He would take each chip out of the bag, look at it and slowly eat it. It wasn’t a big family size bag, it was a little bag, but it took him forever to finish it. He kept shaking the bag and reaching in for more. I was thinking how many chips can there possibly be in that little bag. I wondered am I on Candid Camera and are they waiting for me to rip that bag out of his hand and crush his chips. Is it a trick bottomless bag? Finally, the chip bag was empty and no matter how many more times he shook the bag and peered inside the chips were indeed gone. He then proceeded to spend the next five minutes loudly licking the last remnants of the chip deliciousness off every single one of his fingers.
In case you are wondering, I do have a valid drivers license and my own vehicle. I drive around the village and to smaller towns and cities, but I am not comfortable driving in large cities. So if The Hubs is busy working and I need to go somewhere I take public transportation. It isn't ideal, but it gets me where I want to go.
I often notice small acts of kindness on my travels; the young person getting off the bus stopping to help the elderly lady behind him, the girl assisting the little grandmother whose phone is ringing, but she can't remember how to answer it or the traveller who sees a person with mobility issues struggling and lifts their luggage for them. I love seeing strangers looking out for each other. It restores my faith in humanity.
Travelling this way has taught me patience and tolerance as the world is made up of all kinds of people each one with their own story. My fellow travellers probably look at me and wonder why I am there and what my story is.
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Thank you for reading.
Have a big, fun day.🌸