more bus stories

the other day on the way to work, some of my colleagues and i got on the 62 bus like we usually do. when it came, we contemplated for a moment getting on the next bus, which was probably to come soon, since we knew that part of the 62 route has been under construction and getting to work usually takes a bit longer when we get on that bus. but we only thought about it momentarily and just got on the bus when it came because it was there.

when we got to the part of the road that was under construction, the bus stopped. we saw that there was only one lane. usually there are still two very narrow lanes, and the bus manages to make it through slowly, driving around pedestrians and scooters and other vehicles as it goes. this time the one lane barricaded by cement barriers was barely wider than the bus itself, so there was no going around anything. it was straight ahead or nothing. apparently the driver agreed. when the bus didn't move at all after a minute, we started to wonder why, and we realized that the reason we weren't moving is that there was traffic coming directly towards our bus in the lane, and that traffic was also not moving. when it came to choosing straight ahead or nothing, all these drivers chose nothing. straight ahead was not an option! and no one was backing up. the bus continued to sit there, with another bus behind it, and two busses coming towards it, which also were not moving. no one proceeded to back up to let anyone else through. there appeared to be no one directing traffic.


our bus driver got off the bus, leaving the front door open, to see what was going on. he stood there outside, just watching. so we proceeded to get off the bus and walk the rest of the way to work, which took about 20 minutes. just as we were getting to the corner where we needed to be, we saw the 62 bus pass us, and make it to the bus stop before we did!! so we could have sat on the bus for 15 minutes, and then had the other 5 minutes of our bus ride. or we could have a pleasant morning walk through a construction zone in which we laughed hilariously.

today (another story) i went to a park with some friends, and it happened to be the may holiday, which i realized as we arrived was not the best day to go to the park since there were tai duo ren (too many people). but we had a good time anyway, and i'll write about that another time. but when we were ready to go home, we got on a very crowded bus with some of these people. we were all standing, it was hot, and there was a baby with its grandparents crying. the bus was barely moving since there was traffic, and the baby was still crying. i heard the grandparents talking, and the baby saying over and over again that she wanted something as she cried. and then i realized that the baby had to go to the bathroom (now, in china, most people seem to not use diapers, so this is an issue). the grandma started to pull the little girl's pants down, and i'm thinking, ohhhh no. but then she pulled them up again. whew. nope, i thought too soon. she starts to get up, and push her way through people. she's pulling the little girl's pants down again, as she's standing right next to me, and she starts to squat down, with the little girl, in such a way that the little girl would've peed right on my shoes, so i start to push to get past her. not acceptable!!! the grandma holding the little girl keep going though until they go down the step right by the door where people get out, and the grandma holds the little girl as she pees right down there on the step on the bus. i'm thinking this is going to smell bad soon, but not really all that surprised that it is happening. strangely, it didn't smell bad. when we got off, i didn't step in it. and the little girl stopped crying. so i guess everything was good....?