Unfortunately, for every joy in travelling, there appears to be every opportunity for life to throw punchlines at me. The bus ride, for example. On this sojourn to Bantayan to meet up with my family, who went ahead on a vacation, I have made up with list of tips for the solo riders like me. Here they are:
1) Scout for the best seat. Taking a bus ride is like choosing a class schedule. You would want to get the best seat which is very comfortable and convenient for you. If you plan on napping while on the trip, do not take the back seats. You'll end up feeling like you've been placed inside a blender. If you like fresh air, the window seat in a non-aircon bus is for you. If you feel like going to the bathroom every bus stop and would not want to inconvenience your seat mates, choose an aisle seat. For those like me who prefer a non-aircon bus, please make sure those in front of you do not have mouths like squirt guns who spew spit. Otherwise, you'd end up closing the window just like what I did.
2) Use your bag as a psychological barrier and pretend you're asleep. You will never know who might share a seat with you. I am definitely not an asocial person but if there are still other seats, then I'd rather that the rest of the passengers take them. There is just something in a bus that makes you meet difficult sorts of people. There's the inconsiderate seat mate who thinks the bus is an extension of his living room and opens his legs apart as wide as possible and then you feel like your stuck in a rut you can't get out of. Or one who thinks you're an armrest or a head cushion and start dozing off on you. Of course, when the bus is packed, be considerate and get your bag unless you want to pay for that other seat.3) Bring in-ear phones and a music player. This is if you prefer to be autistic like me and exist in your own world. Or when you want to avoid strangling the rooster and its owner who is sitting just behind you. During this trip, I had the misfortune of experiencing this. For the remaining hour or so, all I could do was to decipher an equation that could explain the frequency of the rooster's crows. And it was like every 8.75 wheel rotations! At the rate of 80 kilometers per hour, guess how many times it crows in a minute! I wanted to up the volume of my iPod and sink the earphones down into my anvils, hammers, and stirrups.
4) Be your own storyteller or scriptwriter. If you feel like you've been riding your entire life and you haven't reached your destination, perk up your mind a bit. Make up your own epic saga using the passengers as your characters in the story. This is a habit I learned when I was still in college where I had to commute three to four hours everyday. The passenger in front of you could be the king and all of you are riding your way to a war to defend your kingdom. In this journey, I am the kingdom's scribe and was tasked to immortalize this quest through a war journal. And then... wait! What's that? A rooster crowing! Then I imagined a shaman sitting behind me ready to slay the sacrificial rooster to ensure victory. I wondered what I could do to be the shaman so I could put the rooster out of its misery.
You see, a bus ride on your own could be a disaster. But it could also be fun. Every now and then, I smile to myself as I made up these rules and dumb stories. I know I sound quite weird doing these things. But aren't we all. These are just a few tips to make your bus ride more interesting.
As for me, this is the end of my ride. I can't wait to join my family in Bantayan. And wait! What's that again? A rooster crowing. Now, I'm thinking of 101 ways to dress a chicken. When I get to the island, the first thing I'm going to eat is any dish with chicken as the main ingredient!
I bought a ticket then got aboard the boat. Puera Bisita!!!
