It seems like the only bus rides I ever get to experience is outside of the Philippines, China being the place where I’ve had the most bus-ride experiences. From my first China bus ride in Xiamen in 2004, to the few times I had ridden a public bus back in Zhuhai in 2008, bus rides in Beijing when I had to go to school or when I went around a bit, to bus rides in Shanghai and Hangzhou, and even to bus rides here in Xiamen, riding a bus has proved to contain an invaluable amount of experiences. I’ve had my fair share of good bus rides, bad bus rides, and uncomfortable bus rides.
So far, I’d say that Xiamen bus rides have proved to be the most interesting. In Beijing, a subway option was always available for distant locations so the only times I was on a bus was when I would go to school, or the few times I had to go to 中关村 or some other places not directly accessible by subway. Here in Xiamen, there are only 3 options for me when traveling, which is walking, taking a taxi, and taking a bus. Because I’ve been doing part-time work, I’ve had to commute a lot to get to and from various places, often coinciding with people coming back from work. Also, when taxis prove to be too expensive or too hard to get, buses are of course the only other alternative, especially when you need to get to places that are quite far.
During the last couple of months I’ve been here, I’ve realized that no matter how frustrating bus rides can get at times, there are always days where you find out interesting things on a bus.