3rd October 2024
My first full day in old Blighty, and my first encounter with the local bus service.
It wasn’t good, I had arranged to meet up with my old school friend Steve in Bath.
I had taken pictures of the bus time table by the town bridge, so I was prepared. I arrived early to catch the alleged 10.50 joining an already formed group of people.
There was a lot of extra traffic due to various road closures, so I expected a bit of a delay.
I watched the display that showed bus arrivals, as the time came and went, the particular bus I wanted, disappeared from the board, no explanation, just vanished. it was replaced with another 30 minutes later, the crowd was growing restless. By the time the thing arrived I had been waiting over an hour, meaning that my precise plan had to be adjusted, fortunately there was no timing conflicts.
Steve was the friend that I had back in infant school, the only one I remembered, or could pick out in a line up. We reconnected a few years back through a mutual friend.
He has great comic timing, and his story about a tick on his arse, and his attempts to remove it had us in stitches, much to the amusement of the other customers in the coffee shop.
Afterwards, I headed for the bus station which was crawling with people. The place is poorly designed, queues waiting to board the buses block the paths of anyone wanting to get to the other end of the building. By now the place was filling with school children and students, making things even worse.
Finally the bus arrived and the mass of bodies clambered on board, I even managed to find a seat. The journey back felt long, and I was glad to get back. My feet were hurting, caused, I think by the boots I wore. I don’t think my feet were shaped right for American shoes, nothing like a pair of Russell and Bromley’s.
Another Lifetime to go 