The Double Decker Bus

“Never See Come See- Someone who has recently been exposed to anything new, and who overdoes it to ridiculous proportions”- Côté ci Côté la

The Coomotor Bus Company has recently added a new bus to its fleet: the Navette XL, a double decker bus that seats about 50 persons. Last week, I had the chance to travel from Bogotá to Neiva in the new bus, which was exciting. My excitement, however, had nothing on that of my fellow passengers and non-passengers alike. Theirs was one of dawning wonder and truly gave new meaning to the phrase: never see, come see.

It was a little after three on a chilly Wednesday afternoon in Bogotá, and I was seated in the VIP Waiting Room, updating my mother as to my whereabouts. I had been on the phone for all of 10-minutes when it happened. There was a delighted scream from the little girl behind me, and the animated gestures of an employee as he pointed to something outside. As I rubbed my ears, I instinctively turned to look through the glass. There it was: the Navette XL.

The latest addition was blue, gigantic, and had a number of words and insignia superimposed on its side. I noted that the driver was seated on the lower floor, and the entrance was situated in the middle of the bus. The bus hostess was a cheery, almost plump woman, who exited the bus looking very pleased with herself. Apparently, she had just been named, “Miss Double Decker” at the company’s annual beauty pageant.

The reactions from those seated in the waiting area were varied and ridiculous. One girl was standing on her seat, jumping up and down, trying in vain to catch a glimpse. One man almost walked into the glass door as he stared avidly at the great, blue marvel. The supervisor abandoned his afternoon snack long enough to look around at the reactions. As he did, he smiled to himself and nodded his head, probably thinking, “That’s exactly what we expected!”

I was snapped out of my reverie by the hostess’ announcement that it was time to board. People hastily grabbed their bags or puppy carriers, hugged family members, and rushed to get on the bus. I suppose the notion of forming a line was lost on them. On entering the bus, I noticed that the lower level was much smaller than the upper one. Persons who were not seated on the upper level, came up anyway to see what it looked like, and commented on the grandeur, loudly.

The scene outside was straight out of the movie, Titanic. The onlookers had assembled with their cameras, iPads or Smartphones, taking photos of the bus. One family decided to have a photo shoot and executed a number of poses, while the photographer- an employee at the terminal- snapped away. A woman seated in another bus that was easily dwarfed by the other, peered out of her window and looked upwards, mouth agape at the sheer size of the Navette XL.

Meanwhile, a new wave of astonishment and dumb questions had broken out inside. The perpetrators were three middle aged women, named Doña Maria, Doña Astrid, and Doña Julia. Doña Maria was the only one travelling that day, but the other two women came up to ensure that she was seated. Doña Astrid was completely taken aback by the size of the bus. She came upstairs, her head moving in dizzying circles as she took in, and gave her opinion about everything, from the seating arrangements to the large windows to the location of the fire extinguisher and emergency exits. She proceeded to measure the bus, walking up and down and touching things as if she were a surveyor of all things double deckered.

Doña Julia, who was helping Doña Maria get settled, started asking questions like, “Did they put two buses together to make this one?” , “I wonder what would happen if the top half fell off?” , “I wonder if Coomotor would create a triple decker bus next?” and “Where could I get a ticket to travel on this bus?” Suddenly, the bus lurched forward as the driver started the engine, and Doñas Astrid and Julia realized that they were not supposed to be on board. They hastily wished Doña Maria a feliz viaje, and with one, last glance, vanished.

Pretty soon, the bus was on its way out of the terminal, while its fervent admirers looked on, waved, or took more photos. Doña Astrid could be seen making the sign of the cross then, blowing a kiss to her friend. As the bus headed southward out of Bogotá, its admirers increased. Passersby on motorcycles, in cars and other small buses, could not hide their shock.

All of a sudden, their excitement became exhausting. I pulled the curtain across the window, settled in and dozed off to sleep. It came as no surprise that I had a dream about The Titanic.

Until the next post.

HELLO 2013!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

I think I was drunk on either happiness or the four glasses of rum and coke that I had. Being the walking contradiction that I am; I was in a drunken stupor, but fully aware of my surroundings. I was in the south of Bogotá, enjoying the company of those lovely people who I have come to regard as my Colombian family. We had just welcomed the New Year; we hugged, we wished each other all the best, and we ate 12 grapes each while simultaneously making wishes. I had already spoken to my family back home an hour earlier, and was happy to know that they were fine and did not break away from our New Year tradition, although I was not there. As my New Year high started to wear off and I zoned out of the conversation that the others were having, I started to think about the year that was.

2012: the year that the Mayans predicted the end of the world, and Obama was re-elected the President of the United States. It was the year that I successfully completed my First Degree and graduated from the University of the West Indies, was given another opportunity to live and work in Colombia, came to understand and truly accept myself for who I am, and learned the true meaning of family and friendship. Most importantly, it was the year that I fell in love with Rihanna and her music, again. 

So, what does 2013 hold for me? It may be a bit premature, but I will dub this year: the Year of Garvin because I hope to become a better version of myself, become more marketable, live up to my full potential, experience new things, and start my post graduate studies. Under these broad topics, I've started to create my list of resolutions, which I intend to stick to for the first time in 23 years. Below, I share a few that I've come up with, thus far. 

I want to lead a healthier lifestyle. I have been saying this forever, but it truly hit me recently just how unfit I am. I mean, climbing two flights of stairs leaves me gasping for breath, two minutes of table tennis gives me quasi- cardiac arrest, my belly hangs over my pants when I button it, and my legs rub together. Sometimes, I eat bread, juice, and chocolates all day. Plus, my idea of being active is washing wares! Basically, something needs to be done. I have been thinking about ways that I can become more active; I can join a gym, take a dance class, practice some form of organized sport, or start jogging on mornings. Also, I should change my diet. 

I need to become more spiritual. I feel like the journey of self discovery and acceptance I undertook in 2012 sort of took me away from God. I've come to accept that I'm not religious, but that doesn't mean that I don't believe in God. Thus, the fact that I don't pray often is troubling to me, since I feel ungrateful. I mean, God has been so good to me, and the people I care about. I should give thanks, build this relationship, and re-connect with the Father. 

I need to become more disciplined. For years, my teachers and closest friends have been telling me the same thing. However, I think it was my thesis adviser who really put things into perspective for me, and helped me to commit myself to realizing this goal. She told me that the only thing I was lacking is self-discipline and that I would need to develop this skill if I am to ever reach my full potential. Yikes! I started taking baby steps in 2012 by timing myself doing mundane tasks, like taking a shower or the amount of time I spent on Facebook. I have been getting better, and I feel the change. I suppose my challenge where self discipline is concerned for 2013 is to apply it to the studies I hope to undertake. 

I don't want to bore you with more details of my Year of Garvin plan so, I will end this blog post after a few words. These words are: Happy 2013 to all my readers! I hope that all your dreams come true.

CHAO!