Bus Badventures

Recently, on the bus back to my town, a peasant farmer, who had never taken a bath, nor had she ever washed her clothes…. sat in my lap. I yelled out in disgust but was powerless to shove an old woman off of my lap.

The bus return to Shaojie is one that I can never ignore or take lightly. Phoebe and I always try to arrive early. There are certain seats on every bus that we always want to be sitting in. The first seat next to the driver. The first seats behind the driver. The single seats on the left side of the bus behind the door. The seats that have a window that opens from the front.  You get the point….We  always try to dodge the peasant farmers, the crying babies, the fetid smell of rotting dirty junk. Thanks in large to the the corrupt bus drivers, willing to take anyone and anything on the hour ride, the stank of the farmers without the facilities to shower, and the cigarettes that Chinese people insist on smoking on top of you… the bus ride to Shaojie is one that we always take with care.

This past weekend, on our way home, I witnessed this man texting outside my window. He is the epitome of Chinese fashion sense. Please notice his slippers that he wore as shoes. I’m sure they smell disgusting.