The bus will come when it comes

Recently I have found myself waiting for late buses a lot. I came to a grand conclusion, the bus will come when it comes.

Last week on my way back to site from Bangkok and all of my travels I decided to suck it up and take an overnight bus. I had just said goodbye to Jonathan at the airport and I was so sad to see him go bringing about the end of fun travels to Vietnam and the beach. But I begrudgingly went to the crappy bus station anyway. I waited on the hot, bus exhaust-filled platform and the bus didn't come. And it didn't come. And it didn't come. So I sat down on the ground along with the rest of the expecting passengers and waited. After waiting over 2 hours, the bus finally came, supposedly it had broken down on its way. Who really knows though.

On weekends I often make the "big" trip to Tesco (like a Target) in Roi Et, the biggest city near me. The trip involves me walking 2km to the highway and sitting and waiting for a bus to pass so I can flag it down. It's about a 45 minute ride and Tesco is conveniently located next to the bus station. In the past year, I have yet to figure out the schedule, if there even is one. I have even gone so far as to bike to the bus station the bus comes from and write down the schedule posted, but alas, that's never really worked out. On a few occasions the bus passes right as I approach the highway, but that rarely happens. Usually I sit along the highway for up to 2 hours waiting....

Today I sat and waited. A man and his young son eventually came and waited as well. I asked what time the bus would pass and he looked at his watch and said in a few minutes. I always take comfort when a Thai person is waiting with me, assuming they would have mastered this bus schedule. A half hour later the bus was still nowhere to be found. Eventually it passed, and I found a seat on the very crowded bus with no air conditioning and broken seats.

My trip to Tesco was filled with fun purchases like broccoli, seedless grapes (they never have those), raisins, and frozen chicken nuggets. I didn't even know you could buy chicken nuggets at Tesco so it's going to be interesting to see how they turn out. The bus heading back leaves every hour on the 45 minute mark. I arrived at 11:20am, planning to take the 11:45am bus home. Usually a bus is sitting at the platform, but today there was no bus. There was a quick burst of annoyance inside of me and then I found a place to sit down, convinced that the bus would be there soon. Over an hour later the next bus arrived and then we had to wait until 12:45pm. Needless to say, I was not happy. I had a bag with milk, ham, and those chicken nuggets that I didn't want to spoil in the ridiculous heat. When I realized I was in for a long wait, I kindly asked the random Pakistani man who works at the snack stand if I could put my cold foods into the fridge with the sodas and juices he sells. As I pulled out my crossword puzzles I was happy that at least my cold food items would be safe for awhile longer.

So a trip that should have taken 3 hours round trip ended up taking 6 hours. I survived, so did my cold food items, but a small part of me dies every time I have to sit in the heat at some station (or highway) waiting. I remember waiting for late night subway trains in New York, frustrated when they would be delayed. But at least I knew the train would come or I could just hop in a cab. In Thailand, the bus might come, but it might not. The bus will come when it comes and that's that.

Volunteers always joke how we should add up the hours we have spent on buses around Thailand, but I think the more interesting calculation would be how many hours I have waited for a bus instead. Both numbers would be frighteningly large. I will say that I have learned a great deal of patience through this oddity of Thailand. I can't control the situation so I might as well just wait it out. Getting frustrated and angry just gets you frustrated, angry, and hot so it's not worth it. I now know to come prepared with at least 2 of the following items at all times: crossword puzzles, book, magazine, fully charged Ipod (preferably with new episodes of "This American Life" podcasts), notebook and pen, and my Thai dictionary (that's for desperate times only). If you looked in my bag now, you would find my crossword puzzles and Ipod anxiously waiting for the next time I wait for the bus that will come when it comes.