Imi Pare Rau for Falling in Your Lap, Sir!

So, after today I think it is safe to say that traveling by Rutiera (see last post for picture) is not my favorite form of public transportation. Today I went to the MTC from Botanica, the district I now live in. The route is like this: walk 5-7 minutes to bus stop, take #23 trolley bus about 35 minutes, walk 2 minutes to R. #159, take #159 about 20 minutes to MTC. Like before, I had no trouble getting to the trolleybus and getting to the next stop. When I got on the Rutiera it was pretty full but I squeezed in. As we are going down the road some drunk older man decides to be really obnoxious. I'm standing right in front of him (he's sitting down) and he keeps saying crazy things in Russian and trying to take the cell phone of the guy beside him. I can't move or go anywhere because I'm jammed in. The driver keeps yelling back at him. Finally, a space right beside him on the bench opens up so I just sat down right there. His attention stayed towards the back of the bus so I was thankful for that. He made the ride interesting to say the least.

Then, I left the office a little after 4:00 to come back home. I wanted to take another Ruteria instead of doing everything above in reverse because I wasn't sure of where to get off the #23 trolleybus at home. So, I took the R. #159 to the right stop, walked about 10 minutes to another place and hopped on the R. #166. Then the "fun began." Droves of people literally kept piling in this ever so tiny van. I really wish I could find a picture of the inside of one of these things. Try to picture the inside of a 15 passenger van. There are only seats along one side of the van and a whole row in the back. The open space on the other side is for people to stand in. Well, all 11 seats on this Rutiera were taken and I was literally pushed up against the side of the wall standing up so hard that I didn't need to hold on to anything. There was no way I was budging. I tried to count how many people were standing up in there and I lost track at 22!! I finally managed to maneuver myself from being pressed against the side and got more into the aisle. As I was trying to shift my purse from my side to my front, the driver decided to switch gears and everyone standing lost their balance. The girl in front of me pushed me so hard that it made me lose my footing and I FELL INTO THE LAP OF A MAN IN THE SEAT! Not like I sat in his lap....No, I'm talking like I was laid out across him. I had my laptop in one hand so I'm only functioning with the other. And with 30 people crammed into a space only big enough for 6 people, I think I pulled all kinds of muscles trying to get off this poor man. He did not say one word. He acted like it was normal. I just kept saying I'm sorry, I'm sorry (imi pare rau, imi pare rau!). I was sooooo embarrassed! The rest of the ride was ok after enough people got off and I was able to get a seat.

I have to get used to the fact that with public transportation I have to allow so much more time to get to and from places. Most of the places I will go are in Ciocana and takes about an hour to get there from Botanica with PT. But, it's cheaper to use PT than it is to have a car here. Not that I would ever drive! So, I think after today I will study the routes of the trolleybuses extra hard! They get crowded as well, but nothing ever like a Rutiera! I will also try to keep my hands, and body apparently, to myself!!