The city of Cusco from above.
Editor steps up...or thinks about it.
A couple of babes in Cusco.
“Santa Rosa, Santa Maria, Santa Claus, Kwarachi, Bassabad, Maruri, Bliksem, Min-dae,” the bus conductor shouts to the crowds waiting on the sidewalk. We know the names are incorrect but that’s what it sounds like to our ears. We are quite fascinated by the commuter system. There are many different busses, mini-busses and vans that commute between somewhere east of our apartment and past the Central Square of Cusco. We are enjoying the system as well as the low price, an eighth of cab fare. A taxi is very cheap, too. However, the atmosphere in the bus is unique and enjoyable, at least up to now. Clearly, we are foreigners because we are the only ones that tip a bus conductor.
Basically, the driver does what you would expect but the conductors have the flair and charisma. At each stop, which is frequent, the side door is slid open, the fellow jumps out, announces the route, sometimes there are ten names running into each other, and then piles back on after the driver shifts into gear. Passengers jump on ahead of the conductor and rush to find a seat. We doubt whether Toyota understands the capacity of their vehicles. To date, no passenger has been refused entry even when no standing room appeared available to the untrained eye. As an aside, we would like to give credit to a young man who stood so our editor could sit. We liked that because we managed to grab a seat before Jenni could reach it. To the swift go the spoils. That was yesterday. Today, we played ‘Peek-a-boo’ with a baby of about a year old until the mother exposed the breast for brunch. On the way home, a duo of musicians jumped on the bus for three minutes during which we were treated to what sounded like protest music followed by the passing of the hat. The conductor had no issues with this service so nor did we.
There are many busses operating along the route. The trick for us is to try and identify which is the correct bus to select. Now that we know our destination street in the Cusco downtown area and roughly, where we live, our system of shouting the destination name to the conductor seems to be working...mostly. We doubt we have ever waited more than a minute at a bus stop. We should mention that payment is only made moments before alighting from the bus. This means the conductor must keep an eye open as well as know where a person boarded the bus. He or she should also be deft with the change, kept in the pocket; they don’t carry a ‘change-maker’.
The day before, we had our first experience with a municipal bus. Although there is nothing uniform about the system formally, they all seem to operate in a similar fashion. The difference is that the municipal bus has a rear door. This is operated electrically as opposed to the manual sliding of the door by the conductor. Here’s the point. The conductor has to receive payment from those alighting from the rear door while he is usually in the front. With a full bus, the passageway is blocked by standing commuters. No problem. When that bus stops, the conductor is already waiting in the road at the back of the bus to collect his dues. We watched this very carefully because, with the price of gold falling, we are trying to save a few bucks. We decided quickly that it was not possible to slip past the fleet-footed conductors—they’re too smart and quick. (Should that be fleet-feeted because it’s plural?).
In the meantime, we learn a lot from inside the bus, always two gringos and many Peruvians.
To 'shoot' a hummingbird above Cusco.
Let's see who gives way in a few moments.
Two gringos and a bunch of Peruvians fill the bus.
Editor on a Peruvian freeway.
Returning from monument to town.
A quick storm hits the city--don't think wings would help, though.
Big clouds building as we make it home with the groceries, 5 minutes to spare.
Looking down on the main square after 550 steps
A couple of ruins in Cusco.
Some serious discussion on way back from school.
Stopping traffic so a 'gentleman' may cross a busy road.
Time for some serious work on the roof of the building.
Cheers,
Jenni and Jeffrey
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