MY DATE WITH AN ST BUS

Don't you just love the ST buses in Mumbai? The way they clank and rattle over every tiny pot-hole and look like they are going to completely fall apart the next time they hit another speed breaker?
Well, the first time I was blessed with a ride on an ST bus was when I joined my new college. You see, my previous college was just a hop skip and jump away from my home and hence there wasn't any traveling involved as such. But after my junior college I decided to shift to a better known college at the cost of a bit of traveling. So my friend, already enrolled there, gave me this deal, "If you go by a BEST bus, you'll get there in 30 mins. But if you catch an ST bus, you'll get to a bus stop nearby in 10 mins and with 5 mins of walking you should be conveniently at the college." I thought that the idea was absolutely ridiculous. I mean how can a mere change of buses that more or less take the same route make so much difference in my travel time? But little did I know that I would be so wrong!
So on the third day of my college I get to the bus stop exactly 20 mins before my first lecture at college was to start. As I approach my bus stop I see an ST bus standing there patiently waiting for all the passengers to alight. I take one look at the bus then my watch and make up my mind. As I board the ST bus I am welcomed by the conductor yelling at me for not closing the bus door behind me. Normally used to traveling in a BEST, I was quite unaware of this little tradition. Within 5 mins I realize the catch in an ST bus ride. So an ST bus will take you to your destination in almost half the time as a BEST, but you are going to have to sit with the machhiwallis and the bhajiwallis with their tokris practically on your lap! I'm awed by the fact that, while almost all the passengers in the bus are struggling to get a foothold, the conductor is always comfortably seated on a seat next to the window, strictly reserved for him. I'm also amazed as to how the roadside romeos in the bus manage to whistle a song at the sight of a girl when everybody else is desperately struggling for oxygen! The bus then jumps over a pot-hole and suddenly it feels like an earthquake in the bus. It stuns me so much that at that point all that matters to me is to get to the college 'alive' rather than on time. Suddenly it strikes me, "Oh, so that’s why the ST buses are so enclosed with doors et al. It's so the passengers don't fall out of the bus during these mini earthquakes!"
When my bus stop finally comes, I'm quite literally thrown out of the bus by passengers who are relieved at getting some extra space in the bus, no matter how little. But I've got to admit that all in all, I quite enjoyed the ride. The kind of enjoyment you get out of bungee jumping.