SPLENDID TRAVEL

Trips, traveling or could call it as expeditions have always been fascinated me to visit many places in India. People, culture, food, heritage place, buildings and many more refreshes and adds-up excitement to travel. A periodic betterment in transportation via automobile connects cities making it easier expedition to any part of the country you like to see whether it’s few kilometers of it could be miles together.

In my childhood traveling in carts (Jatka gaadi in kannada) was the most joyful ride I ever had in villages. If I am not wrong, most of our school life has spent in enjoying auto rickshaw (three-wheeler) from school to home. As the time advanced and IT, BT software days are here (not to forget) a sophisticated life style moved us to modern day cars and buses. Modern day bus facilities have changed my view about buses in India. If you surf through many websites of metropolitan city for example, Bangalore’s local transport, we see beautiful pictures of red, blue, green, brown, blue, pink bus. Each color and bus size symbolize a name- Vayu Vajra for airport service bus, BIG10 – travel with Rs 10, pink bus for women special service, pushpak bus and metro station service. An A/c VOLVO offers day dreaming ride. My aversion towards bus travel has been taken away by these big, long colorful buses. The special seat reservation for women, handicapped, senior citizens allow people feel gratify in traveling.

A New Direction

As an additional, traveling experience in Colorado, US using local county bus service was amazing. Bus seem to be like a splendid bus with facilities such as park and ride, call ride- make a call and fix a ride, sky ride (for airport), stop at door facility, lost and found and preference for handicap/disable, online schedule on mobile, late night service and fabulous is Mall Ride - a shuttle bus to visit restaurants, shops, theater, galleries, tourist attractions, and businesses up and down the mall. Senior ride will provide pickup facility and a discount on tickets for senior citizens; they also have special mechanism where the door steps will be flattened to foot level for their easy walk into bus and foldable seats for disabled people. I have never seen before anywhere but in U.S, how travelers conveying a HELLO & THANKS to bus drivers. This is really a lesson to learn and thank even those people who helped us in small to small help. Amazing discipline.   

Being a nature lover I or anybody would like to keep your environment clean. This was one more positive of bus service at Colorado. There are waste bags kept, to discard food wrappers, drink containers and also to throw invalid tickets and other papers.

Bird watching

While I was waiting for bus at one of the stop, I saw 2-3 colorful birds; I was thinking which birds are these. My friend told me to do Bus birding!!! Bird watching was not much fascinating before at a bus stop until I saw a Bird watching guide board. Picturized and designed by Brian D. Collier, a new art-science-transportation project created for JUMP bus route in Boulder, Colarado, U. S. This educates bird watching community and beginners and encourages initiating riding the bus to their bird watching sites.  The bird watching guide includes local birds’ name that could be seen in the bus stops. A bird watching event will also be conducted in August and interested bird watchers can schedule their timings to ride a bus. Isn’t it amazing?

The proverb in Kannada “Desha suttu kosha oodu” translation in English says “travel places and read books” definitely true!!! Reading books at library is equal to learning by visiting 2-3 places. I learnt many things just by riding a bus. To have this facility in India too, the fellow travelers should also take active part in maintaining bus regulations and by no mishandling/misuse of bus facility and learning how to utilize this. How about even Indian government provide bird watching facility at bird sanctuaries to start with and Bird watching boards at all picnic spots. We should definitely think about it.