PCV Haley made a post recently about using the ubiquitous minibuses and buses in Moldova that I enjoy and want to share. Check it out to learn about daily experiences in long- and mid-distance travel and meet two professional drivers:
MARSHRUTKA, MY SH-ROUTE-KA: INTERVIEW WITH A DRIVER If there’s anything a Peace Corps Volunteer can relate to, it’s shoving herself into a stuffy, smelly, overcrowded minibus (in Romanian, it’s called a “rutiera,” but down Comrat way we use the Russian term “marshrutka” (маршрутка)) for a bumpy ride with a barnyard atmosphere. You’re in the back row of one of these beasts. You’re squished between a бабушка and your friend in a 6-person situation, though there are only 5 seats. (There was an empty seat you could have snagged, right before take-off, if that asshole up front hadn’t saved the seat with his bag. Every time – you’ve come to accept it.) The smell of corn wafts when the bus wheel glances off the edge of a pothole, forcing fresh air up through the poorly-insulated back doors and disturbing the caged chicks, who begin to peep with a little alarm. It’s hot (yes, it’s summer – you feel the sweat sling from your temple into the corner of your eye, where it stings a little) and you can’t breathe well. But that one (and only one) Russian love-pop song you actually like is blaring on the radio right now, so you’re still chipper. You’re even grateful that the guy right in front of you, sitting on a little stool in the middle of the walkway, didn’t glare when you kicked him lightly in the ribs as you tried to uncross your legs (there wasn’t enough room to do it). Everyone just wants to get home, especially the cat mewling from some lady’s purse. CONTINUE READING THE FULL POST HERE!
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Rebecca LehmanHealth Education volunteer serving at Boris Dînga Middle & High School in Criuleni, Moldova. Archives
May 2017
Categories |