Commute using BMTC

It's been nearly three months ever since I started commuting to work everyday using public transport. Before I made the decision to join my current job, the commute was one of the important constraints that my husband and I pondered and discussed a lot. Except for a bicycle, I'm not trained to drive other forms of vehicles. I had become dependent on my husband's car or company-provided transportation in the past three years. Although I took the first step in joining a driving class and attended around 6 sessions, I am not very confident of driving a four wheeler on my own.

I decided to take the plunge and trust BMTC services for my everyday commute. After nearly 3 months, I'm very much happy with the Volvo series (Vajra). The route that I commute has a lot of Volvos plying in both directions. It's very comfortable and quick. I get a seat immediately as I get inside the bus and sometimes, after a few stops. The 15 km commute during peak hours takes me around 75 minutes on an average. Sometimes, I do have to shuttle between 2-3 buses to reach my destination. But the wait time is not that long.

The long wait for signals and traffic jams are no more irritating as I enjoy music from my iPod or read a book. Whether you are in a car or an auto rickshaw or a public bus, traffic jams are a given. So I decided not to get irritated and instead turn this time into something more meaningful. Did I say it's much more cost effective compared to filling up petrol in a car?

If only BMTC could increase the frequency and cover more routes, many of the daily commuters can utilize the Vajra ride and hopefully, the number of cars on the road would reduce to some extent.

A walk to remember

Ever since I started commuting using public transport, my reading habit has got a revival. Last week, I finished reading Nicholas Sparks's "A walk to remember". It's a very touching novel based on love, compassion and empathy. It's the story of Jamie and Landon, two teenagers whose completely different paths in life get intertwined slowly. Their journey in a year together as friends and later a lovely couple forms the crux of the story.

Although the story is simple and we have seen similar stories in many Indian cinemas, I liked this novel mainly because of the way in which love transforms a person's character. Jamie's influence on Landon's life is narrated with incidents like the play they performed, the homecoming dance, their time together in the orphanage on Christmas and their walks together back home. Slowly and steadily, Jamie has helped Landon transform from being a mischievous kid to a compassionate teenager.

It's a heart wrenching story of true love and life in general. I hope to catch hold of the movie that was based on this book.