Wise words from my visa program advisor. And with that in mind, I promptly took the weekend off, like eight million other Londoners. (Not that I consider myself a Londoner quite yet. Probably never).
The thing about weekends in London is that the public transport servicing the city pretty much takes two days off too. And as it turned out the two main tube lines servicing my current location in Swiss Cottage were down. Bugger. Walk? Too far. Catch a cab? Too expensive. Take....the bus?
Interesting fact about me: I don't take buses. Ever. Not even in New Zealand. I find they are always late, their routes and timetables are far too complicated and they always divert down little streets so you never quite know where you are going or where your stop is. Buses are for people who don't mind not knowing where they are going. I prefer the tube. I like to think of the tube as public transport for public transport neophites. The tube map is in bright, clearly marked colours. There are signs everywhere to hold your hand as you wind your way through the maze that is the Underground. You travel in darkness for several minutes and then - poof- you come at the exact location you wanted some minutes later. No random unscheduled stops. No traffic. And there are always free newspapers to read.
Buses? No.
"If you always take the tube you will Never Ever Really see London."
More wise words from said advisor.
Really? Never? Well I guess I'll take the bus when, you know, I know the city a bit better. When I have a leisurely few hours to reach my destination. When the buses introduce free reading material. When the buses have pretty, colourful maps. When pigs fly.
Fast-forward to the moment when I realise the line servicing Swiss Cottage is C-L-O-S-E-D.
Craaaaap. Okay, you know what? I didn't really need to go out. I can just wait until Monday to get all my errands done. It's cold anyway. Hey- what's that crowd of people over there? Hmmm. They're waiting for something. A bus? Might go have a look. Just a look? Just a look. Okay, four different buses. One is going to Oxford Circus. That's where I want to go. So I just get on the bus? And it will take me to Oxford Circus? Really? Seems too easy. Well, just get on and see where you end up. How hard can it be?
Ridiculously easy actually. Turns out every bus route has a number. Memorise the number, look up the number at any bus station and it will tell you where your stop is. And the fun part is you get to sit on the top of one of those bright red double decker buses and watch London go by. It's like a really cheap tour of the city.
Contemplate sitting on the bus all day long to see the sights. Decide this is childish. Do it anyway.
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