Breakdown

The first bus I rode on the way back home had a flat tire along the highway near Villamor Air Base/Fort Bonifacio. I think it was a flat tire since I could hear a whooshing sound.

One of those trucks whose business is to assist stranded vehicles on the highway (for a fee ofcourse) stopped by. After some minutes - and I gather that the driver, conductor and the truck people have given up on fixing what was wrong - the driver climbed back into the bus and announced that the truck will tow the bus back to the terminal where we would transfer to another bus.

Those who didn't want to go back to the terminal got off the bus and tried their luck in getting on another bus that might stop by. Others like me didn't mind going back and transferring to another bus. Then there are those people who were asleep and didn't hear the announcement. The driver then stepped off the bus and one of the guys from the towing company took the wheel.

The truck had already towed us as far as Pasay Road when a lady at the back found out where we were headed and started a racket about not informing the passengers about what was going on. I am guessing she just woke up. Her racket woke the other passengers who were also asleep when the bus driver made his announcement. The newly awake passengers joined the racket, giving the towtruck guy a headache. One of the funny statements I heard came from lady #1 who questioned the decision to turn back when we were allegedly already in Alabang. Either she doesn't know her geography or her eyes had trouble discerning the landmarks in the dark. I almost spoke up to correct her wrong statements, but decided I didn't want to be on the receiving end of an aggravated person I don't even know.

This yapping goes on until we reach the bus terminal. As I waited my turn to get off the bus, lady #1 passed by me, holding a big box of cake. It was seeing the box that made me realize that the reason she might be very pissed off has a lot to do with the cake - is she running late to a party? Or if the party is not tonight, is the cake icing already melting?

When we got onto the second bus, there was another problem. No one from the bus company made the announcement to the passengers to keep our bus tickets. Since 1/3 of the passengers on our bus had left when the driver announced that we will be towed back to the terminal, 1/3 of the passengers on the replacement bus therefore were new and hadn't paid yet. When the supervisor started inspecting tickets of the transferees, those who left their tickets in bus #1 started complaining. To get the people off his back, the supervisor chose to give the driver the go signal to start the engine and leave - which meant 1/3 of the passengers got a free ride this evening.

The whole ordeal would be considered a hassle by most, I on the other hand found it amusing.