The Journey to Lijiang!

The bus ride was a bit more exciting than I would have liked. Like I said, this was a 9 hour bus ride, and somehow Dylan and I managed to get on a sleeper bus even though we weren’t going to be riding over night. This meant that instead of a seat, we got a bunk, which was much more comfortable. I think if they made sleeper airplanes, they would be a hit! You can stretch out your legs, relax, look out the window, and just chill.

The bus was full. Before we left the station, a woman wearing a red banner draped across her like Miss America came in and checked that everyone had tickets. It was a fairly examination, but that was it. Dylan wasn’t on the bus at the time, he was off buying Oreos, but I had two tickets, and the lady checked them both off. I was a little bit nervous but she didn’t ask any questions, like why one person would need two bus tickets.

As it turned out, there were two bus drivers and they took turns.

About 4 to 5 hours into the drive, the bus driver who wasn’t on duty (and who made a total ass of himself by the end of the ride) came to harass the man sitting directly in front of me. The man was traveling with his wife and daughter. The girl was about 5 years old, and they hadn’t bought a ticket for her since she just shared a bunk with her father. Apparently the asshole bus drier had a problem with that. I couldn’t follow everything but he sat on the bunk where the mother was sleeping and seemed to act as though she wasn’t there. He only ever addressed the father, and he did so in very loud and angry tones. The driver seemed to be demanding money from the father on account of the child. Why he hadn’t brought up any objection back at the station is unclear. All I could tell was that they were arguing about the child.

Eventually, the father (who had kept his voice down the whole time even though the driver was shouting and gesturing in a most expansive fashion) tried to give some money to the irate driver. The driver jerked away from the money as though he were being offered a poisonous substance. I saw the father increase the amount of money he offered, and soon the bus driver returned to his seat at the front of the bus in the co-pilot position. I didn’t see him take the money, but I’m guessing that he did.

I don’t see why the jerk cared. The little girl wasn’t bothering anyone. Maybe he was just trying to get some money out of the father (who probably didn’t want to be embarrassed in front of his wife and child) or maybe the guy was just bruising for a fight. Based on later events, I think this latter analysis might actually have something to it.

Eight hours into the trip, the “on” driver pulls over, and stops the bus. Both bus drivers go the back of the bus and confront a man there with having not bought a ticket. Again, why they didn’t check on this back in Kunming remains a mystery. I couldn’t follow all of what they were shouting back and forth, but it wasn’t very complex. At one point, something was said that triggered several people located back there to get up and move to the front of the bus. Shortly thereafter, both bus drivers grabbed the angry man and tried to pull him off the bus. The man resisted, but eventually the two bus drivers were able to overpower him and get him off the bus.

The woman he had been next to followed them outside. The two bus drivers were swinging wild punches, and the angry man was swinging back. The woman was getting in between the bus drivers and the man and trying to push them away. As far as I saw, neither one of them made a swing at her or pushed her. I guess they didn’t see her as a threat. They just kept going after the man they thought was a stow-away. Finally, the woman pulled out a wad of cash and started handing bills to one of the drivers. I guess they must have eventually concluded that they had received enough money, and then everyone (including the angry man) came back on the bus. The angry man was still angry and as he walked behind the woman he pushed her several times. She didn’t register a complaint. Maybe she was aware that in other hand he was carrying a large rock. I don’t know if the bus drivers were aware of this.

Everyone got seated and the bus started moving again. We had gone for two minutes when Mr. Angry-Man-With-Rock stood up and stalked to the front of the bus. The woman called after him to come back, but he ignored her. He demanded from the “off” bus driver (the asshole who harassed the father in the first episode) that since he had paid, the driver should give him a ticket. The driver wrote something on a piece of paper, and Mr. Rock went back. But he still was not satisfied, and he walked up to the front of the bus at least two more times demanding something. All I ever saw was the paper, no money or any other object traded hands. At one point, Mr. Angry brought his pet rock with him, and other people on the bus started to freak. I couldn’t really see, but I think he threatened the man currently driving the bus and then a lot of people screamed, and the bus driver pulled over. Whatever the problem was, it seemed to be resolved at last, and the man returned to his bunk for what was left of the trip.

We finally arrived in Lijiang.

I must say I was rather traumatized by the whole thing. Dylan was on a top bunk, so he managed to miss most of it. I haven’t witnessed many physical confrontations, but based on this experience, I’ll be happy never to witness one again. It was really scary.