How a 45 minute journey turned into a 5 hour adventure!
I'm not really good at writing or storytelling, but bear with me I think this was a pretty mad adventure!
I live about a 10 minute drive from the centre of Birmingham and each day I take around a 45 minute bus journey to a small town where I go to college. At first the bus journey seemed long but now it just seems to fly by as each day I download new music and podcasts to entertain me for the ride.
The date was Thursday the first of February 2018 and the whole of UK was experiencing extremely cold weather from a storm known as 'the beast from the east'. The previous day we had experienced temperatures as low as -7 C but today it had risen slightly to -3 C, the day started as a usual day at college. I got up at 6:10 am then got the bus around 7:30 to get to college for 8:45 (morning journeys always take longer due to all the school children), lessons went on throughout the day and snow started to fall, it wasn't sticking though and non of us thought anything of it.
It was around 1:50 pm when me and some friends were sitting in one of the large indoor social spaces of the college when a teacher came in and shouted something causing the room to erupt into chaos. At first I had no idea what was going on, people at this college are usually quite calm and then I saw an email saying the college was closing due to the weather. With hardly any snow on the road and being the 18 year old's that we are we thought we might as well go to the pub for a drink! As time went by we went from a group of 9 people to just 4 as people left to return home, it was about 5 pm when I thought i'll call it a day and leave for the bus station.
As soon as I left the pub I knew I was in trouble, by now there was a decent amount of snow on the roads so I quickly walked to the bus station and waited. The bus arrived around 15 minuted after it was supposed to when I first checked the live timings, this was when the first 'oh shit' moment came to. The bus moved incredibly slow for the first 1000 meters taking about 30 minutes to drive until we came to a standstill around 3 km away from the bus station. Over the next hour we barley moved 50 meters and had 3 different bus drivers with the last driver telling us that he had reached his driving hours so was going to have to pull the bus over as soon as it was safe to do so and that we could get the next bus behind, this caused a few people to get off the bus but me and around 15 others remained. We didn't move for another 45 minutes and I could hear the bus driver become increasingly annoyed at the situation as he shouted out to all the passengers once again that he was going to be pulling over as soon as we started moving again, this is when the real 'oh shit' moment sank in as me and another passenger made eye contact.
She was a year older than me and was going to visit her boyfriend who funny enough lived near me. We began talking for the next 15 minutes until we decided to try walk. It was just after 8 pm at this point and the temperature was -4 C with strong winds blowing snow everywhere so it was a certain type of chill that were not used to in the UK. I am going to Iceland in a few days so luckily enough I had decided to wear my thermals and fleece along with a warm hat and gloves so I was some what prepared for the journey. The girl, who's name I somehow forgot to ask, however was in a small coat with no hood or gloves and was not as ready for this walk however we were both optimistic about the walk ahead.
After around 10 minutes of walking alongside the gridlocked traffic we arrived at the cause of all the mayhem, a small hill. There were around three cars each being pushed up the hill but failing miserably slipping and sliding all over the place while around a mile of traffic sat behind them unbeknown of what was going on. I couldn't help myself but laugh, all these people just sat there thinking at any minute they were going to be able to continue the route ahead. The positive vibes continued as we talked and talked as we walked through the blistering cold keeping our mind off the cold with some pretty interesting conversations about life and travel.
After an hours walk we had reached the next big town from where we left the bus, what is usually a place bustling with cars and people was completely empty as the the main roads were covered in snow, we walked the road of the main round about and found a KFC which was for some reason still open. We decided to go for a toilet stop and get out the cold for little while. After about 5 minutes, I know I though we would be in there longer too but this girl was determined to carry on, we left and started to walk up the infamous Mucklow's hill, a long steep hill which takes us up to the next town. For some reason there were cars trying to drive up the hill, we saw around 5 cars give up and immediately turn around however nearer to the half way point there was a around 5 cars stuck with a good Samaritan towing them one by one the the top of the hill. Somehow we were both still positive and getting to know each other really made the time go by much quicker, it was nearer to the top of the hill when a man came from behind and made a comment about the weather to us. He was an Asian man in a thin jumper and dress shoes with his hands pushed up his sleeves for warmth, we began talking and I found out his name is Omar and he had been walking for around 2 hours from a shopping centre where he left his car. Omar was a really interesting guy, he was studying a PhD in hope to become a doctor and in fact was out shopping that day to buy a wedding ring for his fiance, it also turned out that he used to go to the same college that I do now and did the same bus journey too.
It was around 9:45 and we had been walking for over 2 and a half hours but for some reason I was not tired, I was not cold, I was actually enjoying myself talking to two complete strangers and joking about the bizarre situation we was in. Soon after we reached the top of the hill the girl who I had met on the bus reached the point where she had to walk a different way so we said a quick goodbye, wished each other the best in life and me and Omar continued to walk. I was surprised how this man, in such thin clothes and had been walking for over 2 hours in the cold on his own was so happy, he was laughing at the fact he left his car behind and just gave off a really positive vibe as he gave me some good tips about life and not rushing into a job which is something I liked to hear as I have no idea what I want to do with my life. Me and Omar parted ways near my old high school and I continued on the last leg of the walk back to my house on my own, this was by far the toughest part of the journey and really made me think what would I have done if I didn't meet that girl on the bus and if I didn't engage in a conversation with Omar when he first approached me. I got home just after 10:30 pm, just over 5 hours after I left the pub, 8 and a half hours after the college closed and 13 hours after I left for college in the morning.
It's situations like these that unite us all, no matter how much money you have, no matter where you're from we were all in the same situation. It was the positivity of these two strangers which turned what potentially could of been one of the worst days of my life to one of the most inspiring, with not one complaint from either of them we actually had some interesting conversations showing the true power of what can happen when you meet new people with a positive attitude.
I live about a 10 minute drive from the centre of Birmingham and each day I take around a 45 minute bus journey to a small town where I go to college. At first the bus journey seemed long but now it just seems to fly by as each day I download new music and podcasts to entertain me for the ride.
The date was Thursday the first of February 2018 and the whole of UK was experiencing extremely cold weather from a storm known as 'the beast from the east'. The previous day we had experienced temperatures as low as -7 C but today it had risen slightly to -3 C, the day started as a usual day at college. I got up at 6:10 am then got the bus around 7:30 to get to college for 8:45 (morning journeys always take longer due to all the school children), lessons went on throughout the day and snow started to fall, it wasn't sticking though and non of us thought anything of it.
It was around 1:50 pm when me and some friends were sitting in one of the large indoor social spaces of the college when a teacher came in and shouted something causing the room to erupt into chaos. At first I had no idea what was going on, people at this college are usually quite calm and then I saw an email saying the college was closing due to the weather. With hardly any snow on the road and being the 18 year old's that we are we thought we might as well go to the pub for a drink! As time went by we went from a group of 9 people to just 4 as people left to return home, it was about 5 pm when I thought i'll call it a day and leave for the bus station.
As soon as I left the pub I knew I was in trouble, by now there was a decent amount of snow on the roads so I quickly walked to the bus station and waited. The bus arrived around 15 minuted after it was supposed to when I first checked the live timings, this was when the first 'oh shit' moment came to. The bus moved incredibly slow for the first 1000 meters taking about 30 minutes to drive until we came to a standstill around 3 km away from the bus station. Over the next hour we barley moved 50 meters and had 3 different bus drivers with the last driver telling us that he had reached his driving hours so was going to have to pull the bus over as soon as it was safe to do so and that we could get the next bus behind, this caused a few people to get off the bus but me and around 15 others remained. We didn't move for another 45 minutes and I could hear the bus driver become increasingly annoyed at the situation as he shouted out to all the passengers once again that he was going to be pulling over as soon as we started moving again, this is when the real 'oh shit' moment sank in as me and another passenger made eye contact.
She was a year older than me and was going to visit her boyfriend who funny enough lived near me. We began talking for the next 15 minutes until we decided to try walk. It was just after 8 pm at this point and the temperature was -4 C with strong winds blowing snow everywhere so it was a certain type of chill that were not used to in the UK. I am going to Iceland in a few days so luckily enough I had decided to wear my thermals and fleece along with a warm hat and gloves so I was some what prepared for the journey. The girl, who's name I somehow forgot to ask, however was in a small coat with no hood or gloves and was not as ready for this walk however we were both optimistic about the walk ahead.
After around 10 minutes of walking alongside the gridlocked traffic we arrived at the cause of all the mayhem, a small hill. There were around three cars each being pushed up the hill but failing miserably slipping and sliding all over the place while around a mile of traffic sat behind them unbeknown of what was going on. I couldn't help myself but laugh, all these people just sat there thinking at any minute they were going to be able to continue the route ahead. The positive vibes continued as we talked and talked as we walked through the blistering cold keeping our mind off the cold with some pretty interesting conversations about life and travel.
After an hours walk we had reached the next big town from where we left the bus, what is usually a place bustling with cars and people was completely empty as the the main roads were covered in snow, we walked the road of the main round about and found a KFC which was for some reason still open. We decided to go for a toilet stop and get out the cold for little while. After about 5 minutes, I know I though we would be in there longer too but this girl was determined to carry on, we left and started to walk up the infamous Mucklow's hill, a long steep hill which takes us up to the next town. For some reason there were cars trying to drive up the hill, we saw around 5 cars give up and immediately turn around however nearer to the half way point there was a around 5 cars stuck with a good Samaritan towing them one by one the the top of the hill. Somehow we were both still positive and getting to know each other really made the time go by much quicker, it was nearer to the top of the hill when a man came from behind and made a comment about the weather to us. He was an Asian man in a thin jumper and dress shoes with his hands pushed up his sleeves for warmth, we began talking and I found out his name is Omar and he had been walking for around 2 hours from a shopping centre where he left his car. Omar was a really interesting guy, he was studying a PhD in hope to become a doctor and in fact was out shopping that day to buy a wedding ring for his fiance, it also turned out that he used to go to the same college that I do now and did the same bus journey too.
It was around 9:45 and we had been walking for over 2 and a half hours but for some reason I was not tired, I was not cold, I was actually enjoying myself talking to two complete strangers and joking about the bizarre situation we was in. Soon after we reached the top of the hill the girl who I had met on the bus reached the point where she had to walk a different way so we said a quick goodbye, wished each other the best in life and me and Omar continued to walk. I was surprised how this man, in such thin clothes and had been walking for over 2 hours in the cold on his own was so happy, he was laughing at the fact he left his car behind and just gave off a really positive vibe as he gave me some good tips about life and not rushing into a job which is something I liked to hear as I have no idea what I want to do with my life. Me and Omar parted ways near my old high school and I continued on the last leg of the walk back to my house on my own, this was by far the toughest part of the journey and really made me think what would I have done if I didn't meet that girl on the bus and if I didn't engage in a conversation with Omar when he first approached me. I got home just after 10:30 pm, just over 5 hours after I left the pub, 8 and a half hours after the college closed and 13 hours after I left for college in the morning.
It's situations like these that unite us all, no matter how much money you have, no matter where you're from we were all in the same situation. It was the positivity of these two strangers which turned what potentially could of been one of the worst days of my life to one of the most inspiring, with not one complaint from either of them we actually had some interesting conversations showing the true power of what can happen when you meet new people with a positive attitude.
Comments
Post a Comment