I do not ever want to be famous. But, through The World Race I feel like I am getting a small taste of what fame would feel like. When we do school visits we are surrounded by curious students asking for our autographs. Everywhere we go, except for the touristy spots, people tend to watch us out of curiosity. Today I climbed on the bus and walked down the aisle to greetings and smiles. With no open seats, I stood in the back of the bus holding on to the bar. A middle school aged girl jumped up and offered me her seat. I took youngster up on her offer and sat next her two friends. We started talking and the girls shared that we had visited their school last week. They had been excited when we climbed on the bus because they knew us and were thrilled to be able to sit and ask questions. Such a small taste of fame; I climbed on a city bus in Peru and had a stranger recognize me.
The bus is one way to travel in Lima; rides cost anywhere from 15 cents to 65 cents. The driver barely stops long enough for passengers to rush onto the bus and he starts moving before the passengers are completely on board. Today a little boy was pinned by the doors closing on his book bag.
A second option for transportation is the Combi, which is a 12-15 passenger van and it costs 35-65 cents. There are bars on the ceiling so an additional half dozen people can cram into the aisle. An assistant to the driver hangs out the window calling out the route as they pass by people on the street. Often as we walk the assistants will call out to us encouraging us to hop on the Combi. It’s odd, because even after we shake our heads no they continue to try to persuade us to climb aboard. The assistant jumps out at stops to allow people to climb aboard. The driver starts pulling away before the assistant has boarded so the assistant has to run to jump aboard.
The third option for transportation is the moto-taxi. Moto taxi’s are scooters with a cab in the back that fits three people typically. A ride on a moto-taxi is very similar to an amusement park ride. The driver weaves in and out of traffic often using a comical horn. Today we were able to cram 7 people in the Moto-taxi of a church member. Camilo, our driver, said that was a pretty good number considering we are big American’s. But, he was able to squeeze 10 people in when the passengers were smaller Peruvians.
