As I sit here, in the bustling bus station, after a 14 hour bus ride (that should have been 12), I’m reminded how travel is different here in Peru than the United States. The station is full of people from all walks of life—host country nationals, backpackers and tourists; infants and elders. Some waited until today to buy their tickets, others might have purchased theirs a few days ahead. All of the buses are full until la Navidad, Christmas.
I’m traveling to El Ingenio, a district within the province of Nazca (yes, Nazca of the Nazca Lines), which is in the department or state of Ica. By the time I get to the house I’ll be staying at, I’ll have been traveling for 29 hours. But, that’s normal here.
In the States, I would have hopped on a plane and made it to my destination in 4 hours (maybe longer if there were layovers). But flying isn’t very popular here. For one, it’s more expensive. I’ve come to learn that Peruvians don’t mind that it costs them time to travel. Unlike in the States, time does not equal money. So, traveling for 24 hours and saving 100 soles is better than traveling 4 hours and spending those 100 soles. Two, I’ve heard that the airlines frequently overbook their flights. And three, most of the Peruvians I’ve talked with are actually scared of flying, and when I tell them that flying is actually the safest form of travel they laugh at me.
But the novelty and infrequency of flying has led to a booming bus business. Throughout the past 6 and a half months, I’ve taken more buses than I ever did back home. There are inexpensive buses, crowded full of people, with seats practically on top of each other. There are expensive buses, with the option to recline your seat into a full bed. Most buses have some sort of entertainment, the more expensive ones have Wi-Fi and your own personal television. The more expensive options also have stewards, like flight attendants, who take care of your every need.
While I’m technically traveling with my host family, they opted to take another bus and I’ll meet them at our final destination. Their travel plans were much more fluid than mine, partly due to safety concerns and regulations that the Peace Corps has. Though they finalized their decision to travel for the Christmas holiday to visit family almost two weeks ago, they didn’t buy their bus tickets until the day before they left—the exception being my host brother-in-law who left a day before us and bought his the day of. They still have not set a return date, but I’ll likely push for an earlier return so I can get back to site for a few meetings.
These long bus rides not only make me grateful for a fairly developed aviation system, but also make shorter road trips (IE those to my regional capital two hours away) seem normal and not a big deal.
Brittany McGee 