Chicken Bus

I've been waiting for the right time to capture the "chicken bus" experience. Basically, the chicken bus is a cheap and painfully slow way to travel across Guatemala. (This isn't unique to Guatemala, many other countries use this sort of thing.) 90% of the buses are old buses taken from the U.S.--the big yellow school bus most of us took to school at some point. The buses have been repainted and instead of carrying 2 or 3 to a seat, they are expected to carry 4 in the seat and 2 in the aisle if necessary. But, for $3.00 you can travel 1.5 hours (fares are based on destination not time).

Well, before the bus takes off from a terminal, a lot of people come aboard to sell peanuts, beverages, newspapers, etc. From then on, there are little stops along the road the speed of which can, at times, rival a NASCAR pit stop--people get on, off, luggage taken off the top, put on. Often the rear door isn't closed before the bus starts moving. The ayudante (basically the person in charge of collecting money and coordinating stops) often hangs onto the ladder outside and shuts the door later.

So, why THIS chicken bus experience? At this small stop we picked up a preacher! He preached for probably 30 minutes (in Spanish, of course). This particular bus was about 70% full. I'm standing in front of the rear exit with one hand grasping the luggage rack and the other my camera. I hope the video gives a glimpse into the world of 2nd class transportation.

*If you wait till the end of the video, we hit a bump and I accidentally knock Rose, my travel partner, in the head.