Travelling Without Moving

I guess it’s been a while since I’ve been able to devote myself to just sitting down and taking the time to blog. I suppose you could amount it to a combination of laziness and housework. Not only do I work all day, but I arrive back to my Basement at the end of the day and then make dinner. After that’s all done, usually, all I want to do is be lazy and do nothing!

Anyway, I gave myself a kick in the butt to get some stuff written.

First off: today is the first day of the smoking ban! Although many people have criticized the new law, I’m very excited by it… no longer will I avoid going to bars because of the smoky air. Now even I can enjoy going out once in a while! Now all I need is someone to go to a bar with…! That shouldn’t be too hard. Mike is coming to visit this weekend and I’m sure he won’t object to having a pint at the local “Monkey Joe’s”. The only reason I want to go to this bar is because of its name… kind of reminiscent of “Shoeless Joe’s”, isn’t it?

One thing I’ve been meaning to talk about is the transportation systems around Ottawa. Since my arrival in Ottawa, I’ve experienced buses, taxis and the occasional trip in a car. Each of these has been an experience (or two). First of all, I have to say I’m really glad that the right on red rule was never implemented in Montreal. By my experience, this rule is a real pain in urban centers. With people always turning right, the intersections are always blocked and during rush hour, you may have to wait three or four light cycles before you can pass through the intersection.

The buses can be totally unpredictable… don’t be fooled by the sheer volume of city buses you see passing all the time! The one you are waiting for is not there! And just because it took one route to get you to a destination, doesn’t mean it will take that same route to take you back. There have been a couple cases where I had to wander around for a while before I found the bus that would take me back to the suburbs… hw was I supposed to know that the #3 heads downtown on Queen and returns on Albert?! Well, taking the city bus at rush hours is usually a pretty safe bet. There are lots of buses. But if you want to grab a bus after 9:00 pm, chances are you’ll be waiting an hour between buses. And when you don’t know your way around very well, it’s hard to know what your other options are. I have yet to complete a successful city bus trip from the Greyhound bus station. The first time I arrived back in Ottawa, I discovered that the bus I wanted to take didn’t run after 6:30 pm on Sundays. The second time, I had figured out an alternate route but I missed my transfer bus by about 20 seconds. The next one did not come for another hour. Anyway, both times I ended up taking a cab home.

Speaking of cabs, I can’t figure them out, either. In Montreal, it’s so easy to see whether a cab is available or not. Just look at the sign on it. If it’s lit, it’s available. If it’s dark, it’s taken. In Ottawa, the lights are off during the day, and on at night. So if you see a cab coming, you won’t know if it’s available or not until it passes you and you’ve been able to look into the back seat and see if someone’s sitting there or not. Of course by that time, the taxi’s gone past and you’ve missed your ride. For catching a cab, your best bet is to find a location where the cabs line up, waiting for passengers to come to them. And good luck doing that when you don’t know exactly where you are! Oh yeah, and there was one cabbie that wanted to buy me coffee!

So: my evaluation of public transportation in Ottawa: treacherous!