I first hopped on a blue line bus in front of the Life Science Center on a Friday afternoon.
There were about five people on the bus, scattered in different rows. Passengers seemed largely solitary on their journeys, as each person was staring at their phone or listening to music with headphones in their ears and their belongings on the seat beside them. It was intimidating to consider disrupting the the silence between passengers, and I got a vibe that if I were to approach anyone, it would be a nuisance. A few minutes after I’d taken my seat the bus stopped again, and several of the riders climbed off in front of the Barnes and Noble, leaving myself and two other people still along for the ride. I realized the two people left were neither wearing earbuds nor staring at their phones. Score.
The first person I talked to was Saaid Arshad ’14Th’15. He told me that he’s heading to Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center. Arshad took the AT to make short trips to West Lebanon during his freshman year, he said, but it was his first time taking it to go to the hospital. He noted that it’s not exactly that he prefers using the AT for transportation — having a car on campus was preferable to catching the bus each time he needed to make his way into town.
Then Arshad had to get off at DHMC, and I continued my conversation with a gentleman who was sitting behind him.
This gentleman, who had to get off AT before I got to ask his name, said that he comes to the Feldberg Engineering and Business Library each day to do his work.
He said he normally comes to the library after eating lunch, but today he decided to be even more productive and headed to the library in the morning. When I was talking to him on the AT, he was heading back to his home in Timberwood Commons, Lebanon.
He said that the AT is extremely convenient and, in his opinion, almost rivals the convenience and punctuality of the public transportation in Europe. Back in Boston, he said, it was extremely hard to get around relying on public transportation.
The AT arrived at the entrance of Timberwood Commons just as we were talking about outdoor activities, and the gentleman had to get off.
Another man, this time hailing from London, got on the AT shortly after. He said he completed his Ph.D. in London and came to DHMC to continue his research. While talking to him, I found out that the building I went to for my class while I was doing a foreign study program in London was only a few blocks away from the building where he worked.
“Heater Road!” the driver announced, and this time I had to get off.
According to Google Maps, it takes just 16 minutes to walk to the FedEx shipping center from the Heater Road stop. I just had to walk back a little the way AT drove, turn right on Old Etna Road and follow the path until it connects to North Labombard Road.
When I came to an end of the road, I realized that I needed to walk across the highway in order to get to my destination — not a smart idea. To this day, I have no idea why Google Maps thought walking across the highway without any pedestrian signal is a viable option.
In most circumstances, I’d just turn around and wax poetically about the British dude for another 400 words — but I really had to send these documents that day or I might not able to start my internship when I go back home.
You can imagine the scene — I bolted across the highway, barely evading the cars whooshing to my left and right. Yes, employer, I’ll do anything for that internship.
OK, so that’s a stretch. Fortunately, a friend of mine — an angel, really — drove all the way to Heater Road to pick me up and drop me off at the FedEx shipping center.
I was able to send the documents that day, and just before I began drafting this story, I received a confirmation email that they had been received. What a relief — and I didn’t even have to sprint across a highway.
Unlike what my friend had expected, I asked him if he could drop me off at the Lebanon City Hall, so he did — though he looked extremely confused. Yes, nothing stops this reporter from continuing her AT adventure.
I was dropped in front of the Lebanon City Hall and waited for the bus that took me to the Walmart. After waiting for about 15 minutes, I grew impatient — and the cold weather didn’t help. So I asked a man who was standing at the stop if he knew when the red bus will arrive.
His name was Nick, and he told me that he takes the AT almost every day as he cannot drive due to a sight impairment. Since the AT does not operate on weekends, he said that he wanted to get out somewhere this afternoon while the bus was still operating. He was torn between going to a co-op in White River Junction, which he said has a variety of quality beers, and just going to Dunkin’ Donuts and picking up some beers from the stores nearby.
He told me that he planned to drive to Hanover with his mom this weekend to go to Thai Orchid. A regular parents’ weekend, I guess.
We boarded the red bus just a short bit later, and Nick got off in front of the Dunkin’ Donuts. Apparently the donuts won out.
I still have no idea what was on my mind back then, but I got off at the K-Mart thinking it was Walmart. Once again, I was met with the highway. Luckily, I wouldn’t have to dash across and weave between cars this time, and instead I simply had to follow along the sidewalk as I walked back.
After the FedEx crisis — compounded by biting cold wind — I finally made it to Walmart, only to find out that it did not have the type of ramen noodles I was looking for.
Oh well — I suppose it was time to head home.
The weather was a bit too merciless to be standing outside for much longer than 10 minutes, but I could not risk missing the bus back to Lebanon City Hall so I stood outside.
After a few minutes, a gentleman who was sitting on the bench at the stop moved over and offered me a seat. He asked me where I come from and if I came to America to become a doctor or an engineer — apparently both his daughter and son are engineers.
When I told him that I plan to be neither, he said that in whatever I do, he hopes that I will find a great job. What a nice guy.
Soon, the red bus arrived, and I was elated to find a blue bus waiting right at the Lebanon City Hall stop. I noticed that a lady waiting for the red bus with me was getting on the blue bus with me again. She told me that she went to Walmart for its clearance sale and now was heading back home on Lebanon Street in Hanover.
Her name was Pranamita, and she told me that she moved to Hanover with her husband a few months ago as he began his post-doctorate program in the College’s chemistry department. Prior to moving to Hanover, she and her husband lived in Calcutta where she studied computation.
Amidst all the errors and weather that I encountered that day, I managed to make it home safe.
If only I had some ramen to warm me up.
