Beattys Overseas

I followed Aunt Rose Marie's advice and rang up her dear pal of many years James Ferguson.  James lives in a beautiful area of London called Holland Park .  He offered to have Whitney and I to lunch in Notting Hill, at a Pub directly opposite the Kensington Police Station.  How appropriate!!  Well, Whitney wasn't feeling so well, so I went solo.  Wanting to save $89.00 U.S. in taxi fees (and be as much like a local as possible) I tried to grab the bus to Notting Hill over on Chamberlain Rd. near the Ford's house.   I stood patiently at the stop - which was clearly marked - for about 15 minutes, waiting for the thing to pick me up.  I then realized that I was on the wrong side of the street, since the traffic here is opposite, errr... and needing to head in the correct direction, I risked life and limb, crossing just in time to be waiting for the bus as it approached.   The bus driver passed right by me.   I ran after him for about 100 yards, where the bus was now stopped at a red light.   I tapped angrily on the door, watching the driver slowly turn his head towards me, look me right in the eyes, and quickly step on the gas as the light turned green. I was left in a cloud of doubledecker fumes.  I thought I was back in New York!

Well, I caught up to him at the next stop (2 blocks further up the Road).  Steamed, literally and figuratively, I entered the bus and told him where I needed to go.  He said he knew where it was, and that it was just up the Road.  Well, I stood  near the front for about 2 minutes when he told me, as if I were 5 years old to "sit down, and I'll tell ya when you need to get off."  He then proceeded yell out my stop, along with a helpful woman who'd overheard our diologue.  I got off the bus and realized that I was a wee bit short of my destination, though.   According to the two chaps that I asked directions from on the street I only needed to go about a mile or so further up the hill, it seemed.  

Anyway, I made it to the pub, where James was waiting patiently, and had one of the best afternoons I could have asked for.  James was charming and hysterically funny.  He had so many great stories that the lies that I tried to tell paled in comparison to his true tales of adventure.   Thank you James for the fantastic lunch and the pints and the stories.  It was well worth coming to meet you.  I know now why Rose Marie holds you so dear to her heart!  See you again soon.

BTW: I told Jon and Vanessa about it my bus incident.   It seems that one needs to not only be at the bus stop in London, but to wave the driver down as well if actually you want him to stop.  If you are standing by yourself.  Or if you're in a group.  Or something like that.  I should figure that out before we try to catch a London bus again. 

Editor's Note 31 Oct:  I found this on the web:

Hailing A Bus [In London]

Some bus stops that for some reason are deemed less important are labelled 'request stops'. The only difference with these is that it is necessary to stick out an arm for a couple of seconds in order to request that the bus stop for you. In practice it is usually a good idea to stick out your arm politely whenever you intend to board an oncoming bus. In the case of night buses this is doubly necessary, and passengers travelling very late at night are advised to stick out their arm in plenty of time and to keep it out until they see the bus indicating to pull over. Meanwhile, some of the more unusual bus routes have Hail and Ride sections, along which the bus can be hailed from a number of stopping places. Signs marking recommended stopping places are scattered along these sections and act as minor bus stops, and are the best places to hail the bus from.

Despite being hailed, bus drivers can use one of several reasons not to stop for you, and may even accelerate a little in order to prove their point. The bus may be overloaded or at risk of being overloaded due to the number of people waiting at the stop, or the driver may be near the end of his route and will simply decide not to bother stopping. Other reasons include a slightly emptier bus being right behind the one you are hailing, or that you weren't quite at the bus stop when you stuck your hand out and so all the running you did simply wasn't worth it. Meanwhile, there are those irritating buses which display the route number you are waiting for, but read 'Sorry! Not in service'.

- John