Ahoy,
I used to ride the megabus pretty regularly on the east coast. I never knew a time before megabus, and I don't remember how I stumbled across their services. I would take it to visit my family in Boston over holidays, and my cousin in DC because I wanted to leave the city. I also took it to Philadelphia with visiting friends just to see more of this large country. Looking back, living in NYC - the most crowded place in the US - gave me many moments where I felt like the loneliest little ant in a big, big city. Getting away from the city to family was one of the saving graces that I always looked forward to amidst the work and school I was shuffling to and from every day. I relished those hours on the bus that would take me away from it all to something warm and familiar.
I was pleased when I heard that megabus was going to have another go at their west coast hub, but I could also see how it failed the first time. The NY hub had people going out to so many destinations - Philly, Pittsburgh, DC, Boston, Toronto, Baltimore etc. And for nearly all the lines they had trips out nearly every hour. Not only was frequency high, but ridership also seemed high. Most trips had people lined up, and only when I rode weird hours was the bus empty.
Nonetheless, I was happy to give it a try, especially because it was much cheaper than flying. Boarding in NY typically went without incident and quickly. They didn't even confirm your numbers, just glanced at the date/time. They either got more organized or decided they had to check, so in CA they actually check you off their manifest. From LA, you can get to Las Vegas, Oakland, SF, or Sacramento. They leave 3 times a day up to the Bay Area; I rode the 7 hours to Oakland. There was one stop along the way. I got a McDonald's happy meal because I wanted the toy. This hasn't happened since probably elementary school. Some things you can't grow out of. It came with a book about a goat that learns to eat healthy. I would fall for this marketing ploy on the way up and receive another book about a traveling dodo.
Both my buses to and from were pretty packed, which I'd like to think is a good sign that they will continue to offer their bus services here. All the drivers I've encountered here seem to enjoy their jobs. My guess is that the companies they worked for prior to megabus were not as nice.
Landing in Oakland was great. The air was much more crisp, as were the leaves. The trees were ablaze with the changing of the seasons. It was refreshing and life-affirming. The only seasonal changes in LA are daylight savings. I feel like it's a unique type of torture to make each day the same as the next.
quizzically fallen,
jt
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