X-treme Nightbus Driving

The quest for new ways to stimulate the glands that produce human adrenaline has found in India a very fertile breeding ground. From the relatively old-fashioned wild water rafting to exotic elephant safaris including breakfast with tigers, visitors are offered a wide range of shortcuts to the cemetery. All this said, my particular choice is what I called X-treme Nightbus Driving.

What you need:

• 1x Old shabby bus
• 3x Insane Indian men (1x Driver, 2x Assistants)
• All the Gods with you

The Game:
Some private bus companies (a.k.a. one big belly man) buy relatively luxurious buses and put them on the road along with three guys with no much to lose. These madmen are requested to drive the so-called 'coffins on wheels' covering a more or less regular itinerary consisting of as many stops as potential customers are found on the way.

Last week I had the chance to share one of these rides between Jodhpur and Udaipur two cities separated by 300 km of Rajasthani desert. The estimated 'fly' time was 5 hours, but after two incidental stops (imaginatively solved with a little bit of rubber and tape) it raised to 7 hr.

I managed to capture one of the most exciting bits of the ride with my camera (I was kindly invited to the front seat for better shooting angle). As it can be seen in the video, the super-skilled driver attempts to overtake other buses in the course of a mountain climb. Not surprisingly, fellow drivers would try to do the same (in both directions), and here is where the two assistants come into play. Their mission consists in yelling and whistling at the other drivers to let them know who rules on the road. Top speeds can rise up to 120-140km/h regardless of the state of the road.

Although the whole thing might sound funny, many of these men (and passengers) die every year (e.g. 40px. last week). For that reason from now on I'll try to take trains instead!

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La semana pasada cogi un bus 'para turistas' entre Jodhpur y Udaipur. Fue un viaje movidito y lleno de visicitudes (paradas tecnicas que se resolvian con un poco de goma y cinta aislante). El tremendo desprecio por la vida humana mostrado por los conductores me ha hecho replantearme el transporte que utilizare de ahora en adelante; siempre que sea posible: ¡tren!.