This week’s topic is transportation. Your experience of transportation may be similar to what you have back home, but it can also be very different depending on where you come from and where you will be staying in the USA.
1. Ground transportation: If you end up in a major city, you will easily find the following forms of transportation: train, trolley, subway and buses. They function just like anywhere else in the world; all you have to do is purchase a ticket that allows you to ride from point A to point B. I personally rode the Subway in Philadelphia (Broad St. Line) and the MARTA in Atlanta. It is quite easy to navigate if you can read a map and have a sense of directions.
2. Buses: Smaller cities and towns use buses as an alternative for transportation and it is not uncommon to come across people who have never rode a train before.
City/ school: Some cities offer bus services that take you around the city. Some schools do the same thing. Western Kentucky University for example offers a couple of different bus routes that take you from off campus apartments to the school, to the mall, to the grocery store, and more… To be honest, I didn’t really need a car when I went to school there because the bus system was on point.
Greyhound/Megabus: These are private charter buses that take you from one city to another. You can literally take the Greyhound bus from New York City to Miami, FL! Beware though; taking one of these charter buses will take you way longer than driving because of all the stops, changes of bus and/or driver etc… I took the Greyhound a couple of times to go from Nashville, TN to Johnson City, TN and to Savannah, GA. I also took the Megabus once to go to Washington DC. I have no complaints about it and it is cheaper than flying.
3. Automobile: I am always in my car driving somewhere (clearly I love road trips). The country is huge so everything is SPREAD OUT and a walk to the nearest convenience store can easily take you 40~50 minutes one way. At first I used to miss walking because I was just so used to walking to school, to the grocery store and all, but you get used to it. Moreover, people in the US are pretty cool about giving rides when you really need to go somewhere. Just ask nicely and try to participate in gas money because gas isn’t always this cheap ha!
Do not hesitate to share your experience (s) of transportation in the US or anywhere else in the world in the comments below:)
Live Life Fully,
France Mkb