Travel Sized Bites.
A selection of short stories submitted by visitors to the site between 500-1000 words
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brazilian bus – ‘way to go’
By Author: Tony Annis
E-mail: tony@annis.co.uk
Submitted on Wednesday 4th April 2001
The press of a crowd, mothers hanging on to their children, luggage of all shapes and sizes, the tannoy announcing that the 2340 for Vitoria was leaving from Gate 129 in five minutes; the bustle and excitement of a people on the move – It all reminded me of a busy international airport. It wasn’t – This was the Rodoviario or Bus Station of Rio de Janeiro with its more than 150 Gates. Brazil has few trains and the buses are the way most people travel, they leave and arrive on time and the Brazilians are justifiably proud of this and it sets them apart from the rest of South America. A thought; maybe they should run our trains?
Every town has its Rodoviario so it is an ideal way to travel through this vast country but even more important for the traveller is that there are four different types of buses. First is the usual ordinary bus, not air-conditioned but comfortable seats, in any case you should book ahead or you might have to stand for hours. I have travelled many miles on these buses and for short journeys of two or three hours they are, OK. The second choice is a sort of executive bus, a little more in price but it has seats that recline more, plus air-conditioning, better suspension and a toilet. My choice when I need to travel any distance: is to travel over night in a Leito (sleeper). The Leito bus has the comfort of seats that extend practically full length, self-service coffee and cold mineral water plus all the comforts of an executive coach. Finally the Golden bus is a combination of the executive and leito and probably ideal for very long journeys and sometimes has video or TV.
There are many bus companies in Brazil and to most main towns; the traveller will have the choice of most of these four types of buses to get to their destination. I do drive and have driven in Brazil but I find the simplest, the cheapest, the most practical way to move long distances is by bus and only on arrival will I hire a bicycle, car or some other form of transport.The bus and the plane replace the train and the most expensive bus is much cheaper than the plane.