Going Public

My partner starts his new job in Perth City this week, so we could no longer put off our promise to try out the public transport system. You see, I haven't got my driver's license yet, so once he starts work, I would need to be able to get around on my own for errands or entertainment. Also, because it is so expensive and crowded to drive to the city, he will be driving to a train station, and riding the train to the city.

Nobody we know takes public transport in Perth, and I'd already become used to the bewildered stares I get whenever I ask our friends questions like "is it close to the train station?", or "do you know what bus I can take to the library?", so I was bracing myself for the worst. I'd expect it to be really *dodgy, with broken seats and poor ventilation. But hey, I come from Singapore and taking the bus is second nature to me, so it shouldn't be anything I couldn't handle ;)

We walked about 3 minutes in the blazing sun, following the newly, and thankfully reinstated Google Maps to get to our bustop. When Mr Bauer pointed out that it should be just ahead of us, I squinted in puzzlement, because all I saw was a field with what looked like an ad for a mayor of sorts. 

"It looks like an ad, babe." I commented. 

"Honey, it's a bench. This is it, our bustop."

Thankfully, that would be the last of our surprise, and I made a mental note to bring my UV protection umbrella next time I need to take a bus.  The bus we took was clean and the bus driver was so helpful in explaining the ticket and fare to us. The train was also stunning! Extremely clean and well maintained, with front facing cushioned seats. The commute to the city took us about 30 minutes in total, and cost us under $4 each; probably about the same as parking, but we can stay in town for as long as we like, and we could skip the rush hour traffic jam, and travel fatigue.

We spent the time in the city setting up our Transperth SmartRider card (ez-link) and activating autoload with our bank account to get 25% reduction in fares (hurray!), and also having this:

Tsukemen - literally means "dipping noodles"

And I spent the entire time jabbing Mr Bauer for having never taken the public transport before and being a complete tourist like me!

*dodgy

adjective

1. (Brit., Austral., & N.Z) nasty, offensive, unpleasant, revolting, distasteful, repellent, unsavoury, obnoxious, repulsive, objectionable, repugnant He was a bit of a dodgy character.

2. (Brit., Austral., & N.Z) risky, difficult, tricky, dangerous, delicate, uncertain, problematic(al), unreliable, dicky (Brit. informal), dicey (informal, chiefly Brit.), ticklish, chancy (informal) Predicting voting trends is a dodgy business.

3. second rate, poor, inferior, mediocre, shoddy, low-grade, low-quality, substandard, for the birds (informal), pants (slang), end-of-the-pier (Brit. informal), rubbishy, piss-poor (slang), bush-league (Austral. & N.Z. informal), half-pie (N.Z. informal) cheap hotels and dodgy food