At around 07.00 am the bus is ready to leave. The bus’ electric starting device is broken, so the bus has to be pushed to start. That is a good start of this budding ride. The road from San Jose to Roxas is as bad as you can get. During the wet season the road is impassable, and the passengers must travel a part of this stretch by boat. But it is the dry season now, so the ride seems to be possible. Just after we left San Jose, we know what local people mean with a bad road. It is a bumpy and sandy path and sometimes very steep. We can imagine that this road is impassable if it has changed to a muddy piste after rainfall. But the bus, and also the driver, seems to like this kind of environment. With snoring engine the bus parries the road while the passengers are giving a shaking. Because of the lack of windows, the bus fills once in a while with dust. Most passengers took precautionary measures, by tying fabrics around their head. It looks like we are sharing the bus with a bunch of robbers.

The ride looks a little bit like a ride with a rollercoaster. Halfway the ride, an extra element of excitement is added. A jeepney is driving in front of us, causing an immense amount of dust in our bus. A jeepney is a crossing between a jeep and a truck, also carrying passengers. In the linear direction of the back are benches constructed, on where the passengers take a seat. And as usual, as many people as possible are stuffed in it. Of course, the roof is also used to accommodate passengers and luggage. But because the jeepney is smaller than a bus, it is often also less comfortable. The funny looking jeepney is often painted in bright colours and is unique for the Philippines. Our driver is determined to pass the jeepney, just to make our ride more bearable; after all, the dust is immense. Bus as you would expect, the jeepney driver isn’t fancy either on eating dust. A race for the first position is ready to start. When new passengers along the road want to ride with the bus, they really have to jump on the bus in a second of time. The bus assistants work as hard as possible to reach the first position. New passengers, also the old ones, are pushed on the bus and their luggage is slung on the roof. But also the jeepney has to stop once in a while to load up new passengers. And during one of these moments, our bus is able to pass the jeepney. A cheering sound fills the bus. But soon after, the bus assistants are having a dilemma. On the side of the road stands a man and an engine. He likes to go with the bus, but the bus assistants know that it takes a lot of time to load the engine on the bus. The jeepney is still close behind us, so the bus assistants decide, after a short deliberation, to let this passenger go. The first position is more important than one additional passenger.