*miserychick is actually happy

To call it an adventure is a bit over the top, since it was really just a long bus ride.  But as a frequent air travel patron, taking a long haul bus, when the Toronto City Airport is only a mere 5-minute walk away from our apartment, is quite a shift in our routine. Here’s a rundown of the whole trip, in case, u know, anyone is wondering. By the way, going this route saved us about $400, a significant chunk of cash, but it does take a lot of time.

We woke up at an ungodly hour of 7:30 on a Sunday morning to go stand in line at the bus station.  We had no idea it was gonna be this busy (who wakes up at 7:30 on a *Sunday*?).  While in line, I thought that maybe I’ll just tweet my whole trip.  It started off being quite exciting, but then tapered off a bit, as there really isn’t much to say about a moving bus.  But here they are.

From Sunday, August 16th 2009:

around 7:40 am @ Toronto bus station on Bay Street:


8:30 am, all aboard the bus, we got the last two seats in the back, just outside of the lavatory. You get used to the smell after a while

inside the Greyhound, a bit more legroom than flying economy…

10:08 AM: “just spotted a great road sign in Niagara: “The Falls, follow 420″ (highway, that is)”

10:16 AM: “oww, just passed niagara falls! now at the border, gonna have to get out and stand in line…”

10:21 AM – tourism wasteland in Niagara:

10:23 AM – And this is my first time ever seeing Niagara Falls

> It is a very impressive nature’s show of force – even from a bus window. I will have to make my way to actually visiting the falls some time, hopefully when it’s warm.

10:49 AM – traffic at the u.s. border, the bus has it’s own lane though (whew!)

10:52 AM – well that border crossing was painless, dunno what Mark was making a big fuss about. and I got to use a clean bathroom!

> This was actually the first time Mark and I crossed the border together, as in, walking up to the immigration counter together. Usually we go separately because I have a U.S. passport and Mark has a U.S. Greencard. And usually, Mark will end up getting stopped, questioned, searched and sometimes detained for a while. Me, on the other hand, had never had to answer more than 3 questions at any border crossing (at any country). So this time we walked up together, I showed my passport first, then after two questions, we were both off and on our way.

11:11 AM – just got a ‘welcome to the US’ sms from Rogers – international roaming charge *only* $1.45 per minute. bloody telco.

11:24 AM – driving along large bodies of water is very calming (somewhere upstate ny)

12:14 PM – leaving Buffalo, next stop Syracuse eta in 2 hrs & 20 min. Bus driver: you folks don’t tell anyone I get there that quickly. (me: ok!)

2:29 PM stopping in Syracuse. I fell half-asleep for two hours, really could have used a neck pillow.

3:14 PM had a luxurious foot-long Subway sandwich for lunch – haven’t ordered at Subway in years – so many choices, none particularly appetizing.

3:16 PM – and now direct route from Syracuse to Penn Station, NYC. Back to work. (We love having these power plugs!)

4:32 PM – now in the pretty state (?) of Pennsylvania. Watching an episode of Burn Notice.

5:11 PM – looks like our bus is taking the scenic route, haven’t seen the highway in a while:

6:07 PM – such a nice summer [day] in the northeast, all the way from Toronto to, now, Scranton, PA (hello the Office!)… the bus is cold as a fridge tho.

6:19 PM – taking a short pit stop along rt 940 – in Pocono, I think…

6:27 PM – leg room + electrical outlet = traveling in style:

7:52 PM – now entering the tunnel!

7:59 PM – coming up to Penn station now! Hellooo New York Citaay!

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Overall – I would say I recommend the bus ride if you don’t mind spending the day (or night, as we are about to do tonight) getting there. It’s civilized and painless.

Posted on Monday, 24 August 2009 at 14:24 UTC